Stato di benessere delle popolazioni di cetacei e marangone dal ciuffo nel nord Sardegna

The aim of this research study was to assess the welfare of two endangered wildlife species inhabiting the coastal area of north east Sardinia, the Bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) and the European shag (Phalacrocorax aristotelis desmarestii). In both cases, population size and interactions with human activities were evaluated in the waters within 3 miles from the coast of the would be ‘Bocche di Bonifacio’ International Park. Bottlenose dolphin population size was estimated in 96 individuals. Behavioural observations indicated a strong interaction between bottlenose dolphin and fisheries, mostly when trammel nets fishery targeting striped red mullet were used. Concentration of organo-chloride compounds in the bubbler of stranded animals evidenced that values are comparable to those found in small cetacean inhabiting Spanish coastal areas. The presence of morbillivirus infection among the population was detected. European shag breeding pairs in the studied area were 483 in 2007. Each pair raised a mean of 1.53 fledglings. Birds found entangled in fishing nets were mostly represented by adult males. Sex ratio was determined during two consecutive reproductive seasons by DNA analysis. Obtained data evidenced that, within fledglings, males accounted for the 60% of the population. This results suggest that feeding behaviour differed between sexes and that sex ratio was adjusted because of the high mortality of males in the fishing nets. This study demonstrated that the integration of data from different disciplinary activities can contribute to the identification of the principal threats affecting target species within a protected area. This information will represent a powerful toll in designing future conservation strategies

Caso Estudio: Criterios de implementación ISO 14001:2015 Sector Siderúrgico.

Caso Estudio: Criterios de implementación ISO 14001:2015 Sector Siderúrgico.Acerías Paz del Río es una de las empresas más importantes a nivel nacional dedicada a la industria siderúrgica, una de sus principales fortalezas en el mercado es su gran preocupación por desarrollar un sistema de gestión de ambiental cumpliendo con lo dispuesto en la norma del ISO 14000:2015. Con el objetivo de evaluar el índice de cumplimiento de lo dispuesto en la norma señalada, se realizó una visita a la empresa Acerías Paz del Río S.A. donde se efectuó una revisión ambiental de los procesos productivos de la misma, esto con el fin de establecer los aspectos e impactos ambientales de cada actividad desarrollada. En este sentido, se evaluó el alcance del sistema actual determinando las necesidades de la comunidad aledaña, los objetivos de la alta dirección, el grado de conocimiento de los empleados en la implementación de la política ambiental de la compañía entre otros aspectos. Igualmente, se realizó una revisión actualizada de la normatividad ambiental que debe cumplir la empresa de acuerdo a su actividad productiva estableciendo los aspectos administrativos y técnicos que deben implementar para cumplir cada una de las normas de una manera efectiva y dinámica. Después de realizada esta revisión, se establecieron dos aspectos ambientales a los cuales se les generó un plan de mejora continua basado en el esquema del ciclo Deming (Planificar-Hacer-Verificar-Actuar). Finalmente, se establecieron recomendaciones generales con el fin de mejorar el sistema de gestión actual enfocados en las no conformidad halladas y que deben ser corregidas lo más pronto posibl

Ejaculate collection efficiency and post-thaw semen quality in wild-caught Griffon vultures from the Sardinian population

This study aimed to test the feasibility of a programme of semen collection and cryopreservation in Griffon vultures. Four wild-caught individuals kept in captivity because of unrecoverable traumas were used. Semen collection attempts were made twice a week during three consecutive reproductive seasons (December – March) using the abdominal massage method. Ejaculation was successfully induced between late January and late February. Semen collection efficiency was rather low (27.9%) and it did not vary among individuals (p > 0.05). No differences were found in ejaculate volumes (12.5 +/- 9.1 μl), spermatozoa concentration (28.4 +/- 30.9 million cells/ml) and viability (61.3 +/- 13.9%) among the 4 vultures. ATP values differed among the four vultures (p < 0.001); B showed higher nucleotide concentration than both C and D, while it did not differ form A, whose values were higher compared with D. After freezing and thawing, semen in vitro viability, DNA integrity and ATP intracellular concentration were determined. Spermatozoa viability after thawing did not differ among the four individuals (52.6 +/- 5.8 in A, 53.4 +/- 4.6 in B, 50.4 +/- 3.2 in C, 42.5 +/- 2.7 in D), but it decreased significantly compared to fresh semen (p < 0.05). During 4 hrs in vitro culture, spermatozoa collected from B maintained over time a higher viability in vitro when compared to A, C and D. As evaluated by the comet assay method, DNA fragmentation after freezing and thawing did not differ in the 4 vultures. ATP concentration in frozen/thawed semen was significantly lower than in fresh semen (p < 0.0001). This study indicates that semen cryopreservation can be considered as a useful tool in the conservation of Griffon vulture genetic resources, but further studies are needed to optimize this technique

Livelli di inquinanti organici persistenti in stenelle (<i>Stenella coeruleoalba</i>) spiaggiate nel nord Sardegna = Concentration of persistent organic pollutants in striped dolphin (<i>Stenella coeruleoalba</i>) stranded in North Sardinia

Long-lived apex predators, such as marine mammals, are particularly at risk from effects of persistent organic pollutants (POPs), e.g. polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and dichlorodiphenylethanes (e.g. DDT), due to bioaccumulation and biomagnification. POPs are lipophilic compounds that tend to accumulate in the lipid-rich blubber. In marine mammals, POPs enter the body almost exclusively through the diet. In the present study, the levels of PCBs and DDTs in the blubber of striped dolphin stranded in North Sardinia were determined. Our results showed that pollutant concentration are related to age and sex of the individuals. Considering the well known harmful consequences of bioaccumulation of POPs in marine mammals, further studies are needed to determine which POPs might be linked to effects on health

Effects of vessel traffic on relative abundance and behaviour of cetaceans : the case of the bottlenose dolphins in the Archipelago de La Maddalena, north-western Mediterranean sea

Acknowledgements This study was part of the Tursiops Project of the Dolphin Research Centre of Caprera, La Maddalena. Financial and logistical support was provided by the Centro Turistico Studentesco (CTS) and by the National Park of the Archipelago de La Maddalena. We thank the Natural Reserve of Bocche di Bonifacio for the support provided during data collection. The authors thank the numerous volunteers of the Caprera Dolphin Research Centre and especially Marco Ferraro, Mirko Ugo, Angela Pira and Maurizio Piras whose assistance during field observation and skills as a boat driver were invaluable.Peer reviewedPostprin

The adhesion molecule L1 regulates transendothelial migration and trafficking of dendritic cells

The adhesion molecule L1, which is extensively characterized in the nervous system, is also expressed in dendritic cells (DCs), but its function there has remained elusive. To address this issue, we ablated L1 expression in DCs of conditional knockout mice. L1-deficient DCs were impaired in adhesion to and transmigration through monolayers of either lymphatic or blood vessel endothelial cells, implicating L1 in transendothelial migration of DCs. In agreement with these findings, L1 was expressed in cutaneous DCs that migrated to draining lymph nodes, and its ablation reduced DC trafficking in vivo. Within the skin, L1 was found in Langerhans cells but not in dermal DCs, and L1 deficiency impaired Langerhans cell migration. Under inflammatory conditions, L1 also became expressed in vascular endothelium and enhanced transmigration of DCs, likely through L1 homophilic interactions. Our results implicate L1 in the regulation of DC trafficking and shed light on novel mechanisms underlying transendothelial migration of DCs. These observations might offer novel therapeutic perspectives for the treatment of certain immunological disorders

A spatially explicit risk assessment approach: Cetaceans and marine traffic in the Pelagos Sanctuary (Mediterranean Sea)

15 páginas, 5 figuras, 2 tablas.-- This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are creditedSpatially explicit risk assessment is an essential component of Marine Spatial Planning (MSP), which provides a comprehensive framework for managing multiple uses of the marine environment, minimizing environmental impacts and conflicts among users. In this study, we assessed the risk of the exposure to high intensity vessel traffic areas for the three most abundant cetacean species (Stenella coeruleoalba, Tursiops truncatus and Balaenoptera physalus) in the southern area of the Pelagos Sanctuary, which is the only pelagic Marine Protected Area (MPA) for marine mammals in the Mediterranean Sea. In particular, we modeled the occurrence of the three cetacean species as a function of habitat variables in June by using hierarchical Bayesian spatial-temporal models. Similarly, we modelled the marine traffic intensity in order to find high risk areas and estimated the potential conflict due to the overlap with the cetacean home ranges. Results identified two main hot-spots of high intensity marine traffic in the area, which partially overlap with the area of presence of the studied species. Our findings emphasize the need for nationally relevant and transboundary planning and management measures for these marine speciesThis work was supported by the “Banco di Sardegna” Foundation (BAN6077)Peer reviewe

Análisis del desempeño del Régimen de Administración por Cuotas Individuales Transferibles de Captura, período 2013-2015

El objetivo del trabajo es analizar el desempeño del régimen de Cuotas Individuales Transferibles de Captura (CITC) en las cuatro especies inicialmente cuotificadas, durante el período 2013-2015. La principal fuente de información es el informe anual de gestión del régimen de administración por CITC, elaborado por la Subsecretaría de Pesca y Acuicultura (SSPyA), perteneciente al Ministerio de Agroindustria (MAI). Las empresas tuvieron un comportamiento más estable con respecto a los primeros años de implementación del sistema, demostrando una mejor adaptación de las mismas al régimen. El desembarque total de las especies no superó nunca el límite establecido por la Captura Máxima Permisible (CMP). No se observaron cambios significativos en la cantidad de buques y de empresas, excepto en merluza común en donde se produjeron salidas constantes de ambos. Durante el período analizado, se aplicaron las primeras penalizaciones a buques y se permitió, en merluza de cola y merluza común, la devolución temporal de CITC al Consejo Federal Pesquero (CFP). Estos mecanismos generaron un incremento del cupo de CITC disponible para ser asignado discrecionalmente, dando lugar a comportamientos especulativos por parte de algunos agentes. No obstante, los cambios en el régimen dinamizaron la reasignación de CITC a empresas con intenciones de aumentar sus capturas. Las transferencias realizadas en las mayoría de los casos no fueron significativas con respecto a las CMP.Fil: Rotta, Lautaro Daniel. Instituto Nacional de Investigación y Desarrollo Pesquero (INIDEP); Argentina.Fil: Pagani, Andrea N. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Económicas y Sociales; Argentina.Fil: Gualdoni, Patricia. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Económicas y Sociales; Argentina.Fil: Baltar, Fabiola. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Económicas y Sociales; Argentina

Análisis de las transferencias de cuota por grupos de empresas en el Régimen de CITC. El caso de la pesquería de merluza (Merluccius hubbsi), unidad de manejo correspondiente al efectivo sur del 41º S

El objetivo del informe es describir la evolución y los efectos del mecanismo de transferencia de las Cuotas Individuales Transferibles de Captura (CITC) en distintos grupos de empresas que participan en la pesquería de merluza común de la unidad de manejo del efectivo sur del paralelo 41º S. La fuente de datos utilizada son los Informes de Gestión del Régimen de Administración por CITC de la Subsecretaría de Pesca y Acuicultura (SSPyA) y el período de análisis fue 2010-2015. Se clasificaron a las empresas en diferentes grupos, aplicando de manera descriptiva el método multivariado Análisis de Componentes Principales (ACP) sobre variables relacionadas con la escala de producción de merluza. Se identificaron tres grupos de empresas: "productores de gran escala", "productores de mediana escala" y "productores de pequeña escala". Los distintos tipos de empresas realizaron transacciones de cuota con regularidad. Las empresas adoptaron distintas estrategias, según su escala de producción, en cuanto a la adquisición o cesión de cuotas. El mecanismo de transferencias aportó flexibilidad, eficiencia y favoreció una reducción autogestionada de la flota, con distinto grado de intensidad en los tres grupos de empresas. Se modificó la participación relativa de las empresas en el Régimen de CITC: los productores con mayor escala de producción ganaron participación, en tanto que los productores con menor escala mantuvieron o redujeron su participación.Fil: Rotta, Lautaro Daniel. Instituto Nacional de Investigación y Desarrollo Pesquero (INIDEP); Argentina.Fil: Pagani, Andrea N. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Económicas y Sociales; Argentina.Fil: Bertolotti, María Isabel. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Económicas y Sociales; Argentina.Fil: Baltar, Fabiola. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Económicas y Sociales; Argentina

Interaction between bottlenose dolphin (<i>Tursiops truncatus</i>) and trammel nets in the Archipelago de La Maddalena, Italy

Interactions between bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) and fisheries are an increasing problem in the Mediterranean and effective management measures are needed. In order to assess the impact of dolphin interactions on artisanal trammel nets, we examine 354 fishing operations performed in waters of the Archipelago de La Maddalena (Italy). We evaluate whether interactions were related to the species composition of the catch and, using the local commercial value of the target species, we assess whether there was a real economic loss for fishermen. Bayesian models and partial correspondence analysis were used to determine the extent to which dolphin interactions and habitat differences contributed to variation in the species composition of catches. CPUE for fishing operations with no dolphin interactions was significantly higher than that for operations with dolphin interactions, although clearly this does not confirm a direct causal link, and associated economic loss was estimated to be non-significant. Geographic location, season, depth of seabed, moon phase, and mesh size were all important factors affecting the amount and species composition of the catch. Our results suggest that it is likely that these differences in species composition are due to a mixture of habitat and dolphin-induced effects