The demersal fish assemblages of the infra and circalittoral coastal rocky bottoms of the Aeolian Archipelago (Central Mediterranean Sea) studied by Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV)

Demersal fish assemblages on the rocky bottoms of the Aeolian Archipelago were investigated using a Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) within the framework of research activities aimed at drawing up the zoning proposal for a new Italian national marine protected area. Visual assessments were conducted around the seven main islands by means of 36 ROV transects. The video material was divided into 3 parts belonging to 3 Archipelago sectors (Western, Central and Eastern) and into 3 depth ranges (20-50, 51-120, 121-190). Thirty taxa of teleosts (29 species and 1 genus) belonging to 16 families were recorded. The assemblages werenumerically dominated by some schooling fishes, such as Anthias anthias, Callanthias ruber and Chromis chromis that exhibited adepth-related partitioning of space, and three non-gregarious species, namely Serranus cabrilla, Coris julis and Lappanella fasciata.In terms of species composition, the assemblages observed in the sectors of the Archipelago largely overlapped. No significant sector-related differences were detected in fish species richness, diversity and total density. Species composition and the investigated assemblage parameters were significantly affected by depth. The pattern of variation in species richness among depth rangesdiffered from one archipelago sector to another. No significant interaction between the depth range and sector factors was observed in terms of species diversity and total density. Diversity values at 20-50 and 121-190 m depth were similar and significantly higher than at 51-120 m depth. Fish total density showed a clear downward trend with increasing depth, although significant differences were detected between the 20-50 and 51-120 depth layers and the deepest one. Overall, the demersal fish assemblage of the Aeolian Archipelago was poorly diversified and depleted, most likely due to overfishing. This information highlights the importanceof adopting specific measures aimed at the recovery of overexploited resources and the restoration of entire marine ecosystems

Gospodarski ulov, reprodukcija i prehrambene navike raže zvjezdopjege Raja asterias (Chondrichthyes: Rajidae) u priobalju Tirenskog mora (Italija, sjeverni Mediteran)

A total of 52 “rapido” (towed toothed beam gears) trawls were monitored in late winter-summer of the 1999-2000 period to assess the R. asterias size structure at this time of higher yields as well as 36 fishing operations performed by “volantina” (trawl nets with fairly high vertical opening) during distinct seasons on the continental shelf off the fishing harbour of Fiumicino (central western Italy) to gain data also for that gear. Daily yields recorded for the only boat locally authorised to use “rapido” nets gave median values of 32.0 individuals and 24.35 kg vs. 2.5 rays and 2.80 kg for trawlers fishing at the same time. Comparison of the body sizes at which 50% of the skates had been found mature in our samples (265 gonads examined) showed that most specimens caught by the “rapido” nets were in their juvenile stage. Examination of stomach contents from 129 skates confirmed previous reports that they mainly feed on crustaceans and bony fish and the role of the latter in the diet progressively increases as R. asterias specimens grow older and larger.Istraživana su ukupno 52 potega dredžama (“rapido”) u kasnom zimskom-ljetnom periodu 1999.-2000. godine kako bi se ustanovila veličina raže zvjezdopjege, R. asterias u vrijeme većeg ulova. Obavljeno je 36 ribarstvenih uzorkovanja pomoću “volantina” (koće većeg okomitog raspona) tijekom različitih godišnjih doba na kontinentalnom šelfu pokraj luke Fiumicino (srednji zapadni dio Italije) kako bi se dobili podaci i o ovom ribarskom alatu. Dnevni ulov zabilježen na brodu registriranom za uporabu “rapido” mreža iznosio je 32.0 jedniki i 24.35 kg od toga 2.5 kg raža i 2.80 kg koćarskog ulova istovremeno. Usporedbom veličine tijela uzoraka 50% raža je bilo zrelo (265 ispitanih gonada) što ukazuje na činjenicu da je većina ulovljenih primjeraka “rapido” mrežom bilo u juvenilnom stadiju. Ispitivanje želučanog sadržaja kod 129 raža potvrdilo je dosadašnja izvješća da se pretežito hrane rakovima i koštunjičavim ribama, koje su zastupljenije u prehrani starijih i većih primjeraka R. asterias

The FLUXNET2015 dataset and the ONEFlux processing pipeline for eddy covariance data

The FLUXNET2015 dataset provides ecosystem-scale data on CO2, water, and energy exchange between the biosphere and the atmosphere, and other meteorological and biological measurements, from 212 sites around the globe (over 1500 site-years, up to and including year 2014). These sites, independently managed and operated, voluntarily contributed their data to create global datasets. Data were quality controlled and processed using uniform methods, to improve consistency and intercomparability across sites. The dataset is already being used in a number of applications, including ecophysiology studies, remote sensing studies, and development of ecosystem and Earth system models. FLUXNET2015 includes derived-data products, such as gap-filled time series, ecosystem respiration and photosynthetic uptake estimates, estimation of uncertainties, and metadata about the measurements, presented for the first time in this paper. In addition, 206 of these sites are for the first time distributed under a Creative Commons (CC-BY 4.0) license. This paper details this enhanced dataset and the processing methods, now made available as open-source codes, making the dataset more accessible, transparent, and reproducible.Peer reviewe

Coastal fish assemblages associated with rocky substrates: differences between a marine reserve (Pianosa island) and an unprotected area (Elba island).

Along the coastline of Italy, there are many areas of high environmental value. Nevertheless, only for few of these the protection proposed in 1982 by low has been really enforced. Understanding if marine reserves work, requires two levels of analysis. The first requires that particular reserves be evaluated in the context of the goals inherent in their establishment. The second level of analysis should be a broad comparison across reserves in different ecosystems to understand if reserves in general have a local or regional effect. Fish assemblage inside the MPAs, usually include many species targeted by fishing, so that they are primarily expected to benefit from protection, especially those having no-take reserve. The evaluation of the benefits, in terms of increase in density and size of target fishes can be useful to assess the ecological effectiveness of reserves. Up to now, there are very few long-term series of density estimates in and around MPAs before and after protection to verify these assumptions in the context of protected populations. Fish fauna distributions patterns can be useful for testing the effectiveness of habitat protection in marine reserves. Most target fishes are high-levels predator and their functional extinction may cause community wide changes. The impact of fishing has consequent top-down perturbations in marine communities structures and organization. Benthic communities in the shallow Mediterranean rocky sublittoral have 2 extreme alternative succession endpoints: coralline barrens and complex macroalgal beds. In the Mediterranean, Paracentrotus lividus is a key species that a high densities influences the dynamics of the phytobenthos, by eliminating erect algae and seagrasses, and inducing the formations of coralline barrens. Despite ecologists’ increasing interest in fish fauna living in marine protected areas, fish assemblage of some Italian marine reserves are still completely unknown. Pianosa represents the ideal area where to verify the hypothesis that are the subject of this PhD. The PhD thesis is aimed at: 1- determine the structure of the infalittoral fish assemblage inhabiting the protected (Pianosa Island) and adjacent (Elba Island) non protected areas of Tuscan Archipelago, in terms of species composition, diversity and relative density, assessing differences in the community parameters in different areas; 2- to estimate the fish community responses to the trophic cascades in shallow rocky shores as possible results that indicate the reserve effect. In infralittoral area, is possible to assess that structure of rocky fish assemblage testing the effectiveness of habitat protection in MPAs? Underwater Visual Census (UVC) is choised as the more appropriate method to conduct study on infralittoral fish community in Pianosa and Elba islands. Abundance data were collected by using a scale based on a geometric progression factor which was approximately 2. Fish density was calculated by considering the mid point of each abundant class. The size of individual fish was assigned to one of four size classes. Extensions of barren cover, was visually estimated as relative percentage by means of square of 1 m-2 located on the bottom. P. lividus was chosen as indicator liable to possible shift from macroalgal cover to barren. During the survey the degree of exploitation on fish species at Elba island, was evaluated on the basis of direct observation of fishing landings in Marina di Campo harbour. A one way ANOVA was performed to test for differences among the areas in the assemblage parameters. Permanova was performed to test differences in analysis fish community using locality as fixed factor. The reserve effect (response ratio, R), was calculated for trophic categories and exploitation levels, as ln of ratio between value of response variable (density) inside the protected area and in fished areas. During this study, 46 fish species were identified. Labridae and Sparidae were the most relevant families in relation to species richness. Some large sized specimens, belonging to species of high commercial value (i.e. Seriola dumerilili, Dentex dentex, and Ephinephelus marginatus), were also observed. Taxonomic composition of fish community in Pianosa and Elba islands agrees with other similar northern-western in Mediterranean. The abundance of target species correlates strongly with the reserve effect, and therefore shows that the reserve has been effective in providing protection for such species. Some highly spearfished species such as E. marginatus, S. umbra, or D. dentex, have been censed exclusively within the reserve. Other such as Sparus aurata are far more abundant in the reserve. Species diversity index, and Evenness, show significant differences between sites located in Pianosa. Here, Diplodus vulgaris and Diplodus sargus, showed higher abundance in protected than in unprotected area. The study of four size classes of some target species has confirmed that large individuals were significantly more abundant in the protected area. The increase of the size of fishes is a phenomenon widely reported in other MPAs and this general pattern has primarily attributed to the lack of fishing impact. Protected area seems to have the potential to restore depleted fish stocks. The response ratio evaluated for exploitation level shows that the reserve has been effective in protection for heavily fished species. Protected area, support greater density of D. sargus and D. vulgaris as predators on sea urchin P. lividus, than unprotected area. At the same time, the cover of barrens was significantly higher in unprotected area than in Pianosa. This study has evidenced a reserve effect or refuge effect characterized by the presence of large individuals. This refuge effect, within the presence of large individuals and species vulnerable to fishing, is one of the characteristics described in the definition of reserve effect. The results of the present study suggest that the recovery of Diplodus species in Pianosa seems to reestablish predatory control upon P. lividus similar to what is observed in other temperate regions and in other Mediterranean protected areas. The results of this study can corroborate the hypothesis of a transition from macroalgal beds, which harbour hundred of species of algae and invertebrates, to barrens through sea urchins grazing.In protected area, the effect of predator density on prey and on its population parameter is density-mediated indirect interactions (DMIIs). This study, is a further step toward a better knowledge of the rocky reef fish assemblage of this area. At the community level, the present study will provide a useful reference point for planning future investigations on inter-specific relationship such as competition. Pianosa is an protected area where is possible to demonstrate that reserves aimed at restoring whole assemblages and ecological processes should be established as permanent no take area. This studies confirms that besides direct effects on target species, fishing may cause changes in trophic relations and in ecosystem functioning. Despite Pianosa is not a typical MPA since actual permanent presence of penal institute, it represent an important site where to study isolated infralittoral fish community on rocky substrata. It is clear that future experiments testing the reserve effect on fish biodiversity will have to take into account the necessity of being repeated on larger spatial and temporal scales

The Role of the Internet in Patient-Practitioner Relationships: Findings from a Qualitative Research Study

BACKGROUND: Studies suggest that there has been an increase in the use of the Internet by patients in many Western societies. However, despite the many texts available on health and the Internet, not much is known about how much patients actually use the Internet to look up health information in their daily lives. We know little about what meaning this activity has for their experience of health and illness, and for their relationship with health-care practitioners. OBJECTIVE: To explore patients' and practitioners' use of the Internet and to consider whether use of the Internet is changing relationships between patients and health-care practitioners. METHOD: The study used qualitative interviews and observations of patient–practitioner interaction. Our purposive sample of 47 patients (32 women and 15 men) had all had contact with the health services for information/treatment in relation to hormone replacement therapy (HRT)/menopause and Viagra/erectile dysfunction. The setting for the research was in general practitioners' surgeries, specialist clinics and patients' homes in the United Kingdom. Participants reflected a wide range of socio-economic groups, but most were white and British born, which, given the ethnic make-up of the town in which we conducted the research, was not surprising. In addition to patients, we interviewed 10 health-care practitioners (4 consultant doctors, 3 GPs, 2 specialist nurses, and a psychologist) about their own health information seeking practices (HISPs) and those of their patients. RESULTS: Use of the Internet can increase patients' knowledge about their health conditions, although patients in our study were often too overwhelmed by the information available on the Internet to make an informed decision about their own care. Patients have a great deal of trust in their health-care practitioners. Health-care practitioners need to improve their own skills in Internet use. Hype around Internet use by patients appears to exceed the reality of Internet use. CONCLUSIONS: Our qualitative study suggests that use of the Internet is contributing to subtle changes in the relationship between health-care practitioners and their patients, rather than effecting the dramatic transformation some people envisage for it

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The FLUXNET2015 dataset and the ONEFlux processing pipeline for eddy covariance data

Abstract The FLUXNET2015 dataset provides ecosystem-scale data on CO2, water, and energy exchange between the biosphere and the atmosphere, and other meteorological and biological measurements, from 212 sites around the globe (over 1500 site-years, up to and including year 2014). These sites, independently managed and operated, voluntarily contributed their data to create global datasets. Data were quality controlled and processed using uniform methods, to improve consistency and intercomparability across sites. The dataset is already being used in a number of applications, including ecophysiology studies, remote sensing studies, and development of ecosystem and Earth system models. FLUXNET2015 includes derived-data products, such as gap-filled time series, ecosystem respiration and photosynthetic uptake estimates, estimation of uncertainties, and metadata about the measurements, presented for the first time in this paper. In addition, 206 of these sites are for the first time distributed under a Creative Commons (CC-BY 4.0) license. This paper details this enhanced dataset and the processing methods, now made available as open-source codes, making the dataset more accessible, transparent, and reproducible