Esperante: The New Esperanto Language

Esperanto was designed as an international language but, it is not the case because its vocabulary is based on European languages that are unfamiliar to most of the world population. In this respect, we should look on recent statistics where the top native speakers in the world are the Chinese (11.92%), Spanish (5.99%) and English (4.92%) [1].  It is important to note that the Chinese use the Mandarin language that is not a language but a set of dialects that they use as a common language.

A record of fossil shallow-water whale falls from Italy

Twenty-five Neogene-Quaternary whales hosted in Italian museum collections and their associated fauna were analysed for evidence of whale-fall community development in shallow-water settings. The degree of bone articulation, completeness of the skeleton and lithology of the embedding sediments were used to gather information on relative water depth, water energy, sedimentation rate and overall environmental predictability around the bones. Shark teeth and hard-shelled invertebrates with a necrophagous diet in close association with the bones were used as evidence of scavenging. Fossil bone bioerosion, microbially mediated cementation and other mollusc shells in the proximity of the remains informed on past biological activity around the bones. The results are consistent with the hypothesis that shallow-water whale falls differ from their deep-water counterparts. Taphonomic pathways are more variable on the shelf and whale carcasses may not go through all steps of the ecological succession as recognised in the deep sea. Whilst the mobile scavenger and the enrichment opportunistic stages are well represented, chemosynthetic taxa typical of the sulphophilic stage were recovered only in one instance. The presence of a generalist fauna among the suspension feeding bivalves and carnivorous gastropods, and the extreme rarity of chemosynthetic taxa, suggest that predatory pressure rules out whale-fall specialists from shallow shelf settings as in analogous cold seep and vent shallow-water communities. © 2014 The Lethaia Foundation

Taphonomy of a Mysticeti whale in the Lower Pliocene Huelva Sands Formation (Southern Spain)

This paper reports the occurrence of an incomplete fossil baleen whale skeleton in the Lower Pliocene Huelva Sands Formation (Guadalquivir basin) near the town of Bonares, southwestern Spain. The skeleton was found in the highly bioturbated glauconitic sandstone unit in association with Neopycnodonte cochlear shells. Several morphological features of the mandibles, scapula and vertebrae suggest that the specimen belongs in the suborden Mysticeti, family Balaenopteridae. Most bones show abrasion due to a long exposure on the seafloor, and some bones show shark tooth marks and both micro- and macro-bioerosion by scavengers. The position of the bones suggests that the carcass landed on the seafloor on its left side and then turned right side up. Sedimentological and paleontological features indicate that the whale was buried in shallow platform waters under low sedimentation rates

The impact of the Asian chestnut gall wasp (Dryocosmus kuriphilus) on chestnut tree growth may be mediated by site resources

[EN] Introduction: The Asian chestnut gall wasp (Dryocosmus kuriphilus) is a major pest of chestnut trees worldwide, seriously affecting chestnut cultivation. Information concerning the effects of gall wasp attack on diameter growth of chestnut trees is currently scarce and limited to coppice stands and to use of the growth of a non-target control species (unaffected by the pest) for reference purposes. The effects of the pest on widely-spaced plantations (grown at a much lower density than chestnut coppices) and the use of explicitly-observed annual infestation rate data remain to be explored. Methods: In the present study, we analyzed the impact of the chestnut gall wasp on the diameter growth of chestnut trees, using data from 16 experimental plots established in widely-spaced plantations located in good quality sites. Two of the plots are in plantations where a susceptible hybrid chestnut clone and a chestnut clone resistant to the gall wasp coexist, whereas the remaining 14 plots are in Castanea sativa plantations where the level of gall wasp infestation varies across trees and years. The plots were surveyed to determine the diameter growth of the trees and the level of infestation during 5 years (2017–2021). Results: The infestation level corresponding to the theoretical damage threshold was surpassed inmost plots during the study period. Nevertheless, there were no differences in the growth of attacked and unaffected plants in the two plots planted with hybrid clones with contrasting susceptibility to the gall wasp. The attack had a modest effect in C. sativa plots, with a mean reduction in annual basal area increment of 9.9%. Discussion: These findings apparently contradict previous reports of a marked reduction in radial growth of chestnut coppice trees due to gall wasp attack. The difference in findings may be related to increased compensation for herbivory with increasing levels of resources (especially light) in the plantations under study, which were less dense than previously studied stands. The study outcomes add to existing knowledge on the impact of chestnut gall wasp on wood formation andmay have implications regarding planting site recommendations and subsequent stand managementSIThis work was supported by FEDER/Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness Research (grant AGL2016-76262-R)

Sedimentology of Marine Vertebrate Burial in the Miocene Pisco Fm., Peru

The Miocene Pisco Basin of Peru is known for abundant, well-preserved marine vertebrate fossils (Esperante et al. 2000). Cetacean fossils are particularly abundant—so much so that we were able to locate 10 outcrops containing specimens in cross section, which allowed us to do detailed sedimentological studies of the beds surrounding the whales. We discovered that six of the 10 specimens were buried in channels; the details of the other four burials are too disparate to meaningfully group together in categories. Chapters 3, 4, and 5 describe and discuss the six specimens found in channels, while Appendix A contains descriptions and discussions of the other four locations. The dominant sedimentary structure associated with all of the whales is hummocky cross-stratification, which forms during waning storms and implies substantial sediment accumulation during the event, whether by sediment input from the coast or other source, or by resuspension and redeposition of sediment (Dumas and Arnott 2006). The whales are encased in siltstone, made up primarily of varying ratios of siliciclastic material, diatoms, and volcanic ash. All of the material was acted upon by storm processes, as evidenced by the sedimentary structures, and even the beds of pure ash are ripple laminated or hummocky. Taphonomic work done on Pisco fossils shows that they were buried rapidly (Esperante et al. 1999, 2008; Brand et al. 2004). Severe storms, the depositional environments indicated by the data we acquired, provide a mechanism to explain rapid rates of deposition and substantiate the findings of the taphonomic studies

Stratigraphic framework of the late Miocene Pisco Formation at Cerro Los Quesos (Ica Desert, Peru)

The enormous concentration of marine vertebrates documented within the Pisco Formation is unique for Peru and South America and places this unit among the prime fossil Lagerstätten for Miocene to Pliocene marine mammals worldwide. In order to provide a robust stratigraphic framework for the fossil-bearing locality of Cerro Los Quesos, this study presents a 1:10,000 scale geological map covering an area of about 21 km2, a detailed measured section spanning 290 m of strata, and a refined chronostratigraphy for the studied succession well constrained by diatom biostratigraphy and high-resolution 40Ar/39Ar isotopic dating of three interbedded ash layers. Within the apparently monotonous, diatomite-dominated sedimentary section, the Pisco Formation has been subdivided into six local members, with stratigraphic control over the different outcrops facilitated by the establishment of a detailed marker bed stratigraphy based on fifteen readily distinguishable sediment layers of different nature

New metric products, movies and 3D models from old stereopairs and their application to the in situ palaeontological site of Ambrona

[ES] Este artículo está basado en la información del siguiente proyecto:● LDGP_mem_006-1: "[S_Ambrona_Insitu] Levantamiento fotogramétrico del yacimiento paleontológico “Museo in situ” de Ambrona (Soria)", http://hdl.handle.net/10810/7353● LDGP_mem_006-1: "[S_Ambrona_Insitu] Levantamiento fotogramétrico del yacimiento paleontológico “Museo in situ” de Ambrona (Soria)", http://hdl.handle.net/10810/7353[EN] This paper is based on the information gathered in the following project:[EN] 3D modelling tools from photographic pictures have experienced significant improvements in the last years. One of the most outstanding changes is the spread of the photogrammetric systems based on algorithms referred to as Structure from Motion (SfM) in contrast with the traditional stereoscopic pairs. Nevertheless, the availability of important collections of stereoscopic registers collected during past decades invites us to explore the possibilities for re-using these photographs in order to generate new multimedia products, especially due to the fact that many of the documented elements have been largely altered or even disappeared. This article analyses an example of application to the re-use of a collection of photographs from the palaeontological site of Ambrona (Soria, Spain). More specifically, different pieces of software based on Structure from Motion (SfM) algorithms for the generation of 3D models with photographic textures are tested and some derived products such as orthoimages, video or applications of Augmented Reality (AR) are presented.[ES] Las herramientas de modelado 3D a partir de imágenes fotográficas han experimentado avances muy significativos en los últimos años. Uno de los más destacados corresponde a la generalización de los sistemas fotogramétricos basados en los algoritmos denominados Structure from Motion (SfM) sobre los proyectos de documentación tradicional basados en pares estereoscópicos. La existencia de importantes colecciones de registros estereoscópicos realizados durante las décadas anteriores invita a explorar las posibilidades de reutilización de estos registros para la obtención de productos multimedia actuales, máxime cuando algunos de los elementos documentados han sufrido grandes modificaciones o incluso desaparecido. En el presente artículo se analiza la reutilización de colecciones fotográficas de yacimientos paleontológicos mediante un ejemplo centrado en el yacimiento de Ambrona (Soria, España). En concreto, se contrastan varios programas basados en los algoritmos denominados Structure from Motion (SfM) para la generación del modelo 3D con textura y otros productos derivados como ortoimágenes, vídeos o aplicaciones de Realidad Aumentada (RA)

Correlation and Paleoenvironments above West T9.3 Tuff, Pisco Formation, Peru

The Pisco Basin is a Cenozoic forearc basin in west central Peru. Though outcrops are well exposed, contain little diagenetic overprint, or complex structural deformation, only rudimentary correlations between outcrops are published and no attempts have been made to define time-bounded subunits. The goal of this study is to develop high resolution-stratigraphy and paleoenvironmental interpretations for a time-bounded unit in the lower part of the Miocene Pisco Formation. In this study, we correlated, mapped, and dated a tuff couplet and associated beds over 25 km2. We measured eight sections that include the tuffs and conducted detailed facies analysis. Sections were broken down into eight facies including: hummocky cross-stratified diatomaceous siltstone, muddy siltstone, tuff, dolomitized siltstone, phosphate pebble conglomerate, and four distinct very-fine sandstone facies. Sub-parallel laminated diatomaceous siltstones comprise the majority of the lower portion in every section. This depositional interval includes some tuffaceous and dolomitized beds. A shift in lithology and the types of sedimentary structures occurs above a phosphate pebble conglomerate in a sandstone unit. Bedforms within this very fine sandstone include climbing-ripple, wave-ripple, massive, hummocky, swaley, and trough cross-bedding. Bioturbation, channels, and erosional contacts are also present in the sandstone unit. Depositional environments show a progression through the studied interval. Diatomaceous siltstones were deposited on a marine shelf below normal wave base with associated diatom or clay-rich zones. Occasional volcanic events flooded the system with tuffaceous material. Phosphate pebbles formed during a local sea-level maximum. These phosphate-rich beds were later winnowed during regression and condensed into an erosion-resistant phosphate pebble/fossil conglomerate. Units above the phosphate pebble conglomerate show a transition from offshore to wave and storm dominated middle to upper shoreface. The sandstone is interpreted as a shoreface bar through lateral comparisons of unit thickness. Muddy siltstones and very fine-grained sandstones were reworked by waves and currents and hosted abundant burrowing organisms. Siltstone above the sandstone represents the transitional zone between shoreface and offshore deposits. This study provides the first framework for developing sequence stratigraphic models for the Pisco Formation. Related previous work in the Pisco Basin and related depositional models are reviewed in Chapter 1