Efectos del abandono de la ganadería extensiva en la estructura espacial y temporal de ecosistema tradicionalmente gestionados

La relevancia del pastoreo caprino tradiconal y la inconsistencia de sus efectos sobre la vegetación revelan la necesidad de estudios específicos que permitan la correcta gestión de los ecosistemas, especialmente en Espacios Naturales Protegidos. Esta tesis aborda diversos aspectos del efecto del abandono del pastoreo tradicional en comunidades vegetales seminaturales de las Islas Canaria

Análisis del uso de las TIC en Formación Profesional: un estudio de caso

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) integration in teaching practice is a relevant issue in educational research. However, there are few studies addressing this topic in Vocational and Educational Training (VET). This research aims to deepen knowledge on the ICT use that take place on the classroom of the different levels and modalities of VET. To that end, a case study was carried out following the qualitative approach. The case was unique, an educational center, and included three analysis units: face-to-face higher and medium level training program, and blended medium level training program. Data collection was performed by different techniques: classroom observations, semi-structured interviews and document analysis. The results allowed the description of the teaching practices that are being carried out with ICT in the studied context. ICT are applied daily, but in face-to-face learning the main use was teacher exposition, while they were rarely used to perform learning activities that require an active role of students. In blended learning, ICT are also used for teacher exposition, but the prime use was done by the students as information search tool and to do contentfocused activities. In conclusion, similarly to studies performed in other educational context, ICT has been incorporated into VET classrooms as a tool to support a traditional teachercentered approaches.La integración de las Tecnologías de la Información y la Comunicación (TIC) en la práctica docente es un tema de relevancia en la investigación educativa. Sin embargo, hay pocos estudios que aborden esta temática en la Formación Profesional (FP). Esta investigación tiene como objetivo profundizar en el conocimiento sobre el uso que se hace de las TIC en las aulas de los diferentes niveles y modalidades de FP. Para ello, se llevó a cabo un estudio de caso siguiendo el enfoque cualitativo. El caso fue único, un centro educativo, e incluyó tres unidades de análisis: Ciclo Formativo de Grado Medio y Superior de la modalidad presencial, Ciclo Formativo de Grado Medio de la modalidad semi-presencial. La recogida de datos se realizó mediante diferentes técnicas: observaciones de aula, entrevistas semiestructuradas y análisis de documentos. Los resultados han permitido la descripción de las prácticas docentes con TIC que se llevan a cabo en el contexto de estudio. Las TIC se aplican diariamente, pero, en enseñanza presencial la actividad dominante es la exposición del docente y solo con una frecuencia mucho más baja se realizan actividades de aprendizaje que requieren un papel activo del alumnado. En la modalidad semipresencial, las TIC también se utilizan para la exposición docente, pero domina el uso como herramienta de búsqueda de información, así como para realizar preguntas de aplicación de contenidos por parte del alumnado. En conclusión, al igual que ocurre en los estudios realizados en otros contextos educativos, las TIC se han incorporado a las aulas de FP como una herramienta de apoyo a una metodología tradicional centrada en el profesorado

Network analysis by simulated annealing of taxa and islands of Macaronesia (North Atlantic Ocean)

With the aim of explaining the role that taxa and island features have in biogeographical patterns, we processed presence–absence matrices of all the Macaronesian native species of ten different taxa (arthropods, birds, bryophytes, fungi, lichens, mammals, mollusks, pteridophytes, reptiles and spermatophytes) through simulated annealing analysis. Distribution patterns among the archipelagos were pinpointed, along with the different biogeographic roles played by islands and species groups. All the networks analysed resulted to be significantly modular and the structure of biogeographic modules reflects known past connections among the archipelagos and the current drivers of species distribution. The role assigned to the species supports some biological (ecological amplitude, degree of endemicity) and functional (long-distance dispersal and persistence abilities) traits of their respective biota and justifies their position in recent models of biogeographical distribution. Whereas it was expected that the modules identified by the spermatophytes and arthropods would reflect the compartmentalization of archipelagos quite well, this was also the case for much more vagile taxa, such as fungi or lichens. Conversely, results obtained for pteridophytes and bryophytes suggest that for those taxa geographic distance and/or macroclimatic conditions are less important than the size, age and orography of an island to determine the modularity of island groups. On the other hand, dry, species-poor islets, act as connectors, tending to cluster together for different taxa, independently of their archipelagic adscription, whereas large, high, humid islands tend to form network or module hubs representing regional centers of speciation and dispersal

Ecology and management of natural and reforested Canary Island pine stands

Pinus canariensis Chr. Sm. Ex DC in Buch is an endemic conifer tree of the Canary Islands archipelago and its stands occupied much larger areas in the past. Plantation programs have been very common in the Canary Islands since the 1940s. The main objective of the plantations analyzed in this study is to restore the canarian pine forest which was heavily disturbed and eliminated during the last 5 centuries after the European colonization of the Canary Islands and reforestation with exotic species. There is not a general agreement in the plantation technology or the management of these plantations, probably due to the low number of studies related with the ecology of this forest stand. In this chapter, we will evaluate the ecological studies carried out with P. canariensis and analyze the management practices followed by the authorities. We will analyze the valuable aspects of this management and suggest, if possible, new alternatives for forest restoration. The impact of fire and the introduction of exotic species in the potential area for P. canariensis is also analyzed and evaluated. We finish the chapter with some concluding remarks based in the information provided by different sources found during this review

What do we know and what do we need to know about the macaronesian paleoclimate?: answering with participatory appraisal methods

Participatory appraisal (PA) is an approach or research procedure that seeks to incorporate the knowledge and opinions of a community with the aim of improving an area of concern. PA has several advantages over scientific discussions, as it can be used to share, analyse and evaluate diverse issues, and because it enhances creativity and group participation, regardless of participants’ backgrounds. PA is based on flexible, innovative, and highly visual tools that allow the generation of large amounts of information in short time. In this case, our aim was to define the state of knowledge about palaeoclimate of Macaronesia. To do this, we tried to address the following questions: What do we know? How sure are we? Do we agree? What are the key events and their consequences? Then, we established a research agenda by asking: What should we study next? Results indicated the best known regions (Azores-Canaries) and periods (Holocene to LGM), and highlighted a certain degree of uncertainty about our knowledge of climate history in the region. Key climatic events were mainly related to four environmental variables (temperature, humidity, wind regime and sea level oscillation), which were also considered as decisive variables for future research. Researchers agreed that most of the topics requiring future research should be addressed urgently

Listado de la biota terrestre del Archipiélago Chinijo y Lobos (Islas Canarias)

Se presenta un nuevo listado de la biota terrestre de las isletas más orientales del archipiélago canario (Roque del Este, Roque del Oeste, Montaña Clara, Alegranza, La Graciosa y Lobos) resultado de una exhaustiva recopilación bibliográfica y de bases de datos. El listado incluye briófitos, plantas vasculares, hongos, cordados, artrópodos y moluscos. Un breve análisis estadístico de la flora y fauna de los islotes revela que existen algo más de 700 especies en el conjunto de los mismos, la gran mayoría de ellas nativas, con más de un 25% de endemismos y menos de un 10% de especies exóticas, lo que avala la alta calidad de estos espacios protegidos. Con diferencia los taxa que más contribuyen a la biodiversidad inventariada son los artrópodos y las plantas vasculares, como ocurre en el resto del archipiélago. Hasta siete taxones diferentes, cuatro especies de araña, un ave –ya extinta–, un molusco y una planta vascular, son endémicos de estas isletas. La disponibilidad de esta lista contribuirá a la realización de análisis biogeográficos más rigurosos, pues hasta ahora la biota de las isletas no se encontraba desagregada de las islas mayores, Lanzarote y Fuerteventura, a las que pertenecen políticamente.A new checklist of the terrestrial biota from the easternmost islets from Canary Islands (Roque del Este, Roque del Oeste, Montaña Clara, Alegranza, La Graciosa and Lobos) isprovided as a result of a wide bibliographic and database compilation. The checklist includes bryophytes, vascular plants, fungi, chordates, arthropods and mollusks. Additionally, a short analysis of the fauna and flora species richness reveals that there are slightly more than 700 terrestrial species in the islets, the big majority of them being native, with > 25% endemics and < 10% exotics, what argues in favour of the high conservation quality of this protected area. By far, the more important taxa contributing to this biodiversity are arthropods and vascular plants, as happen in the rest of the archipelago. Up to seven different taxa, four spiders, one bird –already extinct–, one snail and one vascular plant, have been found to be endemic to the islets. Finally, the availability of this new checklist will contribute significantly towards more accurate biogeographic analyses of the Canarian biota, because until now the islets’ biota distribution was not disaggregated of the main islands, Lanzarote and Fuerteventura, to which politically belong

Prescribed Burning and Clear-Cutting Effects on Understory Vegetation in a Pinus canariensis Stand (Gran Canaria)

[EN] Prescribed fires are a powerful tool for reducing fire hazards by decreasing amounts of fuel. The main objective is to analyze the effects of prescribed burning on the understory vegetation composition as well as on the soil characteristics of a reforested stand of Pinus canariensis. The study attempts to identify the effects of the preburning treatment of cutting understory vegetation on the floristic parameters of the vegetation community. This study was carried out for two years following a prescribed fire in a Canarian pine stand. Cutting and burning treatment affected species composition and increased diversity. Burnt and cut plots were characterized by a diverse array of herbaceous species and by a lower abundance of Teline microphylla (endemic legume), although burning apparently induced its germination. Cut treatment was more consistently differentiated from the control plots than burnt treatment. Soil K decreased after both treatments, pH slightly decreased after cutting, while P and Ca increased after fire. From an ecological point of view, prescribed burning is a better management practice than cutting the woody species of the understory. However, long-term studies would be necessary to evaluate the effects of fire intensity, season and frequency in which the prescribed burning is appliedSIConsejería de Medio Ambiente y Emergencias (Gran Canaria Council), especially UOFF and PRESA, for granting permission to work in Pinus canariensis forest, carrying out the prescribed fire, and partially supporting this study (CI02380503). They also thank the Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia (MEC) of the Spanish Government, which provided financial support by granting C. García a FPU (Formación de Profesorado Universitario, AP2005- 4736) predoctoral fellowshi

Freshwater endemic species and the ecological status of streams in the Canary Islands

An inventory has been made of endemic aquatic macroinvertebrates in streams of the Canary Islands. The inventory shows that of 31 pristine endemic species, 10 are now extinct. From the remaining 21 species, only 12 occur in streams with undisturbed hydromorphology and natural background conditions, and among these, there are 6 species that only occur in a single body of water on a single island, so they are very near to extinction. The main reason for this development is the dramatic decrease in the number of streams on the Canary Islands due to unsustainable consumption of water for agriculture and tourism and the transformation of most of the remaining streams to canals. However, natural reaches of streams with an endemic macroinvertebrate fauna still exist in specially protected areas of Tenerife, La Gomera, and La Palma. These reaches serve as reference status for the development of a specific assessment method for streams on the islands. This method takes into account common parameters such as water quality and hydromorphology, though to biodiversity and island-specific endemism is given greater emphasis. These last two concepts of stream development could be important tools in both nature conservation and protection of the remaining endemic and sensitive species