First interception of Acrossidius tasmaniae (Hope, 1847) (Coleoptera Scarabaeidae Aphodiinae) in Europe

In April 2013, four adults of Acrossidius tasmaniae (Hope, 1847) (Coleoptera Scarabaeidae Aphodiinae) were found during the inspection of the Phytosanitary Service of Tuscany Region in the port of Leghorn, in a container from New Zealand. This is the first interception of this minor pest for cultivated plants in Europe.

Inventory of alien and cryptogenic species of the Dodecanese (Aegean Sea, Greece): collaboration through COST action training school

The Dodecanese region has a high prevalence of marine alien species due to its close proximity to the Suez Canal and associated Suez shipping lanes, as well as its location at biogeographical border between sub-tropical and tropical biota. This region is therefore very important for the early detection of alien species entering the Mediterranean Sea via the Suez Canal and it is imperative that monitoring of alien species is continued in order to assess the levels of biological invasion. We present results of marine alien surveys, carried out in April 2014 on the island of Rodos. Surveys were performed by a team of marine taxonomic experts and students as part of an EU wide training school, coordinated by the COST Action TD1209 “Alien Challenge”. A variety of survey methods were employed to cover a number of coastal habitats. These included: rapid assessment surveys of epibiota on artificial structures in harbours, rapid assessment snorkelling surveys of biota on sublittoral bedrock, and quantified fishing surveys (both boat-seine and trammel net fishing methods). A total of 33 alien and cryptogenic species were recorded across all the survey techniques. Of these species, 9 represented first records for Rodos: the foraminiferan Amphisorus hemprichii, the polychaetes Branchiomma bairdi, Dorvillea similis, Hydroides dirampha and Pseudonereis anomala, the molluscs Aplysia parvula, Chama pacifica and Septifer cumingii, and the bryozoan Hippopodina feegeensis. Of note the record of the Lessepsian invader Dorvillea similis represents the second record in the Mediterranean Sea. Alien fish species represented a small but notable proportion of the diversity, biomass and number of individuals in fishing catch of both fishing methods. All alien fish species observed were already known to be present in Rodos. The addition of species firstly recorded in this study brings the total number of marine alien and cryptogenic species in the Dodecanese region up to 129 species. The vast majority of these alien species have entered unaided via the Suez Canal, but an increasing number have been introduced through hull fouling or ballast water transfer from shipping. The results highlight the value of conducting marine alien surveys with teams of a diverse range of taxonomic expertise, both in its scientific output and student training

Further spreading in the Italian seas of already established non-indigenous mollusc species

We hereby provide new distributional data for alien and possible alien molluscs from the Italian seas, together with a brief review of their known Italian distribution and updated distributional maps. In particular, Haminoea cyanomarginata is con- firmed for the Calabrian shores of the Strait of Messina area and is first reported from eastern and western Sicily, therefore suggesting a natural spreading into the Italian central Mediterranean Sea. Melibe viridis is confirmed for the Ionian Calabrian shores and Sardinia, where it was previously known from isolated records only. Pinctada imbricata radiata is first reported as naturally widening its distribution in Sardinia and in the Gulf of Taranto, where new populations are soon awaited, whilst Aplysia dactylomela is now expanding its range along the Italian Adriatic shores. And last, recent records of Anadara transversa from the Sabaudia Lake testify the role of lagoon systems as hot-spots for the introduction and secondary spreading of alien species, and indicate mussel aquaculture as the likely vector of introduction for its occurrenc

Genetica e conservazione: Il caso di Melanopsis etrusca e di Xerosecta Giustii

International audienc

Aggressive, omnivorous, invasive: the Erythraean moon crab <i>Matuta victor</i> (Fabricius, 1781) (Crustacea: Decapoda: Matutidae) in the eastern Mediterranean sea

<p>Since its first sighting in 2012 in Haifa Bay, Israel, the population of the Indo-Pacific moon crab, <i>Matuta victor</i>, has increased greatly along the Israeli littoral and spread to Lebanon and the Mediterranean coast of Turkey. To examine possible interactions with the Levantine nearshore psammophilic community, the crab’s feeding behaviour was observed <i>in situ</i> and the foregut contents of 69 specimens collected in December 2015 and June 2016 were analysed. Its omnivorous diet was confirmed and previously unknown intraspecific competitive feeding behaviour is reported. The agonistic behaviour may denote behavioural flexibility that enables the crabs to colonize and persist in a depauperate novel habitat. Site-specific disturbance regimen related to human activities seems to have had a critical role in driving the rapid population increase.</p

Switch Strategy from Direct Aspiration First Pass Technique to Solumbra Improves Technical Outcome in Endovascularly Treated Stroke

Background: The major endovascular mechanic thrombectomy (MT) techniques are: Stent-Retriever (SR), aspiration first pass technique (ADAPT) and Solumbra (Aspiration + SR), which are interchangeable (defined as switching strategy (SS)). The purpose of this study is to report the added value of switching from ADAPT to Solumbra in unsuccessful revascularization stroke patients. Methods: This is a retrospective, single center, pragmatic, cohort study. From December 2017 to November 2019, 935 consecutive patients were admitted to the Stroke Unit and 176/935 (18.8%) were eligible for MT. In 135/176 (76.7%) patients, ADAPT was used as the first-line strategy. SS was defined as the difference between first technique adopted and the final technique. Revascularization was evaluated with modified Thrombolysis In Cerebral Infarction (TICI) with success defined as mTICI ≥ 2b. Procedural time (PT) and time to reperfusion (TTR) were recorded. Results: Stroke involved: Anterior circulation in 121/135 (89.6%) patients and posterior circulation in 14/135 (10.4%) patients. ADAPT was the most common first-line technique vs. both SR and Solumbra (135/176 (76.7%) vs. 10/176 (5.7%) vs. 31/176 (17.6%), respectively). In 28/135 (20.7%) patients, the mTICI was ≤ 2a requiring switch to Solumbra. The vessel’s diameter positively predicted SS result (odd ratio (OR) 1.12, confidence of interval (CI) 95% 1.03–1.22; p = 0.006). The mean number of passes before SS was 2.0 ± 1.2. ADAPT to Solumbra improved successful revascularization by 13.3% (107/135 (79.3%) vs. 125/135 (92.6%)). PT was superior for SS comparing with ADAPT (71.1 min (CI 95% 53.2–109.0) vs. 40.0 min (CI 95% 35.0–45.2); p = 0.0004), although, TTR was similar (324.1 min (CI 95% 311.4–387.0) vs. 311.4 min (CI 95% 285.5–338.7); p = 0.23). Conclusion: Successful revascularization was improved by 13.3% after switching form ADAPT to Solumbra (final mTICI ≥ 2b was 92.6%). Vessel’s diameter positively predicted recourse to SS