The Pselaphinae (Coleoptera, Staphylinidae) of the Maltese Archipelago

Fourteen pselaphines are recorded from the Maltese Islands three of which are recorded for the first time: Rybaxis longicornis, Tychus jacquelinii, and T. pici. Tychus pici, a North African species that is so far known only from Algeria and Tunisia, is here recorded for the first time for the European territory. Locality and collecting data that were lacking for three other species recorded from Malta in the recently published catalogue of Palaearctic Coleoptera, is also provided. The record of Euplectus brunneus is incorrect and most likely should refer to E. corsicus. An illustrated dichotomous key is included to facilitate identification of Maltese pselaphines.peer-reviewe

Lavorare insieme a scuola. Consigli pratici per i docenti

Nella progettazione di un percorso didattico la tematica del lavoro di gruppo rappresenta un elemento cardine. Lo scopo di questo contributo è quello di motivare gli insegnanti ad un uso più frequente delle attività di gruppo all’interno della classe. In questa prospettiva verranno considerati non solo i vantaggi “sociali” del lavoro per gruppi, ma anche i possibili guadagni individuali degli studenti. Un aspetto fondamentale del lavoro per gruppi è che risulta tanto più efficace quanto più è applicato dall’insieme degli insegnanti che agiscono in classe, anche se con modalità diverse, legate alle specificità delle discipline (e dei temi trattati, dei tempi di lavoro…).Team working is a key element in a learning course in the classroom. The aim of this paper is to motivate teachers to propose, more frequently, activities in cooperative learning. In this perspective, there are not only "social" benefits by team working, but also the gain of individual students in term of learning. A key aspect of team working is that it is as effective as it is applied by all teachers, even though with different ways, related to the specific school subject (and the topics discussed, working times ...)

Una tribuna libera per la valutazione. Il ruolo del forum nei corsi di Tirocinio Formativo Attivo

La progettazione dei corsi del Tirocinio Formativo Attivo per la componente pedagogica dovrebbe considerare in modo attento le esigenze formative dei corsisti. L’uso di una piattaforma e-learning permette di cogliere in anticipo e durante lo svolgimento dei corsi quali siano le tematiche calde a partire dalle quali sviluppare e accompagnare gli interventi di formazione. Lo studio riguarda 323 corsisti TFA della Sapienza (A.A. 2014-15) iscritti a un corso Moodle di Ateneo. In particolare sono considerate le interazioni all’interno del forum “Tribuna libera valutativa”. Sono stati considerati gli aspetti quantitativi delle interazioni nel forum e creata una mappa della valutazione basata sulla popolarità degli argomenti trattati, e il legame con l’esperienza di tirocinio nelle scuole. I dati individuali di attività nel forum saranno aggregati per i gruppi di lavoro PRO.V.A. e messi in relazione con la valutazione delle prove prodotte, che rientra nell’esame finale del TFA. Infine saranno considerate le differenze fra i tre sottogruppi del TFA (Scienze, Arte/Lingue, Lettere) e le diverse classi di concorso. La possibilità per i corsisti di incidere sui contenuti della formazione, prendendo spunto dall’esperienza svolta nelle scuole, è risultata essere motivante, sia durante le lezioni teoriche, sia durante le attività di gruppo, entrambe molto partecipate. Nel quadro dell’uso delle tecnologie in contesti formativi, e in questo caso anche di formazione professionale, l’uso mirato dei forum può migliorare l’efficacia degli interventi di formazione, verificabile attraverso la prova d’esame finale.The design of the courses of the TFA (Tirocinio Formativo Attivo;Active Training Internship) for pedagogical aspects should carefully consider the training needs of the trainees. An e-learning platform allows you to grasp in advance and during the course of the course what are the hot topics on which to develop and accompany training. The study deals with 323 TFA graduates from Sapienza (A.A. 2014-15) enrolled in a Moodle course. In particular, the interactions within the Forum "Free Evaluation Tribune". The quantitative aspects of interactions in the forum were considered and a map of the themes of evaluation based on the popularity of the topics discussed. and the link with the internship experience in schools. The individual activity data in the forum will be aggregated for the PRO.V.A. groups and related to the final TFA examination. Finally, the differences between the three subgroups of the TFA (Science, Arts / Languages, Letters) and the different competition classes will be considered. The opportunity for the trainees to influence the contents of the training, based on the experience gained in the schools, was very motivating, both during the theoretical lessons and during group activities, that have been very involved. In the context of the use of technologies in training contexts, and in this case also of professional training, forum use can improve the effectiveness of training, verifiable through the final exa

A new species of Faronus Aube, 1844, endemic to Malta (Coleoptera, Staphylinidae, Pselaphinae)

Faronus rica sp. nov. endemic to Malta is described and illustrated, and placed in the Faronus hispanus species group. Faronus rica sp. nov. is closely related to F. siculus Fiori, 1913, an endemic species to Sicily, and they can be distinguished based on morphological features highlighted in the present work.peer-reviewe

Alla ricerca dei BES

Negli ultimi tempi si sta allargando la riflessione sui Bisogni Educativi Speciali (BES) degli studenti. Si ipotizza quindi una scuola più equa, poiché con la proposta di una didattica inclusiva la scuola dovrebbe diventare più responsabile ed in grado anche di arginare le differenze socio-economiche e culturali tra gli studenti, garantendo il diritto al successo di tutti gli alunni, anche di quelli con difficoltà. Durante lo svolgimento di unaricerca sul Summer Learning Loss (SLL) si è verificato se anche le performance linguistiche degli studenti con BES risentono degli effetti negativi dello stare per un lungo periodo senza scuola. Gli studenti con BES registrano un apprezzabile calo di performance dopo l’estate, a differenza dei loro compagni, che osservano addirittura un lieve miglioramento delle abilità linguistiche. Circa l’incidenza dello status socio-economico e culturale, le correlazioni non risultano significative per gli studenti con BES, quindi la caduta di qualità delle abilità linguistiche dopo l’estate non risulta collegata né allo status professionale, né ai titoli di istruzione dei genitori.Recently, the reflection on the Special Educational Needs (BES) has grown. It is assumed then a school is becoming more equal, because with the proposal of inclusive education schools should become more responsible and able also to stem the socio-economic and cultural differences among students, ensuring the educational success of all students, even those with disadvantage. While conducting a study on the Summer Learning Loss occurred even if the linguistic performance of students with BES are adversely affected by the stay for a long period without school. Students with BES showed a significant deterioration in performance after the summer, unlike their peers, who keep even a slight improvement of language skills. The impact of socio-economic and cultural development is not significant for students with BES, then the fall of the quality of language skills after the summer is not connected with the professional status and educational levels of parents

Systematic review of the effects of chemical insecticides on four common butterfly families

Safeguarding crop productivity by protecting crops from pest attacks entails the wide use of plant protection products that provide a quick, easy and cheap solution. The objective of this study is to understand the effects of insecticides used in agriculture on non-target butterflies, specifically on the families Lycaenidae, Nymphalidae, Hesperiidae, and Papilionidae. To achieve this goal, a formal systematic review was performed according to European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) guidelines, by entering a combination of keywords on 3 online databases. Three reviewers independently extracted information on study characteristics and quality. The main results were collected and grouped by the insecticide used, butterflies species and family, and endpoints. The output was valuable but heterogeneous as the endpoints and methodologies of the studies reviewed were different. Few experimental studies on the effects of insecticides on the most common butterfly families have been published. Naled and permethrin are the most commonly used insecticides in the experiments, whilst the target organisms of these studies are Vanessa cardui, Danaus plexippus, Heliconius charitonius, belonging to the Nymphalidae family, and Eumaeus atala, belonging to the Lycaenidae family; the effects were evaluated on all developmental stages, with special attention to the larval phase. This systematic review highlights the need for more studies on the effects of chemical insecticides on non-target Lepidoptera in light of their ecological importance and the extensive use of these chemical products

Microhabitat selection of a Sicilian subterranean woodlouse and its implications for cave management

Human activities in subterranean environments can affect different ecosystem components, including the resident fauna. Subterranean terrestrial invertebrates are particularly sensitive to environmental change, especially microclimatic variations. For instance, microclimate modifications caused by the visitors may directly affect local fauna in caves opened to the public. However, since numerous factors act synergistically in modulating the distribution and abundance of subterranean species, it remains challenging to differentiate the impact of human intervention from that of other factors. Therefore, evidence of the impact of tourism on cave invertebrate fauna remains scarce. Over a year and with approximately two visits a month, we investigated the effects of the presence of visitors on the subterranean endemic woodlouse Armadillidium lagrecai in the strict natural reserve of Monello Cave (Sicily, Italy). We found that natural microclimatic fluctuations, and not direct human disturbance, were the main factors driving the distribution of A. lagrecai. Specifically, A. lagrecai select for more climatically stable areas of the cave, where the temperature was constantly warm and the relative humidity close to saturation. We also observed a significant temporal effect, with a greater abundance of A. lagrecai in summer and a gradual decrease during the winter months. The number of visitors in the Monello cave had no effect on the abundance and distribution of A. lagrecai. However, considering the high sensitivity of the species to microclimatic variations, it seems likely that a significant increase in the number of visitors to the cave could indirectly affect this species by altering local microclimate. Constant monitoring of the environmental parameters within the cave is therefore recommended.Peer reviewe

Analysis and comparison of three Coleoptera families in organic and conventional orchards within the Etna Regional Park (Catania, Sicily)

The objective of this work was to compare two agricultural management systems, organic and conventional, in the Etna Regional Park. The influence in both spatial and temporal dimensions, that natural habitats adjacent to these two different managed agricultural systems have on Coleoptera biocoenosis in orchards was also studied. This comparison was done through standardised data and multivariate analysis using a multi-taxa approach. Specifically, three families of the Order Coleoptera, namely Carabidae, Tenebrionidae and Staphylinidae (excluding Aleocharinae and Scydmaeninae) were studied.peer-reviewe

Observations on midgut of Apis mellifera workers (Hymenoptera: Apoidea) under controlled acute exposures to a Bacillus thuringiensis-based biopesticide

International audienceAbstractMorphostructural investigations have been carried out on Apis mellifera workers treated with single controlled acute exposures to a biopesticide containing Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), to detect midgut changes until 96 h. Our findings show concentration-dependence of these changes, reflecting in different degrees on both mortality and behaviour. In particular, some midgut changes are also found 96 h after treatment. Our results show that the tested product does not affect survival at presumable environmental concentrations, so confirming the lesser toxicity of Bt-based biopesticides compared to other pesticides. However, in the light of the discovered long-term changes, we discuss the opportunity of taking into account possible chronic exposures to Bt-based products on A. mellifera

New records of Auchenorrhyncha (Hemiptera) from the Maltese Islands

The faunistic knowledge of the Auchenorrhyncha of the Maltese Islands is still incomplete. Studies on this insect group from the Maltese Islands were mostly neglected and it was only in recent years that some collecting efforts were carried out resulting in a published check-list of 46 species.peer-reviewe