The past distribution of pinus nigra arnold in northern iberia. Contribution from its macroremains.

The presence of Pinus nigra in central Spain, where its natural populations are very rare, has led to different interpretations of the current vegetation dynamics. Complementary to the available palynological evidence, macroremains provide local information of high taxonomic resolution that helps to reconstruct the palaeobiogeography of a given species. Here we present new macrofossil data from Tubilla del Lago, a small palaeolake located at the eastern part of the northern Iberian Meseta. We identified 17 wood samples and 71 cones on the basis of their wood anatomy and morphology, respectively. S ome of the fossil samples were radiocarbon dated (~4.230-3210 years cal BP). The results demonstrate the Holocene presence of P. nigra in the study area, where it is currently extinct. This evidence, together with other published palaeobotanical studies, indicates that the forests dominated by P. nigra must have had a larger importance on the landscape prior to the anthropogenic influence on the northern Iberian Meseta

Taxonomic composition of the Holocene forests of the northern of Spain, as determined from their macroremains

Eight sites distributed over a distance of some 400 km of the Cantabrian coast (northern Spain) provided 153 wood, 50 fruit and over 350 leaf remains belonging to the area’s Holocene forests. The high taxonomic precision with which these macroremains were identified (in many cases at the species level), plus the accurate information available regarding the original growth locations of these plants, provide new geobotanical insights into the history of northern Spain’s Atlantic forests. Radiocarbon dating of the wood samples showed the collected material to have lived between 8550 and 800 cal. BP. Analysis of the macroremains showed the deciduous mixed forests of the Holocene to contain a majority of Quercus robur and Corylus avellana, accompanied by Acer pseudoplatanus, Ulmus minor, Castanea sp., and hygro-thermophilous taxa (Arbutus, Laurus and Vitis vinifera). The remains of hygrophilous communities, dominated by Salix atrocinerea, Alnus glutinosa and Fraxinus sp., show these to have expanded during the Holocene. The absence of conifer macroremains is interpreted as reflecting the disappearance of Würmian conifer populations at the beginning of the Holocene. The different taxa (eg, Ilex spp. and V. vinifera) that survived the last glaciation in the refugia offered by Spain’s northern coast persisted in the same areas during the Holocene. A leaf sample of Ulmus minor dating to 3950 ± 120 cal. BP reveals for the first time the natural occurrence of this species on the northern coast of Spai

Macrorremains evidence of anthropogenic recession of Pinus nigra Aiton in Northern Spain

The natural forest landscape of the Duero Basin in Spain¿s Northern Meseta is now reduced to small masses, its demise largely owed to the intense agricultural and stock-raising use made of its lands. The composition of the scant natural masses suggests that formations dominated by broadleaved species once occupied a much greater area. This idea has led to the believe that pine trees have few place within the natural dynamics of this area (Carrión and Fernández, 2009). However, P. pinaster Aiton and P.pinea L. on low-land sandy areas, P. sylvestris L. and P.uncinata Ramond ex DC on mountain high areas have been demonstrated to have played an important role during the Holocene (Franco et al., 2005; Rubiales et al., 2010). The abundant plant remains and moulds of pine wood and cones found on Northern Meseta peat bogs and travertines, now demonstrate its presence on mid-lands during the Quaternary until the last millenni

The long-term evolution of the Cantabrian landscapes and its possible role in the cappercaillie drama

Within the Iberian Peninsula, at the south-western boundary of its distribution area, the capercaillie is restricted to the Cantabrian and the Pyrenean Mountains. Cantabrian capercaillie Tetrao urogallus cantabricus has undergone a dramatic decline during the last three decades, as reported in the last Iberian Survey (Robles et al. 2006) and in previous issues of Grouse News (Bafiuelos et al., 2004, 2008). As a consequence, it is currently the only subspecies of capercaillie critically threatened worldwide. Although considerable efforts have been made to understand the reasons of this decline, the long-term ecology of this subspecies has received little attention, due probably to the absence of data in the palaeozoological records. Nevertheless, palaeoecological information based on their habitats can provide a useful insight that in the case of the Cantabrian Mountains offers a large body of data that covers the forest history of the last thousands of years

Palaeobiogeographical perspectives on pinus pinea, a controversial and enigmatic mediterranean pine

The origins of some species of economic importance occurring over the Mediterranean Basin have been a traditional matter of debate that has important implications for land management. The case of Pinus pinea L. (Stone pine) is probably one of the most controversial, due to its documented long-term interaction with humans and its presence as a symbolic tree in certain areas of the Mediterranean (e.g., southwestern Iberia and Tuscany). Among the rest of the Mediterranean pines, several features make this pine unique (it has a characteristic crown shape, an edible kernel, cones that require three years to mature, and a very depauperate genetic diversity across its range). In addition, its palaeoecological information is rather limited, as the taxonomic precision attained by pollen analysts is insufficient for this tree and macroremains (such as kernels or anatomically well preserved wood) are needed to unequivocally detect the species in the fossil record. Recent findings of macrofossils of Pinus pinea in inland Iberia (Duero Basin) extend the late- Holocene range of the species, but the palaeobiogeographical information and the exhaustive genetic data available still suggest a very limited natural area (but still not sufficiently well defined) and a long and intense history of linkage to humans

Cantabrian capercaillie through time: a further comment

In a recent note published in this journal (Rubiales et al. 2009) we discuss the role the long-term environmental history of the Cantabrian Mountains may have played in the dynamics of the Cantabrian capercaillie Tetrao urogallus cantabricus, the only subspecies of capercaillie at risk of extinction worldwide. Three key conclusions, in the light of the available palaeoecological data were that: 1) the vegetation occurring within the range of the Cantabrian capercaillie has heavily changed during the last three millennia, due primarily to anthropogenic activity; 2) the extensive distribution of pinewoods until the historical period is coherent with the pattern of association of capercaillie and conifers occurring in the rest of its range; and 3) in the light of the distinct current patterns of decline and persistence of the capercaillie, it could be expected that the demise of pinewoods (becoming locally extinct at the western part of the Cantabrian mountains) would have had implications in the capercaillie persistence in the long ter

Huellas de la presencia pasada de pinares montanos en la submeseta norte de la Península Ibérica: Tubilla del Lago y Tubilla del Agua

Se presentan los resultados de los estudios de macrorrestos e impresiones vegetales hallados en dos localidades de la submeseta norte de la Península Ibérica. Los troncos y piñas subfósiles extraídos en las obras de la turbera de Tubilla del Lago (Burgos), así como el molde de piña encontrado en los travertinos de Tubilla del Agua (Burgos), han sido identificados mediante morfología comparada con apoyo de la microtomía en el caso de las maderas. Los restos subfósiles han sido datados mediante 14 C mientras que la antigüedad del molde ha sido deducida por su posición en el edificio travertínico y la edad del mismo, en base al conocimiento de la cronología de la génesis de este tipo de estructuras. Los resultados indican la presencia holocena de Pinus nigra Arnold en ambas localidades. Estas evidencias se suman a otras paleobotánicas, históricas y toponímicas ya existentes, que reflejan una mayor extensión de esta especie en la submeseta norte anterior a la generalización de la alteración antrópica del paisaj

Dual sigma-1 receptor antagonists and hydrogen sulfide-releasing compounds for pain treatment: design, synthesis and pharmacological evaluation

The development of σ1 receptor antagonists hybridized with a H2S-donor is here reported. We aimed to obtain improved analgesic effects when compared to σ1 receptor antagonists or H2S-donors alone. In an in vivo model of sensory hypersensitivity, thioamide 1a induced analgesia which was synergistically enhanced when associated with the σ1 receptor antagonist BD-1063. The selective σ1 receptor agonist PRE-084 completely reversed this effect. Four thioamide H2S-σ1 receptor hybrids (5a8a) and their amide derivatives (5b8b) were synthesized. Compound 7a (AD164) robustly released H2S and showed selectivity for σ1 receptor over σ2 and opioid receptors. This compound induced marked analgesia that was reversed by PRE-084. The amide analogue 7b (AD163) showed only minimal analgesia. Further studies showed that 7a exhibited negligible acute toxicity, together with a favorable pharmacokinetic profile. To the best of our knowledge, compound 7a is the first dual-acting ligand with simultaneous H2S-release and σ1 antagonistic activities.This work was financially supported by University of Catania, PIA.CE.RI. 20202022 Linea di intervento 3 Starting Grant project CARETO (grant 57722172136). This study was partially supported by the Spanish State Research Agency (10.13039/501100011033) under the auspices of MINECO (grant number PID2019-108691RB-I00), the Andalusian Regional Government (grant CTS109), the University of Catania PIA.CE.RI. 20202022 Linea di intervento 2 project DETTAGLI (grant 57722172125), and by Italian MUR, PRIN 2017, Code: 201744BN5T

Aprendizaje botánico mediante el mapeo e identificación de observaciones de plantas con iNaturalist, una plataforma en línea de ciencia ciudadana

La obligada adaptación del proceso enseñanza/aprendizaje incorporando herramientas tecnológicas apoyadas en inteligencia artificial y entornos colaborativos ha motivado la incorporación de la plataforma iNaturalist en asignaturas relacionadas con la botánica en enseñanzas universitarias forestales. Mediante la implementación de la iNaturalist se han diseñado unas clases prácticas de las asignaturas de Botánica de primer curso en los grados de Ingeniería Forestal y del Medio Natural (Universidad Politécnica de Madrid). Se ha utilizado un espacio del campus universitario (Arboreto de Montes), realizando una presentación y puesta en común de la actividad en aula, un recurso web, un guion de buenas prácticas, y un seguimiento progresivo de los estudiantes. En la primera evaluación de su eficacia se han registrado resultados positivos en la aceptación por el alumnado. La actividad, además, permite una transición a la docencia a distancia, y muestra su capacidad de transferibilidad a otros contextos educativos universitarios