How Bees Respond Differently to Field Margins of Shrubby and Herbaceous Plants in Intensive Agricultural Crops of the Mediterranean Area

(1) Intensive agriculture has a high impact on pollinating insects, and conservation strategies targeting agricultural landscapes may greatly contribute to their maintenance. The aim of this work was to quantify the effect that the vegetation of crop margins, with either herbaceous or shrubby plants, had on the abundance and diversity of bees in comparison to non-restored margins. (2) The work was carried out in an area of intensive agriculture in southern Spain. Bees were monitored visually and using pan traps, and floral resources were quantified in crop margins for two years. (3) An increase in the abundance and diversity of wild bees in restored margins was registered, compared to non-restored margins. Significant differences in the structure of bee communities were found between shrubby and herbaceous margins. Apis mellifera and mining bees were found to be more polylectic than wild Apidae and Megachilidae. The abundance of A. mellifera and mining bees was correlated to the total floral resources, in particular, to those offered by the Boraginaceae and Brassicaceae; wild Apidae and Megachilidae were associated with the Lamiaceae. (4) This work emphasises the importance of floral diversity and shrubby plants for the maintenance of rich bee communities in Mediterranean agricultural landscapes

Controlling a leaky tap

We apply the Ott, Grebogy and Yorke mechanism for the control of chaos to the analytical oscillator model of a leaky tap obtaining good results. We exhibit the robustness of the control against both dynamical noise and measurement noise.A possible way of controlling experimentally a leaky tap using magnetic-field-produced variations in the viscosity of a magnetorheological fluid is suggested.Comment: 14 pages, 12 figures. Submitted to Physics Letters

Claves fundamentales de la distribución del turismo en la era digital

La economía digital ha revolucionado la intermediación turística y la distribución comercial. En este documento se analizan las claves de dicha revoluciónUniversidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Priorat vineyard vulnerability and water stress assessment in the context of global climate change. Estimated Priorat wine consumption in humans

Les varietats Garnatxa i Carinyena estan molt esteses a la província de Tarragona, especialment a la DOQ Priorat. El canvi global està induint variacions importants en la fenologia, producció i qualitat, que mostren la vulnerabilitat d'aquest cultiu enfront de l'augment de la temperatura i reduccions importants en la disponibilitat d'aigua. S'avaluen dos aspectes importants: l'ecofisiologia relacionada amb l'estat hídric i els efectes induïts per les variacions mesoclimátiques, específicament la temperatura i la disponibilitat d'aigua. L'efecte del clima i el sòl en relació al creixement, la variabilitat climàtica anual, així com la seva interacció amb el sòl i la seva capacitat de reserva hídrica permet avaluar la vulnerabilitat de la viticultura al canvi global. Es va avaluar l'estrès hídric juntament amb una metodologia per a la determinació d'ABA i la classificació dels mesoclimes. També, això va permetre estudiar com els períodes de poca disponibilitat d'aigua i altes temperatures poden afectar la síntesi de compostos fenòlics. L'anàlisi de la composició fenòlica per HPLC va ser fonamental per a l'establiment dels paràmetres de qualitat en relació a l'estrès hídric. En segon lloc, la validació d'una metodologia a petita escala utilitzada en estudis de vinyes heterogènies mostra els pros i els contres d'emprar diferents volums de fermentació a petita escala. Quan una mostra no és prou gran, els fenols totals no es poden extreure completament del vi. Aquest buit s'ompliria examinant com els diferents volums podrien afectar l'extracció dels vins i quin seria el volum per representar de manera concloent un procediment de vinificació específic. Finalment, els compostos fenòlics del vi també han suscitat un gran interès pels seus efectes potencialment beneficiosos per a la salut humana. D'acord amb la seva baixa biodisponibilitat, es va estimar l'eficàcia de la ingesta de 5 vins de diferents zones del Priorat. Es van avaluar els efectes beneficiosos de diferents rangs d'ingesta recomanada per al vi en funció del sexe, l'edat i el factor d'activitat. La implementació d'una viticultura de precisió, l'adaptació de tècniques d'extracció de color i taní i del consum de vins amb una composició coneguda seran claus en un context de canvi climàtic.Las variedades Garnacha y Cariñena están muy extendidas en la provincia de Tarragona, especialmente en la DOQ Priorat. El cambio global está induciendo variaciones importantes en la fenología, producción y calidad, que muestran la vulnerabilidad de este cultivo frente a aumentos de temperatura y reducciones importantes en la disponibilidad de agua. Se evalúan, la ecofisiología relacionada con el estado hídrico y los efectos inducidos por las variaciones mesoclimáticas, específicamente la temperatura y la disponibilidad de agua. El efecto del clima y el suelo en relación al crecimiento, la variabilidad climática anual, así como su interacción con el suelo y su capacidad de reserva hídrica permitieron evaluar la vulnerabilidad de la viticultura al cambio global. Se evaluó el estrés hídrico junto con una metodología para la determinación de ABA y de clasificación de los mesoclimas. Además, esto permitió estudiar cómo los períodos de poca disponibilidad de agua y altas temperaturas pueden afectar la síntesis de compuestos fenólicos. El análisis de la composición fenólica por HPLC fue fundamental para el establecimiento de los parámetros de calidad en relación al estrés hídrico. En segundo lugar, la validación de una metodología a pequeña escala utilizada en estudios de viñedos heterogéneos indicó los pros y los contras de emplear diferentes volúmenes de fermentación a pequeña escala. Cuando una muestra no es lo suficientemente grande, los fenoles totales no pueden extraerse completamente del vino. Este vacío se llenaría examinando cómo los diferentes volúmenes podrían afectar la extracción de los vinos y cuál sería el volumen para representar de manera concluyente un procedimiento de vinificación específico. Por último, los compuestos fenólicos del vino también han suscitado un gran interés por sus efectos potencialmente beneficiosos para la salud humana. En base a su baja biodisponibilidad, se estimó la eficacia de la ingesta de 5 vinos de diferentes zonas del Priorat. Se evaluaron los efectos beneficiosos de diferentes rangos de ingesta recomendada para el vino en función del sexo, la edad y el factor de actividad. La implementación de una viticultura de precisión y la adaptación de técnicas de extracción de color y tanino seran claves en un contexto de cambio climático.The Grenache and Carignan varieties are widely spread in the province of Tarragona, especially Priorat DOQ. Global change is inducing significant variations in the phenology, production and quality, which show the vulnerability of this crop in front of increases in temperature and significant reductions in water availability. Two important aspects are assessed: ecophysiological aspects related to water use efficiency and the effects induced by mesoclimatic variations, specifically temperature and water availability. The effect of climate and soil in relation to the growth of the vine, the annual climate variability, as well as its interaction with the soil and its water reserve capacity permitted to assess the vulnerability of viticulture to global change. To assess the water stress in grapevines together with a methodology for ABA determination and vineyard classification, allowed us to study how the periods of little water availability and high temperatures can affect the synthesis of phenolic compounds. Analysis of the phenolic composition by HPLC was essential for the establishment of the quality parameters in relation to water stress. Secondly, validating a small-scale methodology used in heterogenous vineyards studies indicated the pros and cons of employing different volumes of small-scale fermentation. When a sample is not large enough to undergo large-scale fermentation, the total phenols cannot be fully extracted from the wine. This gap would be filled by examining how different volumes could affect the composition of the wines to conclusively represent a specific winemaking procedure. Lastly, phenolic compounds of wine have also attracted much interest due to their potentially beneficial effects for human health. Based on its low bioavailability, it was estimated the efficacy intake of 5 different Priorat wines. It was evaluated the beneficial effects of different ranges of recommended intake for wine depending on gender, age and activity factor. Implementing precision viticulture and adapting the techniques of extraction of color and tannin during fermentation will have to be managed with greater knowledge and more precisely, depending on the water status of the plant

Effects of land use on local biodiversity on islands and mainlands worldwide

Land-use change is a major driver of biodiversity change; while it increases many species’ extinction risk and often causes a loss of local diversity, it also promotes the establishment of novel alien and native species. All these processes change the species composition of assemblages. Global syntheses rarely compare the effects of land-use change across different ecological systems, limiting our ability to identify which systems are most affected. Islands and mainlands often face different human pressures and harbour very different species assemblages. Importantly, many islands harbour native species that are particularly sensitive to human pressures and they tend to be more vulnerable than mainlands to invasions by alien species. In this thesis, I model a global collation of site-level biodiversity data from sites facing different land uses and related pressures to answer three questions. Does the change in species composition caused by land-use change differ between islands and mainlands? Have land-use change and related pressures decreased biodiversity integrity more on islands than on mainlands? How do land use and related pressures affect the diversity of alien and native species on islands? My results highlight particular cases where land-use change causes a greater change in local species assemblages on islands than on mainlands. Based on the Biodiversity Intactness Index (BII), I also show that, on average, land-use change and related pressures have reduced biotic integrity more on islands than on mainlands, mainly because island species are more sensitive to human pressures. The chapters underpinning these findings represent the first global analyses to include a wide range of taxa while comparing biodiversity responses on islands and mainlands to land-use change. Additionally, through analyses focusing exclusively on islands, I show that land-use change reduces both local richness and total abundance of island native species but increases both the number and abundance of alien species. My results highlight the sensitivity of island natives to human pressures and attest to the establishment of alien species on islands, particularly in disturbed habitats and on more isolated islands. They support calls for stronger efforts to protect islands’ unique biodiversity. This thesis also contributes to the development of a new implementation of BII, improving on the statistical modelling approach used recently to estimate BII globally. In a final analysis integrating results from the different chapters, I show that this improved approach yields estimates that reflect the intactness of native biodiversity more accurately than previous estimates. Most of this improvement is attributable to the use of a more stringent definition for sites whose biota is assumed to have been minimally impacted by people, which was facilitated by a more efficient use of the underlying assemblage data.Open Acces

Is the Predisposition to Have More Children Beneficial among Parents with Only One Child? Evidence from Spanish Parents

The fertility deficit in many European countries is related to a low rate of second births. Understanding the factors associated with the predisposition of one-child parents to have more children could contribute to the search for solutions to this social problem. Although previous evidence highlights the role of employment and social factors, psychological factors have been poorly investigated. This study examines the relationship between different psychosocial factors (rumination, personality, life satisfaction, perfectionism, social support, parental stress, guilt linked to work–family conflict, age and child temperament) and parents’ predisposition to have more children. The sample consisted of 96 one-child Spanish parents whose child was in early childhood education (59.3% women; Mage = 37.41). The results show that one-child parents with the predisposition to have more children, compared to those without a predisposition to have more children, showed higher levels of life satisfaction, extroversion and adaptive perfectionism but lower levels of rumination and parental stress. The social implications of these findings and how they may affect parenting today are discussed