On the presence of the Mediterranean endemic Microdeutopus sporadhi Myers, 1969 (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Aoridae) in the Gulf of Naples (Italy) with a review on its distribution and ecology

The species Microdeutopus sporadhi (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Aoridae), endemic of the Mediterranean Sea, was described by Myers in 1969 on material collected from the Aegean Sea in a sheltered environment with high sedimentation rates. A check on the distribution and ecology of M. sporadhi showed that: — although not mentioned in the checklist of amphipods of the Italian seas, it was already found in the central Tyrrhenian Sea in 1983-84 and in the northern Adriatic Sea in 2002-03; — it was rarely found in the Mediterranean Sea, one of the most studied basins as concerns amphipod fauna; but notwithstanding the few records available, the wide ecological spectrum of this species was pointed out. The present study, conducted off the Island of Ischia (Gulf of Naples, Italy), showed the presence of rich and well established populations through time, but only in a peculiar substratum (artificial collectors) and environment (low pH values). The species seems to be able to withstand harsh environmental conditions and probably to conceal itself through a cryptic behaviour, escaping traditional sampling methods. The role of rare or hidden species in bio-assessment should be re-evaluated

Are we ready for scaling up restoration actions? An insight from Mediterranean macroalgal canopies

Extensive loss of macroalgal forests advocates for large-scale restoration interventions, to compensate habitat degradation and recover the associated ecological functions and services. Yet, restoration attempts have generally been limited to small spatial extensions, with the principal aim of developing efficient restoration techniques. Here, the success of outplanting Cystoseira amentacea v. stricta germlings cultured in aquaria was experimentally explored at a scale of tens of kms, by means of a multifactorial experimental design. In the intertidal rocky shores of SE Italy, locations with a continuous distribution for hundreds of meters or with few thalli forming patches of few centimeters of C. amentacea canopy were selected. In each location, the effects of adult conspecifics and the exclusion of macrograzers (salema fish and sea urchins) on the survival of germlings were tested. We evaluated the most critical determinants of mortality for germlings, including the overlooked pressure of mesograzers (e.g. amphipods, small mollusks, polychaetes). Despite the high mortality observed during outplanting and early settlement stages, survival of C. amentacea germlings was consistently favored by the exclusion of macrograzers, while the presence of adult conspecifics had no effects. In addition, the cost analysis of the interventions showed the feasibility of the ex-situ method, representing an essential tool for preserving Cystoseira forests. Large scale restoration is possible but requires baseline information with an in-depth knowledge of the species ecology and of the areas to be restored, together with the development of specific cultivation protocols to make consistently efficient restoration interventions

The Italian open data meteorological portal: MISTRAL

At the national level, in Italy, observational and forecast data are collected by various public bodies and are often kept in various small, heterogeneous and non-interoperable repositories, released under different licenses, thus limiting the usability for external users. In this context, MISTRAL (the Meteo Italian SupercompuTing PoRtAL) was launched as the first Italian meteorological open data portal, with the aim of promoting the reuse of meteorological data sets available at national level coverage. The MISTRAL portal provides (and archives) meteorological data from various observation networks, both public and private, and forecast data that are generated and post-processed within the Consortium for Small-scale Modeling-Limited Area Model Italia (COSMO-LAMI) agreement using high performance computing (HPC) facilities. Also incorporated is the Italy Flash Flood use case, implemented with the collaboration of European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF), which exploits cutting edge advances in HPC-based post-processing of ensemble precipitation forecasts, for different model resolutions, and applies those to deliver novel blended-resolution forecasts specifically for Italy. Finally, in addition to providing architectures for the acquisition and display of observational data, MISTRAL also delivers an interactive system for visualizing forecast data of different resolutions as superimposed multi-layer maps

Effects of ocean acidification on invertebrate settlement at volcanic CO<inf>2</inf> vents

We present the first study of the effects of ocean acidification on settlement of benthic invertebrates and microfauna. Artificial collectors were placed for 1 month along pH gradients at CO2 vents off Ischia (Tyrrhenian Sea, Italy). Seventy-nine taxa were identified from six main taxonomic groups (foraminiferans, nematodes, polychaetes, molluscs, crustaceans and chaetognaths). Calcareous foraminiferans, serpulid polychaetes, gastropods and bivalves showed highly significant reductions in recruitment to the collectors as pCO2 rose from normal (336-341 ppm, pH 8.09-8.15) to high levels (886-5,148 ppm) causing acidified conditions near the vents (pH 7.08-7.79). Only the syllid polychaete Syllis prolifera had higher abundances at the most acidified station, although a wide range of polychaetes and small crustaceans was able to settle and survive under these conditions. A few taxa (Amphiglena mediterranea, Leptochelia dubia, Caprella acanthifera) were particularly abundant at stations acidified by intermediate amounts of CO2 (pH 7. 41-7.99). These results show that increased levels of CO2 can profoundly affect the settlement of a wide range of benthic organisms. © 2010 Springer-Verlag

Prognostic Value of Body Mass Index on Short-Term and Long-Term Outcome after Resection of Esophageal Cancer

Introduction: Cachexia and obesity have been suggested to be risk factors for postoperative complications. However, high body mass index (BMI) might result in a higher R0-resection rate because of the presence of more fatty tissue surrounding the tumor. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether BMI is of prognostic value with regard to short-term and long-term outcome in patients who undergo esophagectomy for cancer. Methods: In 556 patients who underwent esophagectomy (1991-2007), clinical and pathological outcome were compared between different BMI classes (underweight, normal weight, overweight, obesity). Results: Overall morbidity, mortality, and reoperation rate did not differ in underweight and obese patients. However, severe complications seemed to occur more often in obese patients (p = 0.06), and the risk for anastomotic leakage increased with higher BMI (12.5% in underweight patients compared with 27.6% in obese patients, p = 0.04). Histopathological assessment showed comparable pTNM stages, although an advanced pT stage was seen more often in patients with low/normal BMI (p = 0.02). A linear association between BMI and R0-resection rate was detected (p = 0.02): 60% in underweight patients compared with 81% in obese patients. However, unlike pT-stage (p < 0.001), BMI was not an independent predictor for R0 resection (p = 0.12). There was no significant difference in overall or disease-free 5-year survival between the BMI classes (p = 0.25 and p = 0.6, respectively). Conclusions: BMI is not of prognostic value with regard to short-term and long-term outcome in patients who undergo esophagectomy for cancer and is not an independent predictor for radical R0 resection. Patients oncologically eligible for esophagectomy should not be denied surgery on the basis of their BMI class

On the presence of the Mediterranean endemic Microdeutopus sporadhi Myers, 1969 (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Aoridae) in the Gulf of Naples (Italy) with a review on its distribution and ecology

The species Microdeutopus sporadhi (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Aoridae), endemic of the Mediterranean Sea, was described by Myers in 1969 on material collected from the Aegean Sea in a sheltered environment with high sedimentation rates. A check on the distribution and ecology of M. sporadhi showed that: — although not mentioned in the checklist of amphipods of the Italian seas, it was already found in the central Tyrrhenian Sea in 1983-84 and in the northern Adriatic Sea in 2002-03; — it was rarely found in the Mediterranean Sea, one of the most studied basins as concerns amphipod fauna; but notwithstanding the few records available, the wide ecological spectrum of this species was pointed out. The present study, conducted off the Island of Ischia (Gulf of Naples, Italy), showed the presence of rich and well established populations through time, but only in a peculiar substratum (artificial collectors) and environment (low pH values). The species seems to be able to withstand harsh environmental conditions and probably to conceal itself through a cryptic behaviour, escaping traditional sampling methods. The role of rare or hidden species in bio-assessment should be re-evaluated

Benthic associations of the shallow hard bottoms off Terra Nova Bay, Ross Sea: zonation, biomass and population structure

Quantitative and semi-quantitative samples of phyto- and zoobenthic organisms were collected by SCUBA diving at five stations along a depth transect from 0.5-16 m on the shallow hard bottoms off Terra Nova Bay, Ross Sea, Antarctica. The benthic associations were dominated by two macroalgal species (Iridaea cordata and Phyllophora antarctica) and by few animal taxa (mainly polychaetes, molluscs and peracarid crustaceans). Distribution at the community and species levels revealed a well-defined zonation pattern as a function of depth, governed mainly by sea ice scouring and melting. Zonation of vagile fauna was also affected by the effects of covering and architecture of the two dominant macroalgae. Species richness and diversity were higher in the Phyllophora-associated community, where habitat complexity and sheltering were higher. The highest faunal abundance (over 82 000 ind.m(-2)) and biomass (macroalgae and fauna wet weight 2392 g m(-2)) were recorded at 2 m depth in association with the Iridaea covering, where the harsher environmental conditions select a few taxa. The biomass values, even if underestimates of the whole community standing crop, are among the highest recorded in shallow austral biotopes. An autoecological and demographic analysis of the most abundant animal species revealed for some species (e.g. Laevilitorina antarctica and Paramoera walkeri) a quite complex population structure with up to three size classes, including juveniles. In some species, the cohort of juveniles showed a well defined depth preference probably related to sheltering by the macroalgae. As a whole, the species analyzed showed various and contrasting reproductive strategies, despite the fact that the environmental conditions along the transect were relatively similar and quite selective

Depth and Seasonal Distribution of Some Groups of the Vagile Fauna of the Posidonia oceanica Leaf Stratum: Structural and Trophic Analyses

The taxonomical and trophic structures of the vagile fauna communities of the leaf stratum in a Posidonia oceanica meadow at Ischia (Gulf of Naples, Italy) were investigated at five stations along a depth gradient (1 to 25 m). Sampling was performed in July, November, February, and May. The analyzed groups - polychaetes, molluscs, tanaids, isopods, amphipods, and decapods - exhibited similar distributional trends in all seasons, with coenotic discontinuities occurring at well-defined depths. The same zonation pattern was produced by feeding-guild analysis. Eleven trophic groups were identified. The most abundant groups were: Herbivores, which were found mainly at the shallow stations; Herbivores-deposit feeders, which were widely distributed along the transect; Deposit feeders-carnivores, found mainly at the deep stations.This study suggests that in the Posidonia leaf stratum, herbivores and herbivores-deposit feeders, as consumers of epiphytic micro- and macroflora and deposited particulate organic matter, play an important role in the energy transfer from producers to higher trophic levels of the system