Biodiversity loss in a small riverine wetland of the Ticino river (Lombardia, Northern Italy)

Wetlands are heterogeneous habitats that include various biotopes with different formations, structures and geographical positions. There are many small wetlands in the Ticino river area around Pavia (Lombardia, Northern Italy), many of which evolve naturally and originate from abandoned riverbeds, isolated river meanders, oxbow lakes or small ponds fed by terrace springs or underground waters. We decided to consider the evolution of one of these wetlands, namely the Topo oxbow lake. It had previously been studied 24 years ago (1988-1990), so we compared the results with those collected during a recent one-year investigation (June 2011-June 2012) on the following aspects: dimensions, hydrometric level fluctuation and bathymetry, principal chemical-physical parameters, hygrophytic and aquatic vegetation, and zooplankton communities. The resulting geo-morphological and biotic community changes are typical of riverine wetlands, thus supporting the hypothesis that this oxbow lake is following its natural evolution. Morphological changes in the oxbow lake should influence its biotic communities: the high plant biomass that existed in the past could be considered to have been the first step towards eutrophication, but the oxbow lake remained at mesotrophic level due to high biodiversity and dissolved oxygen levels in the water. Nowadays, the lower biodiversity in aquatic plants and zooplankton suggests a trophic level shift towards eutrophication due to the endogenous evolution of the oxbow lake. However, these ideas are not supported by the physical and chemical parameters of the water which indicate that the oxbow lake is still at mesotrophic level. We would suggest planning a gentle restoration of this biotope, with the aim of rejuvenating the physical habitat to ensure the long-term ecological functioning of the aquatic environment

Understanding organisational improvisation : foundations and performance implications

This research is grounded in strategy process theory and contingency theory and the main research aims are to investigate the antecedent factors affecting organisational improvisation and to identify how improvisation determines firm performance. This study is the first to examine the antecedent factors, which are categorised onto managerial and organisational factors that drive improvisation. The managerial factors contain the reasoning ability of managers (intuitive and rational) and managers' characteristics (selfconfidence, manager's expertise and attitude towards risk‐taking). Whilst the organisational factors include organisational structure and characteristics (goal clarity, organisational structure, organisational flexibility and organisational risk‐taking), and information processing (organisational information and organisational memory). Environmental turbulence (technology, market and competitive) is examined as an external moderating factor to the improvisation–performance relationship. Fifteen hypotheses were developed and examined in this study. A cross sectional survey methodology was used to test the hypotheses of this study. A postal questionnaire primary data was collected from 128 top management executives of high technology‐based companies in Malaysia. In summary, the findings confirm that a total accumulated variance in organisational improvisation was collectively explained by managerial factors and organisational factors; thus confirming that those aforementioned factors have statistically significant associations with organisational improvisation. Based on the study of the improvisation–performance relationship, the results revealed a positive significant relationship between both factors. Surprisingly, once the environmental turbulence factors were introduced as a moderator, the result on the association between improvisation and firm performance was greater than before; thus demonstrating a significant moderating effect on the relationships between organisational improvisation and firm performance. However, mixed results were identified when the association between each antecedent and improvisation was tested and the effect of each moderating factor was individually examined. This study on the effect of internal and external factors on organisational improvisation and firm performance makes novel contributions to the existing body of knowledge as well as to practitioners. It is noticeable that organisational improvisation in strategic management is crucial as a decision‐making mechanism for improving organisational performance. Hence, managers themselves as well as other relevant factors within firm hierarchy should facilitate and induce necessary condition that may drive organisational improvisation to happen.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

First record of eyeless specimens of Gammarus roeselii Gervais 1835 (Amphioda, Gammaridae) in a small stream of the sub-lacustrine Ticino River basin (Lombardy, Northern Italy)

In this short communication, we report the unusual presence of blind specimens of the non-native Gammarus roeselii Gervais 1835 (Amphioda, Gammaridae) in the sub-lacustrine Ticino River basin (Po River floodplain, Northern Italy). Considering that G. roeselii is present in almost all small semi-natural tributaries of the Ticino River, it is important to carry out further research on this well-established exotic species to verify its genetic variability

Terrace springs: habitat haven for macrobenthic fauna in the lower plain of the River Ticino (Lombardy, Northern Italy)

Springs are important environments between hypogean and epigean habitats; the interaction between aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems is an important factor for their biotic communities. We investigated the ecology of the macrobenthic community of two lowland springs in the River Ticino valley, focusing on the autoecology of some relevant species and on the role of springs as hotspots of biodiversity in an area threatened by anthropogenic pressure. We collected 26 taxa in total: diptera (8), trichoptera (6), gastropods (5), coleoptera (2), crustacea (2), lumbricidae (1), odonata (1), plathelminthes (1). Some of them are stenothermal and oligotrophic species thus quite unusual for a flood plain area characterized by intensive agricultural activities. In conclusion, our study highlights the importance of lowland springs in conserving some habitat-selective macrobenthic species

Role of the artificial structures on biodiversity: the case of arthropod fauna in the North Adriatic lagoons

SUMMARY -Role of the artificial structures on biodiversity: the case of arthropod fauna in the North Adriatic lagoons - The lagoons of the North Adriatic region are site of several anthropic activities, which express themselves also with the abundance of artificial structures like the wooden poles (bricole). These become suitable substrate for the colonization of numerous species that, in their absence, would not find an opportune substrate in the natural soft bottoms of the lagoon. Using the arthropod taxocoenosis as study-case, in this work we provide evidence that the presence of artificial hard substrates has a double effect on the biodiversity of this taxon, as they promote the settlement of (i) a much larger pool of species than the one of the surrounding soft bottoms and (ii) of species which are new for the Adriatic transitional environments. In particular, an amphipod already known in the Mediterranean but new for the Adriatic, Ampithoe ferox (Chevreux), has been recorded on the artificial hard substrates of the Sacca di Goro (Po delta). In order to facilitate the identification of this scarcely known species, we provide a key to distinguish it from the more common congener Ampithoe ramondi Audouin. RIASSUNTO -Il ruolo delle strutture artificiali sulla biodiversità degli artropodi lagunari nord adriatici -Le lagune della regione nord-adriatica sono sede di numerose attività antropiche; per questo è frequente trovarvi diverse strutture artificiali tra cui le bricole di legno. Queste costituiscono un substrato idoneo alla colonizzazione di numerose specie che non troverebbero un habitat opportuno nei fondali naturali delle lagune. Considerando la taxocenosi degli artropodi come modello di studio, in questo lavoro si prova che la presenza di substrati duri artificiali ha un duplice effetto sulla biodiversità di questo taxon, poiché favorisce l'insediamento (i) di un pool di specie ben più consistente rispetto a quello degli adiacenti fondi molli e (ii) di specie nuove per gli ambienti di transizione adriatici. In particolare, per i fondi duri artificiali della Sacca di Goro (delta del Po) viene segnalata la presenza dell'anfipode Ampithoe ferox (Chevreux), già noto per il Mediterraneo ma nuovo per l'Adriatico. Al fine di facilitare l'identificazione di questa specie poco conosciuta, viene fornita una chiave per distinguerla dalla ben più diffusa congenerica Ampithoe ramondi Audouin

the increasing distribution of gammarus roeselii gervais 1835 first record of the non indigenous freshwater amphipod in the sub lacustrine ticino river basin lombardy italy

This paper reports the first record of the non-indigenous species Gammarus roeselii Gervais, 1835 in the sub-lacustrine Ticino River basin (Po river floodplain, Northern Italy). Up to now in Italy, this Balkanian amphipod, known as an "exotic species, well established" in Central Europe, had only been reported in the North-Eastern part of the country (Sile River basin). Gammarus roeselii has a low spreading potential, so its presence in other parts of Europe can only be explained by human activities. However, the available data suggests that its presence in the sub-lacustrine Ticino River basin does not currently represent a threat to the population of the native Echinogammarus stammeri, which is still very healthy in this area

OXA-244-Producing ST131 Escherichia coli From Surface and Groundwaters of Pavia Urban Area (Po Plain, Northern Italy)

The study aimed to investigate (i) the occurrence of third-generation cephalosporins and/or carbapenems non-sensitive Enterobacterales in Pavia surface and groundwaters, (ii) their resistance determinants, and (iii) the clonal features of the most relevant strains. During May 13 and 14, 2019, n = 18 water samples from n = 12 sampling sites in the urban/peri-urban area of Pavia (Po Plain, Northern Italy) have been evaluated. At first, hydrochemical analysis and bacterial plate counts were carried out on all the water samples. One milliliter of each water sample was then screened on both MacConkey agar (MC) added with cefotaxime (1 mg/L; 2 mg/L) and MC plus meropenem (0.25 mg/L; 4 mg/L). Species identification and antimicrobial susceptibilities were assessed by MicroScan autoSCAN-4. Double Disk Synergy (DD) test, CT103XL microarray, acc(6')-Ib-cr, qnrS, blaCTX-M-/MOX-/VEB-/OXA-type genes targeted PCR and sequencing, Pulsed-Field Gel Electrophoresis (PFGE), MultiLocus Sequence Typing (MLST), and Whole-Genome Sequencing on selected strains were performed. A total of n = 30 isolates grown on β-lactams enriched MC: Escherichia coli (n = 21; 70%), Klebsiella spp. (n = 5; 16.6%), Citrobacter freundii (n = 2; 6.7%), and Kluyvera intermedia (n = 2; 6.7%). All E. coli and K. pneumoniae were ESβL-producers by DD. The 66.6, 38.0, and 19.0% of E. coli were ciprofloxacin/levofloxacin, trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, and gentamicin resistant (EUCAST 2019 breakpoints), respectively. A blaCTX-M-type determinant was identified in E. coli (n = 20/21; 95.2%) and K. pneumoniae (n = 2/3; 66.7%). The remaining E. coli was blaVEB-1 and blaMOX-2 genes positive. The aac(6')-Ib-cr determinant was found in n = 7 E. coli and n = 1 K. pneumoniae, while qnrS was found in n = 1 E. coli and n = 2 K. pneumoniae. PFGE showed clonal heterogeneity among ESβL-E. coli. Two out of four E. coli detected as blaOXA-244-positive, belonged to the pandemic ST131. One XDR K. pneumoniae from a stream sample, detected as blaKPC-2 positive, resulted of ST258. The epidemiological impact of blaOXA-244 ST131 E. coli and blaKPC-2 ST258 K. pneumoniae presence in surface waters of an urban area in Northern Italy must not be underestimated

Scientific collaboration for early detection of invaders results in a significant update on estimated range: lessons from Stenothoe georgiana Bynum & Fox 1977

Detection of new non-indigenous species is often delayed when taxonomically challenging taxa are involved, such as small-sized marine organisms. The present study highlights the relevance of scientific cooperation in the early detection of the invader amphipod Stenothoe georgiana. Originally described from North Carolina (USA), the species was recently found in Chile and the Western Mediterranean. Here, we provide the first record of the species in Macaronesia, Atlantic coasts of continental Europe, North Africa and Australia, and extend its known distribution along the Mediterranean coast. Just like other small crustaceans, shipping (including recreational boating) and aquaculture are probably the main vectors of introduction and secondary spread for this amphipod species. This case of S. georgiana sheds light on the importance of promoting taxonomical knowledge, and building multidisciplinary expertise networks that ensure an effective spread of alien species information. We also encourage the implementation of standardized monitoring methodologies to facilitate early detection of small mobile invaders

Unpublished Mediterranean and Black Sea records of marine alien, cryptogenic, and neonative species

To enrich spatio-temporal information on the distribution of alien, cryptogenic, and neonative species in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea, a collective effort by 173 marine scientists was made to provide unpublished records and make them open access to the scientific community. Through this effort, we collected and harmonized a dataset of 12,649 records. It includes 247 taxa, of which 217 are Animalia, 25 Plantae and 5 Chromista, from 23 countries surrounding the Mediterranean and the Black Sea. Chordata was the most abundant taxonomic group, followed by Arthropoda, Mollusca, and Annelida. In terms of species records, Siganus luridus, Siganus rivulatus, Saurida lessepsianus, Pterois miles, Upeneus moluccensis, Charybdis (Archias) longicollis, and Caulerpa cylindracea were the most numerous. The temporal distribution of the records ranges from 1973 to 2022, with 44% of the records in 2020–2021. Lethrinus borbonicus is reported for the first time in the Mediterranean Sea, while Pomatoschistus quagga, Caulerpa cylindracea, Grateloupia turuturu, and Misophria pallida are first records for the Black Sea; Kapraunia schneideri is recorded for the second time in the Mediterranean and for the first time in Israel; Prionospio depauperata and Pseudonereis anomala are reported for the first time from the Sea of Marmara. Many first country records are also included, namely: Amathia verticillata (Montenegro), Ampithoe valida (Italy), Antithamnion amphigeneum (Greece), Clavelina oblonga (Tunisia and Slovenia), Dendostrea cf. folium (Syria), Epinephelus fasciatus (Tunisia), Ganonema farinosum (Montenegro), Macrorhynchia philippina (Tunisia), Marenzelleria neglecta (Romania), Paratapes textilis (Tunisia), and Botrylloides diegensis (Tunisia).Stelios Katsanevakis, Michail Ragkousis, Maria Sini, Markos Digenis and Vasilis Gerovasileiou were supported by the Hellenic Foundation for Research and Innovation (HFRI) under the “First Call for HFRI Research Projects to support Faculty members and Researchers and the procurement of high-cost research equipment grant” (Project ALAS – “ALiens in the Aegean – a Sea under siege” (Katsanevakis et al. 2020b); Project Number: HFRI-FM17-1597). Konstantinos Tsirintanis was co-financed by Greece and the European Union (European Social Fund-ESF) through the Operational Programme “Human Resources Development, Education and Lifelong Learning”, 2014-2020, in the context of the Act “Enhancing Human Resources Research Potential by undertaking a Doctoral Research” Sub-action 2: IKY Scholarship Programme for PhD candidates in the Greek Universities. Maria Zotou was supported by the project “Coastal Environment Observatory and Risk Management in Island Regions AEGIS+” (MIS 5047038), implemented within the Operational Programme “Competitiveness, Entrepreneurship and Innovation” (NSRF 2014-2020), co financed by the Hellenic Government (Ministry of Development and Investments) and the European Union (European Regional Development Fund, Cohesion Fund). Razy Hoffman was supported by Yad-Hanadiv Foundation, through the Israel Society of Ecology and Environmental Sciences and Israel Nature and Parks Authority, an integrated program for establishing biological baselines and monitoring protocols for marine reserves in the Israeli Mediterranean Sea (Grant #10669). Tatiana Begun, Adrian Teaca and Mihaela Muresan were supported by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 BRIDGE-BS project under grant agreement no. 101000240. Fiona Tomas was supported by the project “Invasion of the tropical alga Halimeda incrassata in the Balearic Islands: ecology and invasion dynamics (AAEE119/2017)”, funded by the Vicepresidencia y Consejería de Innovación, Investigación y Turismo del Govern de les Illes Balears, with support from the European Union and FEDER funds, and the project “Una nueva alga invasora en el Mediterráneo: invasibilidad, detección y erradicación del alga tropical Halimeda incrassata (INVHALI)”, funded by the Fundación Biodiversidad, del Ministerio para la Transición Ecológica y el Reto Demográfico. Simonetta Fraschetti, Laura Tamburello, Antonia Chiarore were supported by the project PO FEAMP 2014-2020 - DRD n. 35/2019, “Innovazione, sviluppo e sostenibilità nel settore della pesca e dell'acquacoltura per la Regione Campania” (ISSPA 2.51) and the EU EASME - EMFF (Sustainable Blue Econ-omy) Project AFRIMED (http://afrimed-project.eu/, grant agreement N. 789059). Carlos Jimenez, Louis Hadjioannou, Vasilis Resaikos, Valentina Fossati, Magdalene Papatheodoulou, and Antonis Petrou were supported by MedPan Small Projects, Mava, and LIFE-IP. Louis Hadjioannou, Manos L. Moraitis and Neophytos Agrotis received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program within the framework of the CMMI/MaRITeC-X project under grant agreement No. 857586. Ernesto Azzurro was supported by the project USEIt - Utilizzo di Sinergie operative per la gestione integrata specie aliene Invasive in Italia, funded by the research programme @CNR. Antonietta Rosso and Francesco Sciuto were supported by the University of Catania through “PiaCeRi-Piano Incentivi per la Ricerca di Ateneo 2020–22 linea di intervento 2.” This is the Catania Paleoecological Research Group contribution n. 484. Diego K. Kersting was supported by the Beatriu de Pinós programme funded by the Secretary of Universities and Research (Government of Catalonia) and the Horizon 2020 programme of research and innovation of the European Union under the Marie Sklodowska-Curie grant agreement No 801370. Francesco Tiralongo was supported by the AlienFish project of Ente Fauna Marina Mediterranea (Scientific Organization for Research and Conservation of Marine Biodiversity, 96012 Avola, Italy), a citizen science project for monitoring and studying rare and non-indigenous fish in Italian waters. Adriana Vella, was supported by funds through the BioCon_Innovate Research Excellence Grant from the University of Malta awarded to her. Noel Vella was supported by REACH HIGH Scholars Programme-Post Doctoral Grant for the FINS project. Some of the records provided by Victor Surugiu were obtained during surveys carried out within the framework of the project “Adequate management of invasive species in Romania, in accordance with EU Regulation 1143/2014 on the prevention and management of the introduction and spread of invasive alien species”, SMIS 2014+ 120008, coordinated by the Romanian Ministry of Environment, Water and Forests in partnership with the University of Bucharest (2018–2022). Alan Deidun and Alessio Marrone were supported by the “Spot The Alien” citizen science campaign for the monitoring of the Alien species in the Maltese archipelago and by the Interreg Italia-Malta Harmony project. The authors from the National Institute of Biology (Slovenia) acknowledge the financial support of the Slovenian Research Agency (Research Core Funding No. P1-0237) and of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food (project “Survey of the species richness and abundance of alien species in the Slovenian Sea”). Emanuele Mancini and Fabio Collepardo Coccia were supported by the project PO-FEAMP 2014-2020 “BIOBLITZ: research, knowledge and participation for the sustainable management of marine resources (BioBlitz Blu 2020)” coordinated by CURSA for MIPAAF, the Italian Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies, Measure 1.40 - Protection and restoration of biodiversity and marine ecosystems and compensation schemes in the context of sustainable fishing activities. Daniele Grech was supported by the PO-FEAMP 2014-2020 project ECOGESTOCK “Approccio ECOsistemico per la tutela e la GEStione delle risorse biologiche e STOCK ittici nelle acque interne”, the citizen science project Progetto Fucales: chi le ha viste? and the Paralenz Every dive counts sponsor. Jamila Rizgalla was supported by the project Snowball for the monitoring of alien species in Libyan waters له اهتفش له اهتدطصا ؟) have you seen it have you fished it?). Gerasimos Kondylatos and Dimitrios Mavrouleas were supported by the project “EXPLIAS” (MIS (ΟΠΣ): 5049912), design and piloting methods of commercial exploitation of invasive alien species with a view to contributing to their population control, coordinated by the National Technical University of Athens with the collaboration of the Hellenic Centre for Marine Research and the University of the Aegean and co-founded by Greece and the European Union. G. Kondylatos and Savvas Nikolidakis were supported by the project “SAMOS” (ID CODE: 32.2072004/001), a study for a submarine productive park in Marathokampos of Samos. Paraskevi K. Karachle, Aikaterini Dogrammatzi, Giorgos A. Apostolopoulos, Kassiani Konida and Melina Nalmpanti were supported by the project “4ALIEN: Biology and the potential economic exploitation of four alien species in the Hellenic Seas”, funded by NRSF 2017-2020 (MIS (ΟΠΣ): 5049511). Fabio Crocetta and Riccardo Virgili were partially funded by the project PO FEAMP Campania 2014–2020, DRD n. 35 of 15th March 2018, Innovazione, sviluppo e sostenibilità nel settore della pesca e dell’acquacoltura per la regione Campania, Misura 2.51, WP5, Task 5.5 Presenza e distribuzione di specie non indigene del macrozoobenthos e del necton in Campania. Michel Bariche was partially funded by the University Research Board of the American University of Beirut (DDF 103951/2592). Constantinos G. Georgiadis, Dimitra Lida Rammou, Paschalis Papadamakis and Sotiris Orfanidis were supported by the MSFD monitoring program. Sonia Smeraldo was supported by the MPA-Engage project, led by the Institute of Marine Sciences of the Spanish National Research Council and funded by the Interreg MED program. Evgeniia Karpova acknowledge that the publication of this article was in part carried out within the framework of the state assignment of the FRC IBSS “Patterns of Formation and Anthropogenic Transformation of Biodiversity and Bioresources of the Azov– Black Sea Basin and Other Regions of the World Ocean” (No. 121030100028-0). Elena Slynko’s work was carried out within the framework of a State Assignment no. 121051100109-1 of IBIW RAS. Manuela Falautano and Luca Castriota were supported by ISPRA citizen science campaigns for the monitoring of alien species through the dedicated institutional project ([email protected]). María Altamirano was supported by the project RUGULOPTERYX funded by Fundación Biodiversidad-Ministerio para la Transición Ecológica y el reto Demográfico (Spain) and the project UMA20-FEDERJA-006 with support from the European Union and FEDER funds and Junta de Andalucía. Records provided by L. Mangialajo were collected in the framework of projects funded by the Pew Charitable Trust, by the European Commission (AFRIMED, http://afrimed-project.eu/, grant agreement N. 789059) and by the Académie 3 de l’Université Côte d’Azur (projet CONVOST).Peer reviewe

Unpublished Mediterranean and Black Sea records of marine alien, cryptogenic, and neonative species

To enrich spatio-temporal information on the distribution of alien, cryptogenic, and neonative species in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea, a collective effort by 173 marine scientists was made to provide unpublished records and make them open access to the scientific community. Through this effort, we collected and harmonized a dataset of 12,649 records. It includes 247 taxa, of which 217 are Animalia, 25 Plantae and 5 Chromista, from 23 countries surrounding the Mediterranean and the Black Sea. Chordata was the most abundant taxonomic group, followed by Arthropoda, Mollusca, and Annelida. In terms of species records, Siganus luridus, Siganus rivulatus, Saurida lessepsianus, Pterois miles, Upeneus moluccensis, Charybdis (Archias) longicollis, and Caulerpa cylindracea were the most numerous. The temporal distribution of the records ranges from 1973 to 2022, with 44% of the records in 2020–2021. Lethrinus borbonicus is reported for the first time in the Mediterranean Sea, while Pomatoschistus quagga, Caulerpa cylindracea, Grateloupia turuturu, and Misophria pallida are first records for the Black Sea; Kapraunia schneideri is recorded for the second time in the Mediterranean and for the first time in Israel; Prionospio depauperata and Pseudonereis anomala are reported for the first time from the Sea of Marmara. Many first country records are also included, namely: Amathia verticillata (Montenegro), Ampithoe valida (Italy), Antithamnion amphigeneum (Greece), Clavelina oblonga (Tunisia and Slovenia), Dendostrea cf. folium (Syria), Epinephelus fasciatus (Tunisia), Ganonema farinosum (Montenegro), Macrorhynchia philippina (Tunisia), Marenzelleria neglecta (Romania), Paratapes textilis (Tunisia), and Botrylloides diegensis (Tunisia).peer-reviewe