ShakeMap implementation in Italy

Since 2005, the Italian Civil Protection (Dipartimento della Protezione Cilvile, DPC) has funded several projects driven toward fast assessment of ground motion shaking in Italy - the final goal being that of organizing the emergency and direct the search and rescue (SAR) teams. To this end, the Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV) has started to determine shakemaps using the USGS-ShakeMap package within 30 minutes from event occurrence and adopting a manually revised location. In this paper we present the INGV implementation of USGS-ShakeMap for earthquakes occurring in Italy and immediately neighboring areas. Emphasis is put on data acquisition, the adopted ground motion predictive relations and the site corrections for the local amplifications of the ground motion. Finally, two examples of shakemaps are shown - the first determined for a recent medium size earthquake, the other for the large Irpinia, 1980, M6.9 event. For both events, the maps are compared to the available macroseismic data

Side-effects of a number of insecticides on predatory mites in apple orchards

Background: Amblyseius andersoni is a common predatory mite occurring in fruit orchards located in Europe and North America. Its role in preventing spider mite outbreaks is widely recognized, in particular when selective pesticides are used. The compatibility between plant protection products and predatory mites is crucial to preserve their activity. There is a need to investigate the effects of pesticides on beneficials using multiple approaches. Objectives: Field and laboratory experiments were conducted to evaluate the effects of a number of insecticides on A. andersoni. Methods: The effects of neonicotinoids (i.e., acetamiprid, imidacloprid, thiacloprid, thia-methoxam) were compared with those of pyrethroids (i.e., tau-fluvalinate), well known for their negative impact on predatory mites. Insecticides were applied 1-3 times in an experimental fruit orchard located in Northern Italy. Laboratory trials focused on their effects on the survival and the fecundity of predatory mite females. Results: Field experiments showed a decline in predatory mite numbers in plots treated with neonicotinoids or tau-fluvalinate compared to the untreated control. However, predatory mites in neonicotinoid plots reached higher densities compared to those recorded in tau-fluvalinate plots. Spider mite (Panonychus ulmi) populations reached moderate to high densities in plots treated with tau-fluvalinate while their densities were negligible in the remaining plots. Amblyseius andersoni survival was moderately affected by some neonicotinoids in the laboratory while they significantly reduced predatory mite fecundity. In contrast tau-fluvalinate exerted severe effects on survival and fecundity of predatory mites. Finally, escaping rate increased after pesticide exposure suggesting possible alterations in predatory mite behavior. Conclusions: Neonicotinoid applications significantly affected predatory mite densities in field conditions and this phenomenon appeared to be influenced by their impact on female fecundity. Their effects on survival were less severe. Implications of these results for IPM tactics in fruit orchards are discusse

The Embioptera from the Strait of Sicily Islands: first records from Pantelleria and Lampedusa and new data from Lampione (Sicily, Italy)

The occurrence of Embioptera in the Strait of Sicily islands was up to date known only from Lampione (the smallest of the Pelagie islands), where the only species reported was provisionally assigned to Embia ramburi Rimski-Korsakow, 1905. Based on material recently collected by the authors, the presence of Embioptera is here reported for the first time in the Islands of Pantelleria (Sicily, Trapani) and Lampedusa (Sicily, Agrigento). In the Island of Pantelleria the occurrence of the typical small silky tunnels produced by Embioptera has been verified in many sites, from sea level to Montagna Grande (836 m). In many of these sites, several juveniles and some adult or subadult specimens were collected and reared, obtaining an adult male belonging to Cleomia guareschii Stefani, 1953. Moreover, a single adult male of E. ramburi was collected in Lampedusa, the largest of the Pelagian Islands. Finally, the fauna of Embioptera from Lampione remains still poorly known, as it was possible to examine only two females recently collected in the island, and identified as Embia sp