Assessment of ecosystem services provided by semi-natural grasslands as a basis for promoting conservation measures

Throughout the second half of the 20th Century the area of semi-natural grasslands in Estonia decreased substantially, partly due to the collectivization process during the soviet era leading to agricultural abandonment in some areas and intensification in more productive soil types (Henle et al. 2008). Both of these processes led to declines in species diversity as well as homogenisation and loss of character. Within calcareous grasslands loss of grazing leads to colonization by scrub including juniper (Juniperus communis) with very few species and a very different structure, and similar processes occur in other semi-natural grassland types.The unique biodiversity value of semi-natural grasslands in Estonia is well recognised (Dengler et al. 2014), however, an estimation of their value is required to demonstrate to policy makers the urgent requirement for conservation measures. The ecosystem services framework provides a new approach to assess the value and multi-functionality of these habitats. A methodology for assessing ecosystem services in semi-natural grasslands is provided in this paper.Management type and intensity have a major influence on semi-natural grassland species composition (Burnside et al. 2007). Therefore the first stage of this project was to assess the relationships between the management regime and the presence of key species in different semi-natural grassland types. The Annex 1 habitat classification was used as the starting point for the study because they are thoroughly mapped in Estonia and form the basis for agri-environmental payments. The five dominant semi-natural grassland habitats in Estonia were selected for this study and include: Northern boreal alluvial meadows (6450), Boreal Baltic coastal meadows (1630), Alvars (6280) and Fennoscandian wooded pastures and meadows (6530 and 9070 respectively). These account for 25%, 21%, 15% and 10% of the 109592 ha of semi-natural grasslands in Estonia.Four ecosystem services were selected for this study: plant biodiversity, soil carbon storage, biomass production and use for grazing animals. As part of the study, bundles and trade-offs between ecosystem services are identified, as well as hot and cold spots for the provision of ecosystem services. Fig. 1 provides a summary of the share of semi-natural grasslands in Estonia and uses the Environmental Stratification of Estonia (ESE) (Villoslada et al. 2016) to show regional distribution.The results of the project will be translated into policy and decision-making through an online ecosystem services valuation tool in the frame of the LIFE Viva Grass project. The project aims at preventing the loss of High Nature Value grasslands by providing an Integrating Planning Tool and considering socio-economic factors impacting nature conservation policy

Machine learning classification and accuracy assessment from high-resolution images of coastal wetlands

High-resolution images obtained by multispectral cameras mounted on Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) are helping to capture the heterogeneity of the environment in images that can be discretized in categories during a classification process. Currently, there is an increasing use of supervised machine learning (ML) classifiers to retrieve accurate results using scarce datasets with samples with non-linear relationships. We compared the accuracies of two ML classifiers using a pixel and object analysis approach in six coastal wetland sites. The results show that the Random Forest (RF) performs better than K-Nearest Neighbors (KNN) algorithm in the classification of pixels and objects and the classification based on pixel analysis is slightly better than the object-based analysis. The agreement between the classifications of objects and pixels is higher in Random Forest. This is likely due to the heterogeneity of the study areas, where pixel-based classifications are most appropriate. In addition, from an ecological perspective, as these wetlands are heterogeneous, the pixel-based classification reflects a more realistic interpretation of plant community distribution

Relación entre el aprendizaje autorregulado y rendimiento académico en estudiantes de Ingeniería Industrial de universidades de Trujillo 2017

Los conceptos de aprendizaje autorregulado son relevantes en un proceso que comprende las relaciones de trabajo, formación profesional y sociedad. Durante la pandemia del COVID19 con la virtualidad de la enseñanza fue más atractivo su estudio. El objetivo de la investigación fue establecer la relación que existe entre el aprendizaje autorregulado y el rendimiento académico en estudiantes de Ingeniería Industrial del V, VI, VII y VIII ciclo en el semestre académico 2017-I, en universidades de Trujillo, aplicándose el Inventario de Aprendizaje Autorregulado (SRLI) Norabuena 2011, una versión adaptada de Lindner, Harris y Gordon 1992. Para el análisis se utilizó el coeficiente de correlación de Pearson, a un nivel de significancia de 0.01. Los resultados obtenidos en la matriz de correlaciones, en la universidad V es 0.777 y en la universidad N es 0.854 y en conjunto es 0.822. Estos resultados permitieron concluir que existe una relación positiva y estadísticamente significativa para el nivel de aprendizaje autorregulado en su escala total, así como las subescalas: ejecutiva, cognitiva, motivación y control de ambiente, y el nivel de rendimiento académico, según la prueba de correlación de Pearson. Los resultados de la investigación implican un apoyo a los docentes para trasformar su rol en el aula.The concepts of self-regulated learning are relevant in a process involving the relationships of work, professional training and society. During the COVID-19 pandemic with the virtuality of teaching, its study became more attractive. The objective of the research was to establish the relationship that exists between self-regulated learning and academic performance in students of Industrial Engineering of the V, VI, VII and VIII cycle in the academic semester 2017-I, in universities of Trujillo, applying the Self-Regulated Learning Inventory (SRLI) Norabuena 2011, an adapted version of Lindner, Harris and Gordon 1992. Pearson's correlation coefficient was used for the analysis, at a significance level of 0.01. The results obtained in the correlation matrix, in university V is 0.777 and in university N is 0.854 and overall is 0.822. These results allowed concluding that there is a positive and statistically significant relationship for the level of self-regulated learning in its total scale, as well as the subscales: executive, cognitive, motivation and environmental control, and the level of academic performance, according to Pearson's correlation test. The results of the research imply a support to teachers to transform their role in the classroom

The disruption of mitochondrial axonal transport is an early event in neuroinflammation

Background: in brain inflammatory diseases, axonal damage is one of the most critical steps in the cascade that leads to permanent disability. Thus, identifying the initial events triggered by inflammation or oxidative stress that provoke axonal damage is critical for the development of neuroprotective therapies. Energy depletion due to mitochondrial dysfunction has been postulated as an important step in the damage of axons. This prompted us to study the effects of acute inflammation and oxidative stress on the morphology, transport, and function of mitochondria in axons. Methods: mouse cerebellar slice cultures were challenged with either lipopolysaccharide (LPS) or hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) ex vivo for 24 h. Axonal mitochondrial morphology was evaluated by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and mitochondrial transportation by time-lapse imaging. In addition, mitochondrial function in the cerebellar slice cultures was analyzed through high-resolution respirometry assays and quantification of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) production. Results: both conditions promoted an increase in the size and complexity of axonal itochondria evident in electron microscopy images, suggesting a compensatory response. Such compensation was reflected at the tissue level as increased respiratory activity of complexes I and IV and as a transient increase in ATP production in response to acute inflammation. Notably, time-lapse microscopy indicated that mitochondrial transport (mean velocity) was severely impaired in axons, increasing the proportion of stationary mitochondria in axons after LPS challenge. Indeed, the two challenges used produced different effects: inflammation mostly reducing retrograde transport and oxidative stress slightly enhancing retrograde transportation. Conclusions: neuroinflammation acutely impairs axonal mitochondrial transportation, which would promote an inappropriate delivery of energy throughout axons and, by this way, contribute to axonal damage. Thus, preserving axonal mitochondrial transport might represent a promising avenue to exploit as a therapeutic target for neuroprotection in brain inflammatory diseases like multiple sclerosis

Looduse õpperadade mõjukuse hinnang keskkonnahariduse võimaldamisel elanikkonna erinevatele gruppidele

Tänapäeva kiire elutempoga ühiskonnas vajavad inimesed vaheldust pingelisesse igapäevaellu. Tavapäraselt soovitakse eemalduda rutiinsest päevakavast ning tööprotsessist. Seetõttu leiavad inimesed üha enam tee loodusesse ja erinevatele õpperadadele, et pääseda rutiinist ja kohustustest, maandada pingeid ja nautida looduses pakutavat ning puhata. Rada maastikul tingib sageli inimeses soovi kulgeda seda teed mööda. Liikumist erinevatel maastikul võib vaadelda taustsüsteemis, kus just taustsüsteem ise pakub erinevaid võimalusi looduse interpretatsioonideks ning ümbritseva tunnetamiseks. Arusaam, et ümbritsevat keskkonda saab mõista, annab aluse ka loodusõpperadade kujundamisele ja rajamisele. Üldmulje rajast võib huvilisi rahustada või vastupidiselt, külvata hoopis mõningast segadust. Igal juhul, on just looduseõpperada üks tuntumaid võimalusi looduses kulgemiseks. Looduseõpperaja mitmekesised eesmärgid kannavad endas turvalist orienteerumist maastikel, loodus- ja enese tunnetuse võimalust, eneseharimist, teatud määral kehalist aktiivsust, grupiliikmete vahelist sotsialiseerumist, üllatusmomente, tasakaalustumist loodusega jne. Loodusõpperaja kindel algusja lõpp-punkt aitavad konkretiseerida raja külastust ning tekitada tunde, et raja läbimisel saavutati midagi. Sageli võib inimest ehmatada mõiste õpperada, mille puhul tekib seos ühe vaevanõudvama tegevusega – õppimisega. Kuid tegelikkuses annab mõiste õpperada vaid vihje, et raja ülesehitus vastab õppemetoodilistele nõuetele. Missuguses mahus keegi teadmisi omandab, sõltub juba aga raja külastajast endast. Samas sõltub rajalt saadav paljuski loodusõpperaja ideoloogilisest ülesehitusest, tehnilisest ettevalmistusest, üldisest seisundist ja paljudest teistest teguritest, mis tervikuna loovad üldmulje, kuidas rada tegelikkuses mõju külastajale. Loodusõpperadade kohta on tehtud mitmeid rakendusuuringuid. Üldjuhul on olnud need seotud külastuskoormuste hindamisega, kas siis külastajate loendus või siis külastajate mehhaaniline ja erodeeriv mõju rajale. Eestis on sarnaste uuringutega tegelenud kõrgel tasemel RMK. Teiselt poolt on mujal maailmas tehtud uurimistöid, et kirjeldada missugust olulist sotsiaalset aspekti kannavad endas erinevat tüüpi rajad külastajale. Neid teadmisi vajatakse loodusõpperadade edasiseks planeerimiseks ning kujundamiseks. Toome siin lihtsa näite. Võiks eeldada, et loodusõpperadasid kasutatakse esmases järjekorras looduse tundma õppimiseks ja interpreteerimiseks. Väga mitmed uuringud aga näitavad, et päris nii see ei ole. On kaks konkreetselt eristuvat gruppi. Eesmärgistatud grupp, kes läheb sihiteadlikul loodusõpperajale, et sealt teadmisi omandada. Ja teise grupi moodustavad üldjuhul inimesed, kes lähevad oma vaba aega loodusesse veetma. Kui palju nüüd nemad teadmisi loodusest ja kohalikust kultuuriloost omandavad, sõltub paljuski loodusõpperajast endast, infoedastusest rajal, info atraktiivsusest jne. Ainuüksi nende kahe sotsiaalse grupi eristumine rõhutab vajadust täpselt teada, kuidas külastaja suhtestub loodusõpperajaga. Seega on vaja leida vastust loodusõpperadade vajadusest ja mõjukusest ühiskonnale ja selle erinevatele sotsiaalsetele gruppidele. Teine küsimustering, mis on pidevalt päevakorras, puudutab loodusõpperadade arvu ja paiknemist ruumis. Arvestades, et radade ülalpidamine on kallis, siis eelpoolnimetatud küsimus muutub üsna kaalukaks. Sotsiaalse hinnangu saamine radadele on üks võimalus korrastada radade süsteemi. Need rajad, mis on saanud regulaarselt madalaid hindeid, ei oma järelikult sellist kaalu, et neid säilitada. Samas valikutegemine, missugused rajad jäävad, on siiski komplitseeritud. Väidetavalt asutati esimene loodusõpperada Eestisse 1961. Praegu arvatakse Eestis olevat ligikaudu 200 loodusõpperada. Eeldatavasti oli maksimaalselt 400 (sh koolide loodusõpperajad. Kindlasti on aja jooksul mitmed rajad hääbunud, kui palju konkreetselt, on keerukas arvata. Loodusõpperadade tekke ja kadumise põhjus on lihtne. Tavapäraselt leiti rahastamine loodusõpperaja väljaehitamiseks, kuid jäeti arvestamata, kes on reaalselt need sotsiaalsed grupid, kes rada külastavad. Kas sellel rajal on ikkagi nn sotsiaalne tellimus. Teiseks, ei tehtud arvutusi, kui palju maksab raja ülalpidamine. Igal loodusõpperajal eksisteerib nn tagama. See tähenda, et loodusõpperada katab mingisuguse osa ümbritsevatest looduskompleksidest. Siit tuleneb järjekordne küsimus, et missugused looduskompleksid pakuvad sotsiaalset huvi, mille osas külastaja kirgastub. Samas ei tohi see lähenemine vähendada kogu loodusõpperadade süsteemi mitmekesisust. Aga see aspekt vajab põhjalikku analüüsi enne kui hakatakse rajama uusi loodusõpperadasid. Käesolev uuring tulenes konkreetsest vajadusest hinnata, missugune on loodusõpperadade emotsionaalne ja hariduslik mõju tudengitele ning selle kaudu hilisemates rakendusuuringutes anda sisendit, kui tahetakse optimeerida loodusõpperadade süsteemi. Samuti sooviti teada saada õppurite rahulolu erinevatel maastikel paiknevate loodusõpperadade külastamisel. Tulemuste interpreteerimine on suunatud eelkõige tudengite poolt antud erinevatele hinnangutele. Otseseid juhtnööre, mida ja kus rajal teha, ei anta. Samuti ei uurita, missuguse sisukuse ja esitluskvaliteediga olid teabematerjalid. Sisuliselt oli tegemist rakendusliku eksperimendiga, kus külastati valitud radasid reaalselt ning sellest praktilisest kogemusest lähtuvalt täideti küsimustik, mille alusel hinnati radade sotsiaalset olemust. Loodusõpperadade puhul on meil sageli teada külastuskoormused, kuid sotsiaalse nõudluse osakaalu sageli ei teata.Projekti toetas Keskkonnainvesteeringute Kesku

An Evaluation of the Effects of UAS Flight Parameters on Digital Aerial Photogrammetry Processing and Dense-Cloud Production Quality in a Scots Pine Forest

The application of unmanned aerial systems (UAS) in forest research includes a wide range of equipment, systems, and flight settings, creating a need for enhancing data acquisition efficiency and quality. Thus, we assessed the effects of flying altitude and lateral and longitudinal overlaps on digital aerial photogrammetry (DAP) processing and the ability of its products to provide point clouds for forestry inventory. For this, we used 18 combinations of flight settings for data acquisition, and a nationwide airborne laser scanning (ALS) dataset as reference data. Linear regression was applied for modeling DAP quality indicators and model fitting quality as the function of flight settings; equivalence tests compared DAP-and ALS-products. Most of DAP-Digital Terrain Models (DTM) showed a moderate to high agreement (R2 > 0.70) when fitted to ALS-based models; nine models had a regression slope within the 1% region of equivalence. The best DAP-Canopy Height Model (CHM) was generated using ALS-DTM with an R2 = 0.42 when compared with ALS-CHM, indicating reduced similarity. Altogether, our results suggest that the optimal combination of flight settings should include a 90% lateral overlap, a 70% longitudinal overlap, and a minimum altitude of 120 m above ground level, independent of the availability of an ALS-derived DTM for height normalization. We also provided insights into the effects of flight settings on DAP outputs for future applications in similar forest stands, emphasizing the benefits of overlaps for comprehensive scene reconstruction and altitude for canopy surface detection