La Torreta: un nuevo yacimiento hispanomusulmán descubierto en Artana (Castellón)

Presentamos los primeros resultados de este reciente descubrimiento realizado en la Vall d’Artana (Castellón), que proporciona una nueva visión en los asentamientos de época hispanomusulmana en este territorio.We present the first results of this recent discovery in the Vall d’Artana (Castellón), which provides a new insight in the settlements of the Muslim time in this territory

Saguntum: The Remains of an Honorary Arch and Urban Planning Outside the City Walls

At the end of the first century and especially throughout the second century ad, a public building programme was largely responsible for the transformation of Saguntum's urban planning, especially, outside the walls of this well-known Hispano-Roman city. The aim of this article is to present the features of the monumental landscape outside the city walls, including an outstanding honorary construction, which strongly influenced the design of public architecture at a time of political and socio-economic change

La villa marítima de Sant Gregori (Burriana): estudio de las construcciones de la "pars dominica" derivadas de las últimas campañas de excavación

El yacimiento arqueológico de Sant Gregori está situado en la localidad de Burriana (Castellón), a 100 m de la actual línea de costa. Los trabajos de arqueología han permitido sacar a la luz un conjunto de estructuras arquitectónicas muy interesantes pertenecientes a una uilla maritima. Precisamente por el interés de las mismas, con el objetivo de profundizar nuestros conocimientos sobre la romanización en la comarca de la Plana de Castellón y de establecer un campo de prácticas de arqueología para los estudiantes de la Universitat Jaume I, se decidió seleccionar este yacimiento como objeto de excavación arqueológica dentro de los programas de investigación de la Universidad. La villa se ha datado entre el cambio de Era y el siglo IV dC, aunque también se han registrado materiales de la Edad de Bronce, época ibérica y romana republicana.The archaeological site of Sant Gregori actually is located 100 meters from the coast, in the town of Burriana (Castellón). The archaeological works have revealed a set of interesting architectural structures that are integrated into a uilla maritima. Due to the interest of this site, it was chosen for archaeological excavation within the research programs at Universitat Jaume I, our main purpose was twofold: to deepen our understanding about Romanization in the area of Castellón de la Plana and to create a training site for undergraduate students at university. The villa has been dated between the change of era and the IV c. AD, although some materials have been dated in the Bronze Age, Iberic time and Roman Republic

Pyrenean meadows in Natura 2000 network: grass production and plant biodiversity conservation

In semi-natural mountain meadows, yield and forage quality must be reconciled with plant biodiversity conservation. This study was performed to analyze the relationships between these three parameters. To quantify plant biodiversity and pastoral value (PV), phytosociological inventories were performed in 104 semi-natural meadows in the Central Spanish Pyrenees included in the Natura 2000 network. Forage yields were calculated and forage samples were analyzed for relative feed value (RFV). We identified two main types of meadows: (i) those that had"more intensive management," relatively close to farm buildings, with little or no slope, dominated by grasses, with low plant biodiversity, high PV and yield, but low forage quality and (ii) those that had"less intensive management," distant from farm buildings, on slopes, richer in"other forbs", with high plant biodiversity and forage quality, but low PV and yield. Conservation policies should emphasize less intensive management practices to maintain plant diversity in the semi-natural meadows in the Pyrenees. The widespread view that"other forbs" have low nutritional value should be revised in future research. These species often are undervalued by the PV method, because their nutritional quality, digestibility and intake are poorly understood. Additional key words: phytosociological inventories; botanical composition; Shannon index; pastoral value; Ellenberg indices; relative feed value;"other forbs"

Pervivencia y transformación: testimonios arqueológicos de la dinámica urbana de la ciudad romana de Saguntum entre los siglos III y VII

Considerando i resti archeologici venuti alla luce a Sagunto (Spagna), questo articolo analizza i profondi cambiamenti urbanistici avvenuti tra il primo periodo imperiale romano e la tarda antichità, insieme a quegli elementi identificativi del paesaggio urbano. Questo periodo è caratterizzato da una riduzione dell’area insediativa, che potrebbe aver influito anche sul perimetro delle mura. Altri cambiamenti salienti di questo periodo riguardarono l’abbandono di grandi aree dell’altura del castello e dei sobborghi cittadini, ma anche gli edifici pubblici e le case. Lo studio di questi eventi è decisivo per comprendere la trasformazione della classica civitas e la successiva nascita della città medievale.Bearing in mind the archaeological remains found in the city of Saguntum (Spain), this paper aims at analysing the deep urban changes that took place between the early Roman Empire and the Late Antiquity as well as those elements that singled out its urban landscape. This period is characterised by a reduction of the inhabited area, which could also have had an impact on the perimeter of its walls. Other salient features of this period do not only involve the abandonment of large areas of the Castle hill and the outskirts of the city, but also the reform of public buildings and houses. The study of these events is decisive to understand the transformation of the classical civitas and the subsequent birth of the medieval city

De la Tardoantigüedad al Medievo: un enfoque crítico acerca de los estudios arqueológicos en la ciudad de Saguntum y su territorio en época visigoda

The discovery of material remains from the Visigothic period around Sagunto gives a glimpse of the little consideration towards the territory located halfway between the current provinces of Valencia and Tarragona. The aim of this paper is to examine the relevance of the vestiges from this cultural period in order to identify the features of these sites, analyse their differences and date the different cultural processes they have gone through, counteracting where possible the scarcity of archaeological research conducted in this field during the 5th and 8th centuries.El hallazgo de restos materiales de época visigoda en torno a Sagunto, no alcanza a entrevercual sería la consideración de este territorio situado a caballo de las actuales provincias deValencia y Tarragona. Con este trabajo se pretende examinar la importancia real de los materialesde este periodo cultural para individualizar los yacimientos, reconocer diferencias y poderfechar los distintos procesos culturales, contrarrestando en la medida de lo posible la escasez de intervenciones arqueológicas desarrolladas en el ámbito de los siglos V y VIII

De la Tardoantigüedad al Medievo: un enfoque crítico acerca de los estudios arqueológicos en la ciudad de Saguntum y su territorio en época visigoda

El hallazgo de restos materiales de época visigoda en torno a Sagunto, no alcanza a entrever cual sería la consideración de este territorio situado a caballo de las actuales provincias de Valencia y Tarragona. Con este trabajo se pretende examinar la importancia real de los materiales de este periodo cultural para individualizar los yacimientos, reconocer diferencias y poder fechar los distintos procesos culturales, contrarrestando en la medida de lo posible la escasez de intervenciones arqueológicas desarrolladas en el ámbito de los siglos V y VIII.The discovery of material remains from the Visigothic period around Sagunto gives a glimpse of the little consideration towards the territory located halfway between the current provinces of Valencia and Tarragona. The aim of this paper is to examine the relevance of the vestiges from this cultural period in order to identify the features of these sites, analyse their differences and date the different cultural processes they have gone through, counteracting where possible the scarcity of archaeological research conducted in this field during the 5th and 8th centuries

No preferential C-allocation to storage over growth in clipped birch and oak saplings

Herbivory is one of the most globally distributed disturbances affecting C-cycling in trees, yet our understanding of how it alters tree C-allocation to different functions like storage, growth or rhizodeposition is still limited. We performed continuous 13C-labelling coupled to a clipping experiment to quantify the effects of simulated browsing on the growth, leaf morphology and relative allocation of stored vs. recently assimilated C to the growth (bulk biomass) and non-structural carbohydrate (NSC) stores (soluble sugars and starch) of the different organs of two tree species with contrasting wood anatomy: diffuse-porous (Betula pubescens) and ring-porous (Quercus petraea). Transfers of C from plants to bulk and rhizosphere soil were also evaluated. Clipped birch and oak trees shifted their C-allocation patterns above-ground as a means to recover from defoliation. However, such increased allocation to current-year stems and leaves did not entail reductions in the allocation to the rhizosphere, which remained unchanged between clipped and control trees of both species. B. pubescens and Q. petraea showed differences in their vulnerability and recovery strategies to clipping, the ring-porous species being less affected in terms of growth and architecture to clipping than the diffuse-porous. These contrasting patterns could be partly explained by differences in their C cycling after clipping. Defoliated oaks showed a faster recovery of their canopy biomass, which was supported by increased allocation of recently fixed C, but associated with large decreases in the fine root biomass of clipped trees of this species. Following clipping, both species recovered NSC pools to a larger extent than growth, but the allocation of 13C-labelled photo-assimilates into storage compounds was not increased as compared to controls. Despite their different response to clipping, our results indicate no preventative allocation into storage occurred during the first year after clipping in any of the two studied tree species

Non-structural carbohydrates in woody plants compared among laboratories

Non-structural carbohydrates (NSC) in plant tissue are frequently quantified to make inferences about plant responses to environmental conditions. Laboratories publishing estimates of NSC of woody plants use many different methods to evaluate NSC. We asked whether NSC estimates in the recent literature could be quantitatively compared among studies. We also asked whether any differences among laboratories were related to the extraction and quantification methods used to determine starch and sugar concentrations. These questions were addressed by sending sub-samples collected from five woody plant tissues, which varied in NSC content and chemical composition, to 29 laboratories. Each laboratory analyzed the samples with their laboratory-specific protocols, based on recent publications, to determine concentrations of soluble sugars, starch and their sum, total NSC. Laboratory estimates differed substantially for all samples. For example, estimates for Eucalyptus globulus leaves (EGL) varied from 23 to 116 (mean = 56) mg g⁻¹ for soluble sugars, 6–533 (mean = 94) mg g⁻¹ for starch and 53–649 (mean = 153) mg g⁻¹ for total NSC. Mixed model analysis of variance showed that much of the variability among laboratories was unrelated to the categories we used for extraction and quantification methods (method category R² = 0.05–0.12 for soluble sugars, 0.10–0.33 for starch and 0.01–0.09 for total NSC). For EGL, the difference between the highest and lowest least squares means for categories in the mixed model analysis was 33 mg g⁻¹ for total NSC, compared with the range of laboratory estimates of 596 mg g⁻¹. Laboratories were reasonably consistent in their ranks of estimates among tissues for starch (r = 0.41–0.91), but less so for total NSC (r = 0.45–0.84) and soluble sugars (r = 0.11–0.83). Our results show that NSC estimates for woody plant tissues cannot be compared among laboratories. The relative changes in NSC between treatments measured within a laboratory may be comparable within and between laboratories, especially for starch. To obtain comparable NSC estimates, we suggest that users can either adopt the reference method given in this publication, or report estimates for a portion of samples using the reference method, and report estimates for a standard reference material. Researchers interested in NSC estimates should work to identify and adopt standard methods.This is the publisher’s final pdf. The published article is copyrighted by the author(s) and published by Oxford University Press. The published article can be found at: http://treephys.oxfordjournals.org/Keywords: soluble sugars, starch, particle size, reference method, standardization, non-structural carbohydrate chemical analysis, extraction and quantification consistenc

Seasonal Branch Nutrient Dynamics in Two Mediterranean Woody Shrubs with Contrasted Phenology

10 páginas, 4 figuras, 3 tablas.-- El PDF es la versión post-print.[Background and aims]: Mediterranean woody plants have a wide variety of phenological strategies. Some authors have classified the Mediterranean phanaerophytes into two broad phenological categories: phenophase-verlappers (that overlap resource-demanding activities in a short period of the year) and phenophase-sequencers (that protract resource-demanding activities throughout the year). In this work the impact of both phenological strategies on leaf nutrient accumulation and retranslocation dynamics at the level of leaves and branches was evaluated. Phenophase-overlappers were expected to accumulate nutrients in leaves throughout most of the year and withdraw them efficiently in a short period. Phenophase-sequencers were expected to withdraw nutrients progressively throughout the year, without long accumulation periods. [Methods]: To test this hypothesis, variations in phenology and leaf NPK in the crown of a phenophase-overlapper Cistus laurifolius and a phenophase-sequencer Bupleurum fruticosum were monitored monthly during 2 years. [Key Results]: Changes in nutrient concentration at the leaf level were not clearly related with the different phenologies. Nitrogen and phosphorous resorption efficiencies were lower in the phenophase-overlapper, and accumulation–retranslocation seasonality was similar in both species. Changes in the branch nutrient pool agreed with the hypothesis that the phenophase-overlapper accumulated nutrients from summer until the bud burst of the following spring, recovering a large nutrient pool during massive leaf shedding. The phenophase-sequencer did not accumulate nutrients from autumn until early spring, achieving lower nutrient recovery during spring leaf shedding. [Conclusions]: It is concluded that phenological demands influence branch nutrient cycling. This effect is easier to detect by assessing changes in the branch nutrient pool rather than changes in the leaf nutrient concentration.This study was supported by the “Comisión Interministerial de Ciencia y Tecnología” (Spanish government) project REN 2000-0163-P4-05, REN2002-02635/GLO and the Thematic Network GLOBIMED (REN 2001-4841-E/GLO); and 2) the "Gobierno de Aragón" project P-024/2001 and financial support to R. M.Peer reviewe