Proposta di adeguamento delle superfici vetrate delle serre nell’Orto botanico di Pisa per prevenire gli impatti degli uccelli

L’Orto Botanico di Pisa si estende per circa 3 ettari nel centro storico della città e rappresenta un’area ad elevata biodiversità. Gli uccelli vi trovano condizioni favorevoli durante l’intero ciclo annuale. Nel quinquennio 2012-2016 vi sono state censite oltre 40 specie e si sono registrati numerosi casi di collisioni mortali contro le vetrate delle serre. Al fine di prevenire gli impatti, vengono proposte alcune soluzioni tecniche compatibili con il contesto dell'Orto Botanico che prevedono l’impiego di pellicole adesive da applicare ai vetri.The Botanic Garden in Pisa extends for ca. three hectares in the historical centre of the city and is an area with a wide biodiversity. Thanks to its favourable conditions, it hosts many species of birds throughout the year. In the five-year period from 2012 to 2016, more than 40 species were counted in the Botanic Garden and many cases were reported where birds died striking against the windows of the greenhouses. In order to prevent such occurrences, we herein propose some technical solutions based on the use of adhesive films to be stuck on the windows, without affecting the landscape of the Botanic Garden

Altered functional brain connectivity in a non-clinical sample of young adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is characterized by symptoms of inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity that often persist in adulthood. There is a growing consensus that ADHD is associated with abnormal function of diffuse brain networks, but such alterations remain poorly characterized. Using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging, we characterized multivariate (complex network measures), bivariate (network-based statistic), and univariate (regional homogeneity) properties of brain networks in a non-clinical, drug-naive sample of high-functioning young men and women with ADHD (nine males, seven females) and a group of matched healthy controls. Data from our sample allowed the isolation of intrinsic functional connectivity alterations specific to ADHD diagnosis and symptoms that are not related to developmental delays, general cognitive dysfunction, or history of medication use. Multivariate results suggested that frontal, temporal, and occipital cortices were abnormally connected locally as well as with the rest of the brain in individuals with ADHD. Results from the network-based statistic support and extend multivariate results by isolating two brain networks comprising regions between which inter-regional connectivity was significantly altered in the ADHD group; namely, a frontal amygdala-occipital network and a frontal temporal-occipital network. Brain behavior correlations further highlighted the key role of altered orbitofrontal-temporal and frontal-amygdala connectivity for symptoms of inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity. All univariate properties were similar between groups. Taken together, results from this study show that the diagnosis and the two main symptom dimensions of ADHD are related to altered intrinsic connectivity in orbitofrontal-temporal-occipital and fronto-amygdala-occipital networks. Accordingly, our findings highlight the importance of extending the conceptualization of ADHD beyond segregated fronto-striatal alterations

25th annual computational neuroscience meeting: CNS-2016

The same neuron may play different functional roles in the neural circuits to which it belongs. For example, neurons in the Tritonia pedal ganglia may participate in variable phases of the swim motor rhythms [1]. While such neuronal functional variability is likely to play a major role the delivery of the functionality of neural systems, it is difficult to study it in most nervous systems. We work on the pyloric rhythm network of the crustacean stomatogastric ganglion (STG) [2]. Typically network models of the STG treat neurons of the same functional type as a single model neuron (e.g. PD neurons), assuming the same conductance parameters for these neurons and implying their synchronous firing [3, 4]. However, simultaneous recording of PD neurons shows differences between the timings of spikes of these neurons. This may indicate functional variability of these neurons. Here we modelled separately the two PD neurons of the STG in a multi-neuron model of the pyloric network. Our neuron models comply with known correlations between conductance parameters of ionic currents. Our results reproduce the experimental finding of increasing spike time distance between spikes originating from the two model PD neurons during their synchronised burst phase. The PD neuron with the larger calcium conductance generates its spikes before the other PD neuron. Larger potassium conductance values in the follower neuron imply longer delays between spikes, see Fig. 17.Neuromodulators change the conductance parameters of neurons and maintain the ratios of these parameters [5]. Our results show that such changes may shift the individual contribution of two PD neurons to the PD-phase of the pyloric rhythm altering their functionality within this rhythm. Our work paves the way towards an accessible experimental and computational framework for the analysis of the mechanisms and impact of functional variability of neurons within the neural circuits to which they belong

Nidificazione accertata di Assiolo Otus scops nel centro storico di Pisa (Orto Botanico)

Viene segnalata la nidificazione di Assiolo Otus scops nel centro storico di Pisa, accertata grazie al ritrovamento di un pullus presso l’Orto botanico nel luglio 2015. Il nidiaceo è stato ritrovato nel settore settentrionale (Arboreto), caratterizzato dalla presenza di arbusti e alberi secolari di regioni temperate. Le ultime segnalazioni di Assiolo presso l’Orto botanico pisano risalivano alla fine degli anni Novanta del secolo scorso.The authors report the case of the breeding of Scops Owl Otus scops in the Botanic Garden of Pisa, in the old city centre, which was testified by the finding of a nestling bird in July 2015. The nestling bird was found in the northern sector of the Garden (Arboretum), where shrubs and ancient trees from temperate regions of the world are located. The last records of the presence inside the Botanic Garden of this species date back to the end of the ‘90s

La migrazione primaverile dei Passeriformi attraverso il Mediterraneo: dieci anni di Progetto Piccole Isole a Capraia.

Sono stati analizzati i dati di inanellamento raccolti a Capraia (43°02’N - 9°49’E; Arcipelago Toscano) nell’ambito del Progetto Piccole Isole (PPI) nel decennio 1990-99 per caratterizzare gli aspetti generali della fenologia dei movimenti stagionali durante il passo primaverile nel Mediterraneo, con particolare riguardo ai Passeriformi trans-Sahariani. Su 46.675 inanellamenti, 45.451 si riferiscono a 117 specie, di cui 88 afferenti a Passeriformi (97,5% del totale) e 29 a non-Passeriformi. Tra i Passeriformi, 41 specie sono migratrici trans-Sahariane (83% del totale). Sono stati analizzati i pattern di migrazione, su periodi standardizzati di cinque giorni (pentadi) e su base giornaliera ed oraria, delle dieci specie dominanti: Rondine (Hirundo rustica), Beccafico (Sylvia borin) , Luì grosso (Phylloscopus trochilus), Sterpazzola (Sylvia communis), Stiaccino (Saxicola rubetra), Capinera (Sylvia atricapilla), Prispolone (Anthus trivialis), Balia nera (Ficedula hypoleuca), Luì verde (Phylloscopus sibilatrix), Cutrettola (Motacilla flava). Nel complesso i risultati testimoniano l’importanza di Capraia come area di sosta per gli uccelli durante la migrazione primaverile, e ne evidenziano il valore ambientale nel panorama delle isole dell’Alto Tirreno, confermato anche dall’alto indice di diversità di Simpson. This study is aimed at analysing the ringing data gathered at Capraia Island (43°02’N - 9°49’E; Tuscan archipelago) during the Progetto Piccole Isole (PPI) throughout the decade 1990-99. Particular attention has been paid to trans-Saharan Passerines in order to characterise the general aspects of the seasonal movements phenology during the spring migration across Mediterranean. Out of 46.675 birds ringed, 45.451 refer to 117 species, of which 88 Passerines (97,5% of the total) and 29 non-Passerines. Among the Passerines, 41 species are trans-Saharan migrants (83% of the total). The migration patterns of the following ten most abundant species have been analysed basing on standardized 5-day periods and on a daily and hourly basis: Barn swallow (Hirundo rustica), Garden warbler (Sylvia borin), Willow warbler (Phylloscopus trochilus), Whitethroat (Sylvia communis), Whinchat (Saxicola rubetra), Blackcap (Sylvia atricapilla), Tree pipit (Anthus trivialis), Pied flycatcher (Ficedula hypoleuca), Wood warbler (Phylloscopus sibilatrix), Yellow wagtail (Motacilla flava). As a whole, the results show the importance of Capraia as a stopover area for birds during the spring migration and highlight its high environmental value among the isles of northern Tyrrhenian. These outcomes are also confirmed by the remarkable value of the Simpson’s diversity index

Assessing social competence in visually impaired people and proposing an interventional program in visually impaired children

Visually impaired children and adults have difficulties in engaging in positive social interactions. This study assesses social competence in sighted and visually impaired people and to propose a novel interventional strategy in visually impaired children. We designed a task that assesses the ability to initiate and sustain an interaction with the experimenter while performing free hand movements using a sonorous feedback on the experimenter’s wrist. Both participant and experimenter kinematic data were recorded with a motion capture system. The level of social interaction between participant and experimenter has been computed through objective measurements based on Granger causality analysis applied to the participant arm kinematics. The interventional program followed by the visually impaired children lasted 12 weeks and consisted in a series of spatial and social games performed with the use of a sonorous bracelet which provides an auditory feedback of body actions in space. Visually impaired individuals present a poorer communication flow with the experimenter than sighted people, which indicates a less efficient social interaction. The amount of communication between the two agents resulted in a significant improvement after the interventional program. Thus, a specific intervention, based on the substitution of visual with auditory feedback of body actions, can enhance social inclusion for the blind population