The distribution of olive fruit fly captures with McPhail traps within an olive orchard

The spatial distribution of olive fruit flyBactrocera (Dacus) oleae (Gmelin) (Diptera: Tephritidae) field captures with McPhail traps within an experimental orchard was evaluated. Contour maps were constructed to examine the patterns in the 3-year trapping data. Captures varied widely inside the olive orchard, with traps suspended on wild olive trees exhibiting the poorest performance. Favorable microclimate, created by a standing water pool, appeared to be responsible for increased trap captures during the hot summer months. The positive role of the olive tree fruit load is also discussed. http://www.phytoparasitica.org posting Feb. 2, 2003.     

Relations of environmental factors with the phenol content and oxidative enzyme activities of olive explants

Possible correlations among several environmental factors and the internal phenol content and oxidative enzyme activities of olive explants were examined. The statistic analysis revealed that the same environmental factor exhibited different relation with the various individual phenolic compounds found in explants and the oxidative enzyme activities. The major contribution of air temperature, total radiation, soil temperature at a depth of 25 cm and photoperiod on the explant phenol content and on the oxidative enzyme activities has been revealed. These environmental factors exhibited the highest number of significant relationships with the measured variables.     

Interactions between fisheries and cetaceans in the Thracian sea (Greece) and management proposals

Greek fisheries (purse seine, trawling and small‐scale coastal, by order of importance) mostly operate in the Thracian Sea, which despite its relatively small size relative to the Aegean Sea (≈4.4%) is the most productive region in Greek waters due to its elevated nutrient concentration. The Thracian Sea is also vital to several species of cetaceans, mainly bottlenose dolphin, Tursiops truncatus (Montagu), and common dolphin, Delphinus delphis L. The area has been proposed as a potential cetacean conservation hotspot. For this reason, the interactions between fishing activities and local cetacean populations have been investigated through reports of stranded dolphins, interviews with fishers, surveys and detailed dolphin stomach content analysis. Reports of stranded cetaceans and interviews with fishers revealed cases of cetacean entanglement in fishing nets, as well as frequent dolphin damage to fishing nets. Necropsy stomach analysis of stranded dolphins revealed a preference for fish and cephalopods of low commercial value, indicating a low trophic overlap between cetaceans and commercial fisheries. Recommendations for the management of fisheries–cetacean interactions in the Thracian Sea are provided.     

Maximizing oilseed rape's yield by glyphosate under Mediterranean conditions

Adverse hot and dry environmental conditions prevailing during the period of oilseed rape ripening can be blamed for considerable yield losses during the crop's mechanized harvesting in the Mediterranean area. In this paper, the effect of chemical dessication of oilseed rape with glyphosate applied 35 days after anthesis for reducing seed yield loss was studied. The experiment was conducted in four fields at two locations in central Greece and for two growth periods following a completely randomized plot design with 8 treatments in three replications. Treatments include all possible combinations of two crop varieties and four levels of glyphosate (as dessicant) application. A significant positive effect of dessicant application level on crop yield for both studied varieties was found. The application dose of 200 g a.i. of glyphosate per hectare had the best results. The highest dry weight was found among the plants sprayed with 200 g. a.i. of glyphosate per hectare. The highest seed yield and oil yield were found among the plants sprayed with 200 g a.i. per hectare, which makes clear the positive effect of this spraying minimizing pod shattering and yield losses. The greatest 1000-seed weight was found among the plants sprayed with 200 g a.i. ha⁻¹, due to the greater size of seeds that remained on the plants until harvesting.     

Antibacterial effect of Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis on Artemia franciscana nauplii and Dicentrarchus labrax larvae against the fish pathogen Vibrio anguillarum

The antibacterial effect of Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis against the fish pathogen Vibrio anguillarum was determined in Artemia franciscana nauplii and in European sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax) larvae fed with ten pulses of nauplii enriched with L. lactis. The evaluation of the bactericidal activity of the extracellular products of L. lactis in vitro showed inhibition of growth of Vibrio (Listonella) anguillarum and Photobacterium damselae subsp. piscicida. The incorporation of L. lactis in Artemia nauplii did not affect their survival and offered protection in a challenge with V. anguillarum, significantly increasing LD₅₀. The administration of Artemia nauplii enriched with L. lactis for 48 h to sea bass larvae for five consecutive days had no adverse effect on survival of fish. In an in vivo challenge test with V. anguillarum using sea bass larvae, fish treated with nauplii enriched with the probiotic L. lactis showed significantly (P < 0.001) increased survival rates of 81 % compared with the untreated group of challenged fish (24 %). Our results indicate that L. lactis is a probiotic suitable to be used for the prevention of vibriosis in fish larvae and can be safely administered through their live feed Artemia nauplii.     

The use of echocardiography as a health assessment tool in green sea turtles (Chelonia mydas)

There are limited techniques available to assess the health of sea turtles as physical examination has little correlation to clinical findings, and blood reference intervals are broad and provide limited prognostic significance. Advances in the portability of ultrasound machines allow echocardiography to be increasingly used in the health assessments of wild animals. This study performed blood analysis and echocardiograms on 11 green sea turtles upon admission to a rehabilitation clinic and six animals before release. Significant differences were seen between groups, with admission animals having significantly smaller diameters of the cavum arteriosum at systole and diastole, smaller E‐waves and an increased fractional shortening. Pre‐release animals displayed significant increases in the maximum blood velocities of both the pulmonary artery and the left aorta. Significant negative correlations were seen between fractional shortening and uric acid and between the velocity time integral of the pulmonary artery and urea. The pulmonary artery velocity time integral was also significantly correlated to the E wave. Furthermore, there was asynchrony between the cavum arteriosum and the cavum pulmonale and the detection of a parasitic granuloma in the ventricular outflow tract of one animal. Overall, the results suggest that cardiac function in stranded green sea turtles is significantly impaired and that echocardiography has applications in the health assessments of green sea turtles.     

Abundance,distribution and diet of the common dolphin,Delphinus delphis,in the northern Aegean Sea (Greece)

1. The abundance, distribution and diet of the short-beaked common dolphin were investigated as part of the first detailed study on cetacean populations in the North Aegean Sea. Since 2004, the area has been proposed by national and international entities as a marine protected area for common dolphins and other cetacean species owing to its high biodiversity.
2. Abundance and distribution were investigated between 2005 and 2013 through dedicated scientific marine transect surveys, covering 14,701 km, in sea conditions of Beaufort sea state 3 and below. The line-transect sampling method was used to estimate relative abundance, using Distance 6.0 software. Encounter rate for this species in the study area was estimated to be 0.24 groups/100 km (1.5 dolphins/100 km), with a mean group size of 6.88 (SE = 1.90).
3. Common dolphin sightings were analysed for correlations with eight environmental variables (distance from the coast, depth, slope, median salinity, gradient of salinity, median temperature, gradient of temperature and mean current) using generalized additive modelling. Common dolphin sightings were significantly correlated to depth, temperature and salinity.
4. Stomach-content analyses were performed on eight suitable samples from common dolphins stranded in the study area. The trophic level of the species was calculated, indicating that this species is a top predator.
5. This research provides the first estimates for abundance and distribution and the first diet analysis for this Mediterranean Endangered dolphin species in the study area based on a year-round long-term study.