Management of feral domestic cats in the urban environment of Rome (Italy)

In Italy, which is rabies-free, the national Law No. 281 [Legge Nazionale 14 agosto 1991. No. 281: Legge Quadro in materia di animali di affezione e prevenzione del randagismo. Gazz. Uff. Rep. Ital. no 203 del 30 agosto 1991: p. 3] on the management of pets and on the control of feral cats has introduced the no-kill policy for this species. Thus, “trap-neuter-release” (TNR) programs have been carried out for >10 years. In this paper we present data on registered colonies and censused cats in Rome from 1991 to 2000; the results of the neutering campaign from 1991 to 2000; and a survey, on 103 cat colonies, on the effects of demographic control of urban feral-cat colonies in the city of Rome, carried out by the local Veterinary Public Services (VPS) in collaboration with the associations of cat care-takers. In 10 years almost 8000 were neutered and reintroduced in their original colony. The spay/neuter campaigns brought about a general decrease in cat number but the percentage of cat immigration (due to abandonment and spontaneous arrival) is around 21%. This suggests that all these efforts without an effective education of people to control the reproduction of house cats (as a prevention for abandonment) are a waste of money, time and energy.     

Changes in the herbicide sensitivity and competitive ability of Abutilon theophrasti over 28 years: Implications for hormesis and weed evolution

BACKGROUND

The potential of weed species to respond to selection forces affecting the evolution of weedy traits such as competitive ability is poorly understood. This research characterized evolutionary growth changes in a single Abutilon theophrasti Medik. population comparing multiple generations collected from 1988 to 2016. A competition study was performed to understand changes in competitive ability, and a herbicide dose–response study was carried out to assess changes in sensitivity to acetolactate synthase-inhibiting herbicides and glyphosate over time.

RESULTS

When grown in monoculture, A. theophrasti biomass production per plant increased steadily across year-lines while leaf number decreased. In replacement experiments, A. theophrasti plants from newer year-lines were more competitive and produced more biomass and leaf area than the oldest year-line. No clear differences in sensitivity to imazamox were observed among year-lines. However, starting in 1995, this A. theophrasti population exhibited a progressive increase in growth in response to a sublethal dose of glyphosate (52 g a.e. ha⁻¹), with the 2009 and 2016 year-lines having more than 50% higher biomass than the nontreated control.

CONCLUSION

This study demonstrates that weeds can rapidly evolve increased competitive ability. Furthermore, the results indicate the possibility of changes in glyphosate hormesis over time. These results highlight the importance of the role that rapid (i.e., subdecadal) evolution of growth traits might have on the sustainability of weed management strategies. © 2023 The Authors. Pest Management Science published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.     

Influence of the Structural Features of Carrageenans from Red Algae of the Far Eastern Seas on Their Antiviral Properties

The structural diversity and unique physicochemical properties of sulphated polysaccharides of red algae carrageenans (CRGs), to a great extent, determine the wide range of their antiviral properties. This work aimed to compare the antiviral activities of different structural types of CRGs: against herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) and enterovirus (ECHO-1). We found that CRGs significantly increased the resistance of Vero cells to virus infection (preventive effect), directly affected virus particles (virucidal effect), inhibited the attachment and penetration of virus to cells, and were more effective against HSV-1. CRG1 showed the highest virucidal effect on HSV-1 particles with a selective index (SI) of 100. CRG2 exhibited the highest antiviral activity by inhibiting HSV-1 and ECHO-1 plaque formation, with a SI of 110 and 59, respectively, when it was added before virus infection. CRG2 also significantly reduced the attachment of HSV-1 and ECHO-1 to cells compared to other CRGs. It was shown by molecular docking that tetrasaccharides—CRGs are able to bind with the HSV-1 surface glycoprotein, gD, to prevent virus–cell interactions. The revealed differences in the effect of CRGs on different stages of the lifecycle of the viruses are apparently related to the structural features of the investigated compounds.     

Mitigating nitrous oxide emissions from agricultural soils by precision management

Nitrous oxide (N₂O) emissions make up a significant part of agricultural greenhouse gas emissions. There is an urgent need to identify new approaches to the mitigation of these emissions with emerging technology. In this short review four approaches to precision managements of agricultural systems are described based on examples of work being undertaken in the UK and New Zealand. They offer the opportunity for N₂O mitigation without any reduction in productivity. These approaches depend upon new sensor technology, modeling and spatial information with which to make management decisions and interventions that can both improve agricultural productivity and environmental protection.     

Strip-till as a means of decreasing spatial variability of winter barley within a field scale

The tillage system, which joins soil tillage, fertilisation, and seed sowing in one pass of a machine, is rarely used in cereal cultivation. This research aimed to study whether strip-till and conventional tillage (post-harvest ripping and mixing of stubble, ploughing, pre-sowing fertilisation, and seedbed preparation) differ in plant density, yield components, and grain yield of winter barley cultivated on Cambisol in a region with low rainfall, the annual average is about 500?mm. To reach this aim, a two-year, large-plot experiment was conducted in a production field. The soil within the field was spatially variable in texture, moisture, and chemical and biological properties, CV 2.3% do 29.6%. Strip-till had lower within-field spatial variability of winter barley grain yield than conventional tillage. The standard deviation was 0.36?t?ha^?1, 0.67?t?ha^?1 in the first year and 0.12?t?ha^?1, 0.30?t?ha^?1 in the second year, respectively. During the period of limited rainfall, strip-till had greater uniformity of plants after emergence; after the winter with low air temperature and a low amount of snow, it had greater plant density. Thus, strip-till can reduce variability of plants and their yield within a field, especially in adverse environmental conditions.     

3S技术在中国湿地研究、调查与管理中的应用

This paper introduces the state of waterlands in China and discribes the applications of Remote Sensing （RS）, Geographical Information System （G1S） and Global Positioning System （GPS） in wetland research, including land-coverclassification and change detection, wetland evolutionary processes, landscape-change analyses, channel migration, flood and wetlands resource monitoring and spatial quantitative analyses/modeling, ecosystem service evaluation, ecological processes and risk assessments, disease control, water quality monitoring/modeling, pollution monitoring/modeling, wetlands hydrology, wetland information systems and WebGIS. The limitations and needs for optimal use of these technologies are discussed, such as the limited advanced technical knowledge and skills, low awareness and capacity, unclear link between GIS output and policy making, lack of supporting policies and standards, lack of a wetlands geo-information networklimite, and the use of these techniques in wetland research. It is suggested that for realising true applications of RS, GIS and GPS technologies, the availability, accessibility, reliability, homogeneity, and continuity of wetlands-related geo-information enabling environment, policies and standards, and funding are needed.     

Vole abundance and reindeer carcasses determine breeding activity of Arctic foxes in low Arctic Yamal,Russia

Background

High latitude ecosystems are at present changing rapidly under the influence of climate warming, and specialized Arctic species at the southern margin of the Arctic may be particularly affected. The Arctic fox (Vulpes lagopus), a small mammalian predator endemic to northern tundra areas, is able to exploit different resources in the context of varying tundra ecosystems. Although generally widespread, it is critically endangered in subarctic Fennoscandia, where a fading out of the characteristic lemming cycles and competition with abundant red foxes have been identified as main threats. We studied an Arctic fox population at the Erkuta Tundra Monitoring site in low Arctic Yamal (Russia) during 10 years in order to determine which resources support the breeding activity in this population. In the study area, lemmings have been rare during the last 15 years and red foxes are nearly absent, creating an interesting contrast to the situation in Fennoscandia.

Results

Arctic fox was breeding in nine of the 10 years of the study. The number of active dens was on average 2.6 (range 0–6) per 100 km² and increased with small rodent abundance. It was also higher after winters with many reindeer carcasses, which occurred when mortality was unusually high due to icy pastures following rain-on-snow events. Average litter size was 5.2 (SD = 2.1). Scat dissection suggested that small rodents (mostly Microtus spp.) were the most important prey category. Prey remains observed at dens show that birds, notably waterfowl, were also an important resource in summer.

Conclusions

The Arctic fox in southern Yamal, which is part of a species-rich low Arctic food web, seems at present able to cope with a state shift of the small rodent community from high amplitude cyclicity with lemming dominated peaks, to a vole community with low amplitude fluctuations. The estimated breeding parameters characterized the population as intermediate between the lemming fox and the coastal fox ecotype. Only continued ecosystem-based monitoring will reveal their fate in a changing tundra ecosystem.

     

Presence of Cocaine in the Tissues of the European Eel, Anguilla anguilla, Exposed to Environmental Cocaine Concentrations

The presence of illicit drugs and their metabolites in surface waters has to be considered a new type of hazard, still unknown, for the aquatic ecosystem, due to the potent pharmacological activities of all the illicit drugs. Our research was therefore aimed at evaluating the impact of illicit drugs on the aquatic fauna, till now still undervalued. To this aim, we verified the ability of the European eel (Anguilla anguilla), a well-known biomonitor of environmental contamination, to bioaccumulate cocaine, one of the most abundant illicit drugs found in surface waters. Silver eels were exposed to a nominal cocaine concentration of 20?ng/l for 1?month; at the same time, control, carrier, and post-exposure recovery groups were made. Brains, gills, liver, kidney, muscle, gonads, spleen, digestive tract, and sections of dorsal skin were assayed by high-pressure liquid chromatography. Cocaine was found in the tissues of the treated eels and, at low concentrations, in almost all tissues of post-exposure recovery eels. These results indicate that cocaine is able to accumulate into the eel tissues; its presence suggests potential risks for eels since cocaine could affect their physiology and contribute to their decline, and for humans consuming contaminated fish.