Coastal dunes are ecosystems of high conservation value that are strongly impacted by human disturbances and biological invasions in many parts of the world. Here, we assessed how urbanization and Carpobrotus edulis invasion affect soil bacterial communities on the north-western coast of Spain, by comparing the diversity, structure and composition of soil bacterial communities in invaded and uninvaded soils from urban and natural coastal dune areas. Our results suggest that coastal dune bacterial communities contain large numbers of rare taxa, mainly belonging to the phyla Actinobacteria and Proteobacteria. We found that the presence of the invasive C. edulis increased the diversity of soil bacteria and changed community composition, while urbanization only influenced bacterial community composition. Furthermore, the effects of invasion on community composition were conditional on urbanization. These results were contrary to predictions, as both C. edulis invasion and urbanization have been shown to affect soil abiotic conditions of the studied coastal dunes in a similar manner, and therefore were expected to have similar effects on soil bacterial communities. Our results suggest that other factors (e.g. pollution) might be influencing the impact of urbanization on soil bacterial communities, preventing an increase in the diversity of soil bacteria in urban areas.
- MeSH
- Bacteria genetika MeSH
- ekosystém MeSH
- půda * MeSH
- půdní mikrobiologie MeSH
- urbanizace * MeSH
- zavlečené druhy MeSH
- Publikační typ
- časopisecké články MeSH
- práce podpořená grantem MeSH
- Geografické názvy
- Španělsko MeSH
Seemingly empty spaces in various archaeological settings have left many unanswered questions. This paper focuses on the appearance, maintenance and possible function of a large empty area situated at the summit plateau of the Iron Age oppidum Bibracte in France. Multidisciplinary research of the infill of the ditch that delimited this area in the 1st century BC has provided evidence on the primary function and the formation processes of the structure itself, and for the reconstruction of the appearance, maintenance and function of the area it enclosed. The results allow us to gain insight into a variety of topics, including the role of trees, hygiene measures and waste management strategies at this urbanised hilltop centre. This paper demonstrates that multi-proxy analyses provide detailed insight into the function of archaeological features in a local environmental context and the potential of such approaches in archaeology.
- MeSH
- archeologie * metody MeSH
- dějiny starověku MeSH
- geologické jevy MeSH
- geologické sedimenty analýza MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- nakládání s odpady dějiny MeSH
- radioaktivní datování metody MeSH
- rozsivky klasifikace MeSH
- stromy klasifikace MeSH
- urbanizace dějiny MeSH
- Check Tag
- dějiny starověku MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- Publikační typ
- časopisecké články MeSH
- historické články MeSH
- práce podpořená grantem MeSH
- Geografické názvy
- Francie MeSH
Urban expansion is one of the main factors driving terrestrial carbon storage (TCS) changes. Accurate accounting of TCS and rigorous quantification of its changes caused by historical urban expansion may help us to better predict its changes in the future. This study focuses on the carbon impacts of urbanization in China where the share of the urban population has increased from 18% in 1978 to 59% in 2017 and the growing will continue in the coming decades. Our results show that China's TCS decreased at an accelerating pace over the past three decades with an average reduction of 0.72TgC/y in 1980-1990 and 8.72TgC/y in 2000-2010, mostly due to conversion from cropland and woodland to urban land. Through simulating urban expansion under four scenarios from 2010 to 2050, we found a potential increasing trend in land conversion from woodland to urban land. This conversion trend would result in carbon storage loss at an average rate of 9.31TgC/y ∼ 12.94TgC/y in 2010-2050. The increasing trend in both land conversion and carbon storage loss is especially visible in the population centers of the Yangtze River Delta and the Pearl River Delta. Considering that the indirect emission effects of urbanization, such as farmland displacement, population migration, and land degradation, may be much larger, the overall emission impact of forthcoming urban expansion in China would increase the uncertainty of the nation's carbon emissions and potentially undermine China's targets as committed in the Paris Climate Agreement.
OBJECTIVES: The aim was to assess the association between physical activity and screen-based activities in adolescents and selected school factors and urbanization and whether these associations were modified by degree of urbanization. METHODS: We obtained data regarding the fifth-ninth grade students from 130 schools in 2014 via the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children cross-sectional study in Slovakia (n = 9743, mean age = 13.5, 50.3% boys). We explored the associations using multilevel logistic regression. RESULTS: We found significant associations between physical activity and the accessibility of an area for skating/tennis court [odds ratio (OR) = 1.20 and 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.01-1.42], and between physical activity and active breaks (OR = 0.83 and 95% CI 0.69-0.99). The rates of screen-based activities were higher in small towns (OR = 1.63, 95% CI 1.29-2.06), towns (OR = 1.30, 95% CI 1.08-1.57), and cities (OR = 1.40, 95% CI 1.04-1.87) than in villages. CONCLUSIONS: School environment and degree of urbanization are associated with adolescents' physical activity and screen-based activities. This holds positively for access to an area for skating/tennis court and negatively for active breaks regarding physical activity and for living in villages regarding less use of screens.
- MeSH
- cvičení * MeSH
- dítě MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- logistické modely MeSH
- mladiství MeSH
- odds ratio MeSH
- průřezové studie MeSH
- sedavý životní styl * MeSH
- školy statistika a číselné údaje MeSH
- urbanizace * MeSH
- velkoměsta MeSH
- veřejná zařízení MeSH
- životní prostředí MeSH
- Check Tag
- dítě MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- mladiství MeSH
- mužské pohlaví MeSH
- ženské pohlaví MeSH
- Publikační typ
- časopisecké články MeSH
- Geografické názvy
- Slovenská republika epidemiologie MeSH
- velkoměsta MeSH
BACKGROUND: Despite long-term research on dirofilariosis in Slovakia, little attention has thus far been paid to Dirofilaria vectors. The particular aim of the present study was molecular screening for filarioid parasites in two different habitats of Bratislava, the capital city of Slovakia. In addition, the effect of urbanisation on mosquito species abundance and composition, associated with the risk of mosquito-borne infections, was studied and discussed. METHODS: Mosquitoes were identified by morphological features, and molecular methods were also used for determination of selected individuals belonging to cryptic species from the Anopheles maculipennis and Culex pipiens complexes. The presence of filarioid DNA (Dirofilaria repens, Dirofilaria immitis and Setaria spp.) was detected using standard PCR approaches and sequencing. RESULTS: A total of 6957 female mosquitoes were collected for the study. Overall, the most abundant mosquito species was Aedes vexans, closely followed by unidentified members of the Cx. pipiens complex and the less numerous but still plentiful Ochlerotatus sticticus species. Further investigation of mosquito material revealed 4.26% relative prevalence of Dirofilaria spp., whereby both species, D. repens and D. immitis, were identified. The majority of positive mosquito pools had their origin in a floodplain area on the outskirts of the city, with a relative prevalence of 5.32%; only two mosquito pools (1.26%) were shown to be positive in the residential zone of Bratislava. Setaria spp. DNA was not detected in mosquitoes within this study. CONCLUSIONS: The study presented herein represents initial research focused on molecular mosquito screening for filarioid parasites in urban and urban-fringe habitats of Bratislava, Slovakia. Molecular analyses within the Cx. pipiens complex identified two biotypes: Cx. pipiens biotype pipiens and Cx. pipiens biotype molestus. To our knowledge, Dirofilaria spp. were detected for the first time in Slovakia in mosquitoes other than Ae. vexans, i.e. D. repens in Anopheles messeae and unidentified members of An. maculipennis and Cx. pipiens complexes, and D. immitis in Coquillettidia richiardii and Cx. pipiens biotype pipiens. Both dirofilarial species were found in Och. sticticus. The suitable conditions for the vectors' biology would represent the main risk factor for dirofilariosis transmission.
- MeSH
- Anopheles anatomie a histologie klasifikace genetika růst a vývoj MeSH
- Culex anatomie a histologie klasifikace genetika růst a vývoj MeSH
- Dirofilaria immitis genetika izolace a purifikace MeSH
- Dirofilaria repens genetika izolace a purifikace MeSH
- dirofilarióza epidemiologie přenos MeSH
- hodnocení rizik MeSH
- komáří přenašeči anatomie a histologie klasifikace genetika růst a vývoj MeSH
- populační dynamika * MeSH
- Setaria (Nematoda) genetika izolace a purifikace MeSH
- setariáza epidemiologie přenos MeSH
- urbanizace * MeSH
- zvířata MeSH
- Check Tag
- zvířata MeSH
- Publikační typ
- časopisecké články MeSH
- práce podpořená grantem MeSH
- Geografické názvy
- Slovenská republika epidemiologie MeSH
Urbanization, one of the most important anthropogenic impacts on Earth, is rapidly expanding worldwide. This expansion of urban land-covered areas is known to significantly reduce different components of biodiversity. However, the global evidence for this effect is mainly focused on a single diversity measure (species richness) with a few local or regional studies also supporting reductions in functional diversity. We have used birds, an important ecological group that has been used as surrogate for other animals, to investigate the hypothesis that urbanization reduces the global taxonomical and/or evolutionary diversity. We have also explored whether there is evidence supporting that urban bird communities are evolutionarily homogenized worldwide in comparison with nonurban ones by means of using evolutionary distinctiveness (how unique are the species) of bird communities. To our knowledge, this is the first attempt to quantify the effect of urbanization in more than one single diversity measure as well as the first time to look for associations between urbanization and phylogenetic diversity at a large spatial scale. Our findings show a strong and globally consistent reduction in taxonomic diversity in urban areas, which is also synchronized with the evolutionary homogenization of urban bird communities. Despite our general patterns, we found some regional differences in the intensity of the effect of cities on bird species richness or evolutionary distinctiveness, suggesting that conservation efforts should be adapted locally. Our findings might be useful for conservationists and policymakers to minimize the impact of urban development on Earth's biodiversity and help design more realistic conservation strategies.
- MeSH
- biodiverzita * MeSH
- fylogeneze MeSH
- ptáci * MeSH
- urbanizace * MeSH
- velkoměsta MeSH
- zachování přírodních zdrojů MeSH
- zvířata MeSH
- Check Tag
- zvířata MeSH
- Publikační typ
- časopisecké články MeSH
- práce podpořená grantem MeSH
- Geografické názvy
- velkoměsta MeSH
This article is directed to determining concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which are sorbed to solid particles in the air. Pollution sources were identified on the basis of the ratio of benzo[ghi]perylene (BghiPe) to benzo[a]pyrene (BaP). Because various important information is lost by determining the simple ratio of concentrations, least squares linear regression (classic ordinary least squares regression), reduced major axis, orthogonal regression, and Kendall-Theil robust diagnostics were utilized for identification. Statistical evaluation using all aforementioned methods demonstrated different ratios of the monitored PAHs in the intervals examined during warmer and colder periods. Analogous outputs were provided by comparing gradients of the emission factors acquired from the measured concentrations of BghiPe and BaP in motor vehicle exhaust gases. Based on these outputs, it was possible plausibly to state that the influence of burning organic fuels in heating stoves is prevalent in colder periods whereas in warmer periods transport was the exclusive source because other sources of PAH emissions were not found in the examined locations.
- MeSH
- benzopyren analýza MeSH
- hodnocení rizik MeSH
- látky znečišťující vzduch analýza MeSH
- lineární modely MeSH
- metoda nejmenších čtverců MeSH
- monitorování životního prostředí metody statistika a číselné údaje MeSH
- perylen analogy a deriváty analýza MeSH
- pevné částice analýza MeSH
- polycyklické aromatické uhlovodíky analýza MeSH
- roční období MeSH
- urbanizace MeSH
- výfukové emise vozidel analýza MeSH
- Publikační typ
- časopisecké články MeSH
- Geografické názvy
- Česká republika MeSH
Urban environments cover vast areas with a high density of humans and their dogs and cats causing problems for exploitation of new resources by wild animals. Such resources facilitate colonization by individuals with a high level of neophilia predicting that urban animals should show more neophilia than rural conspecifics. We provided bird-feeders across urban environments in 14 Polish cities and matched nearby rural habitats, testing whether the presence of a novel item (a brightly coloured green object made out of gum with a tuft of hair) differentially delayed arrival at feeders in rural compared to urban habitats. The presence of a novel object reduced the number of great tits Parus major, but also the total number of all species of birds although differentially so in urban compared to rural areas. That was the case independent of the potentially confounding effects of temperature, population density of birds, and the abundance of cats, dogs and pedestrians. The number of great tits and the total number of birds attending feeders increased in urban compared to rural areas independent of local population density of birds. This implies that urban birds have high levels of neophilia allowing them to readily exploit unpredictable resources in urban environments.
- MeSH
- ekosystém MeSH
- hustota populace MeSH
- kočky MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- metody výživy MeSH
- psi MeSH
- ptáci fyziologie MeSH
- riskování MeSH
- riziko MeSH
- urbanizace MeSH
- velkoměsta MeSH
- venkovské obyvatelstvo MeSH
- zvířata MeSH
- Check Tag
- kočky MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- psi MeSH
- zvířata MeSH
- Publikační typ
- časopisecké články MeSH
- Geografické názvy
- Polsko MeSH
- velkoměsta MeSH
Adapting to exploit new food sources may be essential, particularly in winter, when the impact of food limitation on survival of individuals is critical. One of the most important additional sources of food for birds in human settlements is birdfeeders. At a large spatial scale, we experimentally provided birdfeeders with four different kinds of food to analyze exploitation and use of a novel food supply provided by humans. Nine species started foraging at the new birdfeeders. The species that exploited the new feeders the fastest was the great tit. Use of novel food sources was faster in urban habitats and the presence of other feeders reduced the time until a new feeder was located. Urbanization may be associated with behavioural skills, technical innovations and neophilia resulting in faster discovery of new food sources. This process is accelerated by the experience of feeder use in the vicinity, with a strong modifying effect of the number of domestic cats.
- MeSH
- chování zvířat MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- ptáci fyziologie MeSH
- roční období MeSH
- stravovací zvyklosti * MeSH
- urbanizace MeSH
- zvířata MeSH
- zvyky MeSH
- Check Tag
- lidé MeSH
- zvířata MeSH
- Publikační typ
- časopisecké články MeSH
