Systematics, biostratigraphy and evolutionary pattern of the Oligo-Miocene marine mammals from the Maltese Islands

An overview of the upper Oligocene-upper Miocene marine sediments outcropping in the Maltese Islands provides a detailed stratigraphical setting of several marine mammal assemblages. The studied fossil material collected within the entire sequence, is now kept in the National Museum of Natural History of Mdina (Malta). Nannoplankton analysis of some selected sections, where mammal remains have been discovered, is also undertaken. The fossil marine mammals, consisting mostly of isolated ear bones and teeth, are referred to cetaceans (both mysticetes and odontocetes), sirenians, and pinnipeds. The cetacean record evidences an evolutionary pattern that agrees with the Oligo-Miocene general trend, characterized by the progressive rarefaction and disappearance of archaic families (squalodontids, waipatiids, and, maybe, mammalodontids), and by the appearance and diversification of the extant families represented within younger strata (kogiids, pontoporiids and ziphiids). Pontoporiids, waipatiids, and tentatively mammalodontids are here reported for the first time in the Mediterranean, while the kogiid record represents the only sure Miocene evidence of this family in the Mediterranean. The geographical distribution of the mammalodontids and the waipatiids, based on the Maltese and extra-Mediterranean records, supports an open communication between the Proto-Mediterranean and the Indo-Pacific during the late Oligocene. Sirenians are represented by several dugongid pachyosteosclerotic rib fragments, collected from upper Oligocene through upper Miocene sediments. Pinnipeds are represented by a femur fragment from the Serravallian, referred to an indeterminate monachine, a phocid subfamily already reported from the Mio-Pliocene of the Mediterranean.     

The Bostrichidae of the Maltese Islands (Coleoptera)

The Bostrichidae of the Maltese Islands are reviewed. Ten species are recorded with certainty from this Archipelago, of which 6 namely, Trogoxylon impressum (Comolli, 1837), Amphicerus bimaculatus (A.G. Olivier, 1790), Heterobostrychus aequalis (Waterhouse, 1884), Sinoxylon unidentatum (Fabricius, 1801), Xyloperthella picea (A.G. Olivier, 1790) and Apate monachus Fabricius, 1775 are recorded for the first time. Two of the mentioned species (Heterobostrychus aequalis and Sinoxylon unidentatum) are alien and recorded only on the basis of single captures and the possible establishment of these species is discussed. Earlier records of Scobicia pustulata (Fabricius, 1801) from Malta are incorrect and should be attributed to Scobicia chevrieri (A. Villa & J.B. Villa, 1835). A zoogeographical analysis and an updated checklist of the 12 species of Bostrichidae recorded from the Maltese Islands and neigbouring Sicilian islands (Pantelleria, Linosa and Lampedusa) are also provided.Rhizopertha dominica (Fabricius, 1792) form granulipennis Lesne in Beeson & Bhatia, 1937 from Uttarakhand (northern India) was overlooked by almost all subsequent authors. Its history is summarized and the following new synonymy is established: Rhizopertha dominica (Fabricius, 1792) form granulipennis Lesne in Beeson & Bhatia, 1937 = Rhyzopertha dominica (Fabricius, 1792), syn. n.Finally, records of Amphicerus bimaculatus from Azerbaijan, of Bostrichus capucinus (Linnaeus, 1758) from Jordan and Syria, of Scobicia chevrieri from Jordan and Italy, of Xyloperthella picea from Italy, and of Apate monachus from Corsica (France) and Italy, are also provided.     

国土空间规划视角下健康城市规划评价指标体系构建

随着“健康中国”战略的持续推进,通过干预空间要素提升国民健康的城市规划受到了广泛的关注。在国土空间规划视角下建立了城市空间要素与健康关联性理论框架,从土地利用、交通环境、空间形态、蓝绿空间、食品环境、空间感知与突发公共卫生事件空间应对7个维度,提出了媒介性空间要素对居民生理、心理健康的五大影响路径,包括减少污染源和人体暴露风险、促进体力活动、促进健康饮食、促进社会交往以及提供可获得的健康设施。据此构建了“多要素、多维度、多尺度”健康城市规划评价指标体系,包含基础、新增和潜在指标。其中,“多要素”强调引入七大类空间要素构建全面而多样化的指标体系,“多维度”强调从传统的城市平面维度向立体空间转变,包含一维、二维和三维空间层面的评价指标,“多尺度”指构建“城市-社区-人”框架下的多尺度指标体系。结合各地实际,可从重视人本尺度、强化空间属性、引入突发公共卫生事件的空间应对以及三维指标的精准量化出发,制定有针对性的规划干预策略,并推动健康城市项目的发展完善,为“健康中国”战略在城市层面的推进提供参考。     

Spatial Pattern of a Free-Living Marine Nematode Community off the Coast of Peru

The numerical abundance and biomass of free-living marine nematodes from sandy sediment off the coast of Peru (water depth 40 m) was similar to that reported from other areas. Dispersion chi-square analysis indicated that three species were aggregated, while the remaining species were randomly distributed throughout the samples. The most reasonable hypothesis is that variation in size of individual pore spaces is the mechanism controlling the distribution of the aggregated species.     

面向新时代国土空间规划的城乡绿地系统规划与管控路径探索

国土空间规划是中国新时代发展和生态文明建设背景下规划领域的重大变革,绿地系统规划作为其中的重要支撑专项之一,须充分响应生态优先、绿色发展理念,从“多规合一”和“城乡统筹”视角进行合理转变。以新时代国土空间规划为指引,从规划路径和规划管控两大方面,针对传统城市绿地系统规划如何适应当前城乡绿色空间优化需求进行规划模式探索。在规划路径方面,提出借助国土空间基础信息平台,确定规划的流程、层次、内容、技术。在规划管控方面,提出呼应“多规合一”发展要求,构建多民众参与、多部门合作、多渠道沟通的城乡绿地管控体系。通过构建科学合理的城乡绿地系统规划路径和稳定完善的管理机制,支撑新时代国土空间规划体系下绿色空间的城乡统筹和可持续发展。     

Spatial Epidemiology and GIS in Marine Mammal Conservation Medicine and Disease Research

The use of spatial epidemiology and geographical information systems (GIS) facilitates the incorporation of spatial relationships into epidemiological investigations of marine mammal diseases and conservation medicine. Spatial epidemiology is the study of the spatial variation in disease risk or incidence and explicitly addresses spatial structures and functions that factor into disease. The GIS consists of input, management, analysis, and presentation of spatial disease data and can act as an integrative tool so that a range of varied data sources can be combined to describe different environmental aspects of wild animals and their diseases. The use of modern spatial analyses and GIS is becoming well developed in the field of marine mammal ecology and biology, but has just recently started to gain more use in disease research. The use of GIS methodology and spatial analysis in nondisease marine mammal studies is briefly discussed, while examples of the specific uses of these tools in mapping, surveillance and monitoring, disease cluster detection, identification of environmental predictors of disease in wildlife populations, risk assessment, and modeling of diseases, is presented. Marine mammal disease investigations present challenges, such as less consistent access to animals for sampling, fewer baseline data on diseases in wild populations, and less robust epidemiologic study designs, but several recommendations for future research are suggested. Since location is an integral part of investigating disease, spatial epidemiology and GIS should be incorporated as a data management and analysis tool in the study of marine mammal diseases and conservation medicine.     

稳定与变革：德国景观规划在空间规划中的基础作用及社会变化下的挑战

中国的国土空间规划体系正在经历变革,规划编制和管控技术需要风景园林的视角。针对空间规划和风景园林的衔接问题,通过总结相关文献和报告,介绍德国景观规划的发展经验。德国作为实行空间规划体系的国家其景观规划对自然保护和景观多种功能的平衡做出了重要贡献。研究梳理德国景观规划的目标、层级、基础作用、模块设置以及对社会发展需求的灵敏反应。德国景观规划对中国风景园林衔接新的空间规划体系具有借鉴意义,特别是模块式的任务构建,在各尺度层级保持连贯的目标体系,以及系统地革新理论框架。     

国土空间规划体系下风景园林规划研究

风景园林是绿色发展的重要载体,在国土空间规划变革的背景下,明确其在国土空间规划体系中的任务迫在眉睫。通过回顾国土空间规划的推进历史,总结风景园林规划对接国土空间规划体系的关键点,厘清目前风景园林的定位与职能。提出风景园林规划应有效地纳入国土空间规划体系,其内容不仅包括自然保护地规划与国家公园规划,还应发挥面向全域统筹的风景治理作用,从国土空间的空间格局开发保护、 城乡区域的统筹调适、城镇功能控制区的提升增质3个层面全面参与国土空间规划,从而构建中国特色风景园林规划体系。风景园林规划不仅顺应了国家治理的基本价值导向,而且对坚持生态文明、促进人与自然和谐共生、建设美丽国土空间、面向美好生活意义重大。     

国土空间规划体系背景下市县级蓝绿空间系统专项规划的编制构想

蓝绿空间系统规划作为市县级国土空间规划的专项规划之一,是传导和落实国土空间总体规划要求、引导蓝绿空间分类细化和建设实施的重要途径,是空间规划体系改革的突出亮点。编制的重点是中心城区的城镇发展区层次,应包括总则、系统布局、用地分类规划、蓝绿空间控制规划、专业建设规划、规划实施等内容,应遵循生态优先、安全优先、高品质生活、高质量发展和高水平治理的编制技术路线。作为专项规划,还应在现状评估体系、多元规划实践的技术体系、相关规划协调、规划传导机制、面向实施的政策保障措施等诸多方面开展深入研究。     

Marine reserve recovery rates towards a baseline are slower for reef fish community life histories than biomass

Ecological baselines are disappearing and it is uncertain how marine reserves, here called fisheries closures, simulate pristine communities. We tested the influence of fisheries closure age, size and compliance on recovery of community biomass and life-history metrics towards a baseline. We used census data from 324 coral reefs, including 41 protected areas ranging between 1 and 45 years of age and 0.28 and 1430 km², and 36 sites in a remote baseline, the Chagos Archipelago. Fish community-level life histories changed towards larger and later maturing fauna with increasing closure age, size and compliance. In high compliance closures, community biomass levelled at approximately 20 years and 10 km² but was still only at approximately 30% of the baseline and community growth rates were projected to slowly decline for more than 100 years. In low compliance and young closures, biomass levelled at half the value and time as high compliance closures and life-history metrics were not predicted to reach the baseline. Biomass does not adequately reflect the long-time scales for full recovery of life-history characteristics, with implications for coral reef management.     

景观性格评价在国土空间规划和管控中的应用

自然特征、景观格局、自然与人文资源和现有开发导向等因素,共同决定了景观空间内部不同的本底特征,即景观性格。通过对多类型资源的叠加,生成对区域空间景观性格的综合评价结果,一方面可以作为国土空间用途管制所涉及问题的评价依据,另一方面可以具体指导国土空间风貌控制问题,从而弥补现有国土空间规划编制过程对景观资源禀赋及本底特色的忽视。对现有景观性格评价方法进行了梳理,基于此构建景观性格评价在国土空间规划中应用的过程步骤,并以黑龙江省伊春市为例进行景观性格评价实践,形成景观性格分区、景观性格分级及景观性格描述等成果,指导伊春市国土空间规划风貌控制、功能区划分及发展定位。景观性格评价有利于发掘利用空间自身优势,与现有国土空间规划评估体系形成互补,共同指导规划的编制过程。     

Evolutionary relationships of Podarcis lizards from Sicily and the Maltese Islands

The electrophoretic variation at 26 presumptive gene loci was investigated in populations of the closely related species Podarcis sicula, P. wagleriana, P. raffonei, and P. filfolensis. Low values of proportion of polymorphic loci (P) and mean observed heterozygosity (H_o) were found in P. sicula (P= 0.10; H_o= 0.016), P. wagleriana (P= 0.13; H_o= 0.029), and P. raffonei (P= 0.08; H_o= 0.017), while higher levels of genetic variability were observed in P. filfolensis (P= 0.17; H_o= 0.054). In the latter species, a multiple regression analysis was carried out in order to analyse the geographic correlates of P and H_o. The results of this analysis were consistent with the predictions of the time-divergence theory of variation, supporting the conclusion that directional selection is the main force eroding genetic variation on small islands. Intraspecific values of Nei 's (1972) standard genetic distance were relatively low in P. sicula (average D= 0.024), P. wagleriana (average D= 0.004), and P. filfolensis (average D= 0.012), while higher in P. raffonei (D= 0.040). The lizards from Pantellena Island, which were considered by BISCHOFF (1986) to be very similar to P. filfolensis from Malta on the basis of a superficial analysis of the coloration pattern, were shown to actually belong to P. sicula. This confirms that the range of P. filfolensis only includes the Maltese Archipelago, Linosa Island, and the islet of Lampione. Surprisingly, the samples of P. filfolensis from the Pelagie Islands (Linosa and Lampione) were very similar to those from the Maltese Archipelago (average D= 0.016). This could be explained by rafting or anthropogenic introduction of P. filfolensis on Linosa and Lampione. Podarcis wagleriana and P. raffonei were genetically related (average D= 0.152), confirming the results of previous electrophoretic investigations. Podarcis filfolensis, though showing some morphological affinity with P. wagleriana, was genetically highly differentiated from this latter species (average D= 0.526), while being more similar to P. sicula (average D= 0.306). This indicates a close relationship between P. sicula and P. filfolensis, suggesting that P. sicula and P. filfolensis probably diverged from a common ancestor, and that the apparent similarity between P. filfolensis and P. wagleriana could be merely due to morphological convergence.     

Offshore aquaculture: Spatial planning principles for sustainable development

Marine aquaculture is expanding into deeper offshore environments in response to growing consumer demand for seafood, improved technology, and limited potential to increase wild fisheries catches. Sustainable development of aquaculture will require quantification and minimization of its impacts on other ocean‐based activities and the environment through scientifically informed spatial planning. However, the scientific literature currently provides limited direct guidance for such planning. Here, we employ an ecological lens and synthesize a broad multidisciplinary literature to provide insight into the interactions between offshore aquaculture and the surrounding environment across a spectrum of spatial scales. While important information gaps remain, we find that there is sufficient research for informed decisions about the effects of aquaculture siting to achieve a sustainable offshore aquaculture industry that complements other uses of the marine environment.     

Branchiopods (non-cladocerans) of the Maltese Islands (central Mediterranean)

Four branchiopod species occur on the Maltese Islands, viz. Branchipus schaefferi, B. visnyai, Cyzicus tetracerus and Triops cancriformis. All four live in freshwater pools, but it is noteworthy that, beside B. schaefferi, T. cancriformis was recorded from a mesohaline, coast-fringing habitat.     

The Role of Small Islands in Marine Subsistence Strategies: Case Studies from the Caribbean

Caribbean archaeologists have tended to focus exclusively on the prehistory of the largest islands, perhaps because large islands are believed to provide the landmass necessary to support long-term population growth and cultural development. Yet, as research here and elsewhere, e.g., the Pacific, is showing, small islands provided access to resources and landscapes that were not always readily available on the larger islands. Small islands often have superior terrestrial and, especially, marine resources; isolated ritual spaces; and more easily defended locations; although they are susceptible to more rapid overexploitation. This paper examines in detail human needs with regard to island size, demonstrating that small islands were crucial in the development of pre-Columbian Caribbean societies. Four case studies are presented to illustrate that small islands often were preferred over large islands throughout the Caribbean archipelagoes. Finally, these studies show that the prehistoric exploitation and overexploitation of small islands can provide significant insights for establishing baselines that can be used for modern management and conservation efforts.

Integration at the Round Table: Marine Spatial Planning in Multi-Stakeholder Settings

Marine spatial planning (MSP) is often considered as a pragmatic approach to implement an ecosystem based management in order to manage marine space in a sustainable way. This requires the involvement of multiple actors and stakeholders at various governmental and societal levels. Several factors affect how well the integrated management of marine waters will be achieved, such as different governance settings (division of power between central and local governments), economic activities (and related priorities), external drivers, spatial scales, incentives and objectives, varying approaches to legislation and political will. We compared MSP in Belgium, Norway and the US to illustrate how the integration of stakeholders and governmental levels differs among these countries along the factors mentioned above. Horizontal integration (between sectors) is successful in all three countries, achieved through the use of neutral ‘round-table’ meeting places for all actors. Vertical integration between government levels varies, with Belgium and Norway having achieved full integration while the US lacks integration of the legislature due to sharp disagreements among stakeholders and unsuccessful partisan leadership. Success factors include political will and leadership, process transparency and stakeholder participation, and should be considered in all MSP development processes.     

Marine foraging ecology influences mercury bioaccumulation in deep-diving northern elephant seals

Mercury contamination of oceans is prevalent worldwide and methylmercury concentrations in the mesopelagic zone (200–1000 m) are increasing more rapidly than in surface waters. Yet mercury bioaccumulation in mesopelagic predators has been understudied. Northern elephant seals (Mirounga angustirostris) biannually travel thousands of kilometres to forage within coastal and open-ocean regions of the northeast Pacific Ocean. We coupled satellite telemetry, diving behaviour and stable isotopes (carbon and nitrogen) from 77 adult females, and showed that variability among individuals in foraging location, diving depth and δ¹³C values were correlated with mercury concentrations in blood and muscle. We identified three clusters of foraging strategies, and these resulted in substantially different mercury concentrations: (i) deeper-diving and offshore-foraging seals had the greatest mercury concentrations, (ii) shallower-diving and offshore-foraging seals had intermediate levels, and (iii) coastal and more northerly foraging seals had the lowest mercury concentrations. Additionally, mercury concentrations were lower at the end of the seven-month-long foraging trip (n = 31) than after the two-month- long post-breeding trip (n = 46). Our results indicate that foraging behaviour influences mercury exposure and mesopelagic predators foraging in the northeast Pacific Ocean may be at high risk for mercury bioaccumulation.