Search Results (129)

Bull sharks (Carcharhinus leucas) are highly mobile coastal predators, whose broad movements complicate conservation planning, particularly in the Western Indian Ocean, where key habitats remain poorly understood. Using passive acoustic telemetry, this study assessed the habitat use, residency, and regional connectivity of adult bull sharks within the Bazaruto Seascape, Mozambique, evaluating the area’s ecological role within a wider movement network. Sharks tagged around Bazaruto exhibited high residency (overall R_max = 0.45) and year-round presence, with core habitat concentrated along seaward reef systems and inshore areas off the San Sebastian Peninsula. Although most core habitat areas (82%) overlapped with existing marine protected areas, important habitats extended beyond protected area boundaries. In addition to supporting resident individuals, the seascape functioned as a seasonal waypoint within a regional movement corridor, with transient sharks exhibiting short periods (<5 days) of seasonal residency (primarily between May and November). Movement patterns revealed strong connectivity with other aggregation sites along the southeast African coast and occasional long-distance movements across the Mozambique Channel to Madagascar and beyond. These findings demonstrate that the Bazaruto Seascape provides both critical habitat and acts as a connectivity node for resident and transient bull sharks, highlighting the need for conservation strategies that combine local spatial protection with broader regional and transboundary management frameworks. Full article

Morocco is a leading African nation in renewable energy, with growing interest in expanding offshore wind energy. As offshore wind projects have gained momentum worldwide, public acceptance, particularly regarding their environmental and visual impacts, has become a critical consideration. This exploratory study examines the social acceptance of offshore wind farms (OWFs) in Morocco by integrating social acceptance analysis with a visual impact assessment based on three-dimensional (3D) image modeling in an emerging offshore wind context. Social perceptions were first assessed through a small-scale survey, with findings interpreted descriptively and considered alongside results from a public perception survey conducted in Japan, which served as a contextual reference. A hypothetical offshore wind installation along the Moroccan coast was then simulated, followed by a small-scale exploratory perception survey to examine initial reactions to different visual configurations. Given the limited sample size, the findings are indicative rather than generalizable. Nevertheless, they provide preliminary insights into the prominent role of environmental considerations, particularly ecological protection and visual integration, in shaping attitudes toward OWFs. This study highlights the relevance of careful site selection, transparent communication, and early stakeholder engagement as context-sensitive considerations for offshore wind development in Morocco. Full article

Across Africa, drought seldom occurs alone. Rainfall deficits often coincide with heat, rapid soil moisture loss and reduced streamflow, producing compound events whose impacts exceed those of any single driver. This review synthesises station observations, satellite and reanalysis products, and climate model simulations to clarify where such events are most common, how they form, how they affect societies and ecosystems, and how risks are changing. A practical tiered definition tailored to African conditions is outlined and applied to identify five recurrent hotspots: the Sahel, the Greater Horn of Africa, southern Africa, the margins of the Congo Basin and the Guinea Coast. The review sets out a physically consistent sequence that links basin-scale sea surface temperature anomalies to shifts in monsoon circulation, and then to land processes that amplify and prolong heat and dryness through reduced evapotranspiration and soil-moisture memory. Documented impacts include lower crop and pasture productivity, pressure on rivers, reservoirs and groundwater, stress on hydropower and wider consequences for food and energy security. Compound drought frequency across these hotspots has risen by 18–55% since 1980, with the probability of the most severe events roughly doubling at 1.5 °C of global warming and tripling at 3 °C. The review highlights near-term priorities, including compound-aware monitoring, sub-seasonal-to-seasonal early warning and conjunctive water management. Full article

Background/Objectives: The Black Caribbean population of Honduras, also referred to locally as Negro Inglés, constitutes one of the country’s nine recognized indigenous and Afro-descendant peoples. Predominantly settled in the Bay Islands and sections of the Caribbean coast, this community traces its ancestry predominantly to West Africa and has remained culturally and linguistically distinct for more than three centuries. Despite its demographic and historical relevance, no population-specific short tandem repeat (STR) database has been established for this group. Methods: Allele frequencies for 23 autosomal STR loci were characterized in 100 unrelated Black Caribbean individuals from the department of Islas de la Bahía. DNA was extracted from blood on FTA cards and amplified with the PowerPlex Fusion 6C System (Promega Corporation). Statistical parameters were computed using Genepop v4.2, Arlequin v3.5 and GDA v1.0. Results: A total of 241 distinct alleles were detected across all 23 loci (mean 10.48 ± 3.85 alleles/locus). Expected heterozygosity ranged from 0.6541 (D13S317) to 0.9350 (SE33), with a mean of 0.8150 ± 0.0664—values consistent with a population of predominantly West African origin. No locus exhibited a significant departure from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium after Bonferroni correction (α = 0.0022). The combined power of discrimination exceeded 99.9999% and the combined chance of exclusion surpassed 99.9999%. Conclusions: This first genetic characterization of the Honduran Black Caribbean population delivers an essential, population-specific reference dataset for forensic casework, paternity testing, and population genetics research. The data also deepen the understanding of Afro-descendant genetic diversity in Central America and constitute a critical step towards equitable forensic genetic services for all Honduran ethnic communities. Full article

Background: The Garifunas are a distinctive Afro-indigenous community of Honduras, originating from the historical admixture of Island Carib, Arawak, and West African peoples in the seventeenth-century Caribbean. With an estimated 43,111 individuals residing primarily along the northern Atlantic coast. Their dual ancestral composition yields a genetic profile that differs meaningfully from those of other Honduran reference populations, consistent with pairwise FST comparisons with previously published Lenca and Tawahka datasets generated on the identical platform; yet no population-specific short tandem repeat (STR) reference dataset had previously been established. Methods: We genotyped 23 autosomal STR loci using the PowerPlex Fusion 6C System (Promega Corporation) in 100 unrelated Garifuna individuals (70 females, 30 males) sampled from three coastal settlements in the department of Atlántida: Triunfo de la Cruz, Ensenada, and Corozal. DNA was extracted from blood collected on FTA cards, and statistical parameters were computed using Genepop v4.2 and Arlequin v5.3.2.2. Results: A total of 217 distinct alleles were identified, with 5 to 19 alleles per locus (mean 9.43 ± 3.54). Expected heterozygosity (He) ranged from 0.6392 (D13S317) to 0.9010 (SE33), with a population mean of 0.7893. No locus deviated from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium after Bonferroni correction (α = 0.0022). The combined random match probability was approximately 1.9 × 10⁻²⁶, and the combined chance of exclusion reached 99.99999993%. Conclusions: This study provides the first Honduran Garifuna population-specific autosomal STR reference database for precise forensic likelihood ratio estimates, kinship assessments, and population genetic studies. The Garifuna’s high diversity—consistent with their West African and Amerindian ancestry—indicates the risk of systematic bias when non-specific databases are used. Full article

Coastal storms represent a major environmental issue and constitute an important challenge for coastal flood management. This study analyzes the frequency and characteristics of storms on the Senegalese coast between 1993 and 2023, focusing on four coastal cities: Dakar, Saint-Louis, Mbour, and Cap-Skring. The analysis is based on wave data from the ERA5 model and on meteorological and oceanographic data from different models. Storms were detected using the Peak Over Threshold (POT) method, based on the 95th percentile and fitted to a generalized Pareto distribution (GPD). The results reveal a contrasted spatial distribution of coastal storms, with a higher occurrence in Dakar and Saint-Louis. An apparent increase in the frequency of storms is observed in Saint-Louis, Mbour, and Cap-Skring, while an apparent decrease is noted in Dakar; however, these trends are not statistically significant. Extreme coastal water levels (ECWL) associated with storms show an opposite evolution, with an apparent decrease in the first three regions and an apparent increase in Dakar. The most intense and longest storms, in terms of energy content (Es), are mainly observed in Dakar and Saint-Louis. A linear relationship is highlighted between the duration and intensity of storms. Storm occurrence shows a strong seasonal modulation, with a predominance during the dry season (November to May). The most energetic storms are mostly generated by waves from the west to west-northwest direction in Dakar and Saint-Louis, while Mbour and Cap-Skring present a wider directional window. This first analysis at the scale of the Senegalese coast provides essential elements for understanding the risk of coastal storms and constitutes support for coastal flood management in a context of climate change. Full article

Reanalysis wave datasets are essential for understanding wave conditions along the West African coast, a region with over 350 million people and diverse economic activities. This study evaluates the effectiveness of various datasets, including ERA5, WAVERYS, satellite (HY-2B/HY-2C), and buoy measurements, focusing on significant wave height (Hs). WAVERYS was found to better match in situ conditions compared to ERA5, making it the preferred dataset for climate estimation. This study found that wave heights (Hs) of WAVERYS in the region range from 0.5 m to 3.2 m, with waves primarily coming from the south and southwest, having periods between 3.8 s and 25 s. Swell, originating from the South Atlantic Ocean, dominates the wave climate, while local wind waves contribute only about 5% to the overall sea state energy. Seasonal analysis showed that the highest waves occur between June and September, coinciding with the South Atlantic winter and stronger winds. The validation performed in this study confirms that the WAVERYS reanalysis can reliably be used as a source of wave data in the Gulf of Guinea. This recommendation is based on its consistently better agreement with the available in situ observations and its improved representation of wave dynamics in the region. At locations where buoy measurements exist, in situ data should remain the primary reference for site-specific applications; however, such measurements are spatially sparse and temporally limited across West Africa. Consequently, WAVERYS provides a practical and robust alternative for regional-scale analyses, long-term assessments, and operational applications in areas lacking direct observations, making it particularly valuable for coastal risk assessment, engineering design, and marine operations in the region. Full article

Exploring the spatiotemporal evolution of building stock in African countries is of great significance for understanding the urbanization process, regional development disparities, and sustainable development pathways in the Global South. Integrating long-term (1975–2020), 100 m resolution building stock data for Tanzania with multi-source environmental and socioeconomic datasets, this study employed GIS spatial analysis techniques—including optimized hotspot analysis, standard deviational ellipse, and geographical detector—to investigate the spatiotemporal evolution characteristics and influencing factors of building differentiation. The results indicate that over the 45-year period, Tanzania’s building stock underwent rapid expansion, with a 3.83-fold increase in volume and a 4.93-fold increase in area, while the average height decreased continuously by 1.04 m. This growth was predominantly driven by the expansion of residential buildings. The spatial distribution of buildings exhibited a “north-dense, south-sparse” pattern with agglomeration along traffic axes. During 1975–1990, building growth hotspots were concentrated in western and southern regions, shifting to areas surrounding Lake Victoria and central administrative centers during 2005–2020. In contrast, coldspots expanded progressively from northern, northeastern regions and Zanzibar Island to parts of the southern and eastern coasts. The building distribution consistently maintained a northwest–southeast spatial orientation, with increasingly prominent directional characteristics; the centroid of building distribution moved more than 90 km northwestward, and the agglomeration intensity continued to increase. Socioeconomic factors—including population density, road network density, and GDP density—have a significantly stronger influence on building distribution than natural factors. Among natural factors, only river network density exhibits a significant effect, while constraints such as slope and terrain relief are relatively insignificant. Full article

Mangrove ecosystems along the Indian Ocean coast show great biodiversity, adapting to harsh environmental conditions of high salinity and higher organic matter, and they are a host for a range of microbial communities with special features that produce unique secondary metabolites. Of this, mangrove-associated endophytic fungi, the second largest ecological group of marine fungi, show the greater potential, being a diverse pool for discovering novel bio-actives with pharmacological and biotechnological interest. This review summarizes the research findings on structural diversity and the associated pharmacological activities of secondary metabolites produced by mangrove-associated fungi along the Indian Ocean coast reported over the period of 2002–2025, based on the literature retrieved from Google Scholar. The total of 302 secondary metabolites is presented mainly from classes of polyketides (208), alkaloids (34), and terpenoids (60). Interestingly, 164 compounds were identified, as first reported in those publications. These compounds have been reported to show diverse biological activities, and the most prominent activities are cytotoxic, antibacterial, antifungal, antioxidant, enzyme inhibitory, and anti-inflammatory effects. The structural novelty and pharmacological activities of these metabolites highlight the importance of mangrove fungi as promising sources for new drug discovery and advancing industrial biotechnology. Therefore, this review highlights the insight into the possible application of these chemical compounds in the future drug industry, as well as in biotechnology for advancing human well-being. Furthermore, though significant progress has been made in exploring the fungi community from mangroves of the African and Middle Eastern coasts, the Indian coast mangrove fungi are yet to be explored more for novel discoveries. Full article

Background/Objectives: African American women are less likely to breastfeed in general and to breastfeed exclusively for the first six months of infancy. Racial and ethnic breastfeeding disparities are especially pronounced in the South, particularly in rural communities. These differences are attributed largely to structural lactation impediments that include less breastfeeding support in healthcare settings, workplaces, and communities. While a great deal of research has explored racial differences in breastfeeding, minimal attention has been paid to the social correlates and racial disparities associated with the 2022 U.S. infant formula shortage. Our study explores racial distinctions in the formula shortage’s effect on breastfeeding support among Gulf Coast Mississippians. Methods: We use data from the second wave of the Mississippi REACH (Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health) Social Climate Survey to determine if racial differences are evident in the formula shortage’s influence on breastfeeding support. We predict that the infant formula shortage will have prompted African American respondents to become much more supportive of breastfeeding than their White counterparts, net of sociodemographic controls. This hypothesis is based on the lower prevalence of exclusive breastfeeding among African Americans, thereby indicating a greater reliance on formula. The study uses a general population (random digit dial) sample and purposive (exclusively African American) oversample to analyze validated data from a cross-sectional survey. Sampling took place between September and December 2023, with a sample population of adult male and female Mississippians. A series of binary logistic regression models were employed to measure the association of race with breastfeeding support changes resulting from the infant formula shortage. Results: The study results support the hypothesis, as seen by a positive association between African Americans and increased breastfeeding support directly related to the infant formula shortage. Further, the baseline statistical model reveals African American respondents to be five times more likely than White respondents (p < 0.001) to report that the formula shortage increased their support of breastfeeding. Conclusions: We conclude by discussing this study’s implications and promising directions for future research. Full article

Shell-sand mixing, as a novel technique for coastal protection and seabed improvement, holds broad application prospects. However, the underlying mechanism of its influence on the wave-induced dynamic response of the seabed beneath slope breakwaters remains unclear. In this study, physical model experiments were conducted in a wave flume to analyze the effects of shell-sand mixing on the amplitude of pore water pressure in front of the breakwater and the vertical attenuation coefficient of the seabed. The results indicate that the amplitude of pore water pressure decreased by up to 46.5% after the application of shell-sand mixing. As the mixing ratio of shell-sand increased, the vertical attenuation coefficient of pore pressure initially rose and then stabilized. When the shell-sand mixing ratio reached 15%, the average vertical attenuation coefficient of pore pressure had already stabilized. Furthermore, this paper established an empirical formula for the pore pressure response of shell-sand mixed seabed in front of slope breakwaters, applicable to sandy seabeds. The correlation coefficient $R^2$ between the predicted values from the formula and the measured data reached 0.881. This research provides a scientific basis for the engineering application and improvement evaluation of shell-sand mixing. The study also assessed the application of shell-sand mixing technology along the West African coast, with results indicating that the Western Sahara region is the most suitable area for implementing this technique. Full article

Against the background of the rapid transformation of traditional economies and societies and continuous global climate change, how to ensure the long-term stability of the coastal ecological environment has become a key issue to be studied. In this paper, we take the 20 km buffer zone extending inland from the South African coastal zone as the study area. By constructing a vegetation vulnerability evaluation system, the current and future scenarios are compared in depth based on the base period (2010–2020), the near term (2030–2059), and the long term (2070–2099) with the help of GIS spatial analysis, the Moran index, and other methods. The results show that there are obvious spatial differences in vegetation vulnerability in the South African coastal zone. The extremely vulnerable areas of vegetation are mostly distributed on the west coast of South Africa, and some areas have obvious high–high aggregation patterns. The transfer of SSP1-2.6 scenarios in the near term is relatively stable, and the vegetation vulnerability level rebounds significantly in the long term; the vulnerability level of SSP2-4.5 scenarios has increased in both the near term and the long term, indicating that the risk of vegetation vulnerability has increased; while the SSP5-8.5 scenario has a significant deterioration trend in the long term, and the risk of vegetation vulnerability shifting to a high vulnerability level has increased significantly. Land use type has a significant impact on the response of vegetation vulnerability to SSP prediction. In the process of transformation from the base period to the long term, the proportion of vegetation vulnerability shifting to extremely vulnerable and severely vulnerable levels is notably high for both cultivated land and forest land—particularly under high-emission scenarios, driven by agricultural intensification for cultivated land and climate stress for forest land. This paper deeply explores the spatiotemporal evolution law and driving mechanism of vegetation vulnerability in the South African coastal zone under different shared socioeconomic pathway (SSP) scenarios, providing decision support for better development and protection of the South African coastal zone in the future. Full article

The shortfin lizardfish Saurida micropectoralis is recorded here for the first time from Jizan, Southern Red Sea, based on morphological and molecular analyses. This species closely resembles both S. tumbil and S. lessepsianus. However, S. micropectoralis is characterized by translucent whitish pelvic fins (vs. dusky in S. tumbil), indistinct blackish spots on the upper margin of the caudal fin (vs. distinct black spots (6–8) in S. lessepsianus), a short pectoral fin that never reaches the origin of the pelvic fin (vs. reaching a little beyond the base of the pelvic fin in S. lessepsianus), three rows of teeth on the outer palatines (vs. two rows in S. lessepsianus) and a pale whitish stomach and intestine (vs. greyish or black anteriorly in S. lessepsianus). Molecular analyses based on COI haplotypes confirmed the species-level identification but also revealed the existence of four distinct lineages across the species distribution range. The COI data revealed a clear geographic partitioning of haplotypes, indicating restricted gene flow and suggesting the presence of four cryptic species or, at minimum, independent evolving evolutionary units within Saurida micropectoralis. Populations of the shortfin lizardfish are well established in the Southern Red Sea and belong to a genetic lineage reported along the East African coast (Madagascar, Mozambique and Tanzania) and India. Full article

Gold mineralisation at Ity (Ivory Coast) is spatially associated with skarns formed at contacts between carbonate-rich Birimian volcano-sedimentary rocks and felsic intrusions, whereas at Dahapleu, a nearby skarn-free prospect, gold occurs in structurally controlled shear zones. Gold occurs as native gold in pyrite or as a Bi–Te–Au–Ag telluride assemblage. Fluid inclusion data indicate that Ity formed through a hybrid model: a mesothermal orogenic gold system dominated by CO₂–CH₄ fluids at >350 °C, superimposed on earlier skarn mineralisation characterised by saline fluids. At Dahapleu, no skarn fluids were identified, but volatile-rich inclusions with more variable signatures (CO₂, CO₂–CH₄, CO₂–N₂) indicate metamorphic fluids circulating in convective, fault-related systems and recording distinct fluid–rock interactions. The Ity–Dahapleu mineralising system thus displays fluid inclusion characteristics typical of mesothermal orogenic gold systems, likely at higher temperatures than most West African Birimian deposits. Overall, the Ity system reflects a long-lived thermal anomaly driving fluid circulation and metal deposition, with successive favourable events: rapid exhumation of hot lithospheric crust, granite intrusion, and skarn formation, followed by shear deformation and hydrothermal activity. Full article

The present study addresses the topic of European companies, including Latvian companies, sustainably entering African markets. The actuality of this topic relates to the recession and the decrease in demand in the classical export markets (such as Scandinavia and Western Europe) with which Latvian firms used to trade; this is why the re-orientation of companies to African countries was carried out. Academic research worldwide has conducted many investigations on the specifics of exporting to Africa. The lack of knowledge relating to local African business practices is considered one of the significant barriers. The aim of this study was to mitigate this barrier by exploring real-world situations in African economic sectors. Interviews with relevant African experts were conducted for this purpose. The results showed that East European entrepreneurs, including Latvian entrepreneurs, should first focus on West African French-speaking countries with big seaports (e.g., Senegal, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Benin, Togo, and Cameroon), where Latvian knowledge, professional skills, and products relating to port and transportation infrastructures are in significant demand. A case study was conducted in Cameroon as an example of a good business match with Latvian service providers. The case study also highlighted the nature of Cameroon’s sociocultural dynamics, which are distinguished by the presence of several sociocultural zones, each with its own specific characteristics that need to be taken into account. Full article