Search Results (20)

The invasion history of the gastropod mollusk Bursatella leachii in the Mediterranean Sea demonstrates a dynamic progression through distinct phases, comprising arrival, establishment, and expansion phases. Initial records in the 1930s trace its entry through the Suez Canal, likely followed by larval transport to the Aegean Sea facilitated by natural currents. The subsequent spread to Maltese and Italian waters suggests secondary dispersion favored by maritime traffic or aquaculture activities. The establishment phase shows a significant increase in occurrences and spatial dispersion, with aggregated nuclei in the central Mediterranean. The expansion phase was characterized by rapid dispersal and intensified densities, particularly in the Aegean, Adriatic, and Spanish coasts. These findings underscore the species’ capability to invade from multiple fronts, driven by both natural and human-mediated processes. A new location in the Strait of Sicily, i.e., the island of Lampedusa, is reported in the present paper for the species. Given the low number of observations, its establishment with a viable population on the island is not confirmed, although its detection validates the Straits of Sicily as a key area of intense settlement of the species. Full article

Tidal notches, long regarded as reliable indicators of mean sea level, have been extensively studied along carbonate coasts in the central Mediterranean Sea. Previous studies revealed a correlation between the genesis of tidal notches and tidal range, lithology, cliff foot depth, and wave energy. In the 2020 Geoswim campaigns at Lampedusa, the southernmost island of the Pelagie archipelago (Italy), and in Gozo Island (Malta), ‘anomalous’ tidal notches were identified. Unlike normal notches observed elsewhere, those in Lampedusa’s southern bays exhibited a particular behaviour—constantly deepening in the inner part of the bays, reaching a maximum depth of approximately 30 cm below sea level and narrowing inwards. Similar phenomena were previously observed near Marseille (France). As confirmed by the literature, all these areas are tectonically stable. Time-lapse images, alongside measurements of morphometric parameters, were collected during the survey. Our hypothesis indicates that a combination of marine factors influenced by local marine conditions driven by the local morphology of the small bays exposed to southern quadrants contribute to the formation of these unique landforms. The latter manifests higher lowering erosion rates slightly below the mean sea level in sheltered areas, challenging conventional notions about tidal notch formation. Full article

Lampedusa, the largest island of the Pelagie archipelago, Sicily, Italy, has proven to be a rich source of plants and shrubs used in folk medicine. These plants, often native to the island, have been very poorly investigated for their phytochemical composition and biological potential to be translated into pharmacological applications. To start achieving this purpose, a specimen of Limonium lopadusanum, a plant native to Lampedusa, was investigated for the first time. This manuscript reports the results of a preliminary biological assay, focused on antimicrobial activity, carried out using the plant organic extracts, and the isolation and chemical and biological characterization of the secondary metabolites obtained. Thus 3-hydroxy-4-methoxybenzoic acid methyl ester (syn: methyl isovanillate, (1), methyl syringate (2), pinoresinol (3), erythrinassinate C (4) and tyrosol palmitate (5) were isolated. Their antimicrobial activity was tested on several strains and compound 4 showed promising antibacterial activity against Enterococcus faecalis. Thus, this metabolite has antibiotic potential against the drug-resistant opportunistic pathogen E. faecalis. Full article

Pufferfish (Tetraodontidae) inhabiting the Mediterranean Sea may represent an emerging public health risk due to the possible accumulation of marine neurotoxins such as tetrodotoxin (TTXs) and saxitoxin (STXs) in their tissues. In this study, the presence of pufferfish species in the Strait of Sicily (Lampedusa Island, Italy) was investigated using a citizen science (CS) approach, involving local fishermen. Samples (liver, intestine, gonads, muscle, skin) from 20 specimens were sent to the National Reference Laboratory on Marine Biotoxins for TTXs detection using a validated HILIC-MS/MS method on fish tissue. The presence of STXs was also screened in part of the specimens. Overall, 56 specimens identified as Sphoeroides pachygaster (Müller &Troschel, 1848) were collected. Data on their total length, body weight, fishing method and catch area (with relative depth temperature and salinity) were analyzed and compared with the S. pachygaster records reported in literature which were updated to 2022. All the analysed tissues were found to be negative for both TTXs and STXs. CS played an essential role in monitoring potentially toxic marine species in this investigation. Outcomes from this study, which is the first investigating S. pachygaster toxicity in Italian waters, may provide useful data for the proper assessment of this emerging risk. Full article

Major threats to the human lifespan include cancer, infectious diseases, diabetes, mental degenerative conditions and also reduced agricultural productivity due to climate changes, together with new and more devastating plant diseases. From all of this, the need arises to find new biopesticides and new medicines. Plants and microorganisms are the most important sources for isolating new metabolites. Lampedusa Island host a rich contingent of endemic species and subspecies. Seven plant species spontaneously growing in Lampedusa, i.e., Atriplex halimus L. (Ap), Daucus lopadusanus Tineo (Dl), Echinops spinosus Fiori (Es) Glaucium flavum Crantz (Gf) Hypericum aegypticum L: (Ha), Periploca angustifolia Labill (Pa), and Prasium majus L. (Pm) were collected, assessed for their metabolite content, and evaluated for potential applications in agriculture and medicine. The HPLC-MS analysis of n-hexane (HE) and CH₂Cl₂ (MC) extracts and the residual aqueous phases (WR) showed the presence of several metabolites in both organic extracts. Crude HE and MC extracts from Dl and He significantly inhibited butyrylcholinesterase, as did WR from the extraction of Dl and Pa. HE and MC extracts showed a significant toxicity towards hepatocarcinoma Huh7, while Dl, Ha and Er HE extracts were the most potently cytotoxic to ileocecal colorectal adenocarcinoma HCT-8 cell lines. Most extracts showed antiviral activity. At the lowest concentration tested (1.56 μg/mL), Dl, Gf and Ap MC extracts inhibited betacoronavirus HCoV-OC43 infection by> 2 fold, while the n-hexane extract of Pm was the most potent. In addition, at 1.56 μg/mL, potent inhibition (>10 fold) of dengue virus was detected for Dl, Er, and Pm HE extracts, while Pa and Ap MC extracts dampened infections to undetectable levels. Regarding to phytotoxicity, MC extracts from Er, Ap and Pm were more effective in inhibiting tomato rootlet elongation; the same first two extracts also inhibited seed cress germination while its radicle elongation, due to high sensitivity, was affected by all the extracts. Es and Gf MC extracts also inhibited seed germination of Phelipanche ramosa. Thus, we have uncovered that many of these Lampedusa plants displayed promising biopesticide, antiviral, and biological properties. Full article

The assessment of the vulnerability of a site to tsunami events should take into consideration the geomorphological setting, which is strongly determined by the stratigraphic framework of the area. Lampedusa island is located in the central portion of the Sicilian Channel (Mediterranean Sea, Italy), where a significant incidence of tsunamis (with wave runup above 15 m) caused by earthquakes and submarine landslides has been historically documented. This work shows the geomorphological and stratigraphic differences between the western and south-eastern sectors of Lampedusa island. This update to the geological characterization of the island was used to create 3D flooding maps according to runup steps of 5 m, 10 m, and 15 m, thus showing a homogeneous involvement of the south-eastern sector of Lampedusa. Furthermore, our study aims to provide a geomorphological-stratigraphic base for a mathematical-statistical model to create coastal flooding maps due to tsunami waves. As such, this tool is useful for evaluation of strategic infrastructure for the security of the island and the improvement of risk management in civil protection. Full article

In this work, we analyze the geomagnetic field measurements collected from 2017 to 2020 at the Italian observatories of Lampedusa and Duronia (an island and inland site, respectively) for investigating a possible signature of the tidal sea water level changes on the local magnetic variations. We obtain the following main results: (a) evidence of the geomagnetic power spectral peaks at the solar and lunar tidal main frequencies at both sites is found; (b) by using a robust fit procedure, we find that the geomagnetic field variations at Lampedusa are strongly influenced by the lunar tidal variations in the sea level, while at Duronia, the main effects on the geomagnetic field variations are associated with diurnal solar ionospheric tides; (c) a single-station induction arrows (SSIAs) investigation reveals different behaviors between Lampedusa and Duronia. Specifically, Lampedusa shows that the induction arrows in different frequency ranges point toward different directions with different amplitudes, probably related to the surrounding regions with different water depths, while Duronia shows a persistent coast effect, with the induction arrows pointing toward the Adriatic sea; and (d) a Superposed Epoch Analysis reveals, only for Lampedusa, a close relationship between SSIAs with a frequency of >2 mHz (<1.3 mHz) and the sea level variations driven by the astronomical O1 tide, indicating an amplitude intensification of ∼$4\times {10}^{-3}$ (∼$5\times {10}^{-3}$) and an azimuthal angle increment of ∼$3^{\circ }$ ( ∼$9^{\circ }$), in correspondence to a 1 cm sea level increase. Full article

Habitat mapping, physical characteristics and benthic community of a rhodolith bed in the Pelagie Islands (Strait of Sicily, Mediterranean Sea) were studied through Multi–Beam Echo–Sounder (MBES), Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) and grab samples. The geomorphological analysis revealed an articulated and wide rhodolith bed; video inspections highlighted a bed with high coverage, few sandy patches and with a prevalence of the boxwork morphotype. A total of 207 taxa with 876 specimens were identified, and Polychaeta was the dominant taxon. Linguimaera caesaris, a Lessepsian benthic amphipod, was recorded in all sampling sites, and its presence represents an input to deepen the benthic assemblage research on the rhodolith bed. In terms of morphotype composition, dead/live ratio and species variability, the bed variability indicated a good status of health, although trawling signs were detected through ROV videos. The present study broadens the knowledge on Mediterranean rhodolith beds and supports the importance of survey and monitoring activities for the conservation and management of this important habitat. Full article

In recent years, numerous projects for floating PV systems have been developed. These plants of various sizes have mainly been installed on enclosed lakes or basins characterised by the absence of external forcing related to waves and currents. However, offshore installation would allow the development of such plants in areas where land is not available, such as islands. This paper analyses the state of the art of floating PV, describes the design of a floating PV platform and the development of a numerical model to evaluate the system performance in an offshore environment. The case study of the island of Lampedusa is then analyzed: starting from a single floating foundation with its mooring system, a floating PV system is designed to meet the island’s electricity needs. In order to provide the competitiveness of the system, a techno-economic analysis is carried out, evaluating the main cost items of Capex, Opex and LCOE. Although the LCOE obtained is significantly higher than a traditional solar plant installed on land, this technology is competitive compared to other offshore marine technologies such as offshore wind and wave energy. Full article

The antibiotic and nematocidal activities of extracts from two coastal lichen species collected on Lampedusa Island (Sicily), Ramalina implexa Nyl. and Roccella phycopsis Ach., were tested. Methyl orsellinate, orcinol, (+)-montagnetol, and for the first time 4-chlororcinol were isolated from Roccella phycopsis. (+)-Usnic acid was obtained from Ramalina implexa. The crude organic extract of both lichen species showed strong antibiotic activity against some bacterial species and nematocidal activity. Among all the pure metabolites tested against the infective juveniles (J2) of the root-knot nematode (RKN) Meloydogine incognita, (+)-usnic acid, orcinol, and (+)-montagnetol had significant nematocidal activity, comparable with that of the commercial nematocide Velum^® Prime, and thus they showed potential application in agriculture as a biopesticide. On the contrary, methyl orsellinate and 4-chlororcinol had no nematocidal effect. These results suggest that the substituent pattern at ortho-para-position in respect to both hydroxyl groups of resorcine moiety, which is present in all metabolites, seems very important for nematocidal activity. The organic extracts of both lichens were also tested against some Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. Both extracts were active against Gram-positive species. The extract of Ramalina implexa showed, among Gram-negative species, activity against Escherichia coli and Acinetobacter baumannii, while that from Roccella phycopsis was effective towards all test strains, with the exception of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The antimicrobial activity of (+)-usnic acid, methyl orsellinate, and (+)-montagnetol is already known, so tests were focused on orcinol and 4-chlororcinol. The former showed antibacterial activity against all Gram positive and Gram-negative test strains, with the exception of A. baumannii and K. pneumoniae, while the latter exhibited a potent antibacterial activity against Gram-positive test strains and among Gram-negative strains, was effective against A. baumannii and K. pneumonia. These results suggest, for orcinol and 4-chlororcinol, an interesting antibiotic potential against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial strains. Full article

A medical anthropology research study was conducted in 2015 at the First Aid and Reception Center (CPSA) on the island of Lampedusa (Italy) as part of a larger health project carried out by the National Institute for Health, Migration and Poverty (INMP) in Rome. The study investigated the health conditions of migrants at the moment of their departure and on arrival, their migration journey, and their life plans and expectations for the future. The ethnographic method adopted for the study was based on participant observation and on data collection by means of a semi-structured interview (51 items simultaneously translated by cultural mediators into Tigrinya, Arabic, English, and French). Interviewed were 112 adults (82 men and 30 women) from the Gulf of Guinea and the Horn of Africa. The cooccurrence of forced migration and economic concerns was confirmed; violence and torture were constants throughout the migration journey in 81% of cases. Ethnographic data detailed the timing, countries, settings, perpetrators, and types of violence endured. A combination of qualitative and quantitative findings can both facilitate the identification of fragile health conditions and support clinicians in the diagnostic, therapeutic, and rehabilitation pathways. These data illustrate the importance and feasibility of multidisciplinary collaboration even in emergency contexts. Full article

The Mediterranean basin is a hot spot of climate change where the Posidonia oceanica (L.) Delile (PO) and other seagrasses are under stress due to its effect on marine coastal habitats and the rising influence of anthropogenic activities (i.e., tourism, fishery). The PO and seabed ecosystems, in the coastal environments of Pantelleria and Lampedusa, suffer additional growing impacts from tourism in synergy with specific stress factors due to increasing vessel traffic for supplying potable water and fossil fuels for electrical power generation. Earth Observation (EO) data, provided by high resolution (HR) multi/hyperspectral operative satellite sensors of the last generation (i.e., Sentinel 2 MSI and PRISMA) have been successfully tested, using innovative calibration and sea truth collecting methods, for monitoring and mapping of PO meadows under stress, in the coastal waters of these islands, located in the Sicily Channel, to better support the sustainable management of these vulnerable ecosystems. The area of interest in Pantelleria was where the first prototype of the Italian Inertial Sea Wave Energy Converter (ISWEC) for renewable energy production was installed in 2015, and sea truth campaigns on the PO meadows were conducted. The PO of Lampedusa coastal areas, impacted by ship traffic linked to the previous factors and tropicalization effects of Italy’s southernmost climate change transitional zone, was mapped through a multi/hyper spectral EO-based approach, using training/testing data provided by side scan sonar data, previously acquired. Some advanced machine learning algorithms (MLA) were successfully evaluated with different supervised regression/classification models to map seabed and PO meadow classes and related Leaf Area Index (LAI) distributions in the areas of interest, using multi/hyperspectral data atmospherically corrected via different advanced approaches. Full article

Regular automatic recordings of the time series of the magnetic field, together with routine manual absolute measurements for establishing dynamic baselines at Lampedusa Island—south of Sicily—Italy (geographic coordinates 35°31′N; 12°32′E, altitude 33 m a.s.l.), show a signature of very low electromagnetic noise. The observatory (provisional IAGA code: LMP) lays inside a restricted and remote wildlife reserve, far away from the built-up and active areas of the island, which at present is the southernmost location of the European territory for such observations. The availability of high-quality data from such site, whose survey started in 2005, is valuable for filling the spatial gap due to the lack of observatories in the whole south Mediterranean and North African sectors. We compare observations at Lampedusa, in both time and frequency domains, with those at the other Italian observatories (Castello Tesino and Duronia-L’Aquila), operating since the 1960s of last century, allowing us to report even the secular variation. Using data recorded in the last few years, we investigate higher frequency variations (from diurnal to Pc3-4 pulsations) in order to magnetically characterize the Italian territory and the local response to external forcing. In particular, we present a characterization in terms of diurnal variation and its seasonal dependence for the three observatories. This latter feature is in good agreement with a geomagnetic Sq-model, leading us to speculate about the position of the north Sq-current system vortex and its seasonal displacement with respect to the geographic positions of the observatories. We also study the geomagnetic individual response to intense space weather events by performing Superposed Epoch Analysis (SEA), with an ad-hoc significance test. Magnetic responses in the Ultra Low Frequency range (ULF) from spectral, local Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR) analyses under different local time, and polarization rates are computed. These latter studies lead us to search for possible signatures of magnetic field line resonances during intense space weather events, using cross-phase multi-observatory analysis, revealing the promising detection capability of such technique even at low latitudes. The geomagnetic observatories prove to be important points of observation for space weather events occurring at different spatial and time scales, originating in both upstream and ionospheric regions, here analyzed by several well-established methodologies and techniques. The quiet environmental site of LMP, providing high-quality geomagnetic data, allows us such investigations even at inner Earth’s magnetospheric shell. Full article

Organisms respond to climate change in many different ways and their local extinction risk may vary widely among taxa. Crustaceans from freshwater temporary ponds produce resting eggs to cope with environmental uncertainty and, as a consequence, egg banks have a fundamental role for population persistence. The egg bank dynamics of six clonal lineages of Heterocypris incongruens (Ostracoda) from Northern Italy were simulated. Clonal lineages W1 and W2 are the most common “winter ecotypes”, clonal lineages S1 and S2 are allochthonous “summer ecotypes” and clonal lineages I1 and I2 are relatively rare and generalist in terms of seasonality. Fecundity and proportion of resting eggs vary by clonal lineage, temperature and photoperiod. The clonal extinction risk was estimated in present climate conditions and under climate change. For comparison, and to assess the potential colonization of northern ponds, clonal lineages from Lampedusa Island (Southern Italy), L, were considered. Cohen’s general model was used for simulating egg bank dynamics and the extinction rate of each clonal lineage was estimated with uncertainty analysis. A 30 year simulation in present and climate change conditions was carried out. Extinction rates were lower in climate change conditions than in present conditions. Hydroperiod, hatching rate and egg deterioration rate were the critical factors that affected extinction rates. Extinction rates varied among clonal lineages. This suggests that H. incongruens might be able to have multiple responses to climate change due to its genetic diversity. In climate change conditions, W clonal lineages underwent a niche expansion, while a mismatch between photoperiod and hydroperiod might generate a detrimental effect on the phenology of summer S clonal lineages that might cause their extinction. Southern clonal lineages L, showing an intermediate extinction rate, might colonize northern temporary ponds. Full article

Air–sea heat fluxes are essential climate variables, required for understanding air–sea interactions, local, regional and global climate, the hydrological cycle and atmospheric and oceanic circulation. In situ measurements of fluxes over the ocean are sparse and model reanalysis and satellite data can provide estimates at different scales. The accuracy of such estimates is therefore essential to obtain a reliable description of the occurring phenomena and changes. In this work, air–sea radiative fluxes derived from the SEVIRI sensor onboard the MSG satellite and from ERA5 reanalysis have been compared to direct high quality measurements performed over a complete annual cycle at the ENEA oceanographic observatory, near the island of Lampedusa in the Central Mediterranean Sea. Our analysis reveals that satellite derived products overestimate in situ direct observations of the downwelling short-wave (bias of 6.1 W/m²) and longwave (bias of 6.6 W/m²) irradiances. ERA5 reanalysis data show a negligible positive bias (+1.0 W/m²) for the shortwave irradiance and a large negative bias (−17 W/m²) for the longwave irradiance with respect to in situ observations. ERA5 meteorological variables, which are needed to calculate the air–sea heat flux using bulk formulae, have been compared with in situ measurements made at the oceanographic observatory. The two meteorological datasets show a very good agreement, with some underestimate of the wind speed by ERA5 for high wind conditions. We investigated the impact of different determinations of heat fluxes on the near surface sea temperature (1 m depth), as determined by calculations with a one-dimensional numerical model, the General Ocean Turbulence Model (GOTM). The sensitivity of the model to the different forcing was measured in terms of differences with respect to in situ temperature measurements made during the period under investigation. All simulations reproduced the true seasonal cycle and all high frequency variabilities. The best results on the overall seasonal cycle were obtained when using meteorological variables in the bulk formulae formulations used by the model itself. The derived overall annual net heat flux values were between +1.6 and 40.4 W/m², depending on the used dataset. The large variability obtained with different datasets suggests that current determinations of the heat flux components and, in particular, of the longwave irradiance, need to be improved. The ENEA oceanographic observatory provides a complete, long-term, high resolution time series of high quality in situ observations. In the future, more similar sites worldwide will be needed for model and satellite validations and to improve the determination of the air–sea exchange and the understanding of related processes. Full article