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The colours of CO2 fluxes: enhancing public understanding of the “breathing” of ecosystems
No full textWith ongoing climate change, effective science communication has become increasingly important. Anthropogenic climate change, driven by excessive greenhouse gas emissions ‒ primarily CO₂ ‒ requires innovative solutions for mitigation. Among those, nature-based solutions have gained significant attention to offset some of the anthropogenic CO₂ emissions. One of the best available methods to study land-atmosphere CO₂ exchange, i.e., CO2 fluxes, is the eddy covariance (EC) technique, which results in continuous long-term time series of half-hourly CO2 fluxes. While such data are extensively used in scientific research, for instance to evaluate the impacts of climate change and land management on ecosystems, effective communication of these findings to the general public remains a challenge.Global and regional EC networks, such as FLUXNET and ICOS, hold a great potential to engage with lay persons to increase public understanding of climate change effects on ecosystems as well as of feedbacks ecosystems have on the atmosphere. Within the Swiss FluxNet, the Swiss national EC network, CO₂ fluxes have been measured across different land use types ‒ grasslands, forests, and croplands for many years and decades.Since measurements began at one site in 1997, five permanent measuring sites have been added since then. Now, the Swiss FluxNet has collected a total of 129 years of CO₂ flux data from these six long-term sites, and it continues to grow steadily. Such a research database also faces the challenges of an effective communication to the public. Therefore, we initiated an interdisciplinary collaboration between science and visual art. The goal was to create a visually engaging and meaningful representation of the flux data, using accessible and intuitive colours and an attractive design, thus simplifying scientific data without compromising content. The collaboration resulted in a figure that showcases annual CO₂ budgets across multiple sites with a uniform colour scale, highlighting year-to-year differences in ecosystem performance as well as typical characteristics of the respective ecosystem (Fig. 1).While the scientists provide flux data and information about the sites, the artist engages with the historical, artistic, and cultural significance of colours, and both partners address accessibility for colour-blind individuals. This approach involves a critical examination of how natural scenes are represented in artworks across diverse cultural contexts, how their corresponding colour scales look like and can be used, with insights from this research applied to the field of data visualization.First outputs of the project were presented at the Sustainable University Day at the University of Zurich and ETH Zurich in November 2024. The presented work exhibited the background research and the rationale behind the choice of colours (Fig. 2), and the scientific concepts of ecosystem CO₂ exchange as well as the final visual representation of the CO2 fluxes (Fig. 1). The public, including individuals from diverse fields such as marketing, waste management, and sustainability, responded very positively, acknowledging the value of the collaboration and the clarity of the communication. This experience stresses the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration between science and art, showcasing how we can bridge the gap between complex scientific data and public understanding
Single tree health monitoring using uav-based lidar data
No full textIn recent years, climate change has forced us to seek solutions to reduce the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. One of the most widely known methods is the increase of forest areas, making it essential to monitor the health of forests. Forest health has a significant impact on the entire ecosystem. Lidar technology has been used in forest monitoring and inventory for a couple of decades, but the rapid development of technology has greatly expanded the applicability and scope of these technologies. The abundance of Lidar sensors mounted on UAVs provides opportunities for frequent monitoring of small forest areas. However, Lidar data obtained from UAVs has not been evaluated for determining tree health status. This research focuses on the application of Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) technology for monitoring tree health and utilizes UAV-mounted LiDAR sensors to collect high-resolution data on tree canopies, enabling detailed analysis of tree health indicators such as defoliation and overall canopy condition. By employing advanced algorithms, we extract critical parameters from LiDAR point clouds, facilitating the calculation of a canopy health index. Several approaches were investigated to extract information on tree crown parameters, such as object-based LiDAR intensity image analysis, deep learning, and more simplistic image classifications based on structural information. The intensity values of the reflected points were extracted, and a canopy health index was calculated. The accuracy of our findings is validated through field measurements conducted in summer 2024, which assess tree defoliation levels (0 to 100 %). The results highlight the potential of UAV-based LiDAR data processing in providing efficient, accurate, and frequent monitoring of tree health, offering valuable insights for forest management practices
A Decade of Monitoring: Insights into Israel's Biodiversity and Conservation Challenges
No full textIsrael is home to diverse and unique biodiversity, but its conservation faces significant challenges. The country’s small size, rapid population growth, and extensive development—such as land conversion for agriculture and infrastructure—negatively impact ecosystems and create substantial edge effects on natural habitats. Additionally, Israel is highly vulnerable to invasions by introduced species due to extensive imports and insufficient regulation. Environmental and conservation issues often hold low priority in public and policy spheres, while market forces favor development at the expense of the environment. Furthermore, due to its location in the Eastern Mediterranean, climate change in Israel is occurring at a faster rate than in most other regions of the world.To address these challenges and assess the state of Israel's biodiversity, a long-term national monitoring program was established: Hamaarag – Israel’s National Ecosystem Assessment Program, founded in 2006. The program aims to provide science-based assessments of Israel's nature and enable effective management of its open landscapes and biodiversity. The core activities of Hamaarag include a national terrestrial monitoring program, which has been running since 2012. The program consists of approximately 950 sampling plots, distributed across nine ecological monitoring units representing different habitats in Israel. These units monitor a wide range of taxa, including plants, arthropods, reptiles, birds, and mammals. The program primarily addresses temporal changes in species populations and the effects of human settlements, agriculture, and other anthropogenic factors on ecological systems and the local flora and fauna.The findings from Hamaarag’s monitoring efforts are published in the State of Nature reports, which include both the Trends and Threats Volume and the Biodiversity Volume. These reports integrate data from the terrestrial monitoring program, wildlife surveys conducted by the Israel Nature and Parks Authority (INPA), and a citizen science butterfly monitoring program. The findings from the first decade of monitoring show clear impacts of human activities on biodiversity.Vegetation – The findings, based on 38 years of remote sensing data, indicate a 36% increase in vegetation density (NDVI index) in the Mediterranean region. This increase suggests a recovery of woody vegetation, likely due to reduced wood-cutting and grazing pressures. However, overcrowding of trees, shrubs, and vines may reduce biodiversity in woodlands by competing for resources, especially light.Butterflies – Data collected over a 13-year period as part of the National Butterfly Monitoring Program revealed a 34% decrease in butterfly abundance and a 30-day delay in the peak abundance. This decline in butterfly populations mirrors the global decrease in insect populations, which is likely driven by intensive anthropogenic activity. The delay in peak abundance suggests a disruption to butterfly life cycles due to climate change.Reptiles – Data from a seven-year monitoring period revealed a 58% decline in reptile abundance in the Western Negev dunes and a 48% decline in the Northern Negev Loess Plains. These declines are likely due to long-term warming and drying trends in these desert regions, which have altered habitat conditions.Birds – Data collected over a nine-year period showed a 17% decline in the total abundance of common breeding birds in Israel. This decline occurred at a rate four times faster than that observed in Europe. Species affected by this decline were primarily human-associated and Mediterranean steppe species. The abundance of the invasive Common Myna increased by 585%, with studies suggesting that predation and competitive displacement by the Myna threaten native bird populations, especially as it spreads from human settlements into open landscapes.Mammals – Increases were observed in populations of several mammal species, including the Indian Crested Porcupine, Grey Wolf, Golden Jackal, Red Fox. Most of these species are human adapted, thriving in areas with abundant human resources, such as food and water. These trends reflect the influence of human activity on mammal populations, with resource availability playing a significant role in population growth.Surveys conducted by the INPA and the Hamaarag monitoring program also show an increase in ungulate populations, including Nubian Ibex, Israeli Gazelle, Dorcas Gazelle, and Arabian Gazelle. This increase suggests success in large-scale conservation efforts, likely due to the reduction of poaching and improved management practices in certain areas, including sanitation measures in protected zones.The findings of these long-term monitoring efforts underscore the importance of directed attention, resources, and human capital in achieving significant biodiversity protection. Most of the threats to Israel’s biodiversity are not inevitable but are instead the result of policies and planning decisions. This is a positive outcome, as the future of Israel’s unique biodiversity depends on the ability of decision-makers to implement changes that prioritize conservation
Multi-Scale, Multi-Method Observation and Modeling of Structure-Flow Relationships in Karst Fault Zones
No full textKarst aquifers, while critical for water resources, are highly vulnerable due to their rapid pollution transfer pathways through complex internal structures, including karst networks, fault zones, and fractures. Identifying parameters influencing the organization and genesis of these systems, emphasizing their impact on groundwater flow dynamics, are key point to understand processes and overcome associated issues.Through a multidisciplinary approach combining structural geology, electrical geophysics and hydro(geo)logical monitoring, the morphological and structural interactions between fault zones and karst networks could be highlighted. By integrating hydrodynamic data, including hydraulic head and flux measurements, the study provides new insights into the influence of fault structures on karstification and flow patterns. The high-density spatial and temporal acquisition of these structural and dynamic elements enables to:better understand stucture/dynamic interactions,obtain input data for statistical conduit generation,obtain validation data for simulation and definition of generated conduits.The results form a robust foundation for improving karst modeling by better constraining structural and parametric representations. These advancements enable more strategic and effective understanding, simulation and management of these vulnerable water resources
Ecosystem Services provided by streams to adjacent agricultural terrestrial ecosystems
No full textStreams are traditionally viewed as receptacles rather than sources of energy with regard to nutrient and energy cycles. For a long time, terrestrial-aquatic interactions have focused on studying the impact of terrestrial ecosystems on aquatic ecosystems, but more and more studies are highlighting the role of aquatic ecosystems on terrestrial ecosystems. Numerous studies have shown that freshwater ecosystems are an important source of energy for the terrestrial environment, mainly through the emergence of winged aquatic insects, recognized as providing nutritional subsidies to terrestrial consumers. They represent a substantial source of fertilization for soils and an important resource for terrestrial organisms. Plants near wetlands where food webs contain fewer insect predators or flying insects receive more pollinator visits and are less pollen limited. Thus, dense hydrographic networks could suggest a strong impact in terms of ecosystem services in adjacent terrestrial ecosystems. The objective of our project is to evaluate three ecosystem services provided by aquatic insects in adjacent agricultural environments following a gradient of agricultural intensification and to analyze their impacts in terms of integration in the management policies of the territories. Five sites located along a gradient of agricultural intensification and in different agricultural contexts where agricultural practices are informed, were selected within three Zones Ateliers from the French Long Term Socio-Ecological Research network. On each site, a headwater stream and its adjacent landscape (1 Km²) will be monitored at the same time (spring and summer) with 13 protocols. The first work package focuses on three ecosystem services provided and mediated by emerging aquatic insects (soil fertilization, pollination and crop pest control). These ecosystem services cannot be studied without an accurate quantification of biodiversity of streams (i.e. emerging aquatic insects and aquatic vegetation), riparian habitats (floral diversity, emerging aquatic insects and terrestrial predators), adjacent agricultural areas (i.e. emerging aquatic insects, terrestrial predators and type of crops) and the quantification of biological flux between aquatic and terrestrial environment. The second WP focuses on the governance of riparian areas. Its objective is to study the history of the governance of French riparian areas, to examine current management practices and their associated representations. This WP will also address recent improvements in the governance of these areas and aims to increase the adoption of ecologically responsible practices by stakeholders. The last WP aims to map Essential Biodiversity Variables (EBVs) of streams and floodplains with high-resolution data and remote sensing techniques and artificial intelligence modelling approach to estimate the respective contribution of various drivers (e.g. landscape features and their arrangement including 3D modelling) . This information is crucial for understanding and linking WP1 and WP2 (i.e. explaining ecosystem services distribution in relation with anthropogenic practices and land uses). Preliminary results suggested a possible important role of aquatic insects in fertilization but a relatively small contribution to direct pollination. We have also highlighted a succession of major changes in river management over the last 100 years, which have profoundly altered the functioning of aquatic ecosystems. However, headwater and riparian habitats are rarely considered in social sciences and limit our ability to integrate their specificities or to mitigate conflicts among users and managers. Ongoing research based a previous discussions with stakeholders, has highlighted that our project should help us to better quantify, in a spatially explicit manner, the relative contribution of freshwaters to ecosystem services in agricultural landscapes, and to better identify leverage points for integrating our results into agricultural practices and environmental management
Regolith Weathering, Plastic Deformation and Hydrologic Evolution in a Volcanic Landscape
No full textLandscape level observations of streams on the island of Hawai’i indicate that runoff ratios are essentially zero on the young active volcanic surfaces of windward Mauna Loa and Kilauea volcanoes and increase with age on the older Mauna Kea and Kohala surfaces. Recent work on both permanent and ephemeral stream flows shows that the changes in runoff are associated with decreases in saturated hydraulic conductivity (kh) and aquifer thickness (D) that change with surface age (Perez-Fodich et al. 2024). The processes that control k in soils are plausibly related to weathering but the mechanisms are complex. Chemical weathering causes mass loss and most weathering reactions have negative ∆V so intuitively weathering should increase porosity (f) and likely kh. Dry bulk density rs of weathered soils initially does decrease with weathering mass losses. However trends in rs reverse with further age, and calculated soil strain becomes negative. A model of poro-plastic deformation where the medium comprises an incompressible matrix with a finite yield stress and a void fraction f that is deformable but has zero yield stress (e.g. Gurson (1977)) can represent the evolution of soil strain if is a function of weathering mass loss. In this model the overall plastic yield limit is a function of both and f. The constitutive relation between chemical alteration and strength of the residual soil matrix is not known in detail. I hypothesize that the yield stress of the residual matrix is a function of the loss of network-forming components such as SiO2, and that the change in yield stress can be described with a power law function of an alteration and mass loss index such as enrichment in an immobile element Nb/Nb0. The resulting change in soil hydraulic properties diminishes vertical infiltration and promotes lateral flow toward incipient streams. The resulting incision leads to marked landscape level changes in hydrology and geomorphology, enhanced by incising stream capture of groundwater in shallow aquifers
Discover hidden taxa of Erysiphe section Erysiphe fungi (Ascomycota, Erysiphaceae) based on morphology and multilocus phylogeny in China
No full textErysiphe sect. Erysiphe, a taxonomically significant group within the genus Erysiphe, is distinguished from other Erysiphe sections by its mycelioid chasmothecial appendages. While approximately half of the known species in this section occur in China, our preliminary assessments suggest that a substantial number of cryptic taxa remain undetected. To address this knowledge gap, we conducted a comprehensive phylogeographic survey evaluating 78 specimens collected from 18 provinces (municipalities/autonomous regions) across China. Our integrative approach combined morphological characterization with molecular phylogenetic analyses using five DNA loci: internal transcribed spacer (ITS), 28S rDNA, intergenic spacer (IGS), RNA polymerase II subunit 2 (RPB2), and β-tubulin (TUB). This study led to the discovery of three newly described species (E. clematidis sp. nov. on Clematis spp., E. limoniicola sp. nov. on Limonium spp., and E. paeoniae-suffruticosae sp. nov. on Paeonia × suffruticosa and two newly recorded species from China (E. malvae on Malva pusilla and E. punicae on Punica granatum). Notably, our phylogenetic framework demonstrates that incorporating IGS, RPB2, and TUB markers substantially enhances species-level resolution and provides critical insights into cryptic speciation within powdery mildews
Analysis of phase changes during synthesis of Sr2Fe1.2Mo0.8O6-δ solid solution by the solid-phase reaction method
No full textPhase transformations during crystallization of the magnetic metal-oxide compound Sr2Fe1.2Mo0.8O6-δ by the solid-phase reactions method from a mixture of simple reagents 2SrCO3 + 0.6Fe2O3 + 0.8MoO3 have been analyzed. By means of differential-thermal and thermogravimetric analyses it was found that the synthesis of strontium ferromolybdate of the Sr2Fe1.2Mo0.8O6-δ composition proceeds through a series of successive-parallel stages. In this way, when considering the dynamics of phase transformations, it has been found that the main accompanying compounds during the crystallization of the solid solution of double perovskite Sr2Fe1.2Mo0.8O6-δ are Fe2O3, SrCO3, SrMoO4 and SrFeO3. When analyzing the phase composition of the batch consisting of a mixture of initial reagents of stoichiometric composition: 2SrCO3 + 0.6Fe2O3 + 0.8MoO3, it was noted that with an increase in temperature, complex compounds SrMoO4, SrFeO3, and then Sr2Fe1.2Mo0.8O6-δ as well, appear almost simultaneously. This circumstance indicates that the compounds SrMoO4 and SrFeO3 are the structure-forming ones for the solid solution of ferromolybdate – strontium. With a subsequent increase in temperature to 1470 K, it was found that the dissolution of SrFeO3 with the formation of double perovskite Sr2Fe1.2Mo0.8O6-δ occurs faster than the dissolution of strontium molybdate SrMoO4. The results of the analysis indicate the difficult nature of the dynamics of solid-phase reactions during the formation of Sr2Fe1.2Mo0.8O6-δ
Correlation analysis of factors influencing customer loyalty in retail pharmacy chains: A cross-sectional study in Vietnam
No full textThe retail pharmacy sector has been a growing market in Vietnam in recent years, leading to a rise in pharmacies in residential areas. This study aims to analyze factors affecting customer loyalty to retail pharmacy chains in Can Tho city. The data was collected through interviews with 747 customers who purchased medication from pharmacy chains via a pre-designed research questionnaire. Four of 32 variables were eliminated after Cronbach’s alpha was run. KMO coefficient (0.886–0.91), total variance extracted (> 50%), and Eigenvalue coefficients were all greater than 1 (p < 0.05). CFA and SEM results were consistent with market data. Pharmacy chain brands, price, facilities, convenience, employee knowledge, and selling skills had positively influenced loyalty (p < 0.05). Pharmacies should apply competitive strategies that prioritize valued services, adapt to customer expectations, and build loyal clientele for a distinct market advantage
The complete mitochondrial genome of Siphonaria japonica (Heterobranchia, Siphonariidae) and its phylogenetic implications
No full textThe gastropod Siphonaria japonica, belonging to the family Siphonariidae, is an important grazer in the rocky intertidal zone of China, possessing significant ecological functions and medicinal value. To enrich the diversity of mitochondrial genomes in Gastropoda and to gain insights into their phylogenetic relationships, the mitochondrial genome of S. japonica (13,966 bp) was sequenced using next-generation sequencing. The genome comprises 13 protein-coding genes, 22 tRNA genes, and 2 rRNA genes; the gene organization, nucleotide composition, and codon usage are consistent with other Heterobranchia species. Notably, comparisons of mitochondrial gene rearrangements indicated that Siphonariidae exhibit extensive and irregular rearrangements within Heterobranchia. Further, we reconstructed the most comprehensive phylogenetic analysis of Gastropoda based on 13 concatenated protein-coding genes. Each subclass of Gastropoda formed a monophyletic clade, with Heterobranchia positioned at the base of the tree, and S. japonica has a sister relationship with S. pectinata. The findings of this study will contribute to a better understanding of the characteristics of the S. japonica mitogenome, provide valuable insights into the phylogenetic relationships within Gastropoda, and underscore the utility of mitochondrial genomes in systematics