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First Evaluation of PRISMA Level 1 Data for Water Applications
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This study presents a first assessment of the Top-Of-Atmosphere (TOA) radiances measured in the visible and near-infrared (VNIR) wavelengths from PRISMA (PRecursore IperSpettrale della Missione Applicativa), the new hyperspectral satellite sensor of the Italian Space Agency in orbit since March 2019. In particular, the radiometrically calibrated PRISMA Level 1 TOA radiances were compared to the TOA radiances simulated with a radiative transfer code, starting from in situ measurements of water reflectance. In situ data were obtained from a set of fixed position autonomous radiometers covering a wide range of water types, encompassing coastal and inland waters. A total of nine match-ups between PRISMA and in situ measurements distributed from July 2019 to June 2020 were analysed. Recognising the role of Sentinel-2 for inland and coastal waters applications, the TOA radiances measured from concurrent Sentinel-2 observations were added to the comparison. The results overall demonstrated that PRISMA VNIR sensor is providing TOA radiances with the same magnitude and shape of those in situ simulated (spectral angle difference, SA, between 0.80 and 3.39; root mean square difference, RMSD, between 0.98 and 4.76 [mW m−2 sr−1 nm−1]), with slightly larger differences at shorter wavelengths. The PRISMA TOA radiances were also found very similar to Sentinel-2 data (RMSD 3.78 [mW m−2 sr−1 nm−1]), and encourage a synergic use of both sensors for aquatic applications. Further analyses with a higher number of match-ups between PRISMA, in situ and Sentinel-2 data are however recommended to fully characterize the on-orbit calibration of PRISMA for its exploitation in aquatic ecosystem mapping.
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ecodam EXT contributors
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ecodamEXT
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First evidence of reproductive adaptation to “Island effect” of a dwarf Cretaceous Romanian titanosaur, with embryonic integument in ovo
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Background: The Cretaceous vertebrate assemblages of Romania are famous for geographically endemic dwarfed dinosaur taxa. We report the first complete egg clutches of a dwarf lithostrotian titanosaur, from Totes¸ti, Romania, and its reproductive adaptation to the ‘‘island effect’’. Methodology/Findings: The egg clutches were discovered in sequential sedimentary layers of the Maastrichtian Saˆnpetru Formation, Totes¸ti. The occurrence of 11 homogenous clutches in successive strata suggests philopatry by the same dinosaur species, which laid clutches averaging four ,12 cm diameters eggs. The eggs and eggshells display numerous characters shared with the positively identified material from egg-bearing level 4 of the Auca Mahuevo (Patagonia,Argentina) nemegtosaurid lithostrotian nesting site. Microscopic embryonic integument with bacterial evidences was recovered in one egg. The millimeter-size embryonic integument displays micron size dermal papillae implying an early embryological stage at the time of death, likely corresponding to early organogenesis before the skeleton formation. Conclusions/Significance: The shared oological characters between the Hat¸eg specimens and their mainland relatives suggest a highly conservative reproductive template, while the nest decrease in egg numbers per clutch may reflect an adaptive trait to a smaller body size due to the ‘‘island effect’’. The combined presence of the lithostrotian egg and its embryo in the Early Cretaceous Gobi coupled with the oological similarities between the Hat¸eg and Auca Mahuevo oological material evidence that several titanosaur species migrated from Gondwana through the Hat¸eg Island before or during the Aptian/Albian. It also suggests that this island might have had episodic land bridges with the rest of the European archipelago and Asia deep into the Cretaceous.
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RBINS Staff Publications
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First findings of Recent thecideide brachiopods (Order: Thecideida, Family: Thecideidae) in Sulawesi, Indonesian Archipelago, with implications on reproduction and shell size in the genus Ospreyella.
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RBINS Staff Publications
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First inland records of the euryhaline goby Knipowitschia caucasica from lakes in Anatolia, Turkey
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Knipowitschia caucasica, a euryhaline Ponto–Caspian–Aegean gobiid fish, is recorded for the first time from Lakes Egirdir, Eber and Demirköprü (Anatolia). Its presence in these lakes is probably due to involuntary introduction with common carp from hatcheries in the Edirne–Ipsala region, Thrace, the European part of Turkey.
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RBINS Staff Publications
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First insights into the diversity of gill monogeneans of ‘Gnathochromis’ and Limnochromis (Teleostei, Cichlidae) in Burundi: do the parasites mirror host ecology and phylogenetic history?
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Monogenea is one of the most species-rich groups of parasitic flatworms worldwide, with many species described only recently, which is particularly true for African monogeneans. For example, Cichlidogyrus, a genus mostly occurring on African cichlids, comprises more than 100 nominal species. Twenty-two of these have been described from Lake Tanganyika, a famous biodiversity hotspot in which many vertebrate and invertebrate taxa, including monogeneans, underwent unique and spectacular radiations. Given their often high degrees of host specificity, parasitic monogeneans were also used as a potential tool to uncover host species relationships. This study presents the first investigation of the monogenean fauna occurring on the gills of endemic ‘Gnathochromis’ species along the Burundese coastline of Lake Tanganyika. We test whether their monogenean fauna reflects the different phylogenetic position and ecological niche of ‘Gnathochromis’ pfefferi and Gnathochromis permaxillaris. Worms collected from specimens of Limnochromis auritus, a cichlid belonging to the same cichlid tribe as G. permaxillaris, were used for comparison. Morphological as well as genetic characterisation was used for parasite identification. In total, all 73 Cichlidogyrus individuals collected from ‘G.’ pfefferi were identified as C. irenae. This is the only representative of Cichlidogyrus previously described from ‘G.’ pfefferi, its type host. Gnathochromis permaxillaris is infected by a species of Cichlidogyrus morphologically very similar to C. gillardinae. The monogenean species collected from L. auritus is considered as new for science, but sample size was insufficient for a formal description. Our results confirm previous suggestions that ‘G.’ pfefferi as a good disperser is infected by a single monogenean species across the entire Lake Tanganyika. Although G. permaxillaris and L. auritus are placed in the same tribe, Cichlidogyrus sp. occurring on G. permaxillaris is morphologically more similar to C. irenae from ‘G.’ pfefferi, than to the Cichlidogyrus species found on L. auritus. Various evolutionary processes, such as host-switching or duplication events, might underlie the pattern observed in this particular parasite-host system. Additional samples for the Cichlidogyrus species occuring on G. permaxillaris and L. auritus are needed to unravel their evolutionary history by means of (co-)phylogenetic analyses.
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RBINS Staff Publications 2016
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First inventory of Ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) with detection of potentially invasive species in National Park of Ehotilés islands, Côte d’Ivoire
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Estuarine and wetland ecosystems are becoming increasingly altered by the concentration of human population near the coastline. A major threat to biodiversity related to this is the introduction of invasive alien species. This is particularly the case for isolated ecosystems like islands where the invasion of non-native species is often harmful. The National Park of Ehotilés Islands is an archipelago of 6 islands and a RAMSAR site subjected to disturbances, namely agriculture, illegal fisheries, and tourism. These factors often act as an accelerator for the introduction of invasive species. However, there is a lack of research on insects, specifically ants, on these islands. This study aimed to inventory the present ant fauna and estimate the vulnerability to tramp and potential invasive ant species. Ants were collected using Winkler, pitfall, and funnel traps on five islands. In total, 76 ant species were recorded. These species are distributed into 20 genera and five subfamilies: Dolichoderinae (5 species), Formicinae (11 species), Myrmicinae (49 species), Ponerinae (11 species) and Proceratiinae (1 species). We also detected two tramp and potentially invasive species: the ghost ant Tapinoma melanocephalum and the big-headed ant Pheidole megacephala. Ant communities are dominated by six species, namely Odontomachus troglodytes, Oecophylla longinoda, Nylanderia lepida, Pheidole sp.2, Monomorium invidium, and the invasive ghost ant Tapinoma melanocephalum. This work is the first to inventory ants on the Islands of Ehotilés National Park and may serve as a basis for conservation decisions as it demonstrates that this park is not spared from the introduction of invasive ant species.
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RBINS Staff Publications 2024
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First Large-Scale DNA Barcoding Assessment of Reptiles in the Biodiversity Hotspot of Madagascar, Based on Newly Designed COI Primers
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RBINS Staff Publications
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First mammal species identified from the Upper Cretaceousof the Rusca Montana Basin (Transylvania, Romania)
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Multituberculate mammals are scarce in the Late Cretaceous of Europe, being recorded exclusively from the Maastrichtian terrestrial deposits of the Hateg and Transylvanian basins, in Romania. Moreover, they all belong to the endemic and primitive cimolodontan family Kogaionidae. Here, we report multituberculate teeth originating from the Maastrichtian fluviatile sediments of the Rusca Montana Basin (Occidental Carpathians, Poiana Rusca Mountains). This is the westernmost occurrence of these Cretaceous mammals in Romania. These teeth are assigned to Barbatodon oardaensis, the smallest Cretaceous kogaionid species. This study presents the first occurrence of this species outside the Metaliferi sedimentary area (southwestern Transylvania, Romania). The distribution of Romanian Maastrichtian kogaionids is also discussed.
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RBINS Staff Publications 2016
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First mitochondrial genomes of five hoverfly species of the genus Eristalinus (Diptera: Syrphidae)
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RBINS Staff Publications 2018
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First observation of Aedes albopictus (Skuse, 1894) (Diptera: Culicidae) in Tshuapa province (Boende), Democratic Republic of the Congo
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RBINS Staff Publications 2022
