Search publications of the members of the Royal Belgian institute of natural Sciences
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The influence of balanced and imbalanced resource supply on biodiversity - functioning relationship across ecosystems
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Vlees en vis op het menu van de frontsoldaat (’14-’18)
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Book review of Ussishkin, D. - Biblical lachish. a tale of Construction, destruction, excavation and Restoration
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Book review: Macdonald, B. - The southern Transjordan Edomite plateau and the Dead Sea rift valley. The bronze age to the islamic period (3800/3700 bc-ad1917)
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Espaces verts comme une alternative de conservation de la biodiversité en villes: le cas des fourmis (Hyménoptère: Formicidae) dans le district d'Abidjan (Côte d'Ivoire)
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Revision of the Erybrachidae XIV. The Australian genera Olonia Stäl, 1862 and Stalobrachysz gen. nov. (Hemiptera: Fulgoromorpha)
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The RESPONSE project: Reactive transport modelling of point source contamination in soils and groundwater
- Point source contaminations origin from historic or current activities and occur in a variety of forms, extents and contaminants involved (e.g. landfills, industrial facilities, storage tanks, disposal of hazardous waste). Point source contaminations may pose risks to human health and the environment; it is therefore important to develop/improve current methodologies to assess the migration potential of contaminants in groundwater. Groundwater quality monitoring around contaminated sites is typically done by sampling piezometers. Modelling approaches can help to predict the spatial and temporal evolution of contamination plumes, design remediation strategies and assess health and environmental risks. Reactive transport models can potentially improve the prediction of contaminant routes, as they explicitly account for changing geochemical environments and chemical reactions during transport. In spite of recent advances, real-world applications remain scarce as these require large numbers of site-specific parameters. The aim of the RESPONSE project is to improve the use of reactive transport models that simulate the fate of inorganic and organic contaminants in soils and groundwater. More specifically, this project aims to (1) identify the minimum amount of site-specific parameters needed to predict reactive transport of inorganic pollutants (e.g. heavy metals) and (2) improve/simplify the modelling of transport of xenobiotic organic contaminants (XOC, e.g. hydrocarbons and pesticides). The transport of XOCs is particularly complex to model due to the effects and zonation of microbial activity at the plume fringe in polluted aquifers. The RESPONSE project focusses on typical groundwater pollution problems encountered around old municipal landfill sites and cemeteries. Municipal landfills can still release hazardous pollutants such as heavy metals and XOCs, even if they are covered by fresh ground layers after abandonment. Cemeteries can be considered a special case of landfill, releasing various compounds to the environment such as arsenic, mercury, bacteria, viruses and herbicides. Both location types are potential point sources for mixed groundwater pollution, typically including high concentrations of dissolved organic carbon (DOC), heavy metals and XOCs. The methodology in this project involves both experimental and modelling aspects. During the first screening stage, groundwater samples were collected from shallow piezometers at fifteen contaminated sites across Belgium (municipal landfills and cemeteries). Also, an improved reactive transport model is built based on HYDRUS1D-MODFLOW-PHREEQC to explicitly account for the dynamic behaviour of chemical conditions at the soil-ground water interface. Next, based on laboratory analyses, three case-study sites will be selected for further modelling and testing.
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The RESPONSE project: Reactive transport modelling of point source contamination in soils and groundwater
- Point source contaminations origin from historic or current activities and occur in a variety of forms, extents and contaminants involved (e.g. landfills, industrial facilities, storage tanks, disposal of hazardous waste). Point source contaminations may pose risks to human health and the environment; it is therefore important to develop/improve current methodologies to assess the migration potential of contaminants in groundwater. Groundwater quality monitoring around contaminated sites is typically done by sampling piezometers. Modelling approaches can help to predict the spatial and temporal evolution of contamination plumes, design remediation strategies and assess health and environmental risks. Reactive transport models can potentially improve the prediction of contaminant routes, as they explicitly account for changing geochemical environments and chemical reactions during transport. In spite of recent advances, real-world applications remain scarce as these require large numbers of site-specific parameters. The aim of the RESPONSE project is to improve the use of reactive transport models that simulate the fate of inorganic and organic contaminants in soils and groundwater. More specifically, this project aims to (1) identify the minimum amount of site-specific parameters needed to predict reactive transport of inorganic pollutants (e.g. heavy metals) and (2) improve/simplify the modelling of transport of xenobiotic organic contaminants (XOC, e.g. hydrocarbons and pesticides). The transport of XOCs is particularly complex to model due to the effects and zonation of microbial activity at the plume fringe in polluted aquifers. The RESPONSE project focusses on typical groundwater pollution problems encountered around old municipal landfill sites and cemeteries. Municipal landfills can still release hazardous pollutants such as heavy metals and XOCs, even if they are covered by fresh ground layers after abandonment. Cemeteries can be considered a special case of landfill, releasing various compounds to the environment such as arsenic, mercury, bacteria, viruses and herbicides. Both location types are potential point sources for mixed groundwater pollution, typically including high concentrations of dissolved organic carbon (DOC), heavy metals and XOCs. The methodology in this project involves both experimental and modelling aspects. During the first screening stage, groundwater samples have been collected from shallow piezometers at fifteen contaminated sites (municipal landfills and cemeteries) across Belgium. Also, an improved reactive transport model is built based on HYDRUS1D-MODFLOW-PHREEQC to explicitly account for the dynamic behaviour of chemical conditions at the soil-ground water interface. Next, based on laboratory analyses, three case-study sites will be selected for further modelling and testing.
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The GEPATAR project: GEotechnical and Patrimonial Archives Toolbox for ARchitectural conservation in Belgium
- Belgium is well-known for its diverse collection of built heritage, visited every year by millions of people. Because of its cultural and economic importance, conservation is a priority at both federal and regional levels. Monuments may suffer from structural instabilities related to industrial and urban development, such as groundwater extraction, mining and excavation activities. Adequate protection and preservation requires an integrated analysis of environmental, architectural and historical parameters. The aim of the GEPATAR project is to create an online interactive geo-information tool that integrates information about Belgian heritage buildings and the occurrence of ground movements. The toolbox will allow the user to view and be informed about buildings potentially at risk due to differential ground movements and thus help improving the management of built patrimony. Countrywide deformation maps spanning nearly 25 years were produced by applying advanced multi-temporal InSAR techniques to time-series of SAR data. We used StaMPS (Stanford Method for Persistent Scatterers; Hooper et al. 2012) to process ERS-1/2 and Envisat archive data and MSBAS (Multidimensional Small Baseline Subsets; Samsonov & d’Oreye 2012) to combine both ascending and descending tracks of Sentinel-1. High-resolution deformation maps of selected urban centres were obtained by processing VHR SAR data (TerraSAR-X and CosmoSkyMed). Within the GEPATAR toolbox, the country-scale deformation maps are integrated with other geo-data layers such as geology, land-use and the location of the built heritage; feature-based data fusion techniques and decision rules based on geomechanical expertise are combined to create ground movement risk maps. At the local scale the fusion process is more complicated due to the inclusion of non-spatial datasets, such as photographic and historical surveys, architectural and geotechnical data; at this scale decision rules are provided by engineering and architectural expertise. The output risk maps will be regularly updated with the availability of new SAR acquisitions. Some selected case-studies will be investigated at high resolution by means of on-site monitoring techniques as well as stability analysis to evaluate the applied approaches.
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The GEPATAR project: GEotechnical and Patrimonial Archives Toolbox for ARchitectural conservation in Belgium
- Belgium is well-known for its diverse collection of built heritage, visited every year by millions of people. Because of its cultural and economic importance, conservation is a priority at both federal and regional levels. Monuments may suffer from structural instabilities related to industrial and urban development, such as groundwater extraction, mining and excavation activities. Adequate protection and preservation requires an integrated analysis of environmental, architectural and historical parameters. The aim of the GEPATAR project is to create an online interactive geo-information tool that integrates information about Belgian heritage buildings and the occurrence of ground movements. The toolbox will allow the user to view and be informed about buildings potentially at risk due to differential ground movements and thus help improving the management of built patrimony. Countrywide deformation maps spanning nearly 25 years were produced by applying advanced multi-temporal InSAR techniques to time-series of SAR data. We used StaMPS (Stanford Method for Persistent Scatterers; Hooper et al. 2012) to process ERS-1/2 and Envisat archive data and MSBAS (Multidimensional Small Baseline Subsets; Samsonov & d’Oreye 2012) to combine both ascending and descending tracks of Sentinel-1. High-resolution deformation maps of selected urban centres were obtained by processing VHR SAR data (TerraSAR-X and CosmoSkyMed). Within the GEPATAR toolbox, the country-scale deformation maps are integrated with other geo-data layers such as geology, land-use and the location of the built heritage; feature-based data fusion techniques and decision rules based on geomechanical expertise are combined to create ground movement risk maps. At the local scale the fusion process is more complicated due to the inclusion of non-spatial datasets, such as photographic and historical surveys, architectural and geotechnical data; at this scale decision rules are provided by engineering and architectural expertise. The output risk maps will be regularly updated with the availability of new SAR acquisitions. Some selected case-studies will be investigated at high resolution by means of on-site monitoring techniques as well as stability analysis to evaluate the applied approaches.
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Atlas des Halictidae de France (Hymenoptera: Apoidea)
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Contribution à la connaissance des Halictinae d'Espagne, avec un atlas des espèces de la Péninsule Ibérique (Hymenoptera: Apoidea: Halictidae)
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Addition to the checklist of IUCN European wild bees (Hymenoptera: Apoidea)
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A comparative analysis of organic and conventional agriculture’s impact on aquatic macro-invertebrates and ostracods.
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Unravelling the eco-evolutionary dynamics of two non-marine ostracods in response to urbanization.
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Cryptic diversity and speciation of endemic Cytherissa (Ostracoda, Crustacea) from Lake Baikal (Siberia).
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Systematics of Afrotropical Eristalinae (Diptera: Syrphidae) using mitochondrial phylogenomics
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3D models related to the publication: A heavyweight early whale pushes the boundaries of vertebrate morphology
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Pseudoprionus bienerti waitzbaueri ssp. n. - eine neue Prioninae aus Jordanien (Coleoptera, Cerambycidae Prioninae)
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L'étude micro-climatque de la salle du Dôme (Han-sur-Lesse): apports à la compréhension du signal saisonnier et de l'effet de site.
- Présentation : La croissance des stalagmites dans les grottes est intimement liée aux conditions climatiques extérieures. Pour cela, l’étude à haute résolution des signaux chimiques contenus dans leur structure interne (lamines) permet de reconstituer les variations des paramètres climatiques et donc de la saisonnalité du climat actuel et passé. Cependant, les études récentesa ont démontré un signal saisonnier dans les paramètres chimiques des stalagmites (Isotopes stables et éléments traces), fait assez particulier dans les cavités belges. Les mesures ponctuelles de températures et de PCO2 dans la salle du Dôme indiquent ainsi une influence de la climatologie souterraine sur ces paramètres et un certain déphasage avec les variations saisonnières en surface. La topographie de la grotte influence aussi localement cette climatologie souterraine. Une meilleure compréhension du fonctionnement actuel de la cavité avec un suivi plus étendu spatialement est nécessaire afin de mieux interpréter le signal saisonnier par l’identification: i) des valeurs seuils de température et de CO2 à l’origine du déphasage entre les changements saisonniers souterrains et ceux de surface, ii) des effets de site (tube à vent, piège à froid) sur les paramètres climatiques souterrains. Etude : Depuis janvier 2016, un programme étendu du suivi micro-climatique de la salle du Dome ou Trou de Han a été initié afin de mieux visualiser les paramètres climatiques souterrains (Température, CO2, pression, humidité) et leur variabilité spatiale et saisonnière au sein de la cavité dans le but de mieux interpréter les signaux saisonniers observés dans les stalagmites. Onze enregistreurs de température de type Niphargus, développés par le Service Géologique de Belgique, ont été répartis dans la salle. Une station automatique a été ajoutée en amont de la salle du Dôme pour un monitoring climatiques souterrains (Température, CO2, pression, humidité). En parallèle, un suivi mensuel de la concentration en CO2 a été effectué sur ces onze stations. Conclusions : Les premiers résultats de cette étude révèlent une variabilité spatiale de la concentration en CO2 et de la température liée à la proximité de la sortie, de la Lesse souterraine et du siphon (effet de source). En revanche, au niveau de la plateforme et jusqu’au Trône de Pluton, la topographie du site n’a qu’une faible incidence sur la température inter-site. La magnitude de ces écarts n'excède par 0.5 °C dans la zone la moins influencée par l'effet de source comme la plateforme. Mise en rapport aux changements saisonniers extérieurs, la variabilité temporelle des stations renseigne deux résultats significatifs. La concentration en CO2 entre stations dans la salle du Dôme varie généralement avec des amplitudes comparables (±100 ppm). Ceci indique une réponse générale du système de circulation interne de la grotte face aux changements saisonniers extérieurs. A l'opposé, la température dans la salle, variant en fonction de l’effet de source, montre une réponse différée entre stations. La galerie des draperies ainsi que la zone de la plateforme suivent la température extérieure après avoir atteint une valeur seuil de température. Afin d’illustrer les variations spatio-temporelles de ces paramètres, ces mesures ont été interpolées via le programme DIVAb développé par l'Université de Liège. a Verheyden et al., 2008 ; Van Ramperbergh et al., 2013 b http://modb.oce.ulg.ac.be/mediawiki/index.php/DIVA
