Inter-archipelago dispersal, anagenetic evolution, and the origin of a rare, enigmatic plant genus on a remote oceanic archipelago.

PREMISE: Island plants have long interested biologists because of their distinctive morphological features and their isolation on small land areas in vast oceans. Studies of insular endemics may include identifying their ancestors, tracing their dispersal to islands, and describing their evolution on islands, including characters adaptive to island life. Thamnoseris is a monospecific genus endemic to the Desventuradas Islands, Chile. Its origins and relationships are unresolved, given the challenges of getting to the islands and accessing plants there. METHODS: Sequences from ITS of nrDNA and the complete chloroplast genome were employed to resolve phylogenetic relationships of Thamnoseris. RESULTS: Phylogenetic analyses of nuclear and chloroplast sequences showed Thamnoseris nested within or sister to Dendroseris, the largest endemic genus in the Juan Fernández Islands. CONCLUSIONS: Thamnoseris evolved from a common ancestor of all or most species of Dendroseris prior to the diversification of Dendroseris in the Juan Fernández archipelago. The ancestor of Thamnoseris dispersed to the Desventuradas archipelago, which consists of the islands San Ambrosio and San Félix, within the past 3 Ma (the age of San Ambrosio). This is the only known example of possible plant dispersa\l between the Juan Fernández and Desventuradas Islands. We also mention two less likely biogeographic scenarios for the origin of Thamnoseris, which has features not seen in Dendroseris: small capitula with yellow florets; style branches barely divergent; and basally swollen subtending involucral bracts, all features associated with selfing and reduced dispersal. Goats and rabbits (now removed) reduced T. lacerata, once very abundant on the Desventuradas Islands, to several plants, making it of extreme conservation concern and worthy of further study.

Brooding duration does not depend on cat predation risk but is related to weather and phenology in the wandering albatross (Diomedea exulans).

Parental investment increases offspring fitness at the expense of the parent's ability to invest in other offspring. In many animal species, parents guard their offspring after birth. The parental decision over the duration of this period is expected to be triggered by the associated fitness costs and benefits for both offspring and parents. Here, we evaluated the relevance of several intrinsic and environmental variables in determining brooding period duration in the wandering albatross (Diomedea exulans) and questioned whether brooding duration was related to chick subsequent survival and biometry prior to fledging. We used a semi-experimental design to increase the variance in cat abundance, a recent predator of albatross chicks, and predicted that an increased predation risk at the nest scale would trigger longer chick brooding and thus, protection. In addition, we questioned the influence of weather conditions, hatching date, and characteristics of chicks (sex and biometry) and parents (sex and age) on brooding duration. We report no effect of predation risk or parental characteristics on brooding duration. However, the probability for a parent to end brooding decreased with forthcoming unfavorable weather. Our data also revealed reduced brooding duration for late-hatched chicks and a positive association between brooding duration and chick structural size, and between the frequency of shifts between parents and chick structural size. Finally, brooding duration was not associated with chick survival or with chick biometry prior to fledging. We discuss these results in light of pre-existing hypotheses on fitness costs and benefits associated with brooding duration for chicks and parents.

Origins, diversity, and adaptive evolution of DWV in the honey bees of the Azores: the impact of the invasive mite Varroa destructor.

Deformed wing virus (DWV) is a honey bee virus, whose emergence from relative obscurity is driven by the recent host-switch, adaptation, and global dispersal of the ectoparasitic mite Varroa destructor (a highly efficient vector of DWV) to reproduction on honey bees (Apis mellifera). Our study examines how varroa affects the continuing evolution of DWV, using the Azores archipelago, where varroa is present on only three out of the eight Islands, as a natural experimental system for comparing different evolutionary conditions and trajectories. We combined qPCR of 494 honey bee colonies sampled across the archipelago with amplicon deep sequencing to reveal how the DWV genetic landscape is altered by varroa. Two of the varroa-free Islands were also free of DWV, while a further two Islands were intriguingly dominated by the rare DWV-C major variant. The other four Islands, including the three varroa-infested Islands, were dominated by the common DWV-A and DWV-B variants. The varroa-infested Islands had, as expected, an elevated DWV prevalence relative to the uninfested Islands, but not elevated DWV loads, due the relatively high prevalence and loads of DWV-C on the varroa-free Islands. This establishes the Azores as a stable refuge for DWV-C and provides the most convincing evidence to date that at least some major strains of DWV may be capable of not just surviving, but actually thriving in honey bees in the absence of varroa-mediated transmission. We did not detect any change in DWV genetic diversity associated with island varroa status but did find a positive association of DWV diversity with virus load, irrespective of island varroa status.

Waves of Colonization and Gene Flow in a Great Speciator.

Secondary contact between previously allopatric lineages offers a test of reproductive isolating mechanisms that may have accrued in isolation. Such instances of contact can produce stable hybrid zones-where reproductive isolation can further develop via reinforcement or phenotypic displacement-or result in the lineages merging. Ongoing secondary contact is most visible in continental systems, where steady input from parental taxa can occur readily. In oceanic island systems, however, secondary contact between closely related species of birds is relatively rare. When observed on sufficiently small islands, relative to population size, secondary contact likely represents a recent phenomenon. Here, we examine the dynamics of a group of birds whose apparent widespread hybridization influenced Ernst Mayr's foundational work on allopatric speciation: the whistlers of Fiji (Aves: Pachycephala). We demonstrate two clear instances of secondary contact within the Fijian archipelago, one resulting in a hybrid zone on a larger island, and the other resulting in a wholly admixed population on a smaller, adjacent island. We leveraged low genome-wide divergence in the hybrid zone to pinpoint a single genomic region associated with observed phenotypic differences. We use genomic data to present a new hypothesis that emphasizes rapid plumage evolution and post-divergence gene flow.

[Ecological characteristics and seasonal changes of macrozoobenthos in the waters of Miaodao Archipelago, China]. / åº™å²›ç¾¤å²›æµ·åŸŸå¤§åž‹åº•æ –åŠ¨ç‰©ç”Ÿæ€ç‰¹å¾åŠå­£èŠ‚å˜åŒ–.

To understand the macrozoobenthic community composition and spatial-temporal distribution characteristics of macrobenthos in the waters of Miaodao Archipelago, Yantai, Shandong and its response to habitat changes, we conducted surveys of macrobenthos and environmental elements in the waters of Miaodao Islands in May (spring), August (summer), and October (autumn) in 2022. Results showed that a total of 127 macrozoobenthic species were recorded, with Mollusca and Annelida (Polychaeta) as the dominant taxa, consisting of 47 and 45 species, respectively. The key dominant species included Sternaspis chinensis, Glycinde bonhourei, Moerella hilaris, and Amphioplus (Lymanella) japonicus. The average annual density and biomass of macrozoobenthos were 190 ind·m-2 and 28.69 g·m-2, respectively. There was no significant seasonal differences in density and biomass. The Shannon diversity index (H), evenness index (J), and richness index (D) averaged 3.10, 0.90, and 2.40, respectively. Cluster analysis results showed low similarity coefficients of community among the three seasons, suggesting a distinct distribution pattern. Factors such as bottom seawater temperature, chlorophyll a, nutrient, sediment grain size, and organic matter content could significantly influence the structure and diversity of macrozoobenthic community. Compared with historical research data, the Changdao National Wetland Nature Reserve and the implementation of enclosure aquaculture have led to notable changes in the dominant species of macrobenthos. Specifically, there was a noticeable decline in both density and H, and an increase in biomass and J. Additionally, body size of benthic fauna was transitioning from small to big.

Beach litter composition, distribution patterns and annual budgets on Novaya Zemlya archipelago, Russian Arctic.

Beached macrolitter (>2,5 cm) abundance and composition in the Russian (Eastern) part of the Barents Sea and the adjacent part of the Kara Sea was assessed for 2021-2023. Average densities of beach litter on the coasts are 675 items/100 m and 37 kg/100 m (0.27 items/m2 and 0.015 kg/m2). Annual litter budgets for Cape Zhelaniya beaches are 0.49 items/m2 per year and 0.023 kg/m2 per year. The northernmost tip of Novaya Zemlya is shown to be a beach litter accumulation hot-spot on Novaya Zemlya archipelago, where litter is brought by surface currents and trapped by sea ice margins. Up to 80 % of beached marine macrolitter is made of plastics, originating from vessels. A certain accumulation strip of a beach was identified (14 m - 27.5 m distance from the waterline), and significance of the beach backshore was shown in litter accumulation. Beach litter accounting methodologies on the Arctic beaches are discussed.

Primary production in the bays of the novaya zemlya archipelago (Kara Sea) in the contrasting glacial and non-glacial environmental conditions.

Ongoing warming is leading to the accelerated shrinkage of glaciers located on Arctic islands. Consequently, the influence of glacial meltwater on phytoplankton primary production in Arctic bays becomes critically important in an era of warming. This work studies the spatiotemporal variation of primary production and chlorophyll a concentration in the bays along the eastern coast of the Novaya Zemlya archipelago. Data were collected during nine cruises performed from July to October (2013-2022). The effect of underwater photosynthetically available radiation (PAR) and nutrients on primary production was assessed separately for bays influenced by glacial meltwater (glacial bays) and those without such influence (non-glacial bays). The median value of water column-integrated primary production (IPP) for all bays was 38 mgC m-2 d-1, characterizing them as oligotrophic areas. IPP in non-glacial bays was found to be 2.3-fold and 1.4-fold higher than that in glacial bays during summer and autumn, respectively. Underwater PAR was the main abiotic factor determining IPP during the ice-free period. In the entire bays nutrient concentrations were high, exceeding the limiting values for growth and photosynthesis of phytoplankton. It was concluded that the high turbidity from glacial meltwater runoff leads to decreased underwater PAR and, consequently, to a decline in IPP. This study demonstrates that rapid warming could have a negative impact on the productivity of high Arctic bays and their adjacent areas.

Estimating internal phosphorus loading for a water quality model using chemical characterisation of sediment phosphorus and contrasting oxygen conditions.

The Finnish Archipelago Sea (AS) has long been subject to intensive anthropogenic phosphorus (P) loading. The area suffers from seasonal hypoxia and cyanobacterial blooms despite reductions in nutrient discharge from the catchment and point sources. Internal loading may even dominate the P budget. Previous estimates of internal P loading have limitations (e.g., in spatial coverage and infrequent measurements). We present the first area-wide estimates of the magnitude of internal P loading based on the long-term release of P stored in the sediments. Modelling the internal P loading in the AS is challenging due to the complexity of biogeochemical processes in the sediment-water interface, as well as the heterogenic topography of the seafloor. Instead, we calculated estimates of internal P loading based on data from previous studies on sequential chemical extraction of sediment P, sediment physical characteristics (e.g., organic content, location of muddy seabed substrates), and near-bottom oxygen (O2) conditions. The estimates in three scenarios of contrasting O2 conditions were based on potentially mobile P pools in the sediments, recycled from sediment to water (i.e., loosely-bound or exchangeable P, P bound to reducible iron oxy(hydr)oxides, and labile organic P). The potentially mobile P pools were determined by chemical extraction methods (modified from Psenner et al., 1984 and Ruttenberg, 1992). The internal P loading under presumable O2 conditions was estimated to be fivefold that of waterborne P input to the AS; comparable to previous estimates for hypoxic areas in the Baltic Sea. Our estimates revealed wide spatial variability in the internal P loading, depending on O2 conditions and seabed sediment substrate. The site-specific P release estimates are included in a water quality model used by regional authorities, which increases the model's reliability for estimating the impact of human activities on the water quality across the AS.

An expanded phylogeny of the genus Pseudamnicola (Gastropoda; Truncatelloidea; Hydrobiidae) across the Mediterranean Basin.

The genus Pseudamnicola Paulucci, 1878, is commonly found throughout the Mediterranean region. The genus displays considerable levels of endemism, accompanied by notable systematic and taxonomic ambiguity. However, the application of molecular data has proven highly effective in clarifying taxonomy and unveiling the diversity of cryptic species within the genus. Therefore, we employed all cytochrome c oxidase subunit I sequence data available and generated new ones from Greece to infer the phylogeny of the genus throughout its Mediterranean range and estimate the divergence times as well as the ancestral area of diversification. Our phylogenetic and time-estimate analyses demonstrate that with 36 to 38 extant Pseudamnicola species and genetic divergences across species ranging from 0.5% to 11.9% on average, the genus underwent relatively recent diversification during late Miocene (6.53 Ma), and the primary speciation events occurred during Plio-Pleistocene. The Italian Peninsula and Islands and the Ionian Drainages as defined by the Freshwater Ecoregions of the World are the ancestral regions of the genus following two different dispersal routes. Our study contributes to deepening our understanding of Pseudamnicola phylogeny by using data from throughout its range for the first time. This phylogeny provides evidence and confirms previous studies that relatively recent habitat isolation, followed by founder and dispersal events, has been one of the primary reasons for the evolution of the genus Pseudamnicola in the Mediterranean basin.

Pengzhenrongella phosphoraccumulans sp. nov., isolated from high Arctic glacial till, and emended description of the genus Pengzhenrongella.

A yellow pigmented, Gram-stain-positive, motile, facultatively anaerobic and irregular rod-shaped bacteria (strain M0-14T) was isolated from a till sample collected from the foreland of a high Arctic glacier near the settlement of Ny-Ålesund in the Svalbard Archipelago, Norway. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequence comparisons revealed that M0-14T formed a lineage within the family Cellulomonadaceae, suborder Micrococcineae. M0-14T represented a novel member of the genus Pengzhenrongella and had highest 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity to Pengzhenrongella sicca LRZ-2T (97.3 %). Growth occurred at 4-25 °C (optimum 4-18 °C), at pH 6.0-9.0 (optimum pH 7.0), and in the presence of 0-5 % (w/v) NaCl. The predominant menaquinone was MK-9(H4) and the major fatty acids were anteiso-C15 : 0, C16 : 0 and summed feature 3 (comprising C16 : 1ω7c and/or C16 : 1ω6c). The major polar lipids were phosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylinositol mannosides, phosphatidylinositol, one undefined phospholipid and five undefined phosphoglycolipids. The cell-wall diamino acid was l-ornithine whereas rhamnose and mannose were the cell-wall sugars. Polyphosphate particles were found inside the cells of M0-14T. Polyphosphate kinase and polyphosphate-dependent glucokinase genes were detected during genomic sequencing of M0-14. In addition, the complete pstSCAB gene cluster and phnCDE synthesis genes, which are important for the uptake and transport of phosphorus in cells, were annotated in the genomic data. According to the genomic data, M0-14T has a metabolic pathway related to phosphorus accumulation. The DNA G+C content of the genomic DNA was 70.8 %. On the basis of its phylogenetic relationship, phenotypic properties and chemotaxonomic distinctiveness, strain M0-14T represents a novel species of the genus Pengzhenrongella, for which the name Pengzhenrongella phosphoraccumulans sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is M0-14T (= CCTCC AB 2012967T = NRRL B-59105T).

Erratum: Genetic diversity of endosymbiotic bacteria Wolbachia infecting two mosquito species of the genus Eretmapodites occurring in sympatry in the Comoros archipelago.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2024.1343917.].

Selective extinction and habitat nestedness are the main drivers of lizard nestedness in the Zhoushan Archipelago.

Nested subset pattern (nestedness) is an important part of the theoretical framework of island biogeography and community ecology. However, most previous studies often used nestedness metrics or randomization algorithms that are vulnerable to type I error. In this study, we investigated the nestedness of lizard assemblages on 37 islands in the Zhoushan Archipelago, China. We used the line-transect method to survey species occurrence, abundance, and habitat types of lizards on 37 islands during 2 breeding seasons in 2021 and 2022. We applied the nested metric WNODF and the conservative rc null model to control for type I error and quantify the significance of nestedness. Spearman rank correlations were used to evaluate the role of 4 habitat variables (island area, 2 isolation indices, and habitat diversity) and 4 ecological traits (body size, geographic range size, clutch size, and minimum area requirement) in generating nestedness. The results of WNODF analyses showed that lizard assemblages were significantly nested. The habitat-by-site matrix estimated by the program NODF was also significantly nested, supporting the habitat nestedness hypothesis. The nestedness of lizard assemblages were significantly correlated with island area, habitat diversity, clutch size, and minimum area requirement. Overall, our results suggest that selective extinction and habitat nestedness were the main drivers of lizard nestedness in our system. In contrast, the nestedness of lizard assemblages was not due to passive sampling or selective colonization. To maximize the number of species preserved, our results indicate that we should protect both large islands with diverse habitats and species with large area requirement and clutch size.

Resolving fusilier puzzles: The identity of Squamosicaesio marri and Pterocaesio flavifasciata, and a new record of Flavicaesio suevica from the Western Indian Ocean.

A phylogenetic analysis incorporating mitochondrial cox1 gene sequences of members of the family Caesionidae revealed the conspecificity of Pterocaesio flavifasciata and Squamosicaesio marri, which was also supported by the absence of any clear morphological diagnostic characters and meristic counts to separate the two species. Additionally, we provide the first record of the Suez fusilier, Flavicaesio suevica, from outside the Red Sea, based on specimens collected from the Laccadive archipelago, Western Indian Ocean. Together, these results show that the taxonomy, diversity, and distribution of members of the family Caesionidae continue to be poorly known, necessitating a comprehensive range-wide study.

Scale-dependent influences of environmental, historical, and spatial processes on taxonomic and functional beta diversity of Japanese bat assemblages.

This study investigated the relative influences of environmental, spatial, and historical factors, including the island-specific history of land connectivity, on bat assemblages in the Japanese Archipelago. We collected bat distribution data from 1408 studies and assigned them to Japan's First Standard Grid (approximately 6400 km2). Japanese bat assemblages were analyzed at two scales: the entire Japanese Archipelago comprised 16 islands and exclusively the four main islands. At first, we calculated taxonomic and functional total beta diversity (ß total) by Jaccard pairwise dissimilarity and then divided this into turnover (ß repl) and richness-difference (ß rich) components. We conducted hierarchical clustering of taxonomic beta diversity to examine the influence of the two representative sea straits, Tsugaru and Tokara, which are considered biogeographical borders. Variation partitioning was conducted to evaluate the relative effects of the three factors on the beta diversity. Clustering revealed that the Tokara Strait bordered the two major clades; however, the Tsugaru Strait did not act as a biogeographical border for bats. In the variation partitioning, shared fraction between spatial and historical factors significantly explained taxonomic and functional ß total and taxonomic ß repl at the entire archipelago scale, but not at the four main islands scale extending only Tsugaru Strait but not Tokara Strait. Pure environmental factors significantly explained functional ß total at both scales and taxonomic ß total only at the four main islands scale. These results suggest that spatial and historical factors are more pronounced in biogeographical borders, primarily structuring assemblage composition at the entire archipelago scale, especially in taxonomic dimension. However, current environmental factors primarily shape the assemblage composition of Japanese bats at the main island scale. The difference in results between the two scales highlights that the primary processes governing assemblages of both dimensions depend on the quality of the dispersal barriers between terrestrial and aquatic barriers for bats.

'Moko' drums and gongs, ritual musical instruments and local currency from Alor Island, Southeast Indonesia: A comprehensive and verified lexical data set.

This paper provides comprehensive and systematized lists of names of 'moko' drums from Alor Island, in Southeast Indonesia. 'Moko' drums are unique cultural objects from the Alor-Pantar Archipelago and, besides their ancient function of ritual instruments used mainly for religious purposes and in public events by the indigenous peoples of the islands, they represented and still are considered a very valuable local 'currency' for trade and for specific social interactions rooted in aboriginal culture, like bride price negotiations. Despite the fact that they are extremely popular and widespread among Papuan peoples in Alor and Pantar, the origins of these drums are still relatively obscure. The native speakers, indeed, cannot explain the name 'moko' in itself, at the etymological and semantic level, and, despite the fact that they agree upon non-local origins of the instruments, they do not know where the instruments themselves were produced and from where they came to the islands. Our paper provides the readers with comprehensive lists that systematically collect the names of the drums, with the related glosses and basic additional information, from three representative Papuan languages of Alor Island, namely Abui, Sawila, and Kula. Configured as potentially indispensable tools to develop further research, these lists enhance our knowledge and understanding of the culture of the 'moko' drums in the Alor-Pantar Archipelago, at the linguistic (etymology of the names), anthropological (social value of the drums), and archeological (typology and provenance of the instruments) levels. This cataloguing operation is also part of the effort of documentation of the languages and cultures, still scarcely documented and definitely endangered, of the native peoples of the Alor-Pantar Archipelago.

Genetic diversity of endosymbiotic bacteria Wolbachia infecting two mosquito species of the genus Eretmapodites occurring in sympatry in the Comoros archipelago.

Introduction: The influence of Wolbachia on mosquito reproduction and vector competence has led to renewed interest in studying the genetic diversity of these bacteria and the phenotypes they induced in mosquito vectors. In this study, we focused on two species of Eretmapodites, namely Eretmapodites quinquevittatus and Eretmapodites subsimplicipes, from three islands in the Comoros archipelago (in the Southwestern Indian Ocean). Methods: Using the COI gene, we examined the mitochondrial genetic diversity of 879 Eretmapodites individuals from 54 sites. Additionally, we investigated the presence and genetic diversity of Wolbachia using the wsp marker and the diversity of five housekeeping genes commonly used for genotyping through Multiple Locus Sequence Typing (MLST). Results and discussion: Overall, Er. quinquevittatus was the most abundant species in the three surveyed islands and both mosquito species occurred in sympatry in most of the investigated sites. We detected a higher mitochondrial genetic diversity in Er. quinquevittatus with 35 reported haplotypes (N = 615 specimens, Hd = 0.481 and π = 0.002) while 13 haplotypes were found in Er. subsimplicipes (N = 205 specimens, Hd = 0.338 and π = 0.001), this difference is likely due to the bias in sampling size between the two species. We report for the first time the presence of Wolbachia in these two Eretmapodites species. The prevalence of Wolbachia infection varied significantly between species, with a low prevalence recorded in Er. quinquevittatus (0.8%, N = 5/627) while infection was close to fixation in Er. subsimplicipes (87.7%, N = 221/252). Both male and female individuals of the two mosquito species appeared to be infected. The analysis of MLST genes revealed the presence of two Wolbachia strains corresponding to two new strain types (STs) within the supergroups A and B, which have been named wEretA and wEretB. These strains were found as mono-infections and are closely related, phylogenetically, to Wolbachia strains previously reported in Drosophila species. Finally, we demonstrate that maternal transmission of Wolbachia is imperfect in Er. subsimplicipes, which could explain the presence of a minority of uninfected individuals in the field.

Biogeographic effects shape soil bacterial communities across intertidal zones on island beaches through regulating soil properties.

Island coastal zones are often mistakenly perceived as "ecological desert". Actually, they harbour unique communities of organisms. The biodiversity on islands is primarily influenced by the effects of area and isolation (distance from the mainland), which mainly focused on plants and animals, encompassing studies of entire islands. However, the application of area and isolation effects to soil microorganisms on island beaches across the intertidal zones remains largely unexplored. We hypothesized that island area and isolation shape soil bacterial communities by regulating soil properties on island beaches, due to the fact that local soil properties might be strongly influenced by land-use, which may vary among islands of different sizes and isolations. To test this hypothesis, we conducted a study on 108 plots spanning 4 intertidal zones on 9 representative island beaches within Zhoushan Archipelago, eastern China. We employed one-way ANOVA and Tukey's honestly significant difference (HSD) test to assess the differences in diversity, composition of soil bacterial communities and soil properties among intertidal zones. Redundancy analysis and structural equation modelling (SEM) were used to examine the direct and indirect impacts of beach area and isolation on soil bacterial communities. Our findings revealed that the area and isolation did not significantly influence soil bacterial diversity and the relative abundance of dominant soil bacterial phyla. However, soil nitrogen (soil N), phosphorus (soil P), organic carbon (SOC), available potassium content (soil AK), and electrical conductivity (soil EC) showed significant increases with the area and isolation. As the tidal gradient increased on beaches, soil bacterial OTU richness, Chao 1, and relative abundance of Planctomycetota and Crenarchaeota decreased, while relative abundance of other soil bacterial phyla increased. We found that influences of island area and isolation shape soil bacterial communities on beaches by regulating soil properties, particularly soil moisture, salinity, and nutrients, all of which are also influenced by area and isolation. Island with larger areas and in lower intertidal zones, characterized by higher soil water content (SWC), soil EC, and soil AK, exhibited greater soil bacterial diversity and fewer dominant soil bacterial phyla. Conversely, in the higher intertidal zones with vegetation containing higher soil N and SOC, lower soil bacterial diversity and more dominant soil bacterial phyla were observed. These findings have the potential to enhance our new understanding of how island biogeography in interpreting island biome patterns.

The last 1100 years of activity of La Fossa caldera, Vulcano Island (Italy): new insights into stratigraphy, chronology, and landscape evolution.

A detailed study of past eruptive activity is crucial to understanding volcanic systems and associated hazards. We present a meticulous stratigraphic analysis, a comprehensive chronological reconstruction, thorough tephra mapping, and a detailed analysis of the interplay between primary and secondary volcanic processes of the post-900 AD activity of La Fossa caldera, including the two main systems of La Fossa volcano and Vulcanello cones (Vulcano Island, Italy). Our analyses demonstrate how the recent volcanic activity of La Fossa caldera is primarily characterized by effusive and Strombolian activity and Vulcanian eruptions, combined with sporadic sub-Plinian events and both impulsive and long-lasting phreatic explosions, all of which have the capacity to severely impact the entire northern sector of Vulcano island. We document a total of 30 eruptions, 25 from the La Fossa volcano and 5 from Vulcanello cones, consisting of ash to lapilli deposits and fields of ballistic bombs and blocks. Volcanic activity alternated with significant erosional phases and volcaniclastic re-sedimentation. Large-scale secondary erosion processes occur in response to the widespread deposition of fine-grained ash blankets, both onto the active cone of La Fossa and the watersheds conveying their waters into the La Fossa caldera. The continuous increase in ground height above sea level, particularly in the western sector of the caldera depression where key infrastructure is situated, is primarily attributed to long-term alluvial processes. We demonstrate how a specific methodological approach is key to the characterization and hazard assessment of low-to-high intensity volcanic activity, where tephra is emitted over long time periods and is intercalated with phases of erosion and re-sedimentation.

The start-up of a neurosurgical service in an East Indonesian archipelagic province: The first 2-year experience of North Maluku Database in Neurosurgery (NOMADEN).

Background: Despite encouraging developments after its initial founding in Indonesia more than seven decades ago, inequity in access and availability of neurosurgical services throughout the country continues to pose a challenge. We aimed to elaborate on the start-up of a previously inactive neurosurgical service in North Maluku, an archipelagic province in East Indonesia, and describe cases managed within the first two years of service. Methods: In the North Maluku Database in the Neurosurgery register, demographic and clinical information of neurosurgical patients admitted to Chasan Boesoirie General Hospital, Ternate, from January 2021 to December 2022, were analyzed. Surgically managed patients were rendered visually according to their decades of life and districts of events. Results: There were 998 new patients (mean age ± standard deviation [SD]: 34.7 ± 19.6 years, 60.3% male) managed and 216 neurosurgical procedures (mean age ± SD: 33 ± 20.4 years, 67.1% male) performed. The majority of patients operated were within the 1st decade of life (18.5%), presented to the emergency room (56.5%), covered by national health insurance (69.4%), from outside Ternate (62.5%), diagnosed with neurotrauma (40.7%), and discharged alive (80.1%). Ternate was the only district where all seven types of neurological diseases were encountered. No surgeries were performed for patients from Taliabu, the farthest district from Ternate. Conclusion: A large portion of neurosurgical patients in North Maluku were those young and at productive age who were transported from outside Ternate with acute neurological disease (particularly neurotrauma). Distance and geographical circumstances may have a profound effect on access to neurosurgical services.

Land-use change interacts with island biogeography to alter bird community assembly.

Anthropogenic activities have reshaped biodiversity on islands worldwide. However, it remains unclear how island attributes and land-use change interactively shape multiple facets of island biodiversity through community assembly processes. To answer this, we conducted bird surveys in various land-use types (mainly forest and farmland) using transects on 34 oceanic land-bridge islands in the largest archipelago of China. We found that bird species richness increased with island area and decreased with isolation, regardless of the intensity of land-use change. However, forest-dominated habitats exhibited lower richness than farmland-dominated habitats. Island bird assemblages generally comprised species that share more similar traits or evolutionary histories (i.e. functional and/or phylogenetic clustering) than expected if assemblages were randomly assembled. Contrary to our expectations, we observed that bird assemblages in forest-dominated habitats were more clustered on large and close islands, whereas assemblages in farmland-dominated habitats were more clustered on small islands. These contrasting results indicate that land-use change interacts with island biogeography to alter the community assembly of birds on inhabited islands. Our findings emphasize the importance of incorporating human-modified habitats when examining the community assembly of island biota, and further suggest that agricultural landscapes on large islands may play essential roles in protecting countryside island biodiversity.