Starving or Stuffing? Plasticity in Wild Boar Body Mass Variations During Summer in a Mediterranean Area.

Identifying determinants of key phenotypic indicators driving animal population dynamics is fundamental to address measures aimed at mitigating human-wildlife interactions. In Mediterranean areas, summer drought reduces the availability of water and food resources for wild ungulates, potentially affecting body conditions. Since summer is a crucial period for the nursing/weaning of offspring, a seasonal bottleneck for ungulates would be expected to occur, especially in females.

Long-term ecotoxicological assessment of a reintroduced osprey population: an integrated approach in coastal environments of Central Italy.

Apex predators are particularly vulnerable to environmental stressors due to their high trophic position. Understanding both exposure and physiological impacts is essential to support the long-term success of conservation efforts. We investigated contaminant levels and health indicators in a recently reintroduced osprey Pandion haliaetus population in Central Italy, a top predator in aquatic food-webs.

The interplay of wind and uplift facilitates over-water flight in facultative soaring birds.

Flying over the open sea is energetically costly for terrestrial birds. Despite this, over-water journeys of many birds, sometimes hundreds of kilometres long, are uncovered by bio-logging technology. To understand how these birds afford their flights over the open sea, we investigated the role of atmospheric conditions, specifically wind and uplift, in subsidizing over-water flight at a global scale.

Contours of citizen science: a vignette study.

Citizen science has expanded rapidly over the past decades. Yet, defining citizen science and its boundaries remained a challenge, and this is reflected in the literature-for example in the proliferation of typologies and definitions. There is a need for identifying areas of agreement and disagreement within the citizen science practitioners community on what should be considered as citizen science activity.

Using GPS tracking and stable multi-isotopes for estimating habitat use and winter range in Palearctic ospreys.

We used both satellite tracking and carbon, nitrogen and sulphur stable isotopic analysis (SIA) to infer wintering ecology and habitat use of the Corsican osprey Pandion haliaetus population. A control sample of feathers from 75 individuals was collected within the osprey's northern hemisphere breeding range, to assess the SIA variability across habitat types. An experimental set of SIA on feathers of 18 Corsican adults was examined to infer wintering ground locations and habitat types used during the non-breeding period.

Drawing the baseline of trace element levels in the vulnerable Mediterranean osprey Pandion haliaetus: variations by breeding location, habitats, and egg components.

Due to its peculiarity to accumulate environmental contaminants, the osprey Pandion haliaetus is a sentinel species for the biomonitoring of contaminants in aquatic ecosystems. Despite this, no information on trace element concentration exists for the Mediterranean area, where relict and vulnerable osprey populations exist. We evaluated the geographical patterns of heavy metals and selenium in osprey eggs from three different populations of the Mediterranean basin (Balearic Islands, Corsica, and Tuscany), to identify any possible contaminant sources.

Migrating ospreys use thermal uplift over the open sea.

Most large raptors on migration avoid crossing the sea because of the lack of atmospheric convection over temperate seas. The osprey Pandion haliaetus is an exception among raptors, since it can fly over several hundred kilometres of open water. We equipped five juvenile ospreys with GPS-Accelerometer-Magnetometer loggers.

Being cosmopolitan: evolutionary history and phylogeography of a specialized raptor, the Osprey Pandion haliaetus.

Background: The Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) is one of only six bird species with an almost world-wide distribution. We aimed at clarifying its phylogeographic structure and elucidating its taxonomic status (as it is currently separated into four subspecies). We tested six biogeographical scenarios to explain how the species' distribution and differentiation took place in the past and how such a specialized raptor was able to colonize most of the globe.

Ectoparasite load in the crested porcupine Hystrix cristata Linnaeus, 1758 in Central Italy.

The crested porcupine Hystrix cristata is a large body-sized rodent, occurring in Europe only in the Italian Peninsula, where it may have been introduced in early Medieval times. Its parasite fauna is currently poorly known and limited to few anecdotal observations. We have analyzed the ectoparasite load of 165 crested porcupines from Tuscany and Latium (Central Italy).

Patterns of spatial overlap in a monogamous large rodent, the crested porcupine.

The crested porcupine Hystrix cristata is a large rodent which pairs for life. We studied the space use of 17 female and 9 male radio-tracked porcupines in an evergreen coastal woodland ("macchia", EW) and in an agricultural estate (AE), with special reference to the use of cultivations. Home range sizes of male porcupines (4.

Habitat richness affects home range size in a monogamous large rodent.

In monogamous species, after pair formation, the main reason for ranging movements is not searching for a mate, but for other important resources e.g. food.

Chemical immobilization of crested porcupines with tiletamine HCl and zolazepam HCl (Zoletil) under field conditions.

The combination of tiletamine HCl and zolazepam HCl has been used on many species of wild mammals. Short induction time, low dosage, satisfactory safety margins, relatively constant immobilization time, and smooth recovery are benefits reported. This combination (Zoletil 100) was used during a study on behavioural ecology of the crested porcupine (Hystrix cristata) in a Mediterranean coastal area (Maremma Regional Park, Tuscany, Italy).