Publications by authors named "L Gallitelli"
Macroplastic litter causes detrimental effects on freshwater biota affecting human health. Despite the significant role of rivers in transporting plastic waste, most plastics remain in fluvial ecosystems, accumulating in infrastructure, river sediment, and (riverbank) vegetated areas. However, the entrapment of plastics by riparian vegetation was overlooked, particularly in upper and middle river courses.
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- Wetlands deliver essential ecosystem services, but are increasingly threatened by pollutants, particularly plastics and microplastics (MPs), which have been under-researched in these environments.
- This study examined the abundance of MPs in two common aquatic insect groups collected from twelve Mediterranean wetland zones in Andalusia, exploring how proximity to landfills and the presence of certain waterbirds influenced MP levels.
- Results revealed a total of 571 MPs, mainly blue fibers, with higher contamination near landfills and at sites with landfill-feeding birds; additionally, aquatic insects can be effective indicators in monitoring MP pollution to target conservation efforts.
Article Synopsis
- Anthropogenic litter, specifically plastic, significantly impacts ecosystems, and scientists from various fields are working together to assess and reduce these pollutants.
- The research aimed to determine the best methods for monitoring macroplastic litter in rivers and oceans by surveying 46 researchers who evaluated different techniques such as visual census, drone surveys, satellite imagery, and GPS/GNSS trackers.
- Results indicated that traditional visual census and drone use were the most favored methods (scoring 3.5 and 2.0), while satellite imagery and GPS trackers were less effective due to validation challenges and range limitations, with scores below 1.2.
River functionality influences the distribution of the dipper Cinclus cinclus (Linnaeus, 1758).
Sci Total Environ
November 2024
The dipper (Cinclus cinclus) is a species strongly linked to the riparian ecosystem, known to feed on aquatic macroinvertebrates, which are sensitive to water pollution. For this, dippers have been proposed as useful bioindicators of water quality. While the distribution and ecology of the dipper are well known in Northern European rivers, few studies focus on this in Central Italy, lacking data for dipper conservation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCurrently, natural and urban ecosystems are affected by different types of atmospheric deposition, which can compromise the balance of the environment. Plastic pollution represents one of the major threats for biota, including lichens. Epiphytic lichens have value as bioindicators of environmental pollution, climate change, and anthropic impacts.
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