50 results match your criteria: "Research Institute for the Conservation of Mediterranean Wetlands[Affiliation]"

Blood levels of metallic trace elements are influenced by sex, age and habitat in the European pond turtle (Emys orbicularis).

Sci Total Environ

December 2024

Centre d'études biologiques de Chizé, CNRS, UMR 7372, Villiers en Bois, France; School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA.

Metallic trace elements (MTEs) constitute a major source of chemical pollution and represent a threat to aquatic ecosystems and organisms. Important variation in contamination may exist at a local scale in relation to the environment (hydrosystem, trophic ressources) and individual traits (age, sex). Heretofore, the factors influencing MTEs exposure of freshwater reptiles in temperate regions are not fully understood.

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Since the 1980s, the European eel (Anguilla anguilla) has declined by over 90% in recruitment across its European and North African distribution area. This diadromous fish spawns at sea and migrates into continental waters, where it grows for three to more than 30 years, depending on habitat conditions and location. During their growth, different habitat use tactics can locally influence the life-history traits of eels, including their survival rates.

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Spatial variation of mercury contamination in yellow-legged gulls (Larus michahellis) in the Western Mediterranean.

Environ Pollut

December 2024

Littoral, Environnement et Sociétés (LIENSs), UMR 7266 CNRS - La Rochelle Université, 2 rue Olympe de Gouges, 17000, La Rochelle, France. Electronic address:

Mercury (Hg) is a global pollutant of major concern in marine and coastal environments. In the Mediterranean Sea, Hg concentrations in biota are higher than in other seas, even when seawater concentrations are similar. Seabirds, as marine top predators, can reflect Hg contamination on a large spatial scale.

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Background: The bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis serovar israelensis (Bti) is commercially produced in various formulations for use as a larvicide worldwide, targeting especially the aquatic larval stage of mosquitoes. However, there is a concern that repeated Bti treatments may have both direct and indirect impacts on non-target organisms (NTOs) and the ecosystems they inhabit. This review evaluates the evidence for such impacts.

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The latest report from the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) raises concerns about the global proliferation of non-native species (NIS) driven by increasing temperatures. In 2023, the invasive blue crab Callinectes sapidus experienced a significant range expansion in the French Mediterranean lagoons, now present in over 20 lagoons and numerous estuaries with different invasion gradients. It has been established that this species is eurytherm (tolerates a wide range of temperatures; 0-40 °C), rendering temperature a non-limiting factor for its proliferation.

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Mercury (Hg) is a naturally occurring highly toxic element which circulation in ecosystems has been intensified by human activities. Hg is widely distributed, and marine environments act as its main final sink. Seabirds are relevant bioindicators of marine pollution and chicks are particularly suitable for biomonitoring pollutants as they reflect contamination at short spatiotemporal scales.

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The Mediterranean region is both a hotspot for biodiversity and for the accumulation of plastic pollution. Many species are exposed to this pollution while feeding, including a wide diversity of seabirds. Our objective was to investigate spatial variation in the quantity and types of plastic ingested by Yellow-legged gulls using information obtained from regurgitated pellets collected in 11 colonies.

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When wintering at different sites, individuals from the same breeding population can experience different conditions, with costs and benefits that may have implications throughout their lifetime. Using a dataset from a longitudinal study on Eurasian Spoonbills from southern France, we explored whether survival rate varied among individuals using different wintering sites. In the last 13 years, more than 3000 spoonbills have been ringed as chicks in Camargue.

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Natural pest and weed regulation are essential for agricultural production, but the spatial distribution of natural enemies within crop fields and its drivers are mostly unknown. Using 28 datasets comprising 1204 study sites across eight Western and Central European countries, we performed a quantitative synthesis of carabid richness, activity densities and functional traits in relation to field edges (i.e.

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Article Synopsis
  • - Wetlands face severe threats from pollution, impacting biodiversity, and the effects of pesticides on freshwater reptiles, such as the European pond turtle, remain largely unexplored.
  • - A study conducted from 2018 to 2020 analyzed 29 pesticides in 408 blood samples from turtles in the Camargue wetland and found pesticide presence in 62.5% of the samples, with the herbicide bentazone notably reaching high concentrations.
  • - Pesticide levels in turtle blood were primarily influenced by the sampling site and time relative to pesticide application, while individual turtle traits like sex, age, and body condition had little effect; understanding these exposure levels is essential for future studies on their ecological impact.
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The Camargue or Rhône delta is a coastal wetland in southern France of which parts formerly devoted to salt production are undergoing a renaturation process. This study assessed a multisensor approach to investigate the link between sediment size distribution, habitat development mapped with Worldview 2, flooding durations estimated with time series of SENTINEL 2 images and elevation modelled with a LIDAR point cloud in former saltworks. A Random Forest classification algorithm was used to map the vegetation distributions of Sarcocornia fruticosa and Arthrocnemum macrostachyum, main representatives of the NATURA 2000 "Mediterranean and thermo-Atlantic halophilous scrubs (Sarcocornetea fruticosi)" habitat on the site.

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It is increasingly suggested that the dynamics of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria in the wild are mostly anthropogenically driven, but the spatial and temporal scales at which these phenomena occur in landscapes are only partially understood. Here, we explore this topic by studying antimicrobial resistance in the commensal bacteria from micromammals sampled at 12 sites from a large heterogenous landscape (the Carmargue area, Rhone Delta) along a gradient of anthropization: natural reserves, rural areas, towns, and sewage-water treatment plants. There was a positive relationship between the frequency of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria and the level of habitat anthropization.

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Background: As for other life history traits, variation occurs in movement patterns with important impacts on population demography and community interactions. Individuals can show variation in the extent of seasonal movement (or migration) or can change migratory routes among years. Internal factors, such as age or body condition, may strongly influence changes in movement patterns.

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Article Synopsis
  • * A study at a yellow-legged gull colony in southern France revealed that 83.9% of analyzed nest pellets contained plastic, predominantly made of polyethylene sheets.
  • * The research indicated that gulls might reduce plastic ingestion when feeding their chicks, adjusting their foraging habits for safer, more nutritious food around the hatching period.
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Long-term persistence and recycling of Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis spores in wetlands sprayed for mosquito control.

Ecotoxicol Environ Saf

September 2022

Univ. Grenoble-Alpes, Univ. Savoie Mont Blanc, CNRS, Laboratoire d'Ecologie Alpine, 38000 Grenoble, France. Electronic address:

Bacillus thuringiensis subsp. israelensis (Bti) is the main larvicide used to control mosquitoes worldwide. Although there is accumulating evidence of Bti having environmental effects on non-target fauna, relatively few field studies have documented the fate of Bti spores in the environment.

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How environmental changes are affecting bird population dynamics is one of the most challenging conservation issues. Dietary studies of top avian predators could offer scope to monitor anthropogenic drivers of ecosystem changes. We investigated the diet of breeding Eleonora's falcon in an area of Northeastern Algeria in the years 2010-2012.

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Wild animal species living in anthropogenic areas are commonly carriers of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria (AMRB), but their role in the epidemiology of these bacteria is unclear. Several studies on AMRB in wildlife have been cross-sectional in design and sampled individual animals at only one point in time. To further understand the role of wildlife in maintaining and potentially transmitting these bacteria to humans and livestock, longitudinal studies are needed in which samples are collected from individual animals over multiple time periods.

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Article Synopsis
  • This study explores the aging rates and longevity of ectothermic tetrapods, specifically nonavian reptiles and amphibians, using data from 107 wild populations across 77 species.
  • It investigates how factors like thermoregulatory methods, environmental temperature, and life history strategies influence demographic aging among these animals.
  • The findings reveal that ectotherms exhibit more diverse aging rates than endotherms and show instances of negligible aging, highlighting the importance of studying these species to better understand the evolution of aging.
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Assessing spatiotemporal variation in abundance: A flexible framework accounting for sampling bias with an application to common pochard ().

Ecol Evol

April 2022

Office Français de la Biodiversité Direction Surveillance, Evaluation, Données - Unité données et appui méthodologique Saint Benoist France.

Assessing trends in the relative abundance of populations is a key yet complex issue for management and conservation. This is a major aim of many large-scale censusing schemes such as the International Waterbird Count (IWC). However, owing to the lack of sampling strategy and standardization, such schemes likely suffer from biases due to spatial heterogeneity in sampling effort.

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In the context of wildlife population declines, increasing computer power over the last 20 years allowed wildlife managers to apply advanced statistical techniques that has improved population size estimates. However, respecting the assumptions of the models that consider the probability of detection, such as N-mixture models, requires the implementation of a rigorous monitoring protocol with several replicate survey occasions and no double counting that are hardly adaptable to field conditions. When the logistical, economic and ecological constraints are too strong to meet model assumptions, it may be possible to combine data from independent surveys into the modelling framework in order to understand population dynamics more reliably.

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On the arrival of fasciolosis in the Americas.

Trends Parasitol

March 2022

MIVEGEC, University of Montpellier, CNRS, IRD, Montpellier, France; CREES, Montpellier, France; Département de Biologie-Écologie, Faculté des Sciences, Université de Montpellier, Montpellier, France.

Fasciola hepatica is a worldwide emerging and re-emerging parasite heavily affecting several regions in South America. Some lymnaeid snail species of American origin are among the major hosts of F. hepatica worldwide.

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Recent pandemics have highlighted the urgency to connect disciplines studying animal, human, and environment health, that is, the "One Health" concept. The One Health approach takes a holistic view of health, but it has largely focused on zoonotic diseases while not addressing oncogenic processes. We argue that cancers should be an additional key focus in the One Health approach based on three factors that add to the well-documented impact of humans on the natural environment and its implications on cancer emergence.

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Evidence-based decision-making is most effective with comprehensive access to scientific studies. If studies face significant publication delays or barriers, the useful information they contain may not reach decision-makers in a timely manner. This represents a potential problem for mission-oriented disciplines where access to the latest data is required to ensure effective actions are undertaken.

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Avian infecting piroplasms are largely under-studied compared to other hemoparasites, and this paucity of information has blurred our phylogenetic and biological comprehension of this important group as a whole. In the present study, we detected and characterized Babesia from yellow-legged gull (Larus michahellis) chicks from a colony in southern France. Based on morphological and molecular characterizations, a new Babesia species belonging to the Peircei group, a clade of avian-specific piroplasms, was identified.

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