Settlement evolution, field systems and sedimentary processes in a Mediterranean mid-mountain (Montseny Massif, Catalunya)

This paper presents the first results of a current research project about human – environmental interactions in the Montseny Massif. Our work sets out to integrate two research lines in the studied area: - Archaeological and archaeo-morphological surveys in a lower part of the mountains in order to characterize the evolution of the settlements and field systems. - The geological and geomorphological characterization of the slope and terrace deposits in relation with field systems and archaeological data. First results point out the intensive occupation of these inland areas during the Iberian and the Roman periods. Post-Roman sediments show different processes of erosion.

Can wild ungulate carcasses provide enough biomass to maintain avian scavenger populations? An empirical assessment using a bio-inspired computational model

Background: The reduction in the amount of food available for European avian scavengers as a consequence of restrictive public health policies is a concern for managers and conservationists. Since 2002, the application of several sanitary regulations has limited the availability of feeding resources provided by domestic carcasses, but theoretical studies assessing whether the availability of food resources provided by wild ungulates are enough to cover energetic requirements are lacking. Methodology/Findings: We assessed food provided by a wild ungulate population in two areas of NE Spain inhabited by three vulture species and developed a P System computational model to assess the effects of the carrion resources provided on their population dynamics. We compared the real population trend with to a hypothetical scenario in which only food provided by wild ungulates was available. Simulation testing of the model suggests that wild ungulates constitute an important food resource in the Pyrenees and the vulture population inhabiting this area could grow if only the food provided by wild ungulates would be available. On the contrary, in the Pre-Pyrenees there is insufficient food to cover the energy requirements of avian scavenger guilds, declining sharply if biomass from domestic animals would not be available. Conclusions/Significance: Our results suggest that public health legislation can modify scavenger population trends if a large number of domestic ungulate carcasses disappear from the mountains. In this case, food provided by wild ungulates could be not enough and supplementary feeding could be necessary if other alternative food resources are not available (i.e. the reintroduction of wild ungulates), preferably in European Mediterranean scenarios sharing similar and socio-economic conditions where there are low densities of wild ungulates. Managers should anticipate the conservation actions required by assessing food availability and the possible scenarios in order to make the most suitable decisions.

Growth variability of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) along a West-East gradient across northern Fennoscandia: a dendroclimatic approach

We performed a spatiotemporal analysis of a network of 21 Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) ring-width chronologies in northern Fennoscandia by means of chronology statistics and multivariate analyses. Chronologies are located on both sides (western and eastern) of the Scandes Mountains (67°N-70°N, 15°E-29°E). Growth relationships with temperature, precipitation, and North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) indices were calculated for the period 1880-1991. We also assessed their temporal stability. Current July temperature and, to a lesser degree, May precipitation are the main growth limiting factors in the whole area of study. However, Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and mean interseries correlation revealed differences in radial growth between both sides of the Scandes Mountains, attributed to the Oceanic-Continental climatic gradient in the area. The gradient signal is temporally variable and has strengthened during the second half of the 20th century. Northern Fennoscandia Scots pine growth is positively related to early winter NAO indices previous to the growth season and to late spring NAO. NAO/growth relationships are unstable and have dropped in the second half of the 20th century. Moreover, they are noncontinuous through the range of NAO values: for early winter, only positive NAO indices enhance tree growth in the next growing season, while negative NAO does not. For spring, only negative NAO is correlated with radial growth.

El volcanismo jurásico del sector valenciano de la Cordillera Ibérica. Distribución y trama estructural

En el sector valenciano de la Cordillera Iberica se desarrolla durante el Jurásico un volcanismo fundamentalmente piroclastico, con emisiones basalticas y traquibasalticas en el Pliensbachiense, Toarciense y Bajociense. La cartografia de los afloramientos permite definir dos alineaciones NW-SE (franja de Caudiel, alineación piroclástica de Alcublas), asi como un rea ms amplia de traza general NE-SW en las sierras de Javalambre y Camarena. Tal disposicion regional sugiere que las manifesiaciones volcaiiicas ocurren segun dosdirecciones principales de fracturacion tardihercinica~(NW-SEy NK-SW) y an posiblemente a favor de los puntos de interseccin de ambos sistemas estructurales. La direccin NW-SE ejerce el maximo control de la actividad volcnica jursica, al igual que previamente durante el Triasico superior (linea ofitica de Altura).

A detailed stream sediment Geochemical survey in the Canoves St. Pere de Vilamajor area (Montseny massif. NE Spain)

Se ha realizado una prospección geoquímica táctica de sedimentos aluviales en el Brea de Cánoves-St. Pere de Vilamajor (Macizo del Montseny, Barcelona), como consecuencia de una exploración geoquimica estratégica de sedimentos aluviales previa, en la que se localizó un Brea anómala en Pb, Zn, Cu, As, Cd, Ni, y Co. El Brea estudiada tiene 35 km2 y esta constituida por materiales sedimentarios y volcánicos del Paleozoico, metamorfizados en mayor o menor grado e intruidos por el granito de Vallfornés, y materiales detríticos terciarios...

Preface: Forecast and projection in climate scenario of Mediterranean intense events: uncertainties and propagation on environment (the MEDUP project)

The Mediterranean basin is a particularly vulnerable region to climate change, partly due to its quite unique character that results both from physiographic conditions and societal development. The region features indeed a near-closed sea surrounded by very urbanised littorals and mountains from which numerous rivers originate. This results in a lot of interactions and feedbacks between oceanic-atmospheric-hydrological processes that play a predominant role on climate and extreme events that frequently cause heavy dam- ages and human losses in the Mediterranean ...

Estratigrafía y sedimentología del Paleógeno de la Sierra de Tramuntana (Mallorca)

El Palegeóno aflorante en la Sierra de Tramuntana muestra la existencia de dos unidades litoestratigráficas principales: la inferior (Fm. Calizas de Peguera) está constituida predominantemente por materiales carbonatados lacustres, con depósitos carbonosos en su base, un nivel intermedio de sedimentos detríticos fluviales y una intercalación marina a techo, mientras que la unidad superior (Fm. Detritica de Cala Blanca) registra la evolución lateral de un sistema detrítico fluvio-aluvial con paleocorrientes hacia el SE, progradante sobre una unidad basal de calcarenitas marinas.

Benthos of Spanish lakes and reservoirs

A summary of the results from the study of benthos of lakes and reservoirs in Spain is provided, with a list of the species found to date. Spanish natural lakes are smaller than European lakes; the largest is Lake Sanabria, of glacial origin, which is 3 Km long and half a kilorneter wide. Many are very small and situated in the mountains; more than 200 hundred have been recorded in Spain, but only in Lake Sanabria and Lake Banyoles have the benthos been studied. Lake Sanabria is a cold oligotrophic, monomictic lake with oxygen always present in the deepest zones. Its fauna is similar to that of other central European lakes, with Mici.opsectra c.orztractu (a chironomid) as the dominan1 species. Lake Banyoles is a karstic, monomictic and multibasin lake; despite the low primary productivity, due to the abundante of sulphate in the water, the allochthonous inflow of organic matter and the inflow of water from bottom springs, the profunda1 environinent is very stressing for benthic fauna. Very low oxygen concentrations and high sulphide content in the water and sediments dueto meromixis mean that only the larva of the dipteran Chaohoi.lcs flai7icans was present in one of the 5 basins of the lake. In other basins, when oxygen is available (no meromixis), the fauna is similar to that of tlie inineralized lakes of the Aegean region and some lakes in central Italia. On the other hand, preliminary data from the Pyrenean lakes and from Sierra Nevada ponds reveal no differences with northern cold lakes. Tlie largest lakes in Spain are the reservoirs. There are nearly 1000 and data are available on 100 of them, including the kargest. In addition to oxygen and sulphide content in the bottom waters, water level fluctuation and high sedimentation rates are disturbance factors that prevented the organization of the community. Allochthonous inputs of organic matter are also an important factor both in the reservoirs and also in the small, oligotrophic lakes like Banyoles and Sanabria. As a result the meiofaunal loop is very important in many of the Spanish water bodies . For this reason the natural lakes and reservoirs of Spain are dominated by Oligochaeta, small crustaceans and the microcarnivore chironomids (such as Procladi~ls, Cladopelma and Mi(,rnc.hil-onnmus) that feed on these meoifaunal elements. The phytophagous chironomids, like Chironomus, are only abundan1 in the shallow areas of mesotrophic and eutrophic reservoirs. This situation makes it difficult to apply the typological system of SAETHER which predicts with some confidence only the benthic communities of Spanish natural lakes above 1500 m in the Pyrenees or the ponds above 2000 m in Sierra Nevada mountains. Higher temperatures (which originate a longer stratification period), the presence of sulphate in the waters of the eastern part of Spain and high inputs of sediments and allochthonous organic matter seem to be the factors that originated the differences between the benthic profunda1 faunas of Spanish lakes and reservoirs and those of the temperate lakes of north and central Europe.

Pulmonaria longifolia (Bast.) Boreau subsp. longifolia al massis de Garraf

Pulmonaria

Observaciones sobre la colonizacion briologico-liquenica de la madera en descomposicion en los bosques del Moixero (Catalunya)

Con este estudio se pretende iniciar una serie de trabajos pera conocer la flora briológico-liquénica que coloniza la madera en descomposición. Exponemos en este artículo los resultados obtenidos en los bosques septentrionales del Moixeró. Así mismo indicamos la posible sucesión existente en la colonización del substrato según su grado de descomposición. Esta sucesión se ha descrito a partir de las observaciones realizadas en tocones y troncos en distintos grados de descomposición.

Estimating the Ontogenetic Status of an Enantiornithine Bird from the Lower Barremian of El Montsec, Central Pyrenees, Spain.

An Enantiornithes specimen from El Montsec was initially described as an immature individual based upon qualitative traits such as its relatively large orbit and overall proportions of the skull and the postcranium. In this study we re-evaluate the precise determination of the ontogenetic stage of this individual, establishing a cross-talk among taphonomic, anatomic, and morphometric data. The exceptional preservation of the specimen has allowed pondering ontogenetic influence versus preservational bias in features like the external patterns of bone surfaces, instead of being aprioristically considered due to taphonomic alterations only. The rough texture of the periosteal bone associated with pores in the distal, proximal and mid-shaft areas of the humeral shaft, indicates a subadult stage when compared with long bones of modern birds. Forelimb proportions of embryo and juvenile Enanthiornithes are equivalent to those of adult individuals of other taxa within this clade, though this is not a reliable criterion for establishing a precise ontogenetic stage. The El Montsec specimen may be attributed a close adulthood, yet only if growth regimes in Enantiornithes are considered equivalent to those in Neornithes birds.

Community structure and water quality in Mediterranean streams of a Natural Park (Sant Llorenç del Munt, NE Spain)

Se estudian las comunidades de macroinvertebrados de los ríos del Parque Natural de Sant Llorenç del Munt i la Serra de l'Obac (Barcelona, NE España) y su relación con las condiciones de flujo de los ríos. Hasta 78 localidades se visitaron en dos ocasiones (invierno y verano de 1996) y en 26 de ellas se tomaron muestras de macroinvertebrados. Mientras en invierno el 63 % de los kilÛmetros investigados tenía flujo continuo y menos del 1% estaba seco, en verano solo el 26% tenía flujo continuo, un 20% estaba totalmente seco y el resto presentaba pozas en su lecho. A pesar de ello el número de familias de macroinvertebrados fue de 54 en invierno y 94 en verano, siendo dominantes en este último caso los heterópteros, coleópteros, odonatos y dípteros, mientras que en invierno los tricópteros y plecópteros eran más diversos. En general, la comunidad presentó una estrategia trófica recolectora aunque la proporción de los ramoneadores y depredadores aumentó en verano. El estudio de las comunidades mediante el análisis de su abundancia en los dos perÌodos, mostró que las variables temporales (flujo, temperatura) o las relacionadas con el incremento de la producciÛn primaria (oxÌgeno, pH) explicaban la mayor parte de la variabilidad con los elementos mas reófilos propios de invierno y los leníticos de verano, mientras que otros factores fisicoquímicos no eran relevantes. Calculado el índice biológico BMWP' se demostró que los valores en verano eran superiores o similares a los de invierno lo que se explica por la mayor diversidad aunque la calificaciÛn individual de cada una de las familias encontradas en verano fuera menor que las halladas en invierno.

Mesoscale numerical analysis of the historical November 1982 heavy precipitation event over Andorra (Eastern Pyrenees)

From 6 to 8 November 1982 one of the most catastrophic flash-flood events was recorded in the Eastern Pyrenees affecting Andorra and also France and Spain with rainfall accumulations exceeding 400 mm in 24 h, 44 fatalities and widespread damage. This paper aims to exhaustively document this heavy precipitation event and examines mesoscale simulations performed by the French Meso-NH non-hydrostatic atmospheric model. Large-scale simulations show the slow-evolving synoptic environment favourable for the development of a deep Atlantic cyclone which induced a strong southerly flow over the Eastern Pyrenees. From the evolution of the synoptic pattern four distinct phases have been identified during the event. The mesoscale analysis presents the second and the third phase as the most intense in terms of rainfall accumulations and highlights the interaction of the moist and conditionally unstable flows with the mountains. The presence of a SW low level jet (30 m s-1) around 1500 m also had a crucial role on focusing the precipitation over the exposed south slopes of the Eastern Pyrenees. Backward trajectories based on Eulerian on-line passive tracers indicate that the orographic uplift was the main forcing mechanism which triggered and maintained the precipitating systems more than 30 h over the Pyrenees. The moisture of the feeding flow mainly came from the Atlantic Ocean (7-9 g kg-1) and the role of the Mediterranean as a local moisture source was very limited (2-3 g kg-1) due to the high initial water vapour content of the parcels and the rapid passage over the basin along the Spanish Mediterranean coast (less than 12 h).

Las hornblenditas,gabros y dioritas del Macizo del Montnegre (Barcelona, Cordilleras costero catalanas)

En relación con los granitos tardihercínicos calcoalcalinos del Macizo del Montnegre aparecen rocas ultrabásicas-básicas a intermedias. Las más básicas son hornblenditas olivínicas, con espinela, clinopiroxeno, ortopiroxeno, anfíboles de varios tipos y flogopita. Hay además melagabros-gabros hornbléndicos y leucogabros, estos últimos con anfíbol minoritario. Las rocas más ácidas son cuarzodioritas y cuarzomonzodioritas biotítico-hornbléndicas, con cristales relictos de clinopiroxeno y ortopiroxeno. El contenido máximo en anortita de la plagioclasa en las dioritas es tan alto como en los gabros. Toda la asociación muestra una evolución típicamente calcoalcalina, pero las hornblenditas y algunos gabros podrían haberse formado a partir de diferentes tipos de magmas básicos. Las cuarzodioritas serían rocas híbridas, con participación de un magma más básico y otro más ácido. El primero estaría saturado en clinopiroxeno y ortopiroxeno, además de en plagioclasa de composición bitownita, y el otro magma sería más ácido.

Estratigrafia del Cretacico inferior continental de la Cordillera Iberica Central

El Cretácico inferior continental de la Cordillera Ibérica Central está representado en dos subcuencas de sedimentación: las Cubetas de Aguilón y Oliete. Los estudios realizados sobre estos materiales han permitido definir nuevas unidades litoestratigráficas, cuya caracterización bioestratigráfica se realiza a partir de su contenido en carofitas. La identificación de discontinuidades significativas permiten definir tres secuencias de depósito que abarca en el intervalo temporal Valanguniense y/o Hauteriviense-Barremiense inferior y que son correlacionables con las S.D.K1.2 y/o K1.3, K1.4 YK1.5 y/o K1.6 definidas en Salas et al. (1991) y Salas y Casas (1993) para la Cuenca del Maestrazgo. Estos resultados ponen de manifiesto que el registro estratigráfico de la zona central de la Cordillera Ibérica tiene una entidad similar al de los márgenes de las Cuencas del Maestrazgo, Aliaga- Peñagolosa y Cameros.