Isotope ratios, trace elements and ultrastructure results of Mytilus galloprovincialis shells and experimental site data off Ischia (Italy)

Bivalve shells can provide excellent archives of past environmental change but have not been used to interpret ocean acidification events. We investigated carbon, oxygen and trace element records from different shell layers in the mussels Mytilus galloprovincialis combined with detailed investigations of the shell ultrastructure. Mussels from the harbour of Ischia (Mediterranean, Italy) were transplanted and grown in water with mean pHT 7.3 and mean pHT 8.1 near CO2 vents on the east coast of the island. Most prominently, the shells recorded the shock of transplantation, both in their shell ultrastructure, textural and geochemical record. Shell calcite, precipitated subsequently under acidified seawater responded to the pH gradient by an in part disturbed ultrastructure. Geochemical data from all test sites show a strong metabolic effect that exceeds the influence of the low-pH environment. These field experiments showed that care is needed when interpreting potential ocean acidification signals because various parameters affect shell chemistry and ultrastructure. Besides metabolic processes, seawater pH, factors such as salinity, water temperature, food availability and population density all affect the biogenic carbonate shell archive.

Pollen analysis of soil samples from the A.D. 79 level. Boscoreale, Oplontis, and Pompeii

Fifty samples of Roman time soil preserved under the thick ash layer of the A.D.79 eruption of Mt Vesuvius were studied by pollen analysis: 33 samples from a former vineyard surrounding a Villa Rustica at Boscoreale (excavation site 40 x 50 m), 13 samples taken along the 60 m long swimming pool in the sculpture garden of the Villa of Poppaea at Oplontis, and four samples from the formal garden (12.4 x 17.5 m) of the House of the Gold Bracelet in Pompeii. To avoid contamination with modern pollen all samples were taken immediately after uncovering a new portion of the A.D. 79 soil. For comparison also samples of modern Italian soils were studied. Using standard methods for pollen preparation the pollen content of 15 of the archaeological samples proved to be too little to reach a pollen sum of more than 100 grains. The pollen spectra of these samples are not shown in the pollen tables. (Flotation with a sodium tungstate solution, Na2WO4, D = 2.05, following treatment with HCl and NaOH would probably have given a somewhat better result. This method was, however, not available as too expensive at that time.) Although the archaeological samples were taken a few meters apart their pollen values differ very much from one sample to the other. E.g., at Boscoreale (SW quarter). the pollen values of Pinus range from 1.5 to 54.5% resp. from 1 to 244 pine pollen grains per 1 gram of soil, the extremes even found under pine trees. Vitis pollen was present in 7 of the 11 vineyard samples from Boscoreale (NE quarter) only. Although a maximum of 21.7% is reached, the values of Vitis are mostly below 1.5%. Even the values of common weeds differ very much, not only at Boscoreale, but also at the other two sites. The pollen concentration values show similar variations: 3 to 3053 grains and spores were found in 1 g of soil. The mean value (290) is much less than the number of pollen grains, which would fall on 1 cm2 of soil surface during one year. In contrast, the pollen and spore concentrations of the recent soil samples, treated in exactly the same manner, range from 9313 to almost 80000 grains per 1 g of soil. Evidently most of the Roman time pollen has disappeared since its deposition, the reasons not being clear. Not even species which are known to have been cultivated in the garden of Oplontis, like Citrus and Nerium, plant species with easily distinguishable pollen grains, could be traced by pollen analysis. The loss of most of the pollen grains originally contained in the soil prohibits any detailed interpretation of the Pompeian pollen data. The pollen counts merely name plant species which grew in the region, but not necessarily on the excavated plots.

Pan-European land cover/use map for 2009

GlobCorine demonstrated an automatic service that can generate in a consistent way land cover / land use maps and land change indicators, based on a CLC-compatible legend. CLC is derived from a visual identification and classification of landscape objects using high resolution images. This methodology provides high thematic accuracy but limits the update rate since it is time-consuming. Therefore, the project evaluated the use of MERIS FR time series, processed automatically to provide a more frequent update of CLC-compatible maps. GlobCorine built upon the experience and resources available through the GlobCover project, to tune the classification chain and adapt it to the EEA needs, covering the pan-European area (including the Mediterranean basin and the European Russia), although the system could be potentially extendable globally. The project delivered two CLC-compatible pan-European land cover maps in less than two years, demonstrating efficient and quick production. The first map is based on Envisat MERIS fine resolution (300m) mode data acquired between end 2004 and mid 2006, while the second used full-year 2009 data. GlobCorine is an initiative of ESA with the partnership of EEA and is implemented by Universite' catholique de Louvain - UCL.