Sedimentología, estratigrafía, dinámica sedimentaria y evolución de El Jable (Lanzarote). Propuesta de gestión.

[ES] Esta Tesis Doctoral estudia el sistema eólico de El Jable de Lanzarote desde varios puntos de vista con el fin de caracterizar sedimentológicamente la zona, determinar la dinámica sedimentaria superficial y analizar su evolución histórica. En el pasado, El Jable fue un extenso campo de dunas de 21 km de largo que atravesaba la isla de norte a sur. Actualmente solo quedan algunas dunas en las proximidades de la Playa de Famara, siendo ésta la zona de aportes marinos al sistema. La caracterización sedimentológica incluye un estudio granulométrico y composicional de los sedimentos superficiales y de los cortes geológicos y calicatas realizados, cuya correlación permite aportar nuevos datos a la historia geológica de esta zona. Por otro lado, el estudio de la dinámica del manto eólico y de las dunas barjanas permite concluir que el transporte efectivo se produce principalmente en época estival y bajo condiciones ambientales concretas. El estudio evolutivo realizado a partir de documentos históricos y fotografía aérea desde 1955 pone en evidencia que debido principalmente a la falta de aportes y al desarrollo de la vegetación, el sistema eólico ha sufrido un cambio tanto en el número como en el tipo de dunas generadas, pasando de un extenso campo de dunas barjanas a un reducido campo de dunas asociadas a vegetación. Teniendo en cuenta el indudable desequilibrio sedimentario, se realiza una propuesta de gestión de la zona más vulnerable, la Playa de Famara y el campo de dunas asociado.

Presentación de JABLE, Archivo de prensa digital en el Gabinete Literario

Acto de presentación del portal JABLE, Archivo de prensa digital, que tuvo lugar el miércoles, día 15 de junio de 2011 a las 20:00 h. en el Salón Dorado del Gabinete Literario. El acto es presidido por D. Juan José Benítez de Lugo y Massieu, Presidente del Gabinete Literario, y cuenta con la presencia de D. José Regidor García, Rector de la ULPGC, Dña Milagros Luis Brito, Consejera de Educación del Gobierno de Canarias, Dña María del Carmen Martín Marichal, Directora de la Biblioteca Universitaria y D. Juan José Laforet, Cronista Oficial de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. Tras la presentación del portal a cargo de la Directora de la Biblioteca Universitaria, D. Juan José Laforet, en su calidad de Doctor en Periodismo y Cronista Oficial, hace una disertación sobre la historia del periodismo en Canarias, haciendo especial mención al primer periódico impreso en Gran Canaria, el Correo político y militar de la ciudad de Córdoba, de 1809.

JABLE: compilar, preservar y divulgar el legado hemerográfico canario

[ES] El artículo, después de presentar de manera resumida cual era la realidad de la prensa canaria en el momento en el que la Biblioteca Universitaria de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria decide liderar el proyecto de digitalización, recoge los antecedentes históricos y técnicos de JABLE, portal de prensa digital canaria de la Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria y el primero en difundirse a través de Hispana y Europeana.

Jable: mucho más que prensa digitalizada

[ES] El artículo hace un recorrido por la historia de Jable, el archivo de prensa digital que la Biblioteca de la Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria pone a disposición de cualquier persona interesada, desde sus orígenes hasta el momento de la redacción del artículo, resaltando las mejoras incorporadas a la herramienta y las principales cabeceras que contiene.

Geographical Distribution Of The Association Between El Niño South Oscillation And Dengue Fever In The Americas: A Continental Analysis Using Geographical Information System-based Techniques.

El Niño South Oscillation (ENSO) is one climatic phenomenon related to the inter-annual variability of global meteorological patterns influencing sea surface temperature and rainfall variability. It influences human health indirectly through extreme temperature and moisture conditions that may accelerate the spread of some vector-borne viral diseases, like dengue fever (DF). This work examines the spatial distribution of association between ENSO and DF in the countries of the Americas during 1995-2004, which includes the 1997-1998 El Niño, one of the most important climatic events of 20(th) century. Data regarding the South Oscillation index (SOI), indicating El Niño-La Niña activity, were obtained from Australian Bureau of Meteorology. The annual DF incidence (AIy) by country was computed using Pan-American Health Association data. SOI and AIy values were standardised as deviations from the mean and plotted in bars-line graphics. The regression coefficient values between SOI and AIy (rSOI,AI) were calculated and spatially interpolated by an inverse distance weighted algorithm. The results indicate that among the five years registering high number of cases (1998, 2002, 2001, 2003 and 1997), four had El Niño activity. In the southern hemisphere, the annual spatial weighted mean centre of epidemics moved southward, from 6° 31' S in 1995 to 21° 12' S in 1999 and the rSOI,AI values were negative in Cuba, Belize, Guyana and Costa Rica, indicating a synchrony between higher DF incidence rates and a higher El Niño activity. The rSOI,AI map allows visualisation of a graded surface with higher values of ENSO-DF associations for Mexico, Central America, northern Caribbean islands and the extreme north-northwest of South America.

The influence of the 1992-1993 el niño on the reproductive biology of Scomber japonicus peruanus (Jordán & Hubb, 1925)

The influence of the 1992-1993 El Niño events on the reproductive behavior of the Scomber japonicus peruanus (Chub mackerel) was studied from samples collected monthly, along the Peruvian coast (3º23'S-14º00'S), from January 1990 to December 1993. The monthly variation of the gonadosomatic index and the frequency of the periods of gonad maturation evidenced that the spawning of the species occurred all year long, being more intense in summer. The values of the gonadosomatic index were higher during the occurrence of the 1992-1993 El Niño, while the body weight and gonad weight decreased. Regarding the condition factor, its values decreased in females over 35 cm in fork length.

The impact of El Nino Southern Oscillation phases on off-season maize yield for a subtropical region of Brazil

In recent years, maize has become one of the main alternative crops for the autumn winter growing season in the central-western and southeastern regions of Brazil. However, water deficits, sub-optimal temperatures and low solar radiation levels are common problems that are experienced during this growing season by local farmers. One methodology to assess the impact of variable weather conditions on crop production is the use of crop simulation models. The goal of this study was to evaluate the effect of climate variability on maize yield for a subtropical region of Brazil. Specific objectives for this study were (1) to analyse the effect of El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) on precipitation and air temperature for four locations in the state of Sao Paulo and (2) to analyse the impact of ENSO on maize grown off-season for the same four locations using a crop simulation model. For each site, historical weather data were categorised as belonging to one of three phases of ENSO: El Nino (warm sea surface temperature anomalies in the Pacific), La Nina (cool sea surface temperature anomalies) or neutral, based on an index derived from observed sea surface temperature anomalies. During El Nino, there is a tendency for an increase in the rainfall amount during May for the four selected locations, and also during April, mainly in three of the locations, resulting in an increase in simulated maize yield planted between February 15 and March 15. In general, there was a decrease in the simulated yield for maize grown off-season during neutral years. This study showed how a crop model can be used to assess the impact of climate variability on the yield of maize grown off-season in a subtropical region of Brazil. The outcomes of this study can be very useful for both policy makers and local farmers for agricultural planning and decision making. Copyright (C) 2009 Royal Meteorological Society

El Nino and arboviral disease prediction

Recent El Nino events have stimulated interest in the development of modeling techniques to forecast extremes of climate and related health events. Previous studies have documented associations between specific climate variables (particularly temperature and rainfall) and outbreaks of arboviral disease. In some countries, such diseases are sensitive to Fl Nino. Here we describe a climate-based model for the prediction of Ross River virus epidemics in Australia. From a literature search and data on case notifications, we determined in which years there were epidemics of Ross River virus in southern Australia between 1928 and 1998. Predictor variables were monthly Southern Oscillation index values for the year of an epidemic or lagged by 1 year. We found that in southeastern states, epidemic years were well predicted by monthly Southern Oscillation index values in January and September in the previous year. The model forecasts that there is a high probability of epidemic Ross River virus in the southern states of Australia in 1999. We conclude that epidemics of arboviral disease can, at least in principle, be predicted on the basis of climate relationships.

Millennial and orbital variations of El Nino/Southern Oscillation and high-latitude climate in the last glacial period

The El Nino/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) phenomenon is believed to have operated continuously over the last glacial interglacial cycle(1). ENSO variability has been suggested to be linked to millennial-scale oscillations in North Atlantic climate during that time(2,3), but the proposals disagree on whether increased frequency of El Nino events, the warm phase of ENSO, was linked to North Atlantic warm or cold periods. Here we present a high-resolution record of surface moisture, based on the degree of peat humification and the ratio of sedges to grass, from northern Queensland, Australia, covering the past 45,000 yr. We observe millennial-scale dry periods, indicating periods of frequent El Nino events ( summer precipitation declines in El Nino years in northeastern Australia). We find that these dry periods are correlated to the Dansgaard - Oeschger events - millennial-scale warm events in the North Atlantic climate record - although no direct atmospheric connection from the North Atlantic to our site can be invoked. Additionally, we find climatic cycles at a semiprecessional timescale (, 11,900 yr). We suggest that climate variations in the tropical Pacific Ocean on millennial as well as orbital timescales, which determined precipitation in northeastern Australia, also exerted an influence on North Atlantic climate through atmospheric and oceanic teleconnections.

Shell utilization by the land hermit crab Coenobita scaevola (Anomura, Coenobitidae) from Wadi El-Gemal, Red Sea

We conducted a study in order to determine the shell utilization pattern of the land hermit crab Coenobita scaevola (Forskal, 1775), the only species representing the family Coenobitidae in the Red Sea. Hermit crabs were collected during July 2003 and January 2004 along the sandy shores of protected area of Wadi-Elgemal, south Red Sea. Animals were fixed in 10% formalin and transported to the laboratory where they were weighed and measured for cephalothoracic shield length (CSL) and width, left propodus length and height. Gastropod shells species were identified, weighed and measured for shell aperture width and length and shell internal volume. A total of 391 individuals were collected (219 females, 172 males) and were found occupying ten shell species, with clear significant occupation of Nerita undata. A positive relationship was obtained between the size of the shells occupied and the hermit crabs. Analysis of shell internal volume and crab dimensions demonstrated that this shell dimension constitutes mainly the determinant for C. scaevola shell utilization. With respect to the size of the animals and the occupied shell type, Nerita undata was occupied by a wide range of CSL (2.5-8.5mm). Small sized crabs (2.5-3.5mm CSL) occupied Planaxis sulcatus and Nassarius arcularius plicatus while larger specimens (8.5-9.5mm CSL) occupied Turbo radiatits, Polinices milanostomus and Monodonta canilifera. Variations in the shell occupation were also recognized among male and females. Comparisons among populational and shell use features led us to suggest the use of this land hermit crab as key-species in the preserving program of shores and protected areas, since this species is the first organism to disappear from any shore when a new tourist establishment is implemented.