As urbanization intensifies, an increasing number of bird species incorporate anthropogenic materials into their nests. This behavior may confer certain benefits but can also constitute an ecological trap, causing mortality through entanglement. In this study, we aimed to assess the prevalence of anthropogenic materials in barn swallows (Hirundo rustica) nests and their association with entanglement injury or mortality. We examined the nest material composition of 193 active barn swallow nests from two geographically distinct populations in China (Hainan in the south and Heilongjiang in the north), finding that 38.3% of nests contained anthropogenic materials, principally human hair (22.3%) and plastic (21.8%), with both occurring at significantly higher rates in the south Hainan population. We report, for the first time, seven cases (3.6%) of entanglement mortality in breeding adults and nestlings caused by human hair and plastic (fishing line) incorporated into nests. Although the number of individuals killed by entanglement in human hair and plastic was not large, our findings indicate that the ubiquitous presence of human hair and plastic in the environment may pose a direct threat to bird survival. A comprehensive, multidimensional understanding of the interactions between birds and anthropogenic materials will contribute to a broader assessment of the threats that environmental pollution poses to avian populations.

No refuge from pollution: ingestion of synthetic debris by the endangered Iberian desman (Galemys pyrenaicus) in freshwater ecosystems of Spain.

Capuchin monkeys are highly skilled primates recognized for their diverse object manipulation, a crucial evolutionary trait. This study explores the influence of the urban, artificial setting of Brasília National Park (BNP)on capuchin monkeys' object manipulation behaviors, aiming to offer more systematic data on this activity within urban Cerrado environments. Object manipulation data were systematically gathered using the "all occurrences" method and video analysis, examining the object, action, and target of each manipulation, along with contextual elements such as date, actor, time, function, type, and food acquisition. Tool use involves modifying an object, substrate, food, another individual, or the self; proto-tool use consists of hitting an object or food against a fixed substrate; simple manipulation refers to handling or carrying a single object without contact. Statistical tests conducted in SPSS 26.0 and R console, including GLMM, binary logistic regression, and Spearman correlation, evaluated individual differences in manipulation involvement, predicted acquisition rates, and assessed links between simpler manipulations and tool use, excluding unclear actor data from statistical but not descriptive analysis. The artificial environment of BNP notably influenced the monkeys' manipulation behaviors, introducing novel anthropogenic materials and altering their techniques relative to natural populations. While overall manipulation frequency varied by sex and age (with males and juveniles manipulating more), specific manipulation types did not show such variation, and tool use correlated with simpler manipulations, supporting a learning-based progression Unexpectedly, tool use yielded lower rates of food acquisition than other manipulation types. Furthermore, food acquisition through tool use was more frequent among males, possibly attributable to the dominant male's lack of tool use, which did not provide a reliable model for this behavior.

Over the past decade, awareness of macroplastic (MAP) pollution in rivers as a major contributor to marine litter has increased substantially. However, in urban river environments, the storage and retention dynamics of macroplastics on riverbanks remain poorly understood. This study addresses this gap by investigating MAP (and other anthropogenic material) retention across distinct compartments of the Spree River in Berlin (Germany), including riverbanks with varying substrate types, aquatic-terrestrial interfaces, and the river channel. The analysis of plastic debris identifies dominant categories and their polymer compositions. Our results indicate that in the highly engineered urban section of the Spree River, characterized by embankments 1-3m high, MAP exchange driven by surface runoff and wind is predominantly unidirectional, from riverbanks toward the channel. These embankments act as discontinuities that inhibit reverse transport from the channel to the banks, a process commonly observed in natural rivers, and likely contribute to the distinct MAP densities and compositions observed along the riverbanks. Although direct littering cannot be excluded, the observed spatial patterns suggest that lateral transport from riverbanks represents a dominant contribution to plastics in the active channel. Polypropylene was the most prevalent polymer, accounting for 41% of all collected items, while food wrappers emerged as the dominant debris category, comprising nearly 35% of the total macroplastic load. These findings highlight the critical need to understand macroplastic retention processes in urban rivers to support the design of targeted, compartment-specific mitigation and clean-up strategies.

Plastic debris entanglement is a significant threat to avian populations. While primarily reported in marine species, terrestrial birds inhabiting urban environments are increasingly exposed to anthropogenic materials. We studied mortality and injury in the Eurasian tree sparrow (Passer montanus) resulting from the incorporation of plastic debris into nests across an urbanization gradient near Gwangju, Republic of Korea. We quantified urbanization based on building, paved road, and vegetation cover using semi-automated image processing. All 38 nests surveyed across 11 roof-tiled houses contained anthropogenic materials, constituting an average of 13.6% (6.51 ± 5.31g) of the total dry nest weight. Linear materials, particularly plastic line, were the most prevalent type, used mainly in the outer wall of the nest. We documented a total of seven carcasses (both juvenile and adult) and three live nestlings entangled with this material. Entanglement primarily occurred around the legs, wings, and/or neck, leading to death for the deceased individuals and injury for the surviving nestlings. The higher the urbanization score, the greater the dry weight of anthropogenic material within the nest. Although the live nestlings were rescued and successfully fledged, the high incidence of mortality indicates that a severe ecological trap is created by the widespread availability and use of linear plastic debris as nesting material. These findings highlight a need for increased conservation focus on the entanglement risk posed by plastic debris to common, urban-adapted terrestrial bird species.

ABSTRACT Venus preserves the remains of landers and probes from 15 space missions concentrated between 1965 and 1985. These artifacts and sites represent the earliest material traces of direct human interaction with the surface of the planet and are therefore of considerable historical significance. However, the extent to which material left on the Venusian surface is preserved remains poorly understood. They were deposited or impacted within one of the most extreme surface environments in the Solar System, characterized by temperatures of ~460°C, atmospheric pressures of ~92 bar dominated by supercritical CO₂ and chemically reactive gases. Additionally, the Venusian environment includes active surface processes such as volcanic, seismic, and mass‐movement events. For these reasons, it is commonly assumed that Venus's surface environment would rapidly erase anthropogenic material remains. This study assesses the preservation state of Venusian space heritage by adopting the theoretical and methodological framework of planetary geoarcheology. First, we provide an archeological catalog of all known Venusian landing and impact contexts. Next, we draw from available geological and geomorphological datasets to qualitatively evaluate preservation conditions of these contexts. Finally, we provide an in‐depth case study focused on atmospheric effects on the Pioneer Venus Day Probe (1978). Our study suggests that, despite the harsh conditions and ongoing physical and chemical alterations that may indicate unfavorable preservation conditions, Venusian space heritage may exhibit a high potential for long‐term preservation favored by slow geological processes and global climatic stability. Further, as demonstrated below, while specific construction materials, such as beryllium, Kapton, and silicone‐based components, are likely to have been heavily degraded or destroyed, the majority of materials used in the main structure and in various probe subsystems, including titanium, ceramic, and aluminum, are likely to be preserved, albeit oxidized, corroded, and potentially deformed. These findings challenge prevailing assumptions about preservation conditions on Venus and establish the planet as a key case study for planetary geoarcheology, space archeology, and heritage.

The construction industry is increasingly exploring alternatives to natural aggregates, driven by sustainability concerns and landfill waste reduction. Blast furnace slag, a byproduct of steel manufacturing, exemplifies this shift, serving as a substitute aggregate or concrete additive. This transition supports the circular economy principle, where yesterday’s waste transforms into today’s resources. Key to this practice is the precise determination of material parameters, which vary depending on their origin. Among these, the filtration coefficient is critical, affecting the performance of anthropogenic aggregates in construction and infrastructure. It indicates how well materials transmit water, a factor vital for structural integrity. Machine Learning (ML) presents a promising tool for estimating such parameters efficiently. This paper explores various ML techniques for predicting the filtration coefficient, comparing their effectiveness and examining the impact of the physical properties of aggregates on model accuracy. Through this approach, the paper aims to identify the most suitable methods for parameter estimation, which could enhance the durability and stability of constructions that utilize recycled materials. This research not only contributes to the field of civil engineering but also advances sustainable practices within the industry.

An ongoing challenge in pelagic oceanography and limnology is to quantify and understand the distribution of suspended particles and particle aggregates with sufficient temporal and spatial fidelity to understand their dynamics. These particles include biotic (mesoplankton, organic fragments, fecal pellets, etc.) and abiotic (dusts, precipitates, sediments and flocks, anthropogenic materials, etc.) matter and their aggregates (i.e., marine snow), which form a large part of the total particulate matter > 200 μm in size in the ocean. The transport of organic material from surface waters to the deep-sea floor is of particular interest, as it is recognized as a key factor controlling the global carbon cycle and hence, a critical process influencing the sequestration of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Here we describe the development of an oceanographic instrument, the Pelagic Laser Tomographer (PLT), that uses high-resolution optical technology, coupled with post-processing analysis, to scan the 3D content of the water column to detect and quantify 3D distributions of small particles. Existing optical instruments typically trade sampling volume for spatial resolution or require large, complex platforms. The PLT addresses this gap by combining high-resolution laser-sheet imaging with large effective sampling volumes in a compact, deployable system. The PLT can generate spatial distributions of small particles (~100 µm and larger) across large water volumes (order 100–1000 m3) during a typical deployment, and allow measurements of particle patchiness over spatial scales to less than 1 mm. The instrument’s small size (6 kg), high resolution (~100 µm in each 3000 cm2 tomographic image slice), and analysis software provide a tool for pelagic studies that have typically been limited by high cost, data storage, resolution, and mechanical constraints, all usually necessitating bulky instrumentation and infrequent deployment, typically requiring a large research vessel.

ABSTRACTUrbanization and human population growth have significantly increased the presence of anthropogenic materials in natural environments, prompting growing interest in how wildlife may be adapting to these changes. One such behavioral response is the incorporation of anthropogenic materials into animal nests, a phenomenon that has raised concerns due to its potential harmful effects, such as entanglement or ingestion. While this behavior has been documented widely in birds, it remains underreported in other taxa, partly due to the difficulty of locating nests. In this study, we describe multiple instances of anthropogenic materials (including plastic) being incorporated into the hibernation nests of European hedgehogs, Erinaceus europaeus. Four nests were dissected, of which two nests contained anthropogenic materials, including a plastic bag, foil and expanded polystyrene. These findings suggest that hedgehogs may opportunistically use available anthropogenic materials in nest construction, potentially as a response to urban environments. Our findings help broaden the understanding of mammalian responses to urbanization and emphasize the need to investigate whether the incorporation of these materials is likely to be harmful or adaptive to hedgehogs and for mammals generally.

ABSTRACTMany birds add anthropogenic material to the nest. This may increase the probability of total failure because the nest may be more easily located by enemies. However, the material may also induce a threat response in predators sceptical to new objects (the Neophobia Hypothesis). We presented artificial nests on the ground each with two quail eggs, in territories of Eurasian magpies Pica pica in spring. Some nests were decorated with pieces of white plastic while others were not (control). When nests of both types were presented simultaneously on a magpie territory and only a meter apart, depredation started later for nests with plastic than for control nests, supporting the Neophobia Hypothesis. When a trial was repeated on the same territory later in the season, predation started sooner. However, this was probably caused by habituation to the experimental set up (wildlife camera and artificial nests) and not to the plastic itself because in the repeated trials, the eggs in the nests with plastic were still depredated later than the eggs in the control nests. The nests were not depredated sooner if similar experiments had been conducted on the same territory in the previous year. The onset of depredation was no sooner in territories that initially contained plastic close to the magpie nest than in territories containing no plastic. Finally, when only a single nest was presented on a magpie territory, the time lag until depredation was similar for decorated and control nests, suggesting that the increased detectability caused by decoration outweighed the fear response to the plastic. We conclude that the Neophobia Hypothesis may be relevant to natural cases including birds nesting in habitats containing anthropogenic material and to circumstances with repeated visits by corvids to bird nests, such as in a bird colony.

Urbanization alters ecological conditions, yet its impacts on avian reproduction are not fully understood. In many bird species, nestlings growing up in cities tend to have slower growth rates and poorer body conditions than those in rural areas. Using nest boxes, we compared the breeding ecology and nestling growth of the common myna Acridotheres tristis in urban and rural environments of Mardan, Pakistan. Nest‐box occupancies were higher in rural areas, but both rural and urban nest boxes were rarely and unsuccessfully reused for the second breeding attempt. Fledging success was closely related to box orientation, and east‐facing boxes had the greatest number of fledglings in both habitats. Nest architecture within the boxes differed considerably, with nest construction taking longer at urban sites than at rural sites. Urban nests were heavier, with smaller outer diameters but slightly larger inner diameters, whereas nest depth did not differ between habitats. Urban nests contained anthropogenic materials (plastic) and feathers, whereas rural nests primarily contained natural plant materials. Urban pairs began breeding earlier than their rural counterparts; however, rural nests had longer incubation and nestling periods, resulting in extended overall breeding timelines. Clutch and brood sizes did not vary between habitats, although urban eggs were smaller, narrower, and more elongated. Fledging success was significantly higher in urban nest boxes than in rural nest boxes. Most importantly, urban fledglings had compromised growth trajectories and poorer body conditions, indicating physiological and developmental costs of growing up in a city. Our results suggest that common mynas in anthropogenic habitats show wide variations in the timing of breeding and the growth trajectory of nestlings. These results enhance our understanding of avian life‐history plasticity in the face of rapid urbanization and offer a broad perspective on the evolutionary ecology of urban bird adaptation.

Exploring microbial diversity, antibiotic resistance, and their environmental drivers in urban and peri-urban riverbed sediments of sub-tropical river basins.

Cement-based products sequester CO2 in the atmosphere throughout their life cycle. The extent of sequestration highly depends on the context. We implement a bottom-up model of different cement end-use applications (buildings, pavements, bridges, pipelines, and other infrastructure) in the United States and Mexico to estimate the in-use and end-of-life carbon uptake in cement. We show that carbon uptake in 2024 could sequester approximately 13% of process emissions associated with cement consumption, which is around 6.7 Mt CO2. We observe a four-fold variation in the uptake per square area across all the states due to regional differences in the distribution of building types, concrete mix designs, and climates. The building sector uptake is almost twice as large as infrastructure systems. In Mexico, the current stock of cement-based products sequesters around one-quarter of the industry's annual process emissions, implying the importance of local differences in end-use context, which can dramatically alter the extent of carbon uptake. Where prudent, enhancing carbon uptake in cement-based products is a valuable strategy to move toward carbon neutrality in the construction sector. The findings in this paper provide a fundamental shift in understanding how anthropogenic materials interact with the carbon cycle, which changes how national greenhouse gas inventories are calculated.

This study aims to examine the feasibility of using magnetic techniques to identify anthropogenic materials produced by human activities. Rock magnetism, geochemical analysis, and pollution index calculations were used. The magnetic signal of the topsoil from the industrial area is greatly enhanced when compared with the background, with a magnetic susceptibility (χLF) of 0.23–42.60 × 10⁻⁶ m³/kg. However, industrial topsoil contains only a small number of pedogenic Superparamagnetic (SP) grains, as indicated by the low average χFD% value (<2%). The geochemical properties of the magnetic fraction in industrial topsoil differ significantly from those of topsoil generally found in peatlands. This indicates that magnetic minerals in industrial topsoil originate not only from pedogenic processes, but also from parent soil materials in the surrounding area. Significant magnetic correlation techniques can screen for topsoil pollution in this area, as evidenced by the significant correlations between χLF, Fe, and Mn, as well as between χHF and χFD%. Five heavy metals had abundances exceeding the threshold, as shown by the Pollution Load Index (PLI), which indicated moderate to very high pollution.

Abstract Urban vegetation is exposed to intense environmental stress and anthropogenic disturbance, which can strongly constrain plant growth and development. Urban soils differ from natural soils in structure and functionality, being characterized by high compaction and elevated levels of pollutants. They frequently contain anthropogenic materials such as construction and demolition waste (CDW) and asphalt residues (AS), which further alter soil features. Due to their abundance and inert nature, the reuse of these materials as alternative substrates for urban green infrastructure warrants experimental investigation. This study assessed the effects of asphalt and two types of sands frequently used in pavement construction, namely standard sand (SS) and recycled sand (RS), on the germination and early development of Borago officinalis . Seeds were sown in trays filled with the test substrates, while potting soil (SO) served as control treatment. We monitored seed germination success, seedling emergence, mortality, biomass accumulation, and evaluated morpho-anatomical and physiological traits such as leaf area, shoot and root dry weight, stomatal density, stomatal conductance, and photochemical efficiency. Seedling emergence and survival were significantly reduced in AS, where mortality reached 60% and leaf development was strongly delayed. As expected, SO plants exhibited the highest biomass and physiological performance, with greater transpiration and lower stomatal density, indicating favourable water use efficiency. Overall, our findings suggest that while AS is unsuitable for early plant development, recycled CDW materials may serve as alternative, though suboptimal, components in the construction of urban Technosols. Their reuse could ease landfill pressure, limit the environmental costs of natural soil exploitation, and support key ecosystem services, thus aligning with circular economy goals and fostering more sustainable urban greening.

Nests are structures that protect eggs and nestlings from the external environment while also serving various other functions in avian life histories. Nest-building behaviour varies between species and habitats, and recent work has highlighted that in areas with high human activity and low availability of natural nest material, birds may use anthropogenic material to construct nests. However, we know relatively little about how nest composition is affected by human presence along urban gradients. Here we examined how nest composition differed between urban and forest populations of blue tits Cyanistes caeruleus, and the impact that variation in nest composition had on reproductive success (clutch size, hatching and fledging success). We found a statistically significant decrease in the weight of moss and grass and an increase in anthropogenic materials in urban compared to forest nests. Nests initiated earlier in the urban environment showed a higher weight of anthropogenic materials. The weight of moss and grass was positively related to fledging success. Our results suggest that the use of anthropogenic material by urban birds might be a maladaptation, and/or that urban birds are constrained in the amount of moss and grass they can find during nest building. Future studies should aim to quantify the availability of material within the environment to test these non-mutually exclusive hypotheses.

Approximately 39% of U.S. homes are now located in the Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) and are at elevated risk of burning during wildfires. WUI fires emit a cocktail of chemicals from the combustion of anthropogenic materials, including compounds that may differ from the burning of biogenic-only materials. There is currently limited knowledge on the mixture composition of combustible materials in WUI homes, representing a data gap and need to further characterize exposure chemistries and toxicological impacts of WUI-relevant smoke exposures. To address this issue, this study integrated combustible materials in an average American WUI home to derive what we are referring to as the "Burning ExposHome." Items such as structural materials, plumbing, furnishings, and appliances were included in the Burning ExposHome. Calculations were based on an average American household, a 2,016 sq. ft. single family home of four bedrooms, using materials typical to California due to the high incidence of WUI fires in that geographic region. All materials were sorted and summed by type of base material such as wood materials, plastics, textiles, and metals. This list is notably modular and detailed per item, allowing for the addition/subtraction of components to address future study designs. In summary, the total combustible mass of an average American home was around 46,500kg, including 81% wood materials, 6% plastics, and 2% metals. This list of materials serves as a foundational mixture of home materials to integrate into exposure characterization, mechanistic toxicology, and ecological/human health research addressing wildfires occurring at the growing WUI.

Runoff waters pose a significant pathway for plastics and other anthropogenic material to the local aquatic systems. We studied microplastic fluxes of the runoff systems in Kuopio, Finland, using fraction filtration and imaging FPA-FTIR spectroscopy. We also studied metals, nutrients, solid matter, and flowrate in the runoff. We studied in total of four sites around the city including snow dump site, city center, suburb and a combination of park, city center and suburb. Sampled volumes for microplastics were 50L in two replicates when possible. Size of analyzed microplastics ranged from 13 to 4164μm, with an average±standard deviation size of 185±215μm. Microplastic concentrations varied greatly depending on rain conditions, ranging from 0.6 to 46 MPs L-1 per replicate. Average±standard deviation of microplastic in all samples combined was 9.6±12.1 MPs L-1. Correspondingly, we estimated microplastic discharge to the environment to be as high as 23.4×106 particles and 62.5g per rain event. The most common polymer types in runoff were polypropylene, polyethylene and polystyrene and the distribution of these polymers varied considerably. Microplastic particle concentrations showed strong Spearman correlation with nickel, and moderate correlation with zinc and lead. Furthermore, microplastic mass concentration had strong correlation with solid matter, total phosphorus, nickel, copper, zinc and lead. This study shows that urban runoff has a relatively high concentration of microplastics, and that plastics are released alongside other matter from the catchment areas. Also, snow dump site acts as a constant source of microplastics throughout the summer regardless of rain events. Our results highlight the importance of runoff water management in urban areas, as the discharge of anthropogenic litter to nearby aquatic environments is prominent.

The goal of the current study was to determine the diet ecology of the population of jackal’s residing in various areas of the district Karak. It was carried out at the GPGC Karak Zoology Department. Total 96 scats samples were gathered from various locations. The purpose of this study was to learn more about the district Karak Asiatic jackal population's dietary preferences and projected abundance. Each and every sample from the scats was examined in a lab. The current study's findings suggested that the average percent volume composition (N=96) of scats samples from each of the three sites (Tehsils) in the district of Karak showed that this sample constitutes 48%plant matters, 42.22%animal matters, and 4.12% soil, while average anthropogenic materials recovered from all scats samples were 5.7% by volume. Particularly, the plant materials include seeds, grass, tiny leaves and stems, wheat (Triticumaestivum), Bair (Zizyphus spp.), Bajra (Pennisetumglaucum), zheera (Cuminumcyaminum), chana (Cicerarietinum), orange (Citrus sinensis), melon (Cucumismelo), water melon (Citruluslanatus). Similar to the animal matter, which consists of bones, scat analysis also revealed the presence of house rats (Rattusrattus), dogs (Canisfamiliaris), rabbits (Oryctolaguscuniculus), goats (Capra hircus), sheep (Ovisaries), cows (Bos Taurus), reptiles and some invertebrates. The soil and anthropogenic elements, in addition to plant and animal material, altered the food preferences of Asiatic jackals.

The anthropogenic material in-use stocks accumulated in products, buildings, and infrastructure are essential for satisfying basic human demands and ensuring well-being. They drive global resource demand and environmental impacts while representing valuable resource reservoirs for potential recycling through urban mining. A high-resolution understanding of global material in-use stocks was achieved by integrating reconciled night-time light imageries with national stock data on primary construction materials, including steel, aluminum, and cement. The integration enabled the estimates of global stocks from 2000 to 2019 at a 500 × 500 m grid resolution. The updated dataset mitigated saturation and blooming effects in prior satellite data compared to previous datasets, offering refined temporal and geographical representations despite some regional variations. The refined results systematically elucidate the spatiotemporal dynamics of material accumulation worldwide, highlighting distribution discrepancies between and within cities. The comprehensive database serves as a helpful resource for supporting waste management, circular economy, spatial planning, urban sustainability, and climate change mitigation efforts across various geographical scales.