Coast Of Apulia Research Articles

Medium-term Erosion Processes of South Adriatic Beaches (Apulia, Italy): A Challenge for an Integrated Coastal Zone Management

This paper aims to evaluate the causes of shoreline shift on a low-lying coast whose beaches have undergone erosion throughout the last six decades. The case study regards about 70 km long southern Adriatic coast of Apulia (Italy). Shoreline retreat has affected the economy of the tourism activities as well as forced environmental changes in lagoons and coastal moist areas. The study was carried out using field surveys and interpretation of map, orthophots and satellite images. Shoreline mobility changes in space and in time are stressed. Mean shoreline retreats of 10 (±5) m from the late 1940s to the late 1980s, and of 5 (±2.5) m from the late 1980s to the early 2010s have been estimated. Retreats up to 50 (±10) m have affected portions of beach of tens of meters long and particularly prone to erosion. A pocket beach was in dynamic equilibrium over the last twenty years and most likely progradated over the last six decades. The collected data allow for the determination of changes in the possible main cause of erosion occurred in the early 1990s. In view of climatic changes, the economic relevance of the coast for the tourism industry, the importance of several habitats and the uncertainty about the magnitude of erosion processes make the development of tools for the integrated management of the coastal zone an engaging challenge.

Dynamic response of a rocky cliff under the sea wave pulse: a study along the Adriatic coast of Polignano (Apulia, Italy)

The dynamic behavior of a rocky cliff under severe sea waves has been analyzed in the location of Polignano, facing on the Adriatic coast of Apulia, Southern Italy. In this area, the classical and, at the same time, complex problem of the stability of a cliff in calcareous rocks is burdened by the presence on the top of the cliff of the ancient town. To analyze the behavior of the cliff under the impulsive transfer of energy generated by the sea waves, two types of measures were carried out on the rocky mass: (1) ambient noise and (2) strong-motion records. The first type of measures, which may be executed in a short time with a high spatial density, has provided a recognition of the intrinsic and anisotropic dynamic behavior of the coastal cliff. The accelerometric records, carried out during heavy storms in December 2009 and January 2010, allowed to evaluate the energy transfer from waves to cliff, in terms of maximum values and temporal and directional distribution. To facilitate a correct interpretation of the measures, also a geomechanical characterization of the rocky mass has been carried out through the Rock Mass Rating system Bieniawski (The Geomechanics Classification in Rock Engineering Applications. Proceedings of the 4th ISRM Cong., Montreux, pp 51–58, 1979), Bieniawski (Engineering Rock Mass Classifications. Wiley, New York, p 251,1989) and the Markland’s test (A useful technique for estimating the stability of rock slopes when the rigid wedge sliding type of failure is expected, pp 10,1972). The first allowed to classify the rocky masses in terms of quality, the second one to individuate the potential failure mechanisms of the cliff.

Studies on Environmental Effects of Underwater Chemical Munitions in the Southern Adriatic Sea (Mediterranean Sea)

AbstractThe present paper shows the multidisciplinary approach used to assess the ecotoxicity of chemical munitions lying on the seabed in the Southern Adriatic Sea where aerial bombs charged with mustard agent and organoarsenic chemical warfare agents (CWAs) have been dumped.Sampling activities and laboratory analyses have been carried out on two sentinel species, the blackbelly rosefish, Helicolenus dactylopterus, and the European conger, Conger conger, collected in a CWA dumping site 35 nm from the coast of Apulia, Italy, and from a reference site. Fish were analyzed through an ecotoxicological approach, integrating chemical analysis and biological responses.Degradation products of the blister agents bis-(2-chloroethyl)sulphide, commonly known as mustard agent or yperite (also called sulfur or sulfur mustard), were found in sediment samples collected nearby aerial bombs. Although no evidence of these compounds was detected in tissues of either fish, levels of heavy metals (arsenic and mercury), potentially released by rusted chemical weapons, were significantly higher in sediment and fish from the CWA site compared to the reference site. Severe external and internal lesions were observed in fish captured in the CWA site, with congers displaying small to large skin ulcers along the body. Health assessment index (HAI) values, as well as spleen melano-macrophages centres and CYP1A ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase activity were higher in fish from the CWA site, indicating a chronic state of illness and environment degradation.The working procedures and analyses performed during these surveys could be suitable for future biomonitoring studies in other CWA dumping sites.

Radiocarbon Age Anomalies in Pre- and Post-Bomb Land Snails from the Coastal Mediterranean Basin

The shell carbonate of pre- and post-bomb samples of 2 species of terrestrial gastropods (Theba pisana and Cernuella virgata) sampled along the coast of Apulia, southern Italy, were dated using accelerator mass spectrometry and carbon stable isotopes were analyzed. The analyses show, for both species, significant anomalies in the radiocarbon age due to the possible presence of a 14C-depleted source of carbon in the formation of the shell aragonite. The magnitude of the age anomaly was quantified in the studied area to ∼1000 14C yr.

A new meiobenthic priapulid (Priapulida, Tubiluchidae) from a Mediterranean submarine cave

A new priapulid species belonging to genus Tubiluchus is described on the basis of specimens collected in November, 2000 and June, 2001 in a submarine cave along the Ionian coast of Apulia, Southern Italy. The new species closely resembles T. corallicola that inhabits the tropical‐subtropical areas of the Western Atlantic Ocean but can be distinguished by the smaller size of the adults, and the smaller size and the shape of the pharyngeal teeth of the larval stages. A careful microscopical survey of the sensorial elements led to the discovery of a central bristle in the flosculi and a small hole at the tip of the associated setae, allowing speculation about a tactile sensorial function for the former and a chemoreceptive function for the latter. While T. troglodytes n. sp. represents the first fully described species of this genus from the Mediterranean Sea, the population densities recorded, particularly those found in June, 2001 (83.8 ± 40.1 SD ind./10 cm2) rank among the highest value reported for priapulids from any location in the world. On both sampling dates the sex ratio (female/total adults) in the T. troglodytes n. sp. population averaged about 0.6. Presence of larval stages of different ages during both sampling periods could imply that Tubiluchus spp reproduce the year around.

Local recruitment differences in Platynereis dumerilii (Polychaeta, Nereididae) and their consequences for population structure

The population structure of Platynereis dumerilii (Annelida, Polychaeta, Nereididae) was investigated for 18 months (February 1997‐August 1998) in two sites (Gargano and Otranto), located 400 km from each other, along the Adriatic coast of Apulia (Italy). Samples were collected in three replicates by scraping off 100‐cm2 quadrats in a fringe of the brown alga Cystoseira amentacea. At the beginning of the study period, a recruitment event was observed in both sites. Despite the great difference in recruitment rates, at the end of the study period, local population density was similar in the two sites, suggesting the importance of post‐recruitment factors in controlling population density. Intra‐ and interspecific competition, predation, and physical stress are discussed in the light of the different ecological conditions of the two sites. Recruit distribution appeared relatively homogeneous in space with recruitment rates not being different among quadrat replicates. Variability in size class distribution among quadrat replicates was lower during the recruitment period, suggesting that the observed patchy patterns of adult distribution were a product of post‐recruitment events.

Spatial variability and human disturbance in shallow subtidal hard substrate assemblages: a regional approach

Quantitative information about spatial patterns in subtidal hard substrate assemblages is scant. Such information is necessary to understand the responses to anthropogenic disturbances in these habitats. Along the coast of Apulia (Southern Italy), the collection of the European date mussel Lithophaga lithophag ais a strong source of disturbance: harvesting is carried out by demolition of the rocky substrate and causes epibiota disappearance. A hierarchical sampling design was used to quantify the spatial variability of subtidal epibenthic assemblages and the extent of rock damage due to L. lithophaga harvesting along 360 km of rocky coasts in Apulia. The surveyed coast was divided into 8 adjacent sectors, and replicate samples were taken by visual inspection at each of the 3 sites nested in each sector. Multivariate analyses indicated that assemblages differed consistently with spatial scale, variability being higher at the largest scale. However, variability among sites within each sector was also detected. Patchiness (i.e., average similarity among quadrats) was consistent among sectors. Some species were identified as 'important' in characterising and/or differentiating sectors. The pattern of distribution of these species as well as total cover and number of species were analysed by analysis of variance. Results recorded a considerable source of variation at site level. Damage by L. lithophaga fishing was shown to be extremely widespread. A humped relationship between patchiness and disturbances by L. lithophag afisheries was obtained. In particular, patchi- ness at a small scale was highest at 'intermediate' levels of damage, because disturbance produces patches of different size and/or age, leading to 'mosaic' landscapes of epibenthic assemblages.

Post mortem investigations on cetaceans found stranded on the coasts of Italy between 1990 and 1993

Detailed pathological and virological examinations were carried out on 25 cetaceans found stranded between 1990 and 1993 on the coasts of six Italian regions (Latium, Tuscany, Apulia, Abruzzo, Veneto and Sicily). There were 16 striped dolphins (Stenella coeruleoalba), three bottlenosed dolphins (Tursiops truncatus), three Risso's dolphins (Grampus griseus), one rough-toothed dolphin (Steno bredanensis), one fin whale pup (Balaenoptera physalus), and one minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata). Apart from parasitic diseases (44 per cent), the most frequently detected lesions were pneumonia (68 per cent), enteritis (44 per cent), non-purulent hepatitis (40 per cent), interstitial nephritis (32 per cent) and encephalitis (32 per cent). Morbilivirus infection was diagnosed by immunocytochemistry in four striped dolphins, two stranded on the coasts of Latium in 1991 and two on the coasts of Tuscany in 1993. Despite the presence of lesions consistent with morbilliviral pneumonia in two other striped dolphins stranded on the coast of Apulia in 1991, no morbillivirus antigen was demonstrated in the tissues of these animals. Anticanine distemper virus antibodies were detected in the serum of the adult minke whale found stranded on the coast of Tuscany in 1993. However, no viruses were isolated from the tissues of any of the 25 cetaceans.

Su Alcuni Ritrovamenti Interessanti di Alghe in Puglia e in Sardegna

Abstract About some interesting seaweeds collected in Apulia and in Sardinia, Italy. — The author reports on three species of seaweeds collected in Apulia and in Sardinia: Anadyomene stellata Ag., new for the western coast of Apulia; Galaxaura adriatica Zan., new for the Gulf of Taranto where it was found near a fresh water spring affecting the surrounding sea water (previous reports were based on dead specimens found on the beach); Vidalia volubilis J. Ag. has been found in very shallow water in Sardinia, in a cleft sheltered from direct light.