Ecological Planning Research Articles

Quantitative analysis and management of sustainable development of ecological water resources and digital financial system based on an intelligent algorithm

Abstract In the modern day, water is a crucial resource for advancing society and preserving ecological balance. Growth, which lessens poverty and increases equality, is often seen as inextricably linked to the effective use of water resources. Traditional water system management aims to optimize surface water and subsurface aquifers to meet conflicting needs. As a result, the special difficulties in water resource management (WRM) would be exacerbated by the added uncertainty brought on by climatic change. Managing the world's water supplies sustainably is crucial to the planet's continued existence and prosperity. However, ecological planning for sustainable water development is difficult because of complex impacts, random processes, and hydrological restrictions. The study was inspired to address the issues head-on by creating a hybrid AI algorithm for ecological water resource sustainability and digital finance (HAI-EWRS-DF) system for solving complex, multi-scale problems in WRM. Control mechanisms, including social, financial, and sustainability on ground-level and surface-level water resource facilities, are recommended to enhance WRM to increase the applicable revenue, promote community well-being, and pave the way for greater economic development.

Urban Ecosystem Services and Determinants of Stakeholders’ Perception for Sustainable Cities Planning in Cotonou (Benin)

Anarchic urbanization and land artificialization expose urban ecosystems and ecosystem services (ES) to threat. Urban ecosystems and trees play a crucial role in improving urban environments, and their management depends on the perceptions and preferences of urban residents. An assessment of the socio-ecological factors determining the perception of the actors allows for the proper design and planning of ecological urban policies and urban adaptation to climate change. The objective of this work was to determine the key determinants (factors) of urban stakeholders’ perceptions of ES in generating socio-ecological information for planning and preservation of ecosystems in Cotonou municipality. In this way, we assessed the perception and discriminating variables of the different stakeholders of urban ES provided in the city of Cotonou. Thus, 381 city dwellers were individually interviewed after statistical sampling. Focus group discussions with the stakeholders also made it possible to highlight the ES provided in the different land use units (LU). The results show that 73.23% of the city dwellers agreed that they were aware of ecosystem services. The hierarchical classification shows two homogeneous groups of perceivers with ethnicity, age, and education as statistically discriminating sociological variables (pv ˂ 0.001). Urban dwellers in the city of Cotonou perceived more SEs in the cultural and regulatory services category significantly (pv < 0.001; v-test > 3). The principal component analysis (PCA) reveals the varying availability of ES according to the different LU in the city. It will be worthwhile to apply this study in the processes of decision-making in climate and environment policy planning for sustainable cities in Africa and all over the world because it adds scientific value.

Assessment of fluctuations in wetland ecosystem areas resulting from anthropogenic activities in the Dong Rui commune, Quang Ninh Province, Vietnam

Wetlands are one of the most important ecosystems as habitats for many animal and plant species and are crucial for disaster mitigation, improving environmental quality, storing carbon, and responding to climate change. However, these sensitive ecosystems have been heavily affected by anthropogenic activities, including aquaculture. In this study, we used multitemporal satellite imagery integrated with a verified field survey method to map the coverage of the wetland ecosystem in the Dong Rui commune, Tien Yen district, Quang Ninh Province, Vietnam, five times for four periods from 1975 to 2022, with high accuracy (overall accuracy = 92.3%, Kappa = 0.91). The results showed that from 1975 to 2000, the area of mangrove forests declined sharply (by nearly 2,000 ha), mainly due to policies of development and conversion of land use. From 2000 to 2022, the mangrove forest area was gradually restored, while the area under aquaculture shrank. Anthropogenic impacts, especially the effects of local economic development, and conservation and developmental policies, are the main causes of continuous change in each short period. Our study demonstrates satellite imagery as an effective tool for assessing wetland ecosystem area fluctuations and assessing the extent of human impacts on this natural ecosystem. Our findings can serve as a basis for planning, conservation strategies, and sustainable development of wetland ecosystems and for improving the associated livelihoods of the communities.

Coupling Study of Urban Ecological Planning and Environmental Music in Hefei University Town, China

Urban ecological planning uses ecology, environmental science, economics, and urbanology to adjust and transform various complex urban relationships, seeking to expand benefits and reducing risks. Environmental music, a kind of non appreciative music, can act on subject consciousness and may influence the urban ecosystem in which it is employed. Many connections appear between urban ecological planning and environmental music. This study took the university town of Hefei City, Anhui Province, China, as an example. This work was conducted to explore the effects of environmental music on the development of urban ecological planning by combining relevant studies of environmental science, urban ecology, urban planning, and musicology. The results showed that environmental music, as a cultural information flow, affected the urban ecosystem and had a typical function for different ecological function zones in the city. Different types of environmental music had spiritual and cultural publicity functions in regulating the main body of the urban ecosystem (residents and students), and it also influenced the growth of common plants in cities and had different ecological and environmental effects.

Sustainable Tourism Planning on Landscape Scale: Case Study from Slovakia (Central Europe)

Abstract The European cultural landscape and its traditional values represent a significant condition for recreation and tourism. However, we are aware of the negative consequences of human activity in the past years in rural areas and pay more attention to protecting these values. Modern rural recreation and tourism must be built on scientific background. That is why the presented contribution brings an innovative integrated approach to sustainable rural recreation and tourism model by applying landscape ecological planning methodology with a combination of ecological stability and landscape character assessment. It deals with the qualitative evaluation of the landscape potential of the foothill village of Podkonice in Slovakia and the possibilities of its use in sustainable rural tourism. Determining the potential in confrontation with different forms of tourism activities can help achieve a sustainable tourism concept. The main result of the presented research is the final optimal selection of activities and use of the landscape with regard to the development of tourism. Such a proposal can be used in spatial planning and strategic decision-making processes not only in the study area, but it can be applied in the European context.

A systematic review of shrinking cities literature: lessons from the past and directions for the future

ABSTRACT This study sheds light on the state of knowledge on shrinking cities over the past four decades by identifying major thematic clusters, conceptual evolutions, and key players. The bibliometric analysis tools of VOSviewer and SciMAT were used to analyze 562 documents indexed in the Scopus and Web of Science (WoS) databases. The publication trend was divided into three subperiods: the genesis period (1978–2004), the growth period (2004–2015), and the rapid growth period (2015–2021). The most significant conceptual evolution in the field occurred between 2004 and 2015. Three thematic clusters were identified: (1) urban policy and planning, (2) physical and ecological planning, and (3) demographic and regional development. This review highlights that issues related to governance and regional, physical, and ecological planning have attracted more attention. Moving beyond past research, we provide four promising areas for further research in shrinking city studies.

Evaluating the ecological health of aquatic habitats in a megacity through a multimetric index model based on macroinvertebrates

Globally, urban water bodies suffer from a variety of ecological pressures which profoundly change freshwater ecosystem services and pose a great threat to aquatic biodiversity. To identify the effects of these pressures on aquatic communities, we systematically investigated the macroinvertebrates in different water types (e.g., mountain rivers, plain rivers, lakes, and reservoirs) in all water systems in Beijing, a megacity in China, to reveal the key environmental factors and response mechanisms affecting the spatial distribution of macroinvertebrate communities. A total of 188 macroinvertebrate taxa were identified at 61 survey sections, and environmental factors such as flow velocity, water depth, water temperature, and total nitrogen content were found to substantially affect the structure and spatial distribution of the macroinvertebrate communities. A multimetric index (MMI) model based on macroinvertebrates was developed to assess the ecological quality of each water type, and the developed MMI was demonstrated to be widely applicable. In the MMI, each community metric was weighted based on the goodness of fit for each biological metric and environmental metric to obtain the observed MMI values of the measured sample sites, and further model training and prediction was performed based on all sample site data. The MMI results revealed that the overall ecological quality of mountain rivers with less anthropogenic interference was relatively good (MMI = 0.62 ± 0.28), the overall ecological quality of lakes experiencing ecological disturbance and undergoing ecological restoration practices was moderate (MMI = 0.43 ± 0.09), and the overall ecological quality of plain rivers and reservoirs with strong anthropogenic interference was relatively poor (MMI = 0.24 ± 0.12 and 0.32 ± 0.12, respectively). Specific recommendations for ecological protection of different water types were formulated, providing a scientific basis and decision-making support for urban ecological planning and sustainable development.

Simulation of spatiotemporal patterns of habitat quality and driving mechanism in Anhui province, China

Understanding the characteristics of habitat quality and its influence under land use change is crucial for rapid urbanization, regional ecological protection, and national restoration and optimization of the ecological layout. This paper examined Anhui Province, China, through topo-graphic data, climate data, human activity data, and land use data from 2000, 2010, and 2020. To reveal the habitat quality impact mechanisms, the paper assessed the province’s spatiotemporal evolution characteristics of habitat quality by the Patch-generating Land Use Simulation (PLUS) model, Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Trade-offs (INVEST) model, and geo-graphic probe model. The results showed that: 1) From 2000 to 2020, Paddy field, Dryland, and Wooded land covered 70% of the study area. From 2000 to 2020, the integrated land use dynamic attitude was 0.51%, with active changes in the Paddy field, Dryland, and open Wooded land and a continuous increase in dynamic attitude. Compared to 2020, the spatial distribution characteristics of land use types in 2030 remain largely unchanged. However, Paddy fields and Drylands still show an increasing trend, while Wooded land, Reservoir ponds, and Urban land demonstrate a small decreasing trend. All other land types remain unchanged; 2) Secondly, between 2000 and 2020, habitat quality gradually decreased, while the percentage of poor habitat quality increased by 1.47% and the percentage of worse habitat quality decreased by −1.41%. All other classes exhibited a small decreasing trend; the mean habitat quality decreased by 0.01 compared to 2020 in 2030, and was mainly distributed in the southwestern and eastern edges of the province; and 3) DEM, aspect, precipitation, and evapotranspiration have a high explanatory power for habitat quality, while the variable Places has significantly increased its explanatory power for habitat quality between 2010 and 2020. Natural factors laid down the graded distribution pattern of habitat quality, and the location and intensity of human activities drove the evolution of habitat quality. Analyzing the mechanism behind habitat quality in Anhui Province provides a theoretical basis for ecological restoration and ecological planning.

Reconstructing the ecological restoration pattern from the perspective of ecosystem health assessment in a typical black soil region of Northeast China

Assessments on the spatial pattern of ecological restoration potential provide insights into the current status of ecosystem health, facilitate the identification of hotspots of ecosystem degradation, and further serves as a link that bridges regional ecological planning with specific restoration efforts. The goal of this study was to reconstruct the ecological restoration pattern, through establishing an ecosystem health assessment model encompassing four elements of vigor, organization, resilience and service of an ecosystem. Siping City, a typical black soil region located in central Jilin Province of Northeast China, was selected as the study area, and ecological protection and restoration units were identified based on temporal changes in ecosystem health levels from 2000 to 2020. Getis-Ord Gi* analysis was adopted to classify the restoration zones and depict the spatial pattern of ecological restoration. From 2000 to 2020, the ecosystem health index of Siping City generally increased from 0.49 to 0.51 due to increases in forestland area and precipitation, but a fraction of suburban areas also experienced decreases. Four different restoration zones were delineated, including the windbreak and sand-fixing zone in the western part, the black soil protection and reclamation zone in the middle part, the Daheishan ecological shelter zone in the central and eastern part, and the water restoration zone in the eastern part, which account for 28.12%, 37.05%, 16.53% and 18.29% of the total area. The protection units covered an area of 1,189.83 km2 and the restoration units covered an area of 2009.83 km2, which could be further classified into 10 types and accounted for 31.24% of the total area. It was suggested that the restoration methods applied to different units should be tailored towards specific restoration objectives. This proposed methodological framework serves as a basis for reconstructing ecological restoration in the black soil region, and a reference for making restoration plans elsewhere.

Fine‐scale accuracy assessment of the 2016 National Land Cover Dataset for stream‐based wildlife habitat

AbstractEfficiently and effectively identifying and assessing potential wildlife habitat and important ecological resources is essential as rapid anthropogenic land use change alters and detrimentally affects terrestrial and aquatic habitats. Accuracy assessment of remotely sensed data supports ecological planning and management decisions, and is especially important when using freely available, coarse‐resolution spatial datasets, such as the National Land Cover Dataset (NLCD). A popular dataset designed for application at larger regional to national spatial scales, the NLCD has been used in finer scale studies outside of its intended use, often without the imperative support of field‐based accuracy assessment. We ground‐truthed stratified random sampling points to assess the accuracy of the 2016 NLCD at a fine spatial scale relevant to stream‐based ecological research. Our results demonstrated an overall accuracy of <65%, less than the United States Geological Survey recommended accuracy of ≥85%. Results indicated that the NLCD may not be effective as a tool for stream‐level studies and could provide erroneous results for fine‐scale habitat assessment and planning when used as the only reference dataset. When conducting ecological research, it is important to consider the appropriate scale, resolution, and limitations of available datasets to achieve the most accurate results.

Local stakeholders’ priorities and perceptions towards forest ecosystem services in the Red panda habitat region of Nepal

The Red panda (Ailurus fulgens) habitat has been providing several ecosystem services (ES) to the people; however, the differences in local stakeholders’ perceptions and preferences of these ecosystem services based on differences in their location, caste, gender, age, and engagement in CFUG are still understudied. This study was conducted using a telephone interview with 120 households from 28 Red panda habitat districts in the Himalayan range of Nepal. Respondents were asked to: (1) prioritize and rank the environmental (regulatory ES), economic (provisional ES), social, cultural, and spiritual importance of the Red panda habitat areas; (2) identify and prioritize the provisional ES; and (3) share their perceptions about the current state of the forest and biodiversity in comparison to the past decade to assess the change in Red panda habitat condition. Key findings include: (1) gender, caste, location, and involvement in community forest had a significant influence on people's perception and preference for ecosystem services (p < 0.05); (2) in overall, the environmental value of forests was significantly prioritized over the social, cultural, and economic values (p < 0.05); (3) provisional services such as fuelwood and fodder were significantly prioritized by Dalit and indigenous people and CFUG members, whereas timber was given the highest priority by the Brahmin and Chhetri caste groups (p < 0.05); and (4) forest cover, biodiversity, and forest condition have significantly improved in East Nepal over the past 10 years, while the reverse was true in West Nepal (p < 0.05). Information on the preferences of local communities could assist in planning, policymaking, and effective management of natural ecosystems and ecosystem services. More importantly, the findings provide a better understanding of the nature–human interactions in the Red panda region and indicate that people from marginalized groups (ethnic communities, Dalit, and women) still rely on forests (community forests in many cases), and any consideration in future policies should take this into account.

Inferring the influence of urban vegetation on urban water storage capacity from evapotranspiration recession

Increasing the effective urban water storage capacity is one of a range of solutions to mitigate heat issues and flooding in urban areas and vegetation plays an important role in it. In this study, the regional-scale water storage capacity of four city clusters in China during the period 2009–2018 was estimated based on a four-source evapotranspiration (ET) model incorporated with urban water storage capacity (S) estimated on the basis of daily ET recession. Our results showed that simulated ET was consistent with four flux towers (R2 = 0.57, RMSE = 1.45 mm/d). The spatial distribution of S was similar to that of ET, and ranged from 2 to 28 mm. The influence of environmental drivers on the spatial pattern of S was explored using a machine learning technique, and the relative contribution of LAI (leaf area index) to the spatial pattern of S ranged from 11.59% to 27.56%. The effect of vegetation change on S in urban and non-urban areas showed an opposite relationship to the LAI change. However, the effect on S in urban and non-urban areas was reversed when vegetation was expanded to 1.25 times the existing mean, owing to the increase in vegetation dominating the change in urban Eb (soil evaporation) to a greater degree than for non-urban Eb. Urban areas in Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei, the Yangtze River Delta, Pearl River Delta, and Chengdu–Chongqing would need to increase existing vegetation by 10%, 32%, 32%, and 28%, respectively, to store additional precipitation (above the mean annual precipitation) in high-precipitation years. This study provides a new mechanistic understanding of the effects of vegetation change on water consumption in urban ecosystems, allowing the role of urban ecological planning in urban flood mitigation to be quantified.

Ecological Risk Assessment of Geological Disasters Based on Probability-Loss Framework: A Case Study of Fujian, China.

Geological disaster could pose a great threat to human development and ecosystem health. An ecological risk assessment of geological disasters is critical for ecosystem management and prevention of risks. Herein, based on the "probability-loss" theory, a framework integrating the hazard, vulnerability, and potential damage for assessing the ecological risk of geological disasters was proposed and applied to Fujian Province. In the process, a random forest (RF) model was implemented for hazard assessment by integrating multiple factors, and landscape indices were adopted to analyze vulnerability. Meanwhile, ecosystem services and spatial population data were used to characterize the potential damage. Furthermore, the factors and mechanisms that impact the hazard and influence risk were analyzed. The results demonstrate that (1) the regions exhibiting high and very high levels of geological hazard cover an area of 10.72% and 4.59%, respectively, and are predominantly concentrated in the northeast and inland regions, often distributed along river valleys. Normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), precipitation, elevation, and slope are the most important factors for the hazard. (2) The high ecological risk of the study area shows local clustering and global dispersion. Additionally, human activities have a significant influence on ecological risk. (3) The assessment results based on the RF model have high reliability with a better performance compared with the information quantity model, especially when identifying high-level hazard areas. Our study will improve research on the ecological risk posed by geological disasters and provide effective information for ecological planning and disaster mitigation.

Analysis of the association between image resolution and landscape metrics using multi-sensor LULC maps

This study aims to investigate the changes in landscape metrics with varying spatial resolution from Sentinel-2 (10 m), SPOT 7 (1.5 m), Pleaides (0.5 m), and Worldview-4 (0.3 m) images. We implemented Geographic Object-Based Image Analysis (GEOBIA) techniques to all images to identify 21 land use and land cover (LULC) classes, which were then used to calculate several landscape metrics. We performed the Welch hypothesis testing on the class-level landscape metrics and applied Standardized Principal Component Analysis (PCA) with the correlation matrix to reveal the multivariate pattern of landscape metrics. Our results showed that 10 m and even the 1.5 m spatial resolutions cannot guarantee the identification of all LULC classes, and class areas change with varying spatial resolution (sometimes with 200% differences). Sentinel-2 images have some limitations, specifically from the landscape ecological planning perspective; on the other hand, Pleaides and Worldview-4 seem good alternatives to understand habitats’ viability and landscape isolation/connectivity.

Evapotranspiration responses to CO2 and its driving mechanisms in four ecosystems based on CMIP6 simulations: Forest, shrub, farm and grass

Evapotranspiration (ET) is an essential process of the water cycle through which water is transferred from terrestrial ecosystems to atmosphere. However, in the climate context of increasing CO2 concentration (also called as a CO2-enriched climate), the variation of ET and its main drivers among different ecosystems remain unclear. This study analyzed the output data of the CMCC ESM2 model with a ridge regression method, and proposed the trends and drivers of ET in different ecosystems in a CO2-enriched climate. In particular, the temporal - spatial characteristics of ET and its primary drivers for different periods and wetness levels were revealed. With the rising of CO2 concentration, the atmospheric evapotranspiration demand increases, and the vegetation grows more luxuriantly. ET shows an overall upward trend, especially in the shrub ecosystems (7.41 mm decade−1). Our results show that the thermal conditions are the main driving factors for humid forest and shrub ecosystems whereas relative humidity (RH) is the main driving factor for arid farm and grass ecosystems. In terms of the average contribution in all periods, surface solar radiation contributes 26% and 41% to ET variation in forest and shrub ecosystems, and RH contributes 49% and 32% to ET variation in farm and grass ecosystems, respectively. Notably, with the increase of wetness levels, the contribution of water conditions on ET becomes smaller, while that of thermal conditions becomes larger. Correlation analysis shows that LAI impacts on ET are regulated by environmental factors, which reflects the complexity of ET change mechanism. Overall, these findings further provide a reference for rational planning of ecosystems and efficient utilization of water resources.

Class dynamics and relationship between land-use systems and surface temperature in south-eastern Ghana

A fifty-year study of land cover changes in Ghana’s south-eastern region is conducted to identify major shifts and new avenues for justifiable growth and development. This study sought to assess the historical changes (1970–2020) associated with the region’s land use systems, topography and land surface temperature. It further investigated the relationship between some given remotely sensed variables using autocorrelation and geoinformatics. Findings proved socio-political and economic factors have caused massive shift in land cover and prevailing climatic conditions through increasing settlements and migration, the extensiveness of agriculture, poverty, unregulated and unreported logging of trees, small-scale mining intensification, and weak governance systems. We discovered that the natural vegetation had dramatically reduced (− 52.01%), whilst built-up (+ 406.05%), farmlands/shrubs (+ 86.47%), and waterbodies (+ 47.35) were faced with a drastic increase. Class contribution rates show built environment massively influenced land modification, compared to other surveyed classes. In light of the major influences observed, it can be concluded that dynamics in land-use systems caused a substantial drift in local temperature. Temperature and built-up index correlated strongly (R2 =0.959, p < .0001) , whilst depicting a negative association against vegetation (R2 =0.959, p < .0001) and water index (R2 = 0.958, p < .0001). Variance assessment proved that the linear correlation model for the understudied elements is suitable. The study provides policy guidance amid sustainability concerns on streamlining land use activities in development planning and preservation of forests and river ecosystems that protect flora and fauna to enhance biodiversity and sustainable use of land and water resources.

Mapping indicators of cultural ecosystem services use in urban green spaces based on text classification of geosocial media data

In our increasingly urbanized world, the cultural ecosystem services (CES) provided by urban nature play a crucial role in enabling and maintaining the well-being of urban dwellers. Despite the increased number of studies leveraging geosocial media data for more efficient and socio-cultural-oriented CES assessment, the high complexity and costs associated with existing methods such as manual or automated image classification hinder their application in urban planning and ecosystems management. This study introduces a novel method that draws on the semantic similarity between word2vec word embeddings to classify large volumes of geosocial media textual metadata and quantify indicators of CES use. We demonstrated the applicability of our approach by quantifying spatial patterns of aesthetic appreciation and wildlife recreation in the green spaces of the city of Dresden based on the classification of >50,000 geotagged Instagram and Flickr posts. Moreover, we analyzed and mapped semantic patterns embedded in geosocial media and gained essential insights that can contribute toward a context-dependent assessment of CES use, which in turn can help inform decision making for more sustainable planning and management of urban ecosystems. The performance evaluation of the classification proves the validity of the proposed unsupervised text classification approach as a practical, reliable, and more efficient alternative to laborious and expensive annotation efforts required by manual or supervised classification methods.

Constraint effects among several key ecosystem service types and their influencing factors: A case study of the Pearl River Delta, China

Identifying the multiscale relationships of ecosystem services (ESs) and their influencing factors is helpful for scientific decision-making and regional sustainable development. Different from previous studies on trade-off and synergy relationships, this paper introduced a new perspective of the constraint effect and reports a third type of service relationship. This paper first assessed four typical ESs in the Pearl River Delta region, including water conservation (WC), soil conservation (SC), habitat quality (HQ), and natural recreation (NR). Applying segmented quantile regression, constraint lines for scatter plots of NR and three other ESs were extracted on 8 scale series. The key features of constraint lines were analyzed, and the multiscale constraint effects of four types of environmental factors on ESs were identified. The results showed that (1) NR-SC and NR-WC had a hump-shaped constraint relationship, while NR-HQ had a linear constraint relationship. The NR service not only has an amplifier effect on the trade-off and synergy strength relationship of other services, but its threshold range is also an important reference for realizing a win–win situation; (2) The threshold and key characteristics of the constraint line are closely related to the maximum and range values of vegetation coverage, slope, and landscape diversity; (3) Environmental factors had five constraining effects on ESs: hump-shaped, positive convex, negative convex, U-shaped and exponential, which not only limited the upper boundary of the ES supply but also had lower boundary constraint effects on specific services; and (4) When the vegetation coverage reached 70 %, the average annual precipitation reached 2000 mm, and the landscape diversity reached approximately 0.4, the total amount of ESs approached the maximum value. When the slope is close to 7.5°, monitoring of vegetation and soil erosion needs to be strengthened to reduce ecological risks. The application of the constraint line method in analyzing complex influence relationships has been proven to visualize nonlinear relationships and quantify the optimal values of influencing factors. It will help maintain the long-term stability of the entire ecosystem and become an effective tool for multiscale regional ecological planning.

Ecosystem Variability along the Estuarine Salinity Gradient: A Case Study of Hooghly River Estuary, West Bengal, India

Hooghly River, a ~460 km long distributary of the Ganga River, passes through a highly industrialized Metropolis-Kolkata in West Bengal, India, and eventually empties into the Bay of Bengal at Gangasagar. To determine the patterns and drivers of planktonic community, spatiotemporal variations in water quality and micronutrient content and planktic prokaryotic and microeukaryotic abundance and diversity across the salinity gradient (0.1 to 24.6 PSU) in the Hooghly River estuary (HRE) were studied. Plankton and water samples were collected at six sites during October 2017, February 2018, and June 2018. The biotic parameters—phytoplankton (Chlorophyll a), total bacterial abundance (cfu), and copepods—were significantly higher in the downstream estuarine sites than in the upstream riparian sites; conversely, rotifer and cladoceran abundances were significantly higher at upstream stations. The most culturable bacterial strains were isolated from the two freshwater sites and one at the confluence (estuarine) and are characterized as Bacillus subtilis, Pseudomonas songnenesis, and Exiguobacterium aurantiacum. Among zooplankton, rotifers (0.09 ± 0.14 ind L−1) and cladocerans (5.4 ± 8.87 ind L−1) were recorded in higher abundance and negatively correlated with bacterial concentrations at upstream stations. On the temporal scale, February samples recorded lower proportions of bacterivorous zooplankton at the three upstream stations. Cluster analysis separated samples on the basis of seasons and water mass movement. The February samples showed distinct spatial characteristics, as three freshwater (FW) stations grouped together and segregated at second 2nd hierarchical level, whereas the three estuarine stations formed a separate cluster at the 50% similarity level. Samples collected in October 2017 and June 2018 exhibited mixed attributes. June samples recorded higher influence of freshwater discharge. The zooplankton abundance showed significant negative correlation with Chl a. Our results demonstrate the relative role of river continuum, land-driven lateral discharge, and seawater intrusion in shaping community structure, which needs to be considered in management and conservation planning of aquatic ecosystems, especially in highly productive and overexploited HRE.

Examining cognitive determinants of planning future routine events: a pilot study in school-age Italian children (Análisis de los determinantes cognitivos de la planificación de eventos de rutina futuros: un estudio piloto con niños italianos en edad escolar)

ABSTRACT Previous research addressed the cognitive antecedents of children’s ability to plan future routine events mainly in terms of executive functioning. Additionally, most studies assessed planning through ‘high structure’ tools (e.g., the Tower of London), whereas little research employed ecological ‘low structure’ paper-pencil tasks, such as the Key Search Task (KST). The primary aim of the current research was to investigate, in a sample of 45 Italian school-age children (meanage = 5.08; SD = 0.80; rangeage = 5–8 years), the role of fluid intelligence (Gf), core executive functions — CEFs (working memory, inhibition and shifting), as well as their interactions in planning performance, using the KST. Results revealed that Gf was the main predictor of planning, whereas only inhibition moderated the Gf-planning link. These findings suggested that better competencies in inhibition promote children’s ability to reason and solve problems requiring systematic and ecological plans of action. Implications and limits were also considered.