Equine herpesviruses are important pathogens causing significant economic loss in equine and asinine populations. EHV-1/4 strains are mainly associated with respiratory distress. The aim of this ...study is to report the first EHV 4-associated respiratory disease in donkeys in Romania. Thirty-seven of three hundred jennies in an ecological donkey farm in southwest Romania started initially showing signs of severe upper respiratory tract disease, with ten concomitant late abortions/neonatal deaths and three neurological cases. There were nine fatalities. Pathological examination was performed, and samples were collected for Real-Time PCR analysis and histology. In addition, serum samples from 28 individuals with respiratory symptoms were collected and tested using indirect ELISA. RT-PCR identified the EHV-4 strain. Acute, diffuse necrotizing bronchointerstitial pneumonia with occasional intraepithelial intranuclear viral inclusion bodies was identified. Additionally, EHV-1/4-specific antibodies were found in 15 of the 28 sampled animals. Few studies on donkeys and herpesviruses have been published, and this is the first reported case of EHV-4 outbreak in Romania. There is a need for more extensive seroprevalence studies as, currently, the status of EHV-4 infection in donkeys in Romania is unknown.
•Urban and peri-urban forests enhance the provision of regulating Ecosystem Services.•PM10 and O3 removal by urban green areas was modeled in the Municipality of Ferrara.•UGI annually remove 19.8Mg ...PM10 and 8.6 Mg O3, corresponding to € 2.12 million and € 147*103.•Reforesting current UGI would increase removal values by 49% for PM10 and 18% for O3.
Air pollution is a serious concern for human health and is even more worrying in areas that are known to be “pollution hotspots”, such as the Po Plain in northern Italy. The Urban Green Infrastructure (UGI), which includes urban and peri-urban forests, enhances human health and wellbeing delivering a wide range of ecosystem services, including air quality improvement. In this research, we analyzed, in biophysical and monetary terms, the role of the UGI in removing PM10 and O3 from the atmosphere in the Municipality of Ferrara using established removal models. We used a multiscale approach that includes geospatial data, field sampling and laboratory analysis. Then, using a local green areas database, we located public areas that could potentially undergo forestation actions without requiring any land conversion and evaluated the benefit in terms of ESs provision that these actions may exert. We found that, in 2019, the UGI in the Municipality of Ferrara removed about 19.8 Mg of PM10 and 8.6 Mg of O3, for a monetary benefit of € 2.12 million € and 147*103 respectively. We then identified about 121 ha within the urban core of the Municipality that could potentially be forested. Such an action would increase the PM10 and O3 removal by about 49% and 18%, respectively. Our findings comply with the EU Biodiversity strategy for 2030, which calls for the development of an ambitious greening plan for cities with more than 20,000 inhabitants.
Since the publication of the River Continuum Concept (RCC), the capacity of the longitudinal dimension to predict the distribution of species and ecological functions in river networks was discussed ...by different river theories. The taxonomic structures and functional attributes of macrobenthic communities were investigated along the river continuum in the river Adige network (Northern Italy), with the aim to test the reliability of RCC theory and clarify the relation between structural and functional features in lotic systems. Distance from the spring was found to be most representative proxy among environmental parameters. The analysis highlighted the decrease of biodiversity levels along the river continuum. The decrease of taxonomic diversity corresponded to the loss in functional richness. The abundances of predator and walker taxa, as well as semelparous organisms, declined along the longitudinal gradient, suggesting variations in community complexity and granulometry. Regression models also depicted the presence of disturbed communities in the central section of the basin, where intensive agricultural activities occur, that affected environmental gradients. Overall, results offered evidences that the river continuum may predict macrobenthic community structures in terms of taxonomic diversity, thus confirming the general validity of RCC. Nonetheless, the functional analysis did not provide equally clear evidences to support the theory. After four decades from its postulation, the RCC is still a reliable model to predict the general macroinvertebrates distribution. However, community functions may respond to a number of local factors not considered in RCC, which could find a declination in other theories. The relations between structural and functional features confirmed to be complex and sensitive to disturbances and local conditions.
Aquatic vegetation loss caused substantial decrease of ecosystem processes and services during the last decades, particularly for the capacity of these ecosystems to sequester and store carbon from ...the atmosphere. This study investigated the extent of aquatic emergent vegetation loss for the period 1985–2018 and the consequent effects on carbon sequestration and storage capacity of Valle Santa wetland, a protected freshwater wetland dominated by Phragmites australis located in the Po river delta Park (Northern Italy), as a function of primary productivity and biomass decomposition, assessed by means of satellite images and experimental measures. The results showed an extended loss of aquatic vegetated habitats during the considered period, with 1989 being the year with higher productivity. The mean breakdown rates of P. australis were 0.00532 d−1 and 0.00228 d−1 for leaf and stem carbon content, respectively, leading to a predicted annual decomposition of 64.6% of the total biomass carbon. For 2018 the carbon sequestration capacity was estimated equal to 0.249 kg C m−2 yr−1, while the carbon storage of the whole wetland was 1.75 × 103 t C (0.70 kg C m−2). Nonetheless, despite the protection efforts over time, the vegetation loss occurred during the last decades significantly decreased carbon sequestration and storage by 51.6%, when comparing 2018 and 1989. No statistically significant effects were found for water descriptors. This study demonstrated that P. australis-dominated wetlands support important ecosystem processes and should be regarded as an important carbon sink under an ecosystem services perspective, with the aim to maximize their capacity to mitigate climate change.
Equine asthma is considered a non-infectious respiratory disease characterized by inflammation and hypersensitivity. Given the importance of antimicrobial stewardship, an international survey was ...designed to investigate the use of antimicrobials in asthmatic horses and the factors influencing prescription behavior. An online survey was distributed in six languages by international mailing lists and social media from December 2020 to January 2022. Of the 434 responses recorded, 249 veterinarians working in 25 countries finished the survey. These included 79 ECEIM/ACVIM diplomats. A total of 204 respondents confirmed national regulations concerning antimicrobial use in their country. Knowledge of the asthma definitions as presented in the revised ACVIM consensus statement was greater in veterinarians treating over 95% of equine patients compared to veterinarians treating more species, based on 10 questions (answers consistent with the consensus statement in 7 (IQR 5-9) and 4 (IQR 3-6) questions, respectively, (
< 0.001)). A total of 131 respondents stated to use antimicrobials (at least 'sometimes') in at least one of the three presented cases consistent with equine asthma. Trimethoprim-Sulfa combinations, penicillin(s), and tetracyclines were prescribed most (by 105, 53 and 38 veterinarians, respectively). Aminoglycosides, cephalosporins and fluoroquinolones were also selected (22, 15, 9 veterinarians respectively). Tetracyclines and cephalosporins are prescribed more often by veterinarians working without national regulations (
0.019 and
0.035, respectively). The most selected factors influencing prescription behavior were: 'tracheal wash culture' (62% of 131 veterinarians using antimicrobials in these cases), 'whether other horses in the barn have similar complaints' (60%), and 'response to other forms of therapy' (53%). In conclusion, insight into prescription behavior is the first step towards minimizing and optimizing antimicrobial use.
The growing population in cities is causing a deterioration of air quality due to the emission of pollutants, causing serious health impacts. Trees and urban forests can contribute through the ...interception and removal of air pollutants such as particulate matter (PM). The dry deposition of PM by vegetation depends on air pollutant concentration, meteorological conditions, and specific leaf traits. Several studies explored the ability of different plant species to accumulate PM on leaf structures leading to the development of models to quantify the PM removal. The i-Tree Eco is the most used model to evaluate ecosystem services provided by urban trees. However, fine particulate matter (PM2.5) removal is still calculated with a poorly evaluated function of deposition velocity (which depends on wind speed and leaf area) without differentiating between tree species. Therefore, we present an improvement of the standard model calculation introducing a leaf trait index to distinguish the species effect on PM net removal. We also compared model results with measurements of deposited leaf PM by vacuum filtration. The index includes the effect of morphological and functional leaf characteristics of tree species using four parameters: leaf water storage, deposition velocity, resuspension rate and leaf washing capacity. Leaves of 11 common urban tree species were sampled in representative areas of the city of Ferrara (Italy) and at different times of the year from 2018 to 2021. This includes four deciduous broadleaf trees (Tilia cordata, Platanus acerifolia, Acer platanoides, Celtis australis), three evergreen broadleaf trees (Quercus ilex, Magnolia grandiflora, Nerium oleander), and four conifers (Thuja orientalis, Cedrus libani, Pinus pinaster, Picea abies). The results provide significant advancement in assessing PM removal using decision support tools such as models to properly select tree species for future urban tree planting programs aimed at improving air quality.
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•Modifying i-Tree Eco model based on leaf traits and experimental measures.•Improved model matches experimental measures for conifers and deciduous broadleaves.•PM2.5 deposition was 4.6 to 32.2 higher than the conventional model estimates.•Results provide more reliable quantification of air quality improvement by trees.
Wetlands possess intangible values that are usually overlooked in decision-making processes. Based on questionnaire surveys, this work aims to quantify both the non-use and cultural values provided ...by the different wetlands of the Po Delta Park (Northern Italy), selected as ideal case study, using willingness to pay (WTP) for wetland conservation and travel cost methods, respectively. Their relationships with socio-economic variables and respondents' preferences for current and future use were also analysed. The 61.39% of participants were willing to pay a mean amount of 95.8 € (±40). The average travel cost was 38.68 € (±6.24), with higher values observed for environmental experts than for other citizens. Wetlands differ significantly in travel costs, current and future use, but not in WTP. Poisson regressions showed that non-use and cultural values were significantly dependent on personal information, preference variables and travel distance. Intangible dimensions, such as bequest and existence values, showed higher valuations/rates than option and direct use values. The results highlight that perceptions of the intrinsic value of nature are influenced by demographic characteristics, distance from the area and desired future uses. Non-use values seem abstract and generalised to the whole area, regardless of the ecological characteristics of the wetland, even though a significant relation to wetland uses was observed. In contrast, cultural values are tied to specific wetlands, as indication of the importance of historical relationships between people and nature. Such findings underline that the different dimensions of intrinsic value of nature may act at different scales and help decision-makers to incorporate such values into environmental accounting.
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•Non-use and cultural values of wetlands were assessed the Po delta Park using CVM and travel cost methods.•Non-use values seem generalised to the whole delta area, as no differences among wetlands were observed.•Cultural values are tied to specific wetlands and their uses because of historical people-nature relations.•Intangible values are likely to operate and vary at different scales, requiring a multi-scale analysis.
•Forest reserves support sustainable development by providing important ES for human health and well-being.•Bosco Mesola Reserve supplies ESs for 9816 € ha-1yr-1 and stores carbon for 7.2 M€ ...supporting multiple SDGs.•Air quality regulation by removing PM10 and O3 accounts for 98% of the total monetary value.•ES quantification is fundamental to inform management accounting towards SDGs achievement.
During the last century the landscape of the Po delta (Italy), one of the most important European deltaic areas, was strongly altered by extended land reclamation and land use intensification. Consequently, the loss of the lowland forested area that was once extended along the region's coast took place. The present study aims to evaluate the ecosystem services provided by the Bosco Mesola woodland, a remnant-forested area of 1,058 ha located on an agriculture-dominated landscape, nowadays protected as a National Nature Reserve. Five ecosystem services were selected and evaluated both in biophysical and monetary terms, including provisioning (firewood production for industrial bioenergy and households’ heating purposes), regulating (air quality and climate regulation by carbon storage), and cultural services (eco-tourism), using experimental and collected data and modeling. The results underlined that the Reserve provides services for a total 10.4 M€ yr-1 and stores carbon for an estimated value of 7.2 M€. Notably, regulating services, such as air quality regulation (i.e. PM10 and O3 removal) accounts for 98.5% of the total annual value. While raising the issue related to the identification and conservation of ESs with no direct market value, whose socio-political and applicative fields have great relevance, this study demonstrates that remnant forests are exceptional providers of ecosystem services that can significantly contribute to reaching multiple sustainable development goals and whose preservation is largely remarked in EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030. In this regard, the integration of different methods and data sources for ES assessment allow to capture a comprehensive range of ESs that may properly support the decision process.
The lockdown period in Romania lasted for 60 days and had the purpose of limiting the spread of SARS-CoV-2 virus outbreak and manage its consequences through emergency measures on many important ...areas of activity. This study aimed to gather, assess, analyze and disseminate relevant social, economic, and medical aspects on the impact of COVID-19 pandemic during lockdown on the veterinary profession in Romania. A survey was created using an online questionnaire platform, and disseminated. The survey was completed by a total of 409 individuals. A high number of respondents (71.64%;
n
= 293) felt exposed to medium or high risk of infection with SARS-CoV-2 at their workplace and many (56.97%;
n
= 233) felt that their professional environment was more stressful than usual during lockdown. Almost all respondents (89.73%;
n
= 367) declared the implementation of several control measures recommended by FECAVA and FVE (e.g., social distancing, wearing protective equipment, hand washing), but few mentioned the opportunity of remote work or visiting restrictions. Overall, the results show that the impact of lockdown lies directly on four main categories of importance on veterinarian professional's life—human resource, activity management, relationship between veterinarian and authorities, and continuing education.
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