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Although biodiversity is crucial for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), following the current trajectory, we risk failing SDG 15. Using a new indicator quantifying the loss of functional habitat (habitat that is simultaneously suitable and well-connected), we show that the real impact of renewable energy is far larger than previously assumed. Specifically, we estimate that the construction of hydropower reservoirs in south Norway caused a loss of ca. 222 km2 of functional habitat for wild reindeer (Rangifer tarandus)—which is far larger than assumed based on land inundation indices (110 km2). Fully mitigating these impacts is challenging: scenario analyses reveal that the measures proposed by societal actors would yield only a fraction of the habitat lost (2–12 km2) and could cause trade-off risks with other SDGs. Using indices of functional connectivity is crucial for environmental impact assessments, as entire ecological networks for several species can be affected far beyond the reservoirs.

Funding: This article is a contribution of the COVID-19 Bio-Logging Initiative, which is funded in part by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation (GBMF9881) and the National Geographic Society (NGS-82515R-20) (both grants to C.R.). COVID-19 lockdowns in early 2020 reduced human mobility, providing an opportunity to disentangle its effects on animals from those of landscape modifications. Using GPS data, we compared movements and road avoidance of 2300 terrestrial mammals (43 species) during the lockdowns to the same period in 2019. Individual responses were variable with no change in average movements or road avoidance behavior, likely due to variable lockdown conditions. However, under strict lockdowns 10-day 95th percentile displacements increased by 73%, suggesting increased landscape permeability. Animals’ 1-hour 95th percentile displacements declined by 12% and animals were 36% closer to roads in areas of high human footprint, indicating reduced avoidance during lockdowns. Overall, lockdowns rapidly altered some spatial behaviors, highlighting variable but substantial impacts of human mobility on wildlife worldwide. Postprint

COVID-19 lockdowns in early 2020 reduced human mobility, providing an opportunity to disentangle its effects on animals from those of landscape modifications. Using GPS data, we compared movements and road avoidance of 2300 terrestrial mammals (43 species) during the lockdowns to the same period in 2019. Individual responses were variable with no change in average movements or road avoidance behavior, likely due to variable lockdown conditions. However, under strict lockdowns 10-day 95th percentile displacements increased by 73%, suggesting increased landscape permeability. Animals' 1-hour 95th percentile displacements declined by 12% and animals were 36% closer to roads in areas of high human footprint, indicating reduced avoidance during lockdowns. Overall, lockdowns rapidly altered some spatial behaviors, highlighting variable but substantial impacts of human mobility on wildlife worldwide.

The United Nations 2030 Agenda and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) define a path towards a sustainable future, but given that uncertainty characterises the outcomes of any SDG-related actions, risks in the implementation of the Agenda need to be addressed. At the same time, most risk assessments are narrowed to sectoral approaches and do not refer to SDGs. Here, on the basis of a literature review and workshops, it is analysed how SDGs and risks relate to each other’s in different communities. Then, it is formally demonstrated that, as soon as the mathematical definition of risks is broadened to embrace a more systemic perspective, acting to maintain socioenvironmental systems within their sustainability domain can be done by risk minimisation. This makes Sustainable Development Goals and risks ‘‘the Yin and the Yang of the paths towards sustainability’’. Eventually, the usefulness of the SDG-risk nexus for both sustainability and risk management is emphasized. 2030 Agenda Environmental risks Planet boundaries Risk quantification Sustainability science Systemic approach

Aim: Macroecological studies that require habitat suitability data for many species often derive this information from expert opinion. However, expert- based informa-tion is inherently subjective and thus prone to errors. The increasing availability of GPS tracking data offers opportunities to evaluate and supplement expert- based in-formation with detailed empirical evidence. Here, we compared expert- based habitat suitability information from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) with habitat suitability information derived from GPS-tracking data of 1,498 individu-als from 49 mammal species.Location: Worldwide.Time period: 1998–2021.Major taxa studied: Forty- nine terrestrial mammal species.Methods: Using GPS data, we estimated two measures of habitat suitability for each individual animal: proportional habitat use (proportion of GPS locations within a habi-tat type), and selection ratio (habitat use relative to its availability). For each individual we then evaluated whether the GPS- based habitat suitability measures were in agree-ment with the IUCN data. To that end, we calculated the probability that the ranking of empirical habitat suitability measures was in agreement with IUCN's classification into suitable, marginal and unsuitable habitat types.Results: IUCN habitat suitability data were in accordance with the GPS data (> 95% probability of agreement) for 33 out of 49 species based on proportional habitat use estimates and for 25 out of 49 species based on selection ratios. In addition, 37 and 34 species had a > 50% probability of agreement based on proportional habitat use and selection ratios, respectively.Main conclusions: We show how GPS-tracking data can be used to evaluate IUCN habitat suitability data. Our findings indicate that for the majority of species in-cluded in this study, it is appropriate to use IUCN habitat suitability data in macro-ecological studies. Furthermore, we show that GPS-tracking data can be used to identify and prioritize species and habitat types for re-evaluation of IUCN habitat suitability data. expert opinion, GPS, habitat suitability, habitat type, habitat use, IUCN, mammals, movement, selection ratio, telemetry

Caribou and reindeer, Rangifer tarandus, are the most numerous and socio-ecologically important terrestrial species in the Arctic. Their migrations are directly and indirectly affected by the seasonal nature of the northernmost regions, human development and population size; all of which are impacted by climate change. We review the most critical drivers of Rangifer migration and how a rapidly changing Arctic may affect them. In order to conserve large Rangifer populations, they must be allowed free passage along their migratory routes to reach seasonal ranges. We also provide some pragmatic ideas to help conserve Rangifer migrations into the future.

COVID-19 lockdowns in early 2020 reduced human mobility, providing an opportunity to disentangle its effects on animals from those of landscape modifications. Using GPS data, we compared movements and road avoidance of 2300 terrestrial mammals (43 species) during the lockdowns to the same period in 2019. Individual responses were variable with no change in average movements or road avoidance behavior, likely due to variable lockdown conditions. However, under strict lockdowns 10-day 95th percentile displacements increased by 73%, suggesting increased landscape permeability. Animals' 1-hour 95th percentile displacements declined by 12% and animals were 36% closer to roads in areas of high human footprint, indicating reduced avoidance during lockdowns. Overall, lockdowns rapidly altered some spatial behaviors, highlighting variable but substantial impacts of human mobility on wildlife worldwide.

The concept of cumulative impacts is widespread in policy documents, regulations, and ecological studies, but quantification methods are still evolving. Infrastructure development usually takes place in landscapes with preexisting anthropogenic features. Typically, their impact is determined by computing the distance to the nearest feature only, thus ignoring the potential cumulative impacts of multiple features. We propose thecumulative ZOI approachto assess whether and to what extent anthropogenic features lead to cumulative impacts.The approach estimates both effect size and zone of influence (ZOI) of anthropogenic features and allows for estimation of cumulative effects of multiple features distributed in the landscape. First, we use simulations and an empirical study to understand under which circumstances cumulative impacts arise. Second, we demonstrate the approach by estimating the cumulative impacts of tourist infrastructure in Norway on the habitat of wild reindeer (Rangifer t. tarandus), a nearly-threatened species highly sensitive to anthropogenic disturbance.Simulations show that analyses based on the nearest feature and our cumulative approach are indistinguishable in two extreme cases: when features are few and scattered and their ZOI is small, and when features are clustered and their ZOI is large. Empirical analyses revealed cumulative impacts of private cabins and tourist resorts on reindeer, extending up to 10 and 20 km, with different decaying functions. Although the impact of an isolated private cabin was negligible, the cumulative impact of ‘cabin villages’ could be much larger than that of a single large tourist resort. Focusing on the nearest feature only underestimates the impact of ‘cabin villages’ on reindeer.The suggested approach allows us to quantify the magnitude and spatial extent of cumulative impacts of point, linear, and polygon features in a computationally efficient and flexible way and is implemented in theoneimpactR package. The formal framework offers the possibility to avoid widespread underestimations of anthropogenic impacts in ecological and impact assessment studies and can be applied to a wide range of spatial response variables, including habitat selection, population abundance, species richness and diversity, community dynamics, and other ecological processes.

Monitoring forest responses to climate-smart forestry (CSF) is necessary to determine whether forest management is on track to contribute to the reduction and/or removal of greenhouse gas emissions and the development of resilient mountain forests. A set of indicators to assess “the smartness” of forests has been previously identified by combining indicators for sustainable forest management with the ecosystem services. Here, we discuss the remote sensing technologies suitable to assess those indicators grouped in forest resources, health and vitality, productivity, biological diversity, and protective functions criteria. Forest cover, growing stock, abiotic, biotic, and human-induced forest damage, and tree composition indicators can be readily assessed by using established remote sensing techniques. The emerging areas of phenotyping will help track genetic resource indicators. No single existing sensor or platform is sufficient on its own to assess all the individual CSF indicators, due to the need to balance fine-scale monitoring and satisfactory coverage at broad scales. The challenge of being successful in assessing the largest number and type of indicators (e.g., soil conditions) is likely to be best tackled through multimode and multifunctional sensors, increasingly coupled with new computational and analytical approaches, such as cloud computing, machine learning, and deep learning.

Ecosystem functioning depends on multiple successful interactions, many supported by individual movements. The degree to which the landscape allows these interactions to take place has been referred to as ‘effective connectivity’ (EC). Many of the cumulative impacts of anthropogenic activities on ecosystem functioning arise from changes in EC. Therefore, a coherent framework to quantify EC is urgently needed. Recent theoretical developments propose that studying EC requires the simultaneous consideration of spatial, environmental and species intrinsic characteristics (SEI framework). In this paper we further expand the SEI framework by integrating advances in geographic information science, ecological niche modelling, movement ecology, island biogeography and network sciences to develop a comprehensive three-step methodological approach for quantifying EC. First, using niche modelling and movement ecology, we quantify the species movement probabilities with respect to local environmental conditions. Second, we quantify ecological distances between non-adjacent locations by integrating species movement responses to the local environment with the spatial configuration of the landscape using the expected cost obtained from the randomized shortest paths (RSP) framework. This expected cost generalizes the two most frequently used ecological distance metrics, i.e. least-cost distance and resistance distance. Moreover the ‘absorbing random walk’ properties of RSP allow the integration of new developments in connectivity research, i.e. spatial absorbing Markov chains, to account for movement-related mortality. Third, drawing from island biogeography and metapopulation ecology, we scale ecological distances by relevant speciesand area-specific parameters to estimate EC for the ecological process of interest, e.g. migration, dispersal or gene flow. The integrative and highly interdisciplinary approach we propose can lead to increasingly more realistic measures of EC at different organizational levels. Moreover efficient computation allows its application to large-scale high-resolution landscapes for theoretical studies, conservation planning and sustainable management of real landscapes. Circuitscape, movement cost, landscape resistance, least-cost distance, randomized shortest paths, resistance distance, SAMC, step selection function, survival

Centro de Investigación Forestal (CIFOR), The increasing demand for innovative forest management strategies to adapt to and mitigate climate change and benefit forest production, the so-called Climate-Smart Forestry, calls for a tool to monitor and evaluate their implementation and their effects on forest development over time. The pan-European set of criteria and indicators for sustainable forest management is considered one of the most important tools for assessing many aspects of forest management and sustainability. This study offers an analytical approach to selecting a subset of indicators to support the implementation of Climate-Smart Forestry. Based on a literature review and the analytical hierarchical approach, 10 indicators were selected to assess, in particular, mitigation and adaptation. These indicators were used to assess the state of the Climate-Smart Forestry trend in Europe from 1990 to 2015 using data from the reports on the State of Europe’s Forests. Forest damage, tree species composition, and carbon stock were the most important indicators. Though the trend was overall positive with regard to adaptation and mitigation, its evaluation was partly hindered by the lack of data. We advocate for increased efforts to harmonize international reporting and for further integrating the goals of Climate-Smart Forestry into national-and European-level forest policy making., This study generated from the COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology) Action CLIMO (Climate-Smart Forestry in Mountain Regions — CA15226) was financially supported by the EU Framework Programme for Research and Innovation HORIZON 2020. Most of the work was carried out during the Short Term Scientific Mission that Giovanni Santopuoli undertook at the WSL in Birmensdorf (Switzerland) hosted by Christian Temperli, Alessandra Bottero, Paolo Cherubini, and Marco Ferretti., 10 Pág.

In response to the recent review by Gillezeau et al., The evidence of human exposure to glyphosate: A review, Environmental Health 1/19/19, here we report additional glyphosate biomonitoring data from a repository of urine samples collected from United States farmers in 1997–98. To determine if glyphosate exposure could be identified historically, we examined urine samples from a biorepository of specimens collected from US dairy farmers between 1997 and 98. We compared samples from farmers who self-reported glyphosate application in the 8 h prior to sample collection to samples from farm applicators who did not report using glyphosate. Of 18 applicator samples tested, 39% showed detectable levels of glyphosate (mean concentration 4.04 μg/kg; range:1.3–12) compared to 0% detections among 17 non glyphosate applicator samples (p-value

Background Choroid plexus cysts (CPCs) are a type of neuroepithelial cysts, benign lesions located more frequently in the supratentorial compartment. Symptomatic CPCs in the posterior fossa are extremely rare and can be associated with obstructive hydrocephalus. Case Description A previously healthy elderly woman suffered intermittent attacks of headache and vomiting associated with gait instability. Magnetic resonance imaging documented a large cystic lesion occupying all the fourth ventricle. An endoscope-assisted fenestration of the lesion through a telovelar approach determined only temporary improvement, hence a second surgery with gross total resection of the cyst was performed, with successful long-term clinical and radiologic resolution. Histology revealed CPC. Conclusions Fourth ventricle symptomatic CPCs are extremely rare lesions, especially in the elderly. Their presence must be carefully evaluated as a possible rare cause of intermittent obstructive hydrocephalus. Even though cyst fenestration with restoration of the cerebrospinal fluid pathway represents the best treatment in the majority of cases, a more aggressive resection is sometimes necessary.

BACKGROUND Distal transradial access (dTRA) has been recently proposed as an innovative access for coronary procedures and a valuable alternative to conventional transradial access (cTRA). The aim of this study was to assess the safety of dTRA versus cTRA in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary angiography and intervention. METHODS In this single-center randomized trial, consecutive patients admitted for stable cardiac condition or acute coronary syndrome (ACS) were assigned to dTRA or cTRA. The primary endpoint was an early discharge after transradial stenting of coronary arteries (EASY) grade ≥II access-site hematoma (ASH). Vascular access failure, radial artery occlusion (RAO) at hospital discharge , 30-day rates of death, myocardial infarction, stroke and bleeding not related to coronary artery bypass grafting were considered as secondary endpoints. RESULTS A total of 204 patients were included and randomized to dTRA (n=100) or cTRA (n=104). The two populations were similar, except for a higher percentage of ACS in the dTRA than in the cTRA group (38% versus 24%, P=0.022). The rate of EASY grade ≥II ASH was lower in dTRA than in cTRA patients, but the difference was not statistically significant (4% versus 8.4%, respectively, P=0.25). Vascular access failure was more frequent in dTRA patients than in cTRA patients (34% versus 8.7%, P

The main focus when considering treatment of non-healing and infected wounds is tied to the microbial, particularly bacterial, burden within the wound bed. However, as fungal contributions in these microbial communities become more recognized, the focus needs to be broadened, and the remaining participants in the complex wound microbiome need to be addressed in the development of new treatment strategies. In this study, lecithin/chitosan nanoparticles loaded with clotrimazole were tailored to eradicate one of the most abundant fungi in the wound environment, namely C. albicans. Moreover, this investigation was extended to the building blocks and their organization within the delivery system. In the evaluation of the novel nanoparticles, their compatibility with keratinocytes was confirmed. Furthermore, these biocompatible, biodegradable, and non-toxic carriers comprising clotrimazole (~189 nm, 24 mV) were evaluated for their antifungal activity through both disk diffusion and microdilution methods. It was found that the activity of clotrimazole was fully preserved upon its incorporation into this smart delivery system. These results indicate both that the novel carriers for clotrimazole could serve as a therapeutic alternative in the treatment of fungi-infected wounds and that the building blocks and their organization affect the performance of nanoparticles.

FOR ENGLISH ABSTRACT, SEE BELOW. Panzacchi, M., van Moorter, B., Tveraa, T., Rolandsen, C. M., Gundersen, V., Lelotte, L., A., Dos Santos, B. B. N., Bøthun, S. W., Stien, A., Andersen, R., Strand, O. 2022. Statistisk modellering av samlet belastning av menneskelig aktivitet på villreinområder. Identifisering av viktige leveområder og scenarioanalyser for konsekvensutredning og arealplanlegging. NINA Rapport 2189. Norsk institutt for naturforskning. Villrein er truet både nasjonalt og internasjonalt, og flere bestander har gått kraftig tilbake de siste tiårene. Det er flere forhold som påvirker denne tilbakegangen, men det er godt dokumentert at forstyrrelser fra mennesker gjennom habitatødeleggelse, fragmentering og bruk av utmark til ulike formål har negativ innvirkning på reinens levedyktighet. Tilbakegangen i reinsbestandene har ført til at mye forskning er utført for å forstå og dokumentere hvordan reinen påvirkes av ulike forstyrrelseskilder. I det siste tiåret har vi utviklet statistiske metoder og en programvare (ConScape) for å beregne kvaliteten på alle villreinens leveområder og bevegelseskorridorer, og ikke minst hvordan disse påvirkes av ulike typer menneskelig infrastruktur og aktiviteter («samla belastning» eller «kumulative effekter»). Modellene bygger på GPS-data fra de største villreinområdene, og en stor mengde data fra hele Norge, som inkluderer landskapsdata (topografi, vegetasjon, veger, utbygginger, vannkraft, sti- og løypenett, turistvolum, private hytter, turisthytter osv.), data om klima, og lokalkunnskap på enkelte områder. Derfor finnes det i dag flere forskjellige statistiske kart som beskriver hvordan villrein oppfatter ressurser og barrierer på lokalskala, og hvilke områder og korridorer som er mest funksjonelle for villrein på større landskapsskala. Det siste er spesielt viktig, ettersom reinen oppfatter landskapet som et sammenhengende nettverk av matressurser eller områder som brukes til andre behov, som den får tilgang til gjennom korridorer. Det er imidlertid også områder som unngås fordi den samla belastningen av menneskelig aktivitet er for stor til at reinen våger å bevege seg inn i disse områdene, til tross for at de næringsmessig fremstår som gode områder. Alle kart, beskrivelsen av metoden og referanser til vitenskapelige og populær-vitenskapelige artikler er tilgjengelig i Nett-Appen: https://www.nina.no/Naturmangfold/Hjortedyr/reindeermapsnorway. Basert på modellene er det i tillegg utviklet et simuleringsverktøy for å støtte bærekraftig arealplanlegging og konsekvensutredning gjennom scenarioanalyser. Verktøyet er så langt brukt til å forutsi den forventede effekten av 80 avbøtende tiltak foreslått av lokale eksperter for å minimere samla belastning på reinsdyrs habitatfunksjonalitet og bevegelseskorridorer i flere områder i Norge (Setesdal, Nordfjella, Snøhetta, Hardangervidda; se Appendiks 1 og Nett-App). Scenarioer som kan testes inkluderer fjerning/stenging/omplassering av eksisterende infrastruktur, eller bygging av ny infrastruktur (eks. hytte, vei, sti, skiløype), endringer i bruksintensiteten (f.eks. av stier, hytter, veger), eller klimaendringer. Den statistiske tilnærmingen, programvare, kart, Nett-Appen og scenarioanalyser er utviklet i forskingsrådsprosjektene ledet av NINA «RenewableReindeer» (lenke), «ProdChange» og «OneImpact», samt i det relaterte prosjektet «Scenario analyse Øyulvsbu og formidling»; sammenligningen mellom statistiske kart med kart basert på ekspertvurderinger som brukes i kvalitetsnormene er støttet av Miljødirektoratets prosjekt «OneImpact og kvalitetsnorm for villrein». Disse prosjektene ble eller er støttet av flere prosjektpartnere og finansieringskilder, inkludert Miljødirektoratet, Norges vassdrags- og energidirektorat NVE, Sira Kvina Kraftselskap, Villreinprosjektet i Setesdalsheiene v/ Statkraft, Norsk Villreinsenter, Villreinrådet, Siri Bøthun Naturforvaltning, Norges miljø-og biovitenskapelige universitet NMBU, og flere internasjonale samarbeidspartnere (Universite Catholique Louvain, Julia Computing Inc, Sveriges lanbruksuniversitet SLU, University of Guelp, Canada, University of Alberta, Canada, The Nature Conservancy, Universidad Politecnica de Madrid, University of Glasgow). I Norge er det iverksatt prosesser og forvaltningstiltak for å motvirke forringelse av villreinområder. I 2020 vedtok regjeringen en kvalitetsnorm for villrein, for å oppfylle både internasjonale forpliktelser og nasjonale mål for bevaring av levedyktige bestander innenfor sine naturlige utbredelsesområder. Hvert fjerde år skal hvert av de 24 villreinområdene klassifiseres som enten god (grønn), middels (gul) eller dårlig (rød), basert på tre delnormer: 1) bestandsforhold; 2) lavbeiter; og 3) leveområde og menneskelig påvirkning. Delnorm 3 er et viktig verktøy for å dokumentere i hvor stor grad målene om å ta vare på villreinens leveområder nåes. Delnorm 3 tar sikte på å identifisere kritiske reduksjoner i habitatenes kvalitet og i hvor stor grad ulike områder henger sammen sett fra villreinens ståsted. På denne måten skal årsaken til endringer identifiseres, og statusen til området gjenopprettes til akseptable nivåer (gul) så raskt som mulig gjennom tiltak. På lengre sikt er målet at alle nasjonale villreinområder skal ha god kvalitet (grønn). Metoden(e) bør derfor være i stand til å identifisere områder der tap av habitat og fragmentering har økt over en kritisk terskel, og deretter kunne gi informasjon om det sannsynlige relative bidraget som skyldes menneskelig infrastruktur og aktiviteter. I gjeldende kvalitetsnorm er delnorm 3 basert på ekspertbaserte vurderinger av endringer i villreinobservasjoner, som antas å reflektere endringer i menneskelig påvirkning. Prosessen innebærer avgrensning av polygoner som representerer reinens sesongmessige utbredelse, bevegelseskorridorer og et sett med fokusområder der sosioøkologiske utfordringer knyttet til menneskelige aktiviteter er identifisert. I fokusområdene vurderer ekspertene villreinens bruk av området de 10 siste årene sammenlignet med forventningen basert på siste 50 år. Klassifiseringen utføres deretter ved å vurdere andelen tapt habitat innenfor alle fokusområder, sammenlignet med habitatet som er tilgjengelig innenfor sesongområdet. I denne rapporten gir vi en oversikt over den statistiske tilnærmingen og kartene, og vi evaluerer hvor likt to ulike tilnærminger (statistisk og ekspertbasert) identifiserer kritiske reduksjoner i habitatkvalitet og konnektivitet. I vårt tilfelle vil det i stor grad si at vi sammenligner de "statistiske kartene" med de "ekspertbaserte polygonene" identifisert i Delnorm 3. Vi diskuterer erfaringene ved å sammenligne de to tilnærmingene, og hvordan disse kan bidra til å nå målene for forvaltning av villreinområder. Dette var hovedfokus i prosjektet «OneImpact og kvalitetsnorm for villrein» finansiert av Miljødirektoratet. Vi utfører også en test, ved å utføre en foreløpig statistisk klassifisering av tilstanden i villreinområdene etter Delnorm 3. Til slutt viser vi hvordan de statistiske kartene kan bidra til å avdekke hvilke av de 76 avbøtende tiltakene eller planleggingsalternativene om ble foreslått i Setesdal, Nordfjella og Snøhetta som vil være mest effektive for å tilbakeføre beiteområder til villreinen (Appendiks 1). Panzacchi, M., van Moorter, B., Tveraa, T., Rolandsen, C. M., Gundersen, V., Lelotte, L., Dos Santos, B. B. N., Bøthun, S. W., Stien, A., Andersen, R., Strand, O. 2022. Statistical modelling of cumulative impacts of human activities on wild reindeer areas. Identifying functional areas and performing scenario analyses for impact assessment and area planning. NINA Report 2189. Norwegian Institute for Nature Research Wild reindeer are threatened both nationally and internationally, and several populations have declined sharply or become extinct in recent decades. Several factors are responsible for these trends, but it is well documented that infrastructure development and disturbance by humans can cause habitat degradation and fragmentation, and can have a major negative impact on reindeer populations. This led to a large amount of research aimed at understanding and quantifying anthropogenic disturbance on reindeer, and supporting sustainable land planning. In the last decade we have developed statistical methods and a software (ConScape) to quantify the functionality of reindeer habitats, to identify movement corridors, and to measure the degree to which these are affected by the piecemeal development and "cumulative impact" of different infrastructure and human activities. The models are based on a large amount of GPS-positions from the largest wild reindeer management areas, and on a large amount of environmental covariates describing the landscape (topography, vegetation, roads, hydropower, trails, tourist volume, private cabins, tourist cabins, etc.), climate, and, in some areas, local knowledge. Based on these models, several maps have been produced to describe statistically how wild reindeer perceive resources and barriers on a local scale, and which areas and corridors are most functional in the entire landscape. The latter is particularly important, as reindeer perceive the landscape as a continuous network of functional areas that they can access through movement corridors. On the other side, reindeer also perceive the cumulative impact of different infrastructures and human activities, and respond by avoiding or decreasing the use of some areas due to disturbance and/or barriers to movements. All maps, a description of methods, and the reference list to scientific and popular publications are available in the Web App: https://www.nina.no/Naturmangfold/Hjortedyr/reindeermapsnorway. In addition we developed a simulation tool to guide sustainable land planning and impact assessment through scenario analyses. The tool has already been used to predict the expected effect of 80 mitigation measures, suggested by boards of local experts to minimize cumulative impacts on reindeer habitat functionality and movement corridors in several areas in Norway (see Appendix 1 and Web-App). The scenarios that can be tested to include a combination of the removal/closure/relocation of existing infrastructures, changes in their intensity of use, the construction of new infrastructure (e.g. cottage, road, hiking and skiing trial, bridge over water magazines), and climate change. The statistical approach, software, maps, web-app and scenario analyses were developed within the Norwegian Research Council projects led by NINA “RenewableReindeer” (link), «ProdChange» and “OneImpact”, and in the related project "Scenario analyse Øyulvsbu og formidling". Comparison between statistical and expert-based maps was funded by the project from the Norwegian Environment Agency «OneImpact og kvalitetsnorm for villrein». These projects were or are supported by several partners and funding sources including the Norwegian Environment Agency, the Directorate of Water and Energy, the Hydropower company Sira Kvina, the wild reindeer project in Setesdal, the Wild reindeer centre / wild reindeer council, Siri Bøthun nature management Norwegian University of Life Sciences NMBU, and several international collaboration partners (Universite Catholique Louvain, Julia Computing Inc, Sveriges landbruksuniversitet SLU, University of Guelp, Canada, University of Alberta, Canada, The Nature Conservancy, Universidad Politecnica de Madrid, University of Glasgow). Parallel to this analytical work, management measures have been undertaken in Norway to counter the degradation of wild reindeer areas. In 2020 the government adopted the “Quality Standards for wild reindeer in Norway”, to meet both international obligations and national objectives for the conservation of viable populations within ecologically functioning habitats. Every fourth year, each of the 23 Norwegian sub-populations is classified into good (green), medium (yellow) or poor (red) quality, based on 3 sub-standards: 1) population conditions; 2) lichens; 3) human impact on habitats. Sub-standard 3 is therefore an important tool to ensure sustainable management of wild reindeer habitats. Sub-standard 3 aims to identify critical declines in habitat quality and connectivity in each wild reindeer area, so that the cause of the decline can be addressed, and the status of the area restored to acceptable levels (yellow) as soon as possible. In the longer term, the aim is that all national wild reindeer areas should be of good quality (green). The procedure thus needs to robustly identify areas where habitat loss and fragmentation increased above a critical threshold, and to provide information on the relative contribution of the responsible infrastructure and human activities. In the current Quality Standards, sub-standard 3 is implemented based on expert-based assessments of changes in available wild reindeer observations, that are assumed to reflect changes in human impact. The process involves the delineation of polygons representing reindeer seasonal ranges, corridors, and a set of focal areas where socio-ecological challenges related to human activities have been identified. The reduction in use of focal areas is assessed by the experts in the last decade compared to the previous four decades. The classification is then conducted by assessing the proportion of habitat lost within all focal areas, as compared to the habitat available within the seasonal range. In this report we provide an overview of the statistical approach, and we compare the performance of what we for simplicity call the “statistical maps” to the “expert-based polygons” developed in sub-standard 3, using both visual and quantitative approaches. We discuss the lessons learned by comparing the two approaches, and how these can help achieving the sustainability goals for the management of wild reindeer areas. This was the main focus of the project "OneImpact and quality standard for wild reindeer" funded by the Norwegian Environment Agency. As a proof of concepts, we also perform a preliminary statistical classification of the state of the wild reindeer areas following Delnorm 3 (“Sub-standard 3”). Last, we show how statistical approaches and simulations can help identifying the most effective among 76 measures suggested to mitigate cumulative impacts from anthropogenic activities in Setesdal, Nordfjella and Snøhetta (Appendix 1).

Climate-Smart Forestry (CSF) is a developing concept to help policymakers and practitioners develop focused forestry governance and management to adapt to and mitigate climate change. Within the EU COST Action CA15226, CLIMO (Climate-Smart Forestry in Mountain Regions), a CSF definition was developed considering three main pillars: (1) adaptation to climate change, (2) mitigation of climate change, and (3) the social dimension. Climate mitigation occurs through carbon (C) sequestration by trees, C storage in vegetation and soils, and C substitution by wood. However, present and future climate mitigation depends on the adaptation of trees, woods, and forests to adapt to climate change, which is also driven by societal change.Criteria and Indicators (C & I) can be used to assess the climate smartness of forestry in different conditions, and over time. A suite of C & I that quantify the climate smartness of forestry practices has been developed by experts as guidelines for CSF. This chapter charts the development of this definition, presents initial feedback from forest managers across Europe, and discusses other gaps and uncertainties, as well as potential future perspectives for the further evolution of this concept.

Increasingly precise spatial data (e.g. high-resolution imagery from remote sensing) allow for improved representations of the landscape network for assessing the combined effects of habitat loss and connectivity declines on biodiversity. However, evaluating large landscape networks presents a major computational challenge both in terms of working memory and computation time. We present the ConScape (i.e. “connected landscapes”) software library implemented in the high-performance open-source Julia language to compute metrics for connected habitat and movement flow on high-resolution landscapes. The combination of Julia's ‘just-in-time’ compiler, efficient algorithms and ‘landmarks’ to reduce the computational load allows ConScape to compute landscape ecological metrics—originally developed in metapopulation ecology (such as ‘metapopulation capacity’ and ‘probability of connectivity’)—for large landscapes. An additional major innovation in ConScape is the adoption of the randomized shortest paths framework to represent connectivity along the continuum from optimal to random movements, instead of only those extremes. We demonstrate ConScape's potential for using large datasets in sustainable land planning by modelling landscape connectivity based on remote-sensing data paired with GPS tracking of wild reindeer in Norway. To guide users, we discuss other applications, and provide a series of worked examples to showcase all ConScape's functionalities in Supplementary Material. Built by a team of ecologists, network scientists and software developers, ConScape is able to efficiently compute landscape metrics for high-resolution landscape representations to leverage the availability of large data for sustainable land use and biodiversity conservation. As a Julia implementation, ConScape combines computational efficiency with a transparent code base, which facilitates continued innovation through contributions from the rapidly growing community of landscape and connectivity modellers using Julia. circuitscape, conefor, ecological networks, least-cost path, metapopulation, random walk, randomized shortest paths

Trees are long-lived organisms that contribute to forest development over centuries and beyond. However, trees are vulnerable to increasing natural and anthropic disturbances. Spatially distributed, continuous data are required to predict mortality risk and impact on the fate of forest ecosystems. In order to enable monitoring over sensitive and often remote forest areas that cannot be patrolled regularly, early warning tools/platforms of mortality risk need to be established across regions. Although remote sensing tools are good at detecting change once it has occurred, early warning tools require ecophysiological information that is more easily collected from single trees on the ground.Here, we discuss the requirements for developing and implementing such a tree-based platform to collect and transmit ecophysiological forest observations and environmental measurements from representative forest sites, where the goals are to identify and to monitor ecological tipping points for rapid forest decline. Long-term monitoring of forest research plots will contribute to better understanding of disturbance and the conditions that precede it. International networks of these sites will provide a regional view of susceptibility and impacts and would play an important role in ground-truthing remotely sensed data.

Climate-smart forestry (CSF) is an emerging branch of sustainable adaptive forest management aimed at enhancing the potential of forests to adapt to and mitigate climate change. It relies on much higher data requirements than traditional forestry. These data requirements can be met by new devices that support continuous, in situ monitoring of forest conditions in real time. We propose a comprehensive network of sensors, i.e., a wireless sensor network (WSN), that can be part of a worldwide network of interconnected uniquely addressable objects, an Internet of Things (IoT), which can make data available in near real time to multiple stakeholders, including scientists, foresters, and forest managers, and may partially motivate citizens to participate in big data collection. The use of in situ sources of monitoring data as ground-truthed training data for remotely sensed data can boost forest monitoring by increasing the spatial and temporal scales of the monitoring, leading to a better understanding of forest processes and potential threats. Here, some of the key developments and applications of these sensors are outlined, together with guidelines for data management. Examples are given of their deployment to detect early warning signals (EWS) of ecosystem regime shifts in terms of forest productivity, health, and biodiversity. Analysis of the strategic use of these tools highlights the opportunities for engaging citizens and forest managers in this new generation of forest monitoring.

Background Glyphosate-based herbicides (GBHs) are the most widely used pesticides worldwide, and glyphosate is the active ingredient of such herbicides, including the formulation known as Roundup. The massive and increasing use of GBHs results in not only the global burden of occupational exposures, but also increased exposure to the general population. The current pilot study represents the first phase of a long-term investigation of GBHs that we are conducting over the next 5 years. In this paper, we present the study design, the first evaluation of in vivo parameters and the determination of glyphosate and its major metabolite aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA) in urine. Methods We exposed Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats orally via drinking water to a dose of glyphosate equivalent to the United States Acceptable Daily Intake (US ADI) of 1.75 mg/kg bw/day, defined as the chronic Reference Dose (cRfD) determined by the US EPA, starting from prenatal life, i.e. gestational day (GD) 6 of their mothers. One cohort was continuously dosed until sexual maturity (6-week cohort) and another cohort was continuously dosed until adulthood (13-week cohort). Here we present data on general toxicity and urinary concentrations of glyphosate and its major metabolite AMPA. Results Survival, body weight, food and water consumption of the animals were not affected by the treatment with either glyphosate or Roundup. The concentration of both glyphosate and AMPA detected in the urine of SD rats treated with glyphosate were comparable to that observed in animals treated with Roundup, with an increase in relation to the duration of treatment. The majority of glyphosate was excreted unchanged. Urinary levels of the parent compound, glyphosate, were around 100-fold higher than the level of its metabolite, AMPA. Conclusions Glyphosate concentrations in urine showed that most part of the administered dose was excreted as unchanged parent compound upon glyphosate and Roundup exposure, with an increasing pattern of glyphosate excreted in urine in relation to the duration of treatment. The adjuvants and the other substances present in Roundup did not seem to exert a major effect on the absorption and excretion of glyphosate. Our results demonstrate that urinary glyphosate is a more relevant marker of exposure than AMPA in the rodent model.

Climate-smart forestry can be regarded as the evolution of traditional silviculture. As such, it must rely on smart harvesting equipment and techniques for a reliable and effective application. The introduction of sensors and digital information technologies in forest inventories, operation planning, and work execution enables the achievement of the desired results and provides a range of additional opportunities and data. The latter may help to better understand the results of management options on forest health, timber quality, and many other applications. The introduction of intelligent forest machines may multiply the beneficial effect of digital data gathered for forest monitoring and management, resulting in forest harvesting operations being more sustainable in terms of costs and environment. The interaction can be pushed even further by including the timber processing industry, which assesses physical and chemical characteristics of wood with sensors to optimize the transformation process. With the support of an item-level traceability system, the same data could provide a formidable contribution to CSF. The “memory” of wood could support scientists to understand the response of trees to climate-induced stresses and to design accordingly an adaptive silviculture, contributing to forest resilience in the face of future changes due to human-induced climate alteration.

The goal to limit the increase in global temperature below 2 °C requires reaching a balance between anthropogenic emissions and reductions (sinks) in the second half of this century. As carbon sinks, forests can potentially play an important role in carbon capture. The Paris Agreement (2015) requires signatory countries to reduce deforestation, while conserving and enhancing carbon sinks. Innovative approaches may help foresters take up climate-smart management methods and identify measures for scaling purposes. The EU’s funding instrument COST has supported the Action CLIMO (Climate-Smart Forestry in Mountain Regions – CA15226), with the aim of reorienting forestry in mountain areas to challenge the adverse impacts of climate change.Funded by the EU’s Horizon 2020, CLIMO has brought together scientists and experts in continental and regional focus assessments through a cross-sectoral approach, facilitating the implementation of climate objectives. CLIMO has provided scientific analysis on issues including criteria and indicators, growth dynamics, management prescriptions, long-term perspectives, monitoring technologies, economic impacts, and governance tools. This book addresses different combinations of CLIMO’s driving/primary objectives and discusses smarter ways to develop forestry and monitor forests under current environmental changes, affecting forest ecosystems.

The potential health consequences of glyphosate-induced gut microbiome alterations have become a matter of intense debate. As part of a multifaceted study investigating toxicity, carcinogenicity and multigenerational effects of glyphosate and its commercial herbicide formulations, we assessed changes in bacterial and fungal populations in the caecum microbiota of rats exposed prenatally until adulthood (13 weeks after weaning) to three doses of glyphosate (0.5, 5, 50 mg/kg body weight/day), or to the formulated herbicide products Roundup Bioflow and RangerPro at the same glyphosate-equivalent doses. Caecum bacterial microbiota were evaluated by 16S rRNA sequencing whilst the fungal population was determined by ITS2 amplicon sequencing. Results showed that both fungal and bacterial diversity were affected by the Roundup formulations in a dose-dependent manner, whilst glyphosate alone significantly altered only bacterial diversity. At taxa level, a reduction in Bacteroidota abundance, marked by alterations in the levels of Alloprevotella, Prevotella and Prevotellaceae UCG-003, was concomitant to increased levels of Firmicutes (e.g., Romboutsia, Dubosiella, Eubacterium brachy group or Christensenellaceae) and Actinobacteria (e.g., Enterorhabdus, Adlercreutzia, or Asaccharobacter). Treponema and Mycoplasma also had their levels reduced by the pesticide treatments. Analysis of fungal composition indicated that the abundance of the rat gut commensal Ascomycota Kazachstania was reduced while the abundance of Gibberella, Penicillium, Claviceps, Cornuvesica, Candida, Trichoderma and Sarocladium were increased by exposure to the Roundup formulations, but not to glyphosate. Altogether, our data suggest that glyphosate and its Roundup RangerPro and Bioflow caused profound changes in caecum microbiome composition by affecting the fitness of major commensals, which in turn reduced competition and allowed opportunistic fungi to grow in the gut, in particular in animals exposed to the herbicide formulations. This further indicates that changes in gut microbiome composition might influence the long-term toxicity, carcinogenicity and multigenerational effects of glyphosate-based herbicides.

The challenge to harmonize nature-based tourism with species conservation is important both from an economic, cultural and ecological perspective. One approach for understanding this interaction is to compare the spatiotemporal overlap between tourism activities and the focal species’ space use, with the purpose to identify areas, periods, and conditions in which tourism exerts the highest negative impact. Here, we combine GPS data from 66 wild reindeer with on-site surveys of tourist (n = 13434 respondents at 66 locations) and trail use counters (n = 99 sites) in three Norwegian national parks. Our findings highlight a large-scale segregation during the summer season, as wild reindeer move to areas less prone to disturbance by humans. Based on these findings, we discuss a management model to segregate tourists from wild reindeer in space and/or time during summer with the goal of long-term sustainable coexistence.

Safety concerns on the toxic and carcinogenic effects of formalin exposure have drawn increasing attention to the search for alternative low risk fixatives for processing tissue specimens in laboratories worldwide. Alcohol-based fixatives are considered some of the most promising alternatives. We evaluated the performance of alcohol-fixed paraffin-embedded (AFPE) samples from Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats analyzing tissue morphology, protein and nucleic acid preservation after short and extremely long fixation times (up to 7 years), using formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) samples as a comparator fixative. Following short and long-term alcohol fixation, tissue morphology and cellular details in tissues, evaluated by scoring stained sections (Hematoxylin-Eosin and Mallory’s trichrome), were optimally preserved if compared to formalin fixation. Immunoreactivity of proteins (Ki67, CD3, PAX5, CD68), evaluated by immunohistochemistry, showed satisfactory results when the fixation period did not exceed 1 year. Finally, we confirm the superiority of alcohol fixation compared to formalin, in terms of quantity of nucleic acid extracted from paraffin blocks, even after an extremely long time of alcohol fixation. Our results confirm that alcohol fixation is a suitable and safe alternative to formalin for pathological evaluations. There is a need for standardization of formalin-free methods and harmonization of diagnosis in pathology department worldwide.

Anterior, benign epidural cysts are a rarely described cause of non discal lumbar radiculopathy. The differentiation between synovial, ganglion, fibrous annulus, posterior longitudinal ligament and disc cysts reflects the fragmentary nature of reports so far and it's probably misleading. A case of ventral L5-S1 synovial cyst is reported and the literature is reviewed. It is proposed that these lesions be all grouped together as anterior epidural degenerative cysts of the lumbar spine on the ground of shared clinical and MRI features and management options along with a common pathogenesis (response to degenerative spinal changes) and histological substrate. Keywords: Lumbar spine, Epidural cyst, Pathology

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Glyphosate (G) is set for re-approval in the European Union in late 2022 and the full risk posed by glyphosate-based herbicides (GBHs) is still unclear.The Ramazzini Institute (...

The forage maturation hypothesis (FMH) states that energy intake for ungulates is maximised when forage biomass is at intermediate levels. Nevertheless, metabolic allometry and different digestive systems suggest that resource selection should vary across ungulate species. By combining GPS relocations with remotely sensed data on forage characteristics and surface water, we quantified the effect of body size and digestive system in determining movements of 30 populations of hindgut fermenters (equids) and ruminants across biomes. Selection for intermediate forage biomass was negatively related to body size, regardless of digestive system. Selection for proximity to surface water was stronger for equids relative to ruminants, regardless of body size. To be more generalisable, we suggest that the FMH explicitly incorporate contingencies in body size and digestive system, with small-bodied ruminants selecting more strongly for potential energy intake, and hindgut fermenters selecting more strongly for surface water.

The amount of nitrogen (N) deposition onto forests has globally increased and is expected to double by 2050, mostly because of fertilizer production and fossil fuel burning. Several studies have already investigated the effects of N depositions in forest soils, highlighting negative consequences on plant biodiversity and the associated biota. Nevertheless, the impact of N aerial inputs deposited directly on the tree canopy is still unexplored. This study aimed to investigate the influence of increased N deposition on the leaf-associated fungal and bacterial communities in a temperate forest dominated by Sessile oak [Quercus petraea (Matt.) Liebl.]. The study area was located in the Monticolo forest (South Tyrol, Italy), where an ecosystem experiment simulating an increased N deposition has been established. The results highlighted that N deposition affected the fungal beta-diversity and bacterial alpha-diversity without affecting leaf total N and C contents. We found several indicator genera of both fertilized and natural conditions within bacteria and fungi, suggesting a highly specific response to altered N inputs. Moreover, we found an increase of symbiotrophic fungi in N-treated, samples which are commonly represented by lichen-forming mycobionts. Overall, our results indicated that N-deposition, by increasing the level of bioavailable nutrients in leaves, could directly influence the bacterial and fungal community diversity.

Human exposure to glyphosate has become ubiquitous because of its increasing agricultural use. Recent studies suggest endocrine disrupting effects of glyphosate. Specifically, in our work in rodents, low-dose early-life exposure to Roundup® (glyphosate-based herbicide) lengthened anogenital distance (AGD) in male and female offspring. AGD is a marker of the prenatal hormone milieu in rodents and humans. The relationship between glyphosate exposure and AGD has not been studied in humans. We conducted a pilot study in 94 mother-infant pairs (45 female and 49 male) from The Infant Development and the Environment Study (TIDES). For each infant, two AGD measurements were collected after birth; the anopenile (AGD-AP) and anoscrotal (AGD-AS) distances for males, and anoclitoral (AGD-AC) and anofourchette distances (AGD-AF) for females. We measured levels of glyphosate and its degradation product aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA) in 2nd trimester maternal urine samples using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. We assessed the relationship between exposure and AGD using sex-stratified multivariable linear regression models. Glyphosate and AMPA were detected in 95% and 93% of the samples (median 0.22 ng/mL and 0.14 ng/mL, respectively). Their concentrations were moderately correlated (r = 0.55, p = 5.7 × 10−9). In female infants, high maternal urinary glyphosate (above the median) was associated with longer AGD-AC (β = 1.48, 95%CI (−0.01, 3.0), p = 0.05), but this was not significant after covariate adjustment. Increased AMPA was associated with longer AGD-AF (β = 1.96, 95%CI (0.44, 3.5), p = 0.01) after adjusting for infant size and age at AGD exam. No associations were detected in male offspring. These preliminary findings partially reproduce our previous results in rodents and suggest that glyphosate is a sex-specific endocrine disruptor with androgenic effects in humans. Given the increasing glyphosate exposures in the US population, larger studies should evaluate potential developmental effects on endocrine and reproductive systems.

Phthalates are commonly included as ingredients in personal care products such as cosmetics, shampoos and perfumes. Diethyl phthalate (DEP) has been found to be anti-androgenic and linked with adverse reproductive effects on males, but effects on females are poorly understood. We designed an integrative and translational study to experimentally examine the effects of DEP exposure at a human-equivalent dose on the mammary transcriptome in rats and to subsequently examine the DEP gene signature in breast tissues (both pre-malignant and tumor) from a population study. In Sprague-Dawley rats treated orally with DEP from birth to adulthood, we identified a signature panel of 107 genes predominantly down-regulated by DEP exposure. Univariate analysis of this 107 DEP gene signature in pre-malignant breast tissues revealed that six genes (P4HA1, MPZL3, TMC4, PLEKHA6, CA8, AREG) were inversely associated with monoethyl phthalate (MEP; the urinary metabolite of DEP) concentration (p

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via the original article.

Glyphosate-based herbicides (GBHs) can disrupt the host microbiota and influence human health. In this study, we explored the potential effects of GBHs on urinary metabolites and their interactions with gut microbiome using a rodent model. Glyphosate and Roundup (equal molar for glyphosate) were administered at the USA glyphosate ADI guideline (1.75 mg/kg bw/day) to the dams and their pups. The urine metabolites were profiled using non-targeted liquid chromatography—high resolution mass spectrometry (LC-HRMS). Our results found that overall urine metabolite profiles significantly differed between dams and pups and between female and male pups. Specifically, we identified a significant increase of homocysteine, a known risk factor of cardiovascular disease in both Roundup and glyphosate exposed pups, but in males only. Correlation network analysis between gut microbiome and urine metabolome pointed to Prevotella to be negatively correlated with the level of homocysteine. Our study provides initial evidence that exposures to commonly used GBH, at a currently acceptable human exposure dose, is capable of modifying urine metabolites in both rat adults and pups. The link between Prevotella-homocysteine suggests the potential role of GBHs in modifying the susceptibility of homocysteine, which is a metabolite that has been dysregulated in related diseases like cardiovascular disease or inflammation, through commensal microbiome.

BackgroundIn a previous study, we found that 45% of public playgrounds near intensively managed agricultural areas were contaminated with mainly endocrine active pesticide residues in spring. Here, we investigated potential contamination over the course of a year.MethodsResidue data were analyzed from 96 grass samples collected in spring, summer, autumn, and winter by the South Tyrolean Medical Service in 19 public playgrounds, four schoolyards, and one marketplace located within intensively managed agricultural landscapes. Samples were analyzed for 281 substances using gas-chromatography and mass-spectrometry.ResultsA total of 32 pesticide residues and one preservative agent were found. Almost all of the sites (96%) were contaminated with at least one residue during the year; in 79% of the sites, more than one residue was found. Among the detected residues, 76% are classified as endocrine active substances, with the highest concentrations of the insecticide chlorpyrifos-methyl (0.71 mg kg−1), the herbicide oxadiazon (0.64 mg kg−1), and the fungicides captan (0.46 mg kg−1) and fluazinam (0.23 mg kg−1). The number of residues, their concentrations, and the proportion of contaminated sites varied across seasons (p −1), nine in 79% of the sites in summer (0.092 mg kg−1), three in 50% of the sites in autumn (0.076 mg kg−1), and four in 17% of the sites in winter (0.155 mg kg−1). Playgrounds already examined in 2017 in the previous study, were more often contaminated with multiple pesticide residues in 2018 (p = 0.045).ConclusionThis study confirms previous findings of widespread pesticide contamination of public sites within intensively managed agricultural areas. Moreover, pesticide residues were also found in periods with little or no pesticide application in the field (autumn and winter). It is worrisome that many of the detected residues are endocrine active substances and that some of them (thiacloprid, bupirimate, captan, folpet) are “suspected human carcinogens”, according to EU authorities. Thus, we call for more effective controls of pesticide applications to minimize pesticide drift into public places.

Gundersen, V., van Moorter, B. Panzacchi, M., Rauset, G.R. & Strand, O. 2021. Villrein-ferdselsanalyser på Hardangervidda - Anbefalinger og tiltak. NINA Rapport 1903. Norsk institutt for naturforskning. Denne rapporten oppsummerer resultatene fra villrein-ferdselsanalyser på Hardangervidda. Data på ferdsel danner et viktig materiale for analysene og for anbefalingene, og er oppsummert i fire separerte rapporter (Selvaag m.fl. 2018, 2019, 2020, Gundersen m.fl. 2021). Bruken av fjellområdene følger samfunnstrender og har stor betydning for villreinen. Hardanger-vidda er mye brukt til turisme og friluftsliv, og det har skjedd og skjer en massiv utbygging av hytter og annen infrastruktur i randsonene. På nasjonalt nivå har turismen blomstret opp som viktig næring i distriktene. Merkevare og besøksstrategier for nasjonalparkene skal forvalte attraktive områder og gi brukerne gode naturopplevelser samtidig som man skal ta vare på verneverdiene. Forvaltningsplanen for nasjonalparken, regional plan for villreinområdet og kvalitetsnorm for villrein, skal håndtere den menneskelige bruken innenfor det som er akseptabelt nivå for å ta vare på villreinen og andre verneverdier. Forvaltningen trenger derfor mer kunnskap om hvilke konsekvenser den menneskelige bruken har for villreinen. For å svare på dette bruker vi flere typer data og analyser. Det er gjennomført analyser som beregner villreinens sannsynlighet for å krysse stier og løyper med et gitt volum av trafikk fra automatiske tellere og stiindekser. Vi har også gjennomført storskala romlige analyser av villreinens arealbruk og trekk og som kvantifiserer betydningen av en lang rekke faktorer av naturgitte og menneskeskapte forhold. Analysene som er en del av analyseverktøyet OneImpact som NINA har utviklet, beskriver den samlede effekten av menneskelig aktivitet, og kvantifiserer bidraget fra de ulike komponentene i denne forstyrrelsen. Produktene i denne helhetlige analysen viser landskapets habitatkvalitet og permeabilitet (motstand), og disse er videreutviklet til analy-ser som beskriver villreinens kjerneområder og forflytningsruter. Bidraget, positivt eller negativt, fra de ulike naturgitte og menneskeskapte faktorene er tallfestet. Det er også gjennomført en scenario-analyse, der fravær av eksisterende infrastruktur er manipulert i analysene for villrei-nens kjerneområder og forflytningsruter, og der analysene viser resultater før og etter manipule-ringen. Differansen før og etter for villreinens kjerneområder og forflytningsruter er da gitt som et prosenttall (+/-), avhengig av om tiltaket er beregnet å virke positivt eller negativt for villreinen. Analysene viser at menneskelig aktivitet samlet sett gir det største bidraget til å forklare villreinens bruk av Hardangervidda, og denne effekten er sterkere om sommeren enn om vinteren. Det er den «tunge» utbyggingen av infrastruktur i randsonen som har medført sterkt redusert habitatkvalitet og mulighet for trekk. Analysene identifiserer store arealer i randsonen med dårlig habitatkvalitet, og der også GPS dataene som er samlet inn siden 2001 viser at villreinen helt eller delvis unnviker disse arealene. Eksempler her er store arealer med hyttefelt, turistdestinasjoner, vannkraftutbygginger og med tilhørende infrastruktur av veger, oppkjørte skispor, merka stier og annen tilrettelegging for fritidsaktiviteter. Denne utbyggingen har «presset» villreinen inn kjerneområdene. Likeledes har utbyggingen av «tung» nasjonal viktig infrastruktur som hoved-veger (Rv7 og E134), mindre veger (Imingfjell, Dagali) og jernbane (mot Nordfjella) medført at viktige sesongtrekk mellom viktige funksjonsområder er sterkt redusert eller opphørt. Dette har medført ytterligere fragmentering av villreinbestandene i Langfjella. Analysene viser at det er den samlede effekten av disse inngrepene i randsonen som gir arealunnvikelse og brudd i trekk, og at fjerning av en type infrastruktur, f. eks. en veg, kan gi redusert effekt fordi det fortsatt er mye annen type infrastruktur (private hytter, turisthytter, reguleringsmagasin) som gir dårlig habitat-kvalitet for villreinen. Modellene identifiserer de beste habitatene for villreinen i de sentrale delene av Hardangervidda. Dette er områder som har infrastruktur av spredte private hytter og buer, private turisthytter, DNT turisthytter, bruer og «myk» infrastruktur av merka stier og stikka løyper. Modellene viser at merka stier og turisthytter gir negative bidrag til å forklare habitatkvalitet og forflytningsruter for villreinen i kjerneområdene. De mer detaljerte analysene av den dynamiske bruken av merka stier viser at det er en negativ sammenheng mellom reinens sannsynlighet for å krysse stier på ulike dager og det volumet av mennesker som bruker stien de respektive dagene. Hvis antall passeringer (teller, stiindeks) på en sti er mer enn 25-30 personer per dag, viser reinen sterk unngåelse av disse stiene og krysser i mange tilfeller ikke over stien. Vi fant derimot ingen sammenheng mellom krysningsfrekvens til villrein og telledata fra de stikka løy-pene vinterstid, og reinen krysser over de stikka løypene som forventet ut fra tilgjengelighet. Vi har redegjort for usikkerhet knyttet til analysene. Hardangervidda villreinområde har nå et kunnskapsgrunnlag som evner å se de kumulative ef-fektene for hele arealet i sammenheng, samtidig med at det er gitt beskrivelser av lokale problemstillinger. Det er også gitt detaljert kunnskap om hvordan forvaltningen kan jobbe videre med å bedre situasjonen for villreinbestanden. En bærekraftig utvikling av villreinbestanden er betinget at den kan vandre mer fritt og bruke mer av de gode habitatene. Tiltakene må rette seg mot å begrense den menneskelige aktiviteten i de mest kritiske områdene. Rapporten gir forslag til endringer i infrastruktur av merka stier og turisthytter sentralt på vidda. Det gjelder spesielt for å øke bruken av og tilgjengeligheten til de gode sommerhabitatene i vest. Forvaltningen må videre ta høyde for at den menneskelige bruken kan øke ytterligere i årene fremover, og den må være fleksibel i forhold til både økt bruk og nye former for bruk. Derfor haster det med å gjennomføre noen store endringer i infrastruktur for friluftsliv og turisme på Hardangervidda. Gundersen, V., van Moorter, B. Panzacchi, M., Rauset, G.R. & Strand, O. 2021. Integrated x wild reindeer and human prescence analyses at Hardangervidda range – Recommandations and measurements. NINA Report 1903. Norwegian Institute for Nature Research. This report summarizes the results from wild reindeer – human impact analyzes in the Hardangervidda wild reindeer range. The descriptions of data on human activity and presence form an important basis for the analyzes and for the recommendations, and are summarized in four separate reports (Selvaag m.fl. 2018, 2019, 2020, Gundersen m.fl. 2020). The Hardangervidda wild reindeer range is in a time when there are a lot of comprehensive changes in the society that are important for the wild reindeer habitat. The mountain areas have once again received great focus as a recreational landscape, and there is a massive develop-ment of second-home areas and recreational infrastructure in the peripheral zones. Tourism has flourished, and the management of protected areas has opened up from "pure protection" to "wise use". Branding and visiting strategies in protection areas had the aim to pull visitors to attractions and good experiences and to handle the use by pushing away people from vulnerable areas to preserve the conservation values. The management plan, regional plan and recent implementation of quality standard for wild reindeer shall, on the basis of knowledge, define accepted level of human activity within the main goal to protect the wild reindeer. The management authorities therefore needs more knowledge about impact of human activity on wild reindeer. To answer the questions related to how human activity affects the wild reindeer on the Hardangervidda, we use several types of analyzes. Analyzes that look at the wild reindeer's trail and track crossing at trails with a given traffic volume that day. To do this we use GPS data in relation to two types of independent trail data; automatic counters and Trail Use index (TUI) derived from users that draw down their trip. Analyzes of the wild reindeer's habitat selection quantify the contribution from natural properties and human influence. Analyzes of the landscape's permea-bility or landscape friction identify variables that explain the resistance the reindeer encounters when it is on the move, also here in relation to both natural properties and human influence. Finally, we carry out scenario analyzes, in which we quantify the effects of infrastructure removal on the reindeer's habitat selection and landscape permeability. The analyzes have identified large areas with suitable habitat on the Hardangervidda, but the reindeer do not use this habitat optimally. Both regional cumulative effects and ceased migration routes, as well as regional area avoidance and also local responses to human presence have been identified. The results show that it is "heavy" infrastructure in the peripheral zone of the wild reindeer range that has had the greatest negative impact on the reindeer's area use and migration. This applies to hydropower dams, houses, main roads, gravel roads, second-home areas, while power lines and railways (less presented) have had less effect. Great pressure from the peripheral zone has the consequence that the more remote areas have been given increased value, and here much-used trails and tourist cabins have a negative effect. The analyzes identified a correlation between the reindeer's trail crossing and the volume of people who use the trail that particular day. If the number of people on a trail increases beyond 25-30 people per day, there is a descending curve for frequency of trail crossing. The management authorities can use these results to create strategies to identify both robust areas for people visitation and particularly vulnerable areas for wild reindeer, and implement management measures that either reduce human use or increase it. We have proposed a zoning tool on the Hardanger plateau that can be used as a basis for a long list of different concrete measures. Based on the scenario analysis, we propose some overall measures that can improve the situation for the wild reindeer in a longterm perspective.

Additional file 1. Additional figures and tables.

International audience; Climate-smart forestry (CSF) is an emerging branch of sustainable adaptive forest management aimed at enhancing the potential of forests to adapt to and mitigate climate change. It relies on much higher data requirements than traditional forestry. These data requirements can be met by new devices that support continuous, in situ monitoring of forest conditions in real time. We propose a comprehensive network of sensors, i.e., a wireless sensor network (WSN), that can be part of a worldwide network of interconnected uniquely addressable objects, an Internet of Things (IoT), which can make data available in near real time to multiple stakeholders, including scientists, foresters, and forest managers, and may partially motivate citizens to participate in big data collection. The use of in situ sources of monitoring data as ground-truthed training data for remotely sensed data can boost forest monitoring by increasing the spatial and temporal scales of the monitoring, leading to a better understanding of forest processes and potential threats. Here, some of the key developments and applications of these sensors are outlined, together with guidelines for data management. Examples are given of their deployment to detect early warning signals (EWS) of ecosystem regime shifts in terms of forest productivity, health, and biodiversity. Analysis of the strategic use of these tools highlights the opportunities for engaging citizens and forest managers in this new generation of forest monitoring.

The amount of nitrogen (N) deposition onto forests has globally increased and is expected to double by 2050, mostly because of fertilizer production and fossil fuel burning. Several studies have already investigated the effects of N depositions in forest soils, highlighting negative consequences on plant biodiversity and the associated biota. Nevertheless, the impact of N aerial inputs deposited directly on the tree canopy is still unexplored. This study aimed to investigate the influence of increased N deposition on the leaf-associated fungal and bacterial communities in a temperate forest dominated by Sessile oak [Quercus petraea (Matt.) Liebl.]. The study area was located in the Monticolo forest (South Tyrol, Italy), where an ecosystem experiment simulating an increased N deposition has been established. The results highlighted that N deposition affected the fungal beta-diversity and bacterial alpha-diversity without affecting leaf total N and C contents. We found several indicator genera of both fertilized and natural conditions within bacteria and fungi, suggesting a highly specific response to altered N inputs. Moreover, we found an increase of symbiotrophic fungi in N-treated, samples which are commonly represented by lichen-forming mycobionts. Overall, our results indicated that N-deposition, by increasing the level of bioavailable nutrients in leaves, could directly influence the bacterial and fungal community diversity.

Background: Double pituitary adenomas (DA) are two morphologically and immunohystochemically different tumours in the same gland. They are rare, generally small adenomas and divided in: separated, when clearly recognizable before or during surgery, and contiguous, when diagnosed only in the following histopathological examination. Acromegaly and Cushing’s disease are the main prevalent clinical presentation. Objective: We described two cases of DA in a surgical series over 16 years in a single center. Methods: In September 2018, we diagnosed a DA in a man with acromegaly (case 1). In order to assess the presence of other cases of DA, we performed a retrospective analysis of the endonasal endoscopically operated sellar adenomas from January 2004 to December 2019. Results : 468 pituitary adenomas were found. A DA with a Pit-1 positive macroadenoma (GH-TSH- PRL positive) and an ACTH microadenoma clinically silent in an acromegalic woman was retrospectively found (case 2). Conclusion : Our analysis confirms that DA are rare (0.4% of the pituitary adenomas) and often associated with acromegaly. Their pre-operatively diagnosis is difficult but clinician’s awareness of DA can improve the diagnosis. The use of pituitary transcription factors could be useful in detecting DA.

Climate-Smart Forestry (CSF) is an emerging branch of sustainable forest management that aims to manage forests in response to climate change. Specific CSF strategies are viewed as a way forward for developing suitable management responses and enhancing the provision of ecosystem services. However, there is currently a lack of comprehensive and cohesive assessment to implement CSF. This paper describes the step-by-step process that developed a comprehensive and shared definition of CSF, and the process for selecting indicators that assess the “climate-smartness” of forest management. Adaptation, mitigation and social dimensions are the core focus of the CSF definition, which recognises the need to integrate and avoid development of these aspects in isolation. An iterative participatory process was used with a range of experts in forest-related fields from the CLIMO project, this was subsequently supported by a network analysis to identify sustainable forest management indicators important to CSF. The definition developed here, is an important first step in to promote CSF that will aid practice in the forestry sector. It can be used as a template across Europe, tailored to local contexts. Further work communicating CSF to practitioners and policy-makers will create a CSF practice and culture that will help to safeguard future forest economies and communities.