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Abstract: Histogram plots can be used as a cost- and time-efficient tool to detect horizontal or gently dipping geomorphic surfaces within a background regional topography. One of the main classes of these surfaces is typified by terraces formed during marine still-stands. This contribution uses elevation histogram plots as morphometric indicators for detecting the possible existence of concealed terrace orders in Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) derived by the processing of bathymetric data. The approach is particularly useful when dealing with submerged terraces and platforms, because of the obvious difficulties in mapping those surfaces. The advantage of using this indicator consists in the rapid identification of DEM recurrent bathymetric values. This tool is most powerful when dealing with shortly developed terraces and/or multiple terrace orders, whose detection could have been missed by direct observation. Two case studies characterized by the presence of a single terracing event are tested: the southern slope of the Ischia Island and the top of the Palinuro Seamount, both located in the Eastern Tyrrhenian Sea Margin. Elevation histograms are used for terrace order computation in a more complex setting, the Gorringe Bank, located offshore SW Portugal in the Eastern Atlantic Ocean. The results show that a joint use of elevation histogram computation and geomorphologic analysis can be particularly efficient in the study of planar surfaces. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Recent studies have definitively shown the high sensitivity of the Mediterranean Sea to the effects produced by the large-scale atmospheric systems. The rapid response of this basin, when compared with the ocean time scales, makes the interannual variability of the circulation an important signal that, in some regions, may prevail over the annual cycle. We have also to consider that the distinct sub-basins, often subjected to different atmospheric and dynamic regimes, produce specific water masses that can reach all the Mediterranean regions as far as the adjacent Atlantic Ocean by a connecting network provided by the internal straits and channel. In this scenario an important role is played by the Strait of Sicily dividing the two principal sub-basins, the eastern and the western Mediterranean. A long-term monitoring of the hydrographic properties of water masses across this strait, initiated in the second half of the 1980s, permitted the identification of the principal interannual variations in the water exchange between the Ionian Sea and the Tyrrhenian Sea. It was possible to follow the evolution of the water mass characteristics under the influence of the climatic transient, which modified the production of both the intermediate and the deep water in the eastern Mediterranean. A consequence was an increase of density in the Sicily westward outflow, which produced a cascade in the deep Tyrrhenian with a remarkable deep injection of heat and salt. Furthermore, moving from the impact on the Tyrrhenian Sea, the possible effects on the western Mediterranean basin are discussed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The article focuses on the first record of Maja goltziana d'Oliveira, an oxyrhynch crab known from the eastern Atlantic Ocean and from the Mediterranean Sea. According to the author, the crab is considered a rare species, and has been captured a few times in the eastern Mediterranean. However, a few specimens of this species were found in the Tyrrhenian Sea and in the Adriatic Sea. The present record extends the known distribution of Maja goltziana in the Italian seas.

We report the presence of 'plasticrusts' and 'pyroplastic' from coastal habitats in Giglio island, Tyrrhenian Sea, Italy. These novel plastic debris types have only recently been described for the first time from Madeira island (NE Atlantic Ocean) and the United Kingdom, respectively. While 'plasticrusts' are generated by sea waves smashing plastic debris against intertidal rocks, 'pyroplastic' derives from (un)deliberately burnt plastic waste. Using Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, we identified the 'plasticrust' material as polyethylene (PE) and the 'pyroplastic' material as polyethylene terephthalate (PET). These polymers are widely used in everyday products and, therefore, contribute heavily to plastic pollution in aquatic and terrestrial environments worldwide. Furthermore, our field surveys suggest that 'plasticrust' abundance is related to wave-exposure and that the 'pyroplastic' derived from beverage bottles which we frequently found along the Giglio coast. Overall, our findings corroborate the notion that 'plasticrusts' and 'pyroplastic' are common debris types in marine coastal habitats., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)