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During scientific technical dives in a marine animal forest (MAF) environment, the nudibranch Dondice trainitoi Furfaro & Mariottini 2020 was recorded on a rocky bottom at 50 m depth in the Salento Peninsula, Southern Italy, Eastern Mediterranean Sea. Further in situ explorations and broad bibliographic research within both the scientific and grey literature revealed that D. trainitoi is widely distributed across the Mediterranean Sea, despite what was previously known. Herein are the first records for the Adriatic Sea and the Apulia region of Italy, together with the deepest record of this species. An analysis of collected samples and both in situ and laboratory photographs of the hydrozoan colonies associated with D. trainitoi revealed its ecology and trophic behaviour; we conclude that the hydrozoan Obelia bidentata Clark, 1875 is its preferred prey, but that it also feeds on the athecate hydroid Eudendrium glomeratum Picard, 1952. These findings shed some light on the little-known ecology and distribution, on both a geographical and a bathymetric scale, of this species, which are fundamental to increasing knowledge on Mediterranean biodiversity and its ecosystem functions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study we focused on the need to fill a knowledge gap among Italian botanical studies namely that of ornamental species census. In particular, we addressed one of the regions in southern Italy with less knowledge in the field of such studies and with an obvious presence of non-native species. A widespread census of the Apulian territory was carried out between 2021 and 2024 in both urban and suburban areas including street trees, parks, and private and historic gardens. The inventory of ornamental trees, shrubs, and succulents of Apulia (southern Italy) was carried out in six provinces, i.e., Bari, Barletta-Andria-Trani, Brindisi, Foggia, Lecce, and Taranto. The checklist comprises 287 taxa (including 265 species, 6 varieties, 5 subspecies, and 11 forms) included in 179 genera belonging to 78 families. We evaluated the number of taxa per families and genera, the presence of each taxa in the provinces of Apulia, the number of taxa per occurrence status, growth forms, geographical origin, and the number of native and alien taxa and also the artificial hybrids. Remarks of the most significant taxa and evaluation of geographical distribution in Italy were also taken into consideration. A large number of surveyed taxa (51.74%) are comprised in the list reported in the recent study on allochthonous vascular flora in Italy with a marked prevalence of Neophyte Casual Alien and Neophyte Naturalized Alien species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Visitor attraction dynamics lead tourism industry paths. A complex artificial neural network model was built to predict the incoming tourism flow in the Apulia region of Southern Italy as a function of the heterogeneity of the tourism supply available in this area. Open data from the Regional Tourism Observatory were targeted. Information on the distribution of facilities and activities that attract regional tourist flows was collected and grouped by municipality. An artificial neural network model was built with total tourist attendance as the dependent variable and tourist attractions as regressors. The Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) was used to select the optimal model using the lowest value. The final model was run with a hidden layer consisting of three neurons and a decay value of 0.01. A Multi-Objective Counterfactual model (MOC) was then constructed using a randomly selected row of normalized data frame to validate a useful tool in increasing total tourist attendance by 20% over that of the randomly selected municipality. A Garson's variables importance plot indicated natural landscapes such as beaches, sea caves, and natural parks have a primary role expressed in terms of variable importance in the AI algorithm when used as an innovative methodology for evaluating tourism flows in the Apulia region. A further MOC model built using a randomly selected row of normalized data frame showed convents, libraries, historical buildings, public gardens, and museums as the top five features most modified to improve total attendance in a randomly selected municipality. Use of AI modeling revealed that the implementation of nature-based solutions may speed up the flow of tourism in the Apulia region while also promoting sustainable social development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article's subject is the migration of Apulian New Christians to Venetian Dalmatia in the late fifteenth and early sixteenth century. These New Christians were the descendants of Jews who had converted to Christianity at the end of the thirteenth century but who continued to constitute a group distinct from the rest of society until many had to flee Apulia due to growing repressions at the turn to the sixteenth century. Based on archival material from Zadar, Split, and Venice, this paper studies the Venetian ruled town of Split as an example of how close and multifaceted the contacts between Apulian New Christians and Venetian Dalmatia were, ranging from grain trade to permanent settlement. Although Venice tried to expel all New Christians from its territories, including Dalmatia, in the 1490s, they appear to have been tolerated in Split. How this was possible and how the Apulian New Christians integrated themselves into the local society is studied in this article. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background It has been shown that COVID-19 affects people at socioeconomic disadvantage more strongly. Previous studies investigating the association between geographical deprivation and COVID-19 outcomes in Italy reported no differences in case-hospitalisation and case-fatality. The objective of this research was to compare the usefulness of the geographic and individual deprivation index (DI) in assessing the associations between individuals' deprivation and risk of Sars-CoV-2 infection and disease severity in the Apulia region from February to December 2020. Methods This was a retrospective cohort study. Participants included individuals tested for SARS-CoV-2 infection during the study period. The individual DI was calculated employing polychoric principal component analysis on four census variables. Multilevel logistic models were used to test associations between COVID-19 outcomes and individual DI, geographical DI, and their interaction. Results In the study period, 139,807 individuals were tested for COVID-19 and 56,475 (43.5%) tested positive. Among those positive, 7902 (14.0%) have been hospitalised and 2215 (4.2%) died. During the first epidemic wave, according the analysis done with the individual DI, there was a significant inversely proportional trend between the DI and the risk of testing positive. No associations were found between COVID-19 outcomes and geographic DI. During the second wave, associations were found between COVID-19 outcomes and individual DI. No associations were found between the geographic DI and the risk of hospitalisation and death. During both waves, there were no association between COVID-19 outcomes and the interaction between individual and geographical DI. Conclusions Evidence from this study shows that COVID-19 pandemic has been experienced unequally with a greater burden among the most disadvantaged communities. The results of this study remind us to be cautious about using geographical DI as a proxy of individual social disadvantage because may lead to inaccurate assessments. The geographical DI is often used due to a lack of individual data. However, on the determinants of health and health inequalities, monitoring has to have a central focus. Health inequalities monitoring provides evidence on who is being left behind and informs equity-oriented policies, programmes and practices. Future research and data collection should focus on improving surveillance systems by integrating individual measures of inequalities into national health information systems.

Background: It has been shown that COVID-19 affects people at socioeconomic disadvantage more strongly. Previous studies investigating the association between geographical deprivation and COVID-19 outcomes in Italy reported no differences in case-hospitalisation and case-fatality. The objective of this research was to compare the usefulness of the geographic and individual deprivation index (DI) in assessing the associations between individuals' deprivation and risk of Sars-CoV-2 infection and disease severity in the Apulia region from February to December 2020. Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study. Participants included individuals tested for SARS-CoV-2 infection during the study period. The individual DI was calculated employing polychoric principal component analysis on four census variables. Multilevel logistic models were used to test associations between COVID-19 outcomes and individual DI, geographical DI, and their interaction. Results: In the study period, 139,807 individuals were tested for COVID-19 and 56,475 (43.5%) tested positive. Among those positive, 7902 (14.0%) have been hospitalised and 2215 (4.2%) died. During the first epidemic wave, according the analysis done with the individual DI, there was a significant inversely proportional trend between the DI and the risk of testing positive. No associations were found between COVID-19 outcomes and geographic DI. During the second wave, associations were found between COVID-19 outcomes and individual DI. No associations were found between the geographic DI and the risk of hospitalisation and death. During both waves, there were no association between COVID-19 outcomes and the interaction between individual and geographical DI. Conclusions: Evidence from this study shows that COVID-19 pandemic has been experienced unequally with a greater burden among the most disadvantaged communities. The results of this study remind us to be cautious about using geographical DI as a proxy of individual social disadvantage because may lead to inaccurate assessments. The geographical DI is often used due to a lack of individual data. However, on the determinants of health and health inequalities, monitoring has to have a central focus. Health inequalities monitoring provides evidence on who is being left behind and informs equity-oriented policies, programmes and practices. Future research and data collection should focus on improving surveillance systems by integrating individual measures of inequalities into national health information systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study we focused on the need to fill a knowledge gap among Italian botanical studies namely that of ornamental species census. In particular, we addressed one of the regions in southern Italy with less knowledge in the field of such studies and with an obvious presence of non-native species. A widespread census of the Apulian territory was carried out between 2021 and 2024 in both urban and suburban areas including street trees, parks, and private and historic gardens. The inventory of ornamental trees, shrubs, and succulents of Apulia (southern Italy) was carried out in six provinces, i.e., Bari, Barletta-Andria-Trani, Brindisi, Foggia, Lecce, and Taranto. The checklist comprises 287 taxa (including 265 species, 6 varieties, 5 subspecies, and 11 forms) included in 179 genera belonging to 78 families. We evaluated the number of taxa per families and genera, the presence of each taxa in the provinces of Apulia, the number of taxa per occurrence status, growth forms, geographical origin, and the number of native and alien taxa and also the artificial hybrids. Remarks of the most significant taxa and evaluation of geographical distribution in Italy were also taken into consideration. A large number of surveyed taxa (51.74%) are comprised in the list reported in the recent study on allochthonous vascular flora in Italy with a marked prevalence of Neophyte Casual Alien and Neophyte Naturalized Alien species.

In the last decades, the scientific community has paid an increasing attention on coastal karst areas, since these are highly urbanized and populated, and attract high number of tourists. This transition zone where anthropogenic, terrestrial, and marine processes simultaneously act, is intrinsically fragile, and its vulnerability to geological hazards is enhanced by the mixing between fresh and salt waters, causing a stronger dissolution on carbonate rocks. In this paper, a case study located along the coastal karst of Apulia, between the provinces of Bari and Brindisi, in one of the most touristic areas of the Region is described. In detail, this manuscript deals with description sinkholes evolution at the coastal zone and seawater intrusion in coastal aquifer. The case study highlights the influence of sinkholes in the modification of coastal geomorphology, potentially leading to natural hazards in terms for communities, urbanized land, and infrastructures. The geological setting presents the Cretaceous limestone bedrock overlain by more recent Cenozoic calcarenites and Quaternary marine terrace deposits. The topography is controlled by structural discontinuities, mainly oriented in SW-NE direction. This area is locally defined “Costa Merlata”, which means “Merlon coast”, as it resembles the merlons of a medieval castle. This is due to a strong control exerted by sinkholes in the genesis of bays and inlets. In fact, in this stretch of the Adriatic coastline, it is possible to observe important freshwater outflows, including the main spa of central Apulia (Torre Canne spa), and several evidence of sinkholes, including recent collapse at a few meters from the coastline. The morphologic evolution is characterized by different phases: individual openings of sinkholes, which evolve to small inlets showing the larger sinkhole inland, accompanied by minor openings toward the sea; the last phase is characterized by well-developed bays, deriving from coalescence of sinkholes, overall entering inland for some tens of meters, by means of progressive failures, also favored by sea-storms. In addition to the sinkhole hazards, the area is affected by inland seawater intrusion. In fact, the hydrogeological setting of the coastal stretch, extending for about 25 km, shows evidence of groundwater salinization, with salinity values ranging from 0,5 g/l to more than 5 g/l. The springs with high discharge rate are in the sand dunes zone (Fiume Grande, Fiume Piccolo, and Fiume Morello) and discharge hundreds of liters of freshwater per second, while several diffuse springs, often with unknown discharge, are submerged. In such complex zone, caves adopted as groundwater monitoring spots, especially near the sea, where fresh water and sea water meet. The latter is also carried out by monitoring of stygofauna, i.e. animal species living exclusively within groundwater. Stygofauna can be considered environmental indicator and natural tracer, since it is highly sensitive to environmental variation; therefore, studying groundwater ecosystems will allow to characterize the groundwater quality and the main freshwater pathways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the field of historical buildings, the wide use of lime as a binder in various contexts of application emerges from a series of artistic and archaeological evidence in the Apulia (Italy) from the 4th century BCE to the 15th century CE. The large availability of carbonate rocks in the geological substratum from Daunian Subappennines to Salento areas strongly influenced the material culture of the region. In this paper, significant study cases were presented to bring to light the technological complexity, almost completely cancelled by the widespread presence of industrial products, in the use of lime over the centuries. Through examples of use from antiquity to the modern age in Apulia (Egnatia, Lamapopoli, Tertiveri, Siponto, Lucera and Monopoli sites), technological solutions indicating an ecological dimension of production were discussed, bearing witness to technologies on a human scale and sustainability. The comparison of petrographical (POM, SEM-EDS) and mineralogical (XRPD) results indicated the technological trend and custom for lime production in the Apulian region that starts from the choice of the stone to be calcined and the aggregates and passes through the modalities of lime hydration and preparation of the mixture up to the laying. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As one of the Republics of socialist Yugoslavia, Montenegro has sought to establish close cooperation with Italy since the mid-1960s. As part of this policy, Montenegro paid close attention to the region of Apulia, geographically closest to Montenegro. The beginning of the cooperation was the establishment of the ferry line Antivari -- Bari in 1965. In 1966 relations were established between Titograd (Podgorica), the capital of Montenegro, and Bari, the capital of Apulia. The first official delegation from Montenegro visited Apulia in 1973 and in the same year an Apulian delegation visited Montenegro. That year, the fairs of Montenegro and Apulia founded the company «Centrojug-Italia». After the signing of the Osimo Agreements between Italy and Yugoslavia in 1975, which regulated the relationship between the two countries, the cooperation between Montenegro and Apulia developed further. A delegation of the Montenegrin Government paid an official visit to Apulia in 1977, while a delegation from Apulia visited Montenegro in 1980. One of the most significant results of these agreements was the establishment of a joint company «Levant-Co» in Bari in 1978. This article presents in detail the meetings of representatives from Montenegro and Apulia, their agreements and concrete examples of cooperation from 1973 to 1980. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

After a critical review of the linguistical methodological tools that are at our disposal for an integrated and multidisciplinary approach to studying the ancient world and sacred places, this paper will focus on two marginal areas of pre-Roman Italy: the Alpine area in the north and Apulia in the south. The methodological approach employed includes anthropological and ethnographic aspects of pilgrimage (Turner 1978; Coleman, Eade 2004; Le Breton 2012; Häussler, Chiai 2020), the Landscape Linguistics by Ron Scollon (2006), the theory of context developed by the linguist Eugenio Coseriu and the frame semantics by Charles J. Fillmore 1976. Finally, the anthropology of writing, mainly outlined by Giorgio Raimondo Cardona (1981, 1986) and by the French anthropologist Béatrice Fraenkel (2006, 2007), is used to identify different kinds of pilgrimage and understand similarities between ancient pilgrimage sites and modern memorials.

Simple Summary: Spittlebugs are the main vectors of the quarantine bacterium Xylella fastidiosa (Wells et al.) in Europe. Knowledge of the occurrence and population density of spittlebugs in different Xylella-susceptible crops has therefore become crucial to implement preventive and containment vector control strategies in order to reduce the risk of new outbreaks and the spread of the bacterium in infected areas. So far, sweep nets have been the most widely used method to monitor spittlebugs in different vegetation compartments in Europe. In this study, the attractiveness of different sticky traps, compared to sweep nets, has been examined. The obtained results suggest that the two methods should be integrated to achieve an accurate estimation of the presence and abundance of spittlebugs throughout the whole season when adults are present in the crops. Following the detection of the quarantine bacterium Xylella fastidiosa (Wells et al.) in the Apulia region (southern Italy) and the identification of spittlebugs as the main vector species that contributes to its epidemic spread, monitoring activities have been intensified in an attempt to implement vector control strategies. To date, sweep nets have been the most widely used sampling method to monitor adult spittlebug populations. Field experiments were carried out, during 2018 and 2019, to evaluate the effectiveness of sticky traps in capturing spittlebugs in different woody crops. The attractiveness of different traps was compared: four colored sticky traps (white, red, blue, and yellow), with the yellow sticky traps having three different background patterns (plain yellow, yellow with a black circle pattern, and yellow with a black line pattern). In addition, the efficiency of the yellow sticky traps was evaluated by placing the traps on the ground or hanging them from the canopies in orchards with different spittlebug population densities. Trap catches of Philaenus spumarius (Linnaeus) and Neophilaenus campestris (Fallén) (Hemiptera: Aphrophoridae) were compared with those collected using sweep nets. The two spittlebug species showed a similar response to the colored traps and were mainly attracted to the yellow sticky traps. Captures throughout the adult season indicated that an accurate estimation of the presence and abundance of spittlebugs can be obtained by integrating the two sampling methods. Moreover, sweep nets appeared to be more efficient in collecting adults soon after their emergence, while the use of sticky traps was more efficient in the rest of the adult season when the use of traps can significantly expedite vector monitoring programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Casamassima old town, locally known as "blue town", is widespread stratified blue paint covering the facades of the historical buildings, not reported in the archival data and historical sources. The archaeometric results presented in this study aimed to investigate raw materials, in particular pigments, used to cover the facades to contribute more precisely to the historical reconstruction of this local custom. A set of nine samples was collected from two representative historical buildings and observed by reflected light optical microscopy and scanning electron microscope (SEM-EDS) and their mineralogical characterisation was carried out by means of X-ray powder diffractometry (XRPD). The comparison of the mineralogical and elementary results and the stratigraphic, morphological, and microstructural observations made it possible to highlight a significant stratification of these plasters and to recognize the artificial ultramarine blue applied with lime, as the main mineral pigment, together with red ochre and blanc fixe. The identification of pigments was crucial to date the blue plasters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The freshwater resource in karst is subjected to both sea level rise and an increasing pressure caused by the high-water demand. Therefore, developing an understanding of the hydrogeological dynamics of the karst aquifer can be a useful tool for improving protection and management actions. Vora Bosco cave (Apulia, Southern Italy) was instrumented with a multi-parameter probe for groundwater level measurements, aimed at exploring the system behavior within the cave recharge area. To characterize and quantify the natural recharge and discharge behavior of the system, a simple reservoir model was developed, initially also with the intention of predicting groundwater dynamics. Based on the original time-series of water level observations, different calibration datasets were established using different split-sample and bootstrapping approaches, and a regional sensitivity analysis was executed. Furthermore, in addition to the original observation time-series, a 3-month extension was used as a model testing period. Using these analyses, the parameters identifiability and the predictions robustness for the model testing period were evaluated. Results reveal that while the calibration on the whole dataset, as well as the bootstrapping approaches, lead to better performances in the calibration and validation period of the original time-series, and to a higher model precision with smaller uncertainty ranges. their performance in the model testing period becomes very poor and the observed water level data no longer plots within the uncertainty bands. Based on this extensive analysis, the model is finally rejected. Our study therefore also confirms the importance of model validation, especially when only a short time-series of observations are available. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Infestations of Arge scita (Mocsáry, 1880) were recorded for the first time in Italy in summer 2022. Almond trees showing severe leaf damages, caused by the sawfly larvae feeding on the leaf lamina were recorded in the Salento peninsula of the Apulia region (southern Italy). Severely infested trees had a defoliated looking-appearance, with the lamina of the whole foliage completely consumed, with only the thick middle vein and petioles remaining attached to the trees. The occurrence of A. scita on the infested trees was confirmed by molecular and morphological characterization of specimens of larvae at different stages and adults. The simultaneous presence on the infested trees of eggs, larvae of different ages, cocoons and adults suggests that most likely this sawfly in our environmental conditions behave as a multivoltine species. Further investigations and surveys are needed to assess the live cycle and the host range, as well as to understand whether this phytophagous could represent a serious threat in areas where almond trees are cultivated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This essay delves into the life and work of Nikolay Dmitryevich Protasov (1886-1940), a distinguished historian and archaeologist from clerical circles. In 1914, he embarked on a research mission to Apulia, Italy, where he made groundbreaking discoveries on the role played by Byzantine monasticism in the territories under the jurisdiction of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople (8th-11th century). He also explored the potential influence of medieval Italian painting on ancient Russian painting. During his stay in Apulia, he became completely absorbed by the discovery of the Apulian rock churches and the depictions of Saint Nicholas of Myra present in them. He accurately described his findings in Pisma iz Apulii (1914-1915). Nikolay Dmitryevich's letters serve as a noteworthy testimony to Italy's great allure for Russians during that time. This attraction was not only due to the richness of its artistic heritage and scenic beauty but also because of the fundamental role that its southern part had played since the time of the Greek-Gothic War (535-553). His letters reveal echoes of ancient conflicts, persecutions, migratory waves, Greek monastic communities, and the lives of the Saints. The text is marked by an extreme sensory precision in the perception of the environment, and it is composed in the respectful observance and practical application of what was established by the cultural authority that had determined the scholar's passage in the south of Italy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, the author delves into the subject of texts written by Russian travellers in Apulia in the 19th and 20th centuries. These are most often travel reports, especially pilgrimages, but this category also includes narrative texts in which a very precise image of the Apulian land emerges, not far from the image that Russians more generally have of Italy. In the first part of the article, the author illustrates the state of the art regarding the theme of Russian travels through Apulia, while in the second part he indicates the main characteristics of these texts in order to verify the existence of a literary category that we could define "Apulian text of Russian literature" (based on Vladimir Toporov's famous definition of "Petersburg text"). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The lost Tethys Ocean was the favorite topic of Jean Dercourt’s research. The Tethys project and his 1986 paper displaying detailed reconstructions in 9 plates from the Triassic to the Present was the beginning of a series of projects organized around large consortia associating scientists from the academic and industrial worlds. The most recent evolutions of these reconstructions show unprecedented images of the evolving geology, including tectonics and paleoenvironments, through time of this complex puzzle. Central to Tethyan tectonics, Apulia, or Adria, has been drawn with different geometries and dimensions from the first concepts by Emile Argand, Kenneth Hsü or John Dewey, to the recent reconstructions by Douwe van Hinsbergen or Paul Angrand. We review here the main reconstructions published since 1924 and the evolution of concepts and methods. We finally discuss the importance of this type of syntheses for understanding large-scale geodynamic processes.

The Classical Antiquity Collection in the National Museum was recently enriched by the donation of an assemblage of pottery sherds. Following a careful and systematic procedure, it became possible to recon struct almost an entire vessel. Subsequent analysis revealed that we were dealing with an early South Italian red figure bell krater. Its style of painting dates the vase to the early 4th century BC, making it close to the workshop of the Sisyphus Painter.

During his years in Naples, Alfonso Palanza (1851–1899) devoted himself to the study of the flora of Abruzzo and Naples and to the arrangement of his "Erbario Generale". After moving to Apulia, he created the "Flora della Terra di Bari" herbarium. The "Erbario Generale" consists of approximately 7,000 specimens of both Italian and continental European origin, the latter from the mathematician Magnus Gustaf Mittag-Leffler (1846–1927). The "Flora della Terra di Bari" herbarium consists of 3,000 specimens from central Apulia. The excellent state of preservation of the specimens and the unique nature of those within the "Flora della Terra di Bari" herbarium clearly suggest that their floristic, taxonomic and nomenclatural study could provide a detailed picture of the floristic biodiversity of Apulia during the period when they were collected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The progressive climate change has an impact on the quantity and quality of grapes. Among meteorological parameters, air temperature is believed to have a direct influence on grape yield and composition, as well as on the organoleptic characteristics of wines. Therefore, in this work three bioclimatic indices based on temperature have been considered, with the aim of classifying the climate in the winegrowing region of Apulia (southern Italy) based on historical periods of thirty years (1961–1990 and 1991–2022) and verifying its evolution in the future in relation to global warming under two different Shared Socioeconomic Pathways, SSP2–4.5 and SSP5–8.5, by combining four global climate models. The results showed that the period 2021–2040 was almost unchanged compared to the last historical period of 1991–2022. The differences between the two SSPs became more pronounced as time progressed until the end of this century. By 2081–2100, SSP2–4.5, considered the most likely and mildest future scenario, demonstrated the existence of areas still suitable for quality viticulture, mainly in the higher altitudes of the Murgia plateau, the Gargano promontory and the Pre–Apennine area. In contrast, SSP5–8.5, described as "highly unlikely", showed a dramatic shift of more than 90% of Apulia region to "too hot" classes to ensure the survival of viticulture for all the bioclimatic indices considered. These results suggest the winegrowers should consider short– and long–term solutions and adaptations in order to preserve the regional tradition and wine quality and to plan the Apulian viticulture for future scenarios. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The adoption of the European Landscape Convention (ELC) has wrought a profound evolution in the landscape planning discipline, contributing to the integration of the landscape into planning policy. This paper explores the operative significance of including the landscape dimension in local urban planning policies. Adopting an inter-scalar approach, the research analyses the renewal of local urban planning in light of the innovations introduced by the Apulia Regional Landscape Plan (PPTR), an exemplary case of ELC implementation in Italy. One of the spatial strategies indicated in the PPTR provides valuable insights into the complex relationships between the city and the countryside. That strategy, the City-Country Pact, interacts with urban transformations and, as a result, with municipal planning. The paper utilises PPTR indicators to explore how some Apulian municipalities interpret and implement the City-Country Pact. A comparative analysis of case studies outlines the approaches and conditions by which urban planning can effectively renew itself through the ELC landscape approach, influencing plan philosophy, regulations and practices. The paper also points out the current limitations of such processes.

This paper proposed a multianalytical, non-invasive, accessible and expensive (compared to traditional ones) approach for the characterization of pictorial surfaces. A set of 18 pigments and 37 mixtures widely used in the Middle Ages in the Apulia (Italy) artistic and archaeological contexts was considered, and corresponding replicas were produced. Pigments were first characterized by X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD), then replicas were studied by optical microscopy using a portable instrument, colorimetry and fiber optic reflectance spectroscopy (FORS). The investigation provided encouraging results, which allowed the creation of a library including diagnostic microscopic, colorimetric and reflectance markers of each pigment and the identification of the mixtures' components. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The wall paintings of five Hellenistic tombs in Apulia were analysed using a multi-technique approach to discern the painting techniques used and contextualise them within the phenomenon of Hellenistic tomb painting in Southern Italy. In particular, the question was asked whether technical knowledge played a role in the reception of Hellenistic artistic models and whether this knowledge was present locally. Raman and IR spectroscopies were used to identify pigments, colourants, and binders; light and electron microscopy were used to determine the structural characteristics of the paint layers and recognise the manufacturing technique. Analyses identified a fresco application for the Tomba dei Cavalieri (Arpi) and a dry application for the Canosian hypogea. The palette—typical for Hellenistic tomb painting in Southern Italy, Etruria and Macedonia—was composed of lime (white), charcoal (black), hematite (red), goethite (yellow), and Egyptian blue (blue). In the Tomba della Nike (Arpi), meanwhile, two particularly refined preparatory layers were observed. The palette was enriched with precious cinnabar and madder lake. The colouring components of the root were mixed with clay and K-alum applied on an additional layer of lime. The use of madder lake and a pink background link the painting to the polychrome Daunian pottery, and the contribution of a local workshop to the decoration of this tomb thus seems plausible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper essentially aims to identify coastal sites of great scenic value not (or barely) affected by human intrusions and propose sound management interventions to improve their landscape quality. Today, management of coastal areas in Italy is a very complex task essentially because of institutional fragmentation and overlapping of laws/regulations at the national, regional and municipal levels. It is estimated that only half of the country's beaches are freely accessible and usable for bathing, i.e., 43% are occupied by private concessions and in 7.2% bathing is not allowed because of water pollution. Sites' scenic quality was assessed using the Coastal Scenic Evaluation System (CSES), a robust semi-quantitative methodology based on a set of 26 physical/human parameters, weighting matrices parameters and fuzzy logic mathematics. An evaluation index (D) was afterward obtained for each site and used to classify them into five scenic classes. After a long process of field testing along the coasts of the Tyrrhenian, Ionic and Adriatic seas (25 municipalities, 7 provinces and 4 regions: Campania, Basilicata, Calabria and Apulia), a total of 36 sites were selected for this paper. Twenty-four sites fall within Class I, i.e., were extremely attractive (D ≥ 0.85; CSES) because of their exceptional geomorphological settings that favour a wide variety of coastal sceneries. Most of Class II (8) and Class III (4) sites could be upgraded by implementing clean-up operations or by reducing intrusive beach facilities. Meanwhile "private" beaches are usually cleaned; beach litter at remote/public sites represents a big concern to be challenged. Today, finding a free/aesthetic/clean beach without human intrusions in a fully natural environment is far more complex than it seems. Given this context, emphasis was particularly placed on beach litter and concessions aspects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This note makes available five years of data gathered in a measurement site equipped with a micrometeorological station and two monitoring wells. Series of data of hydrological and atmospheric variables make it possible to estimate the flux of water across the atmosphere-land interface and to calculate the water budget, which are crucial topics in climate and environmental sciences. The water-table measures began during 2017, one of the driest years of the whole instrumental period of climate history for the Central Mediterranean. Data from the micrometeorological station have been used to construct two more datasets of daily and monthly totals of different terms of the surface water budget, from which the net infiltration has been estimated. An apparent decreasing trend characterizes both the data time series of groundwater level and estimated infiltration in the considered period. Data Set: The datasets are stored on the Zenodo repository: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7572140. Data Set License: CC-BY 4.0 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Apulia (Southern Italy) is among the most important Italian regions in terms of shoreline extension. The coastline is heavily occupied by towns and resorts hosting an increasing number of tourists, attracted by the extreme beauty of the region, especially during the summer season. Many kilometers of coasts are characterized by moderately high to high cliffs, which surely are relevant touristic attractions, but also represent hazards in terms of mass movements. The rock cliff instability processes affect the whole Apulian coastal zone, from the Gargano Promontory to the Salento Peninsula. The degree of instabilities and potential risks have to be related to the unique geological and geomorphological framework of the sites, that include intense development of karst processes, combined to the presence of nearby infrastructures and urban areas. This contribution analyses various examples of cliff instability along the Apulian coastline highlighting as the differences in geology and geomorphology lead to different degrees of hazards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following the detection of the quarantine bacterium Xylella fastidiosa (Wells et al.) in the Apulia region (southern Italy) and the identification of spittlebugs as the main vector species that contributes to its epidemic spread, monitoring activities have been intensified in an attempt to implement vector control strategies. To date, sweep nets have been the most widely used sampling method to monitor adult spittlebug populations. Field experiments were carried out, during 2018 and 2019, to evaluate the effectiveness of sticky traps in capturing spittlebugs in different woody crops. The attractiveness of different traps was compared: four colored sticky traps (white, red, blue, and yellow), with the yellow sticky traps having three different background patterns (plain yellow, yellow with a black circle pattern, and yellow with a black line pattern). In addition, the efficiency of the yellow sticky traps was evaluated by placing the traps on the ground or hanging them from the canopies in orchards with different spittlebug population densities. Trap catches of Philaenus spumarius (Linnaeus) and Neophilaenus campestris (Fallén) (Hemiptera: Aphrophoridae) were compared with those collected using sweep nets. The two spittlebug species showed a similar response to the colored traps and were mainly attracted to the yellow sticky traps. Captures throughout the adult season indicated that an accurate estimation of the presence and abundance of spittlebugs can be obtained by integrating the two sampling methods. Moreover, sweep nets appeared to be more efficient in collecting adults soon after their emergence, while the use of sticky traps was more efficient in the rest of the adult season when the use of traps can significantly expedite vector monitoring programs.

On the south wall of the church of Saint Paul in Brindisi (Apulia), founded in 1284 by Franciscan friars, is frescoed a little known hagiographical cycle that has hitherto been associated with saint Mary Magdalene. Nevertheless, a careful iconographic analysis of the scenes has demonstrated that this attribution is incorrect and that the fresco depicts the life and the martyrdom of saint Ursula from Cologne, whose devotion was not very widespread in medieval Apulia. The spread of the cult of Saint Ursula and the presence of two cycles dedicated to her in the region of Venice suggest one of the possible ways that allowed the cult of saint Ursula to spread in Brindisi, historically connected to Venetian cities for trades. Considering that the cult of the saint is attested also in medieval Florence, it is not to be underestimated either the possible role of Florentine families living in Brindisi in spreading the cult of the Breton martyr in the city. The purposes of this paper are therefore to offer an extensive analysis of the panel and to try to understand the role of foreign citizens in the spread of this not so common cult in Brindisi.

This project proposal is for the application of IT tools in order to consider a “cross-media” translation of data obtained, so that they can be used as an alternative to simple textual consultation, with respect to the reconstruction of the geography and history of Venetian works of art in the Adriatic regions of the Kingdom of Naples between the Middle Ages and the early modern age. The overall aim of the work is namely to carry out an analysis of Venetian presences and influences in the artistic production of Abruzzo, Molise and Apulia, also considering the transversal relations of this area with the Balkan regions under Venetian rule.

The international debate on biodiversity has become increasingly explicit and predominant in different disciplinary fields, requiring efforts especially on a regional scale. The future Common Agricultural Policy will be integrated and strategically connected with the objectives of the Green Deal and biodiversity protection, requiring new approaches, especially at local level. Through a review of the international literature and programming documents, the path of a significant case in the south of Italy, the Apulia region, characterized by a progressive loss of biodiversity in agriculture, will be traced. The regional government has launched a significant initiative called “custodian farmers” within the framework of the CAP in the two programming cycles 2007-2013, 2014-2020 for the protection and maintenance of biodiversity. Using a combination of different sources, we will focus on this initiative to evaluate its weight and significance at the regional level through cartographic analysis. The results will be critically analyzed and will provide reflections for the future.

Humerobates rostrolamellatus Grandjean is an oribatid mite species commonly found in association with fruit trees like apple trees and plums. We sampled twigs and leaves of 12 different trees in the Apulia territories in Southern Italy in 2019. Here we report 11 new host plant records for H. rostrolamellatus; no damage has been observed on the trees associated with the mite populations.

This article investigates how extremely adverse climatic and weather conditions in early modern southern Italy played a part in disrupting social coexistence among groups and individuals of different confessions and beliefs in what until then had been top-down sanctioned or tolerated multi-confessional communities. It focuses on the dramatic fate of the Waldensian colonies in Calabria and Apulia, and the little-studied case of witchcraft panic that broke out in the town of Bitonto in 1593. By examining different ways of dealing with environmental crises (rogatory processions, apocalyptic scapegoating, witchcraft panics), the article contributes to a history of intolerance from the 'inside out'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The adoption of the European Landscape Convention (ELC) has wrought a profound evolution in the landscape planning discipline, contributing to the integration of the landscape into planning policy. This paper explores the operative significance of including the landscape dimension in local urban planning policies. Adopting an inter-scalar approach, the research analyses the renewal of local urban planning in light of the innovations introduced by the Apulia Regional Landscape Plan (PPTR), an exemplary case of ELC implementation in Italy. One of the spatial strategies indicated in the PPTR provides valuable insights into the complex relationships between the city and the countryside. That strategy, the City-Country Pact, interacts with urban transformations and, as a result, with municipal planning. The paper utilises PPTR indicators to explore how some Apulian municipalities interpret and implement the City-Country Pact. A comparative analysis of case studies outlines the approaches and conditions by which urban planning can effectively renew itself through the ELC landscape approach, influencing plan philosophy, regulations and practices. The paper also points out the current limitations of such processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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These days, most of our attention has been focused on the COVID-19 pandemic, and we have often neglected what is happening in the environment. For instance, the bacterium Xylella fastidiosa re-emerged as a plant pathogen of global importance in 2013 when it was first associated with an olive tree disease epidemic in Italy, called Olive Quick Decline Syndrome (OQDS), specifically caused by X. fastidiosa subspecies pauca ST53, which affects the Salento olive trees (Apulia, South-East Italy). This bacterium, transmitted by the insect Philaenus spumarius, is negatively reshaping the Salento landscape and has had a very high impact in the production of olives, leading to an increase of olive oil prices, thus new studies to curb this bacterium are urgently needed. Thidiazuron (TDZ), a diphenylurea (N-phenyl-1,2,3-thiadiazol-5-yl urea), has gained considerable attention in recent decades due to its efficient role in plant cell and tissue culture, being the most suitable growth regulator for rapid and effective plant production in vitro. Its biological activity against bacteria, fungi and biofilms has also been described, and the use of this low-cost compound to fight OQDS may be an intriguing idea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents the first results of the Ancient Hillforts Survey, a large-scale lidar-based analysis and ground-truthing aimed at creating a representative and comparative dataset of hillforts in Italy unbiased by site location or vegetational canopy. An analysis of 15,300 km2 spanning Campania, Lazio, Abruzzo, Molise, and Apulia detected 305 new suspected hillforts. The area was visually interpreted using image blends of lidar visualizations (VAT method) based on in-house-generated digital terrain models. Interobserver and intraobserver interpretational biases were tested and CORINE Land Cover data used to evaluate the representativeness of the legacy data compared with the new dataset and to estimate the number of sites for no-data areas. The results from the Daunian mountains (Apulia) are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of this approach in advancing knowledge of historically under-surveyed areas and in addressing long-term debates. Here, the data showed a novel hillfort system interpretable as Samnite, dating between the 6th and 3rd century b.c. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coastal areas are characterized by considerable demographic pressure that generally leads to groundwater overexploitation. In the Mediterranean region, this situation is exacerbated by a recharge reduction enhanced by climate change. The consequence is water table drawdown that alters the freshwater/seawater interface facilitating seawater intrusion. However, the groundwater salinity may also be affected by other natural/anthropogenic sources. In this paper, water quality data gathered at 47 private and public wells in a coastal karst aquifer in Apulia (southern Italy), were interpreted by applying disparate methods to reveal the different sources of groundwater salinity. Chemical characterization, multivariate statistical analysis, and mixing calculations supplied the groundwater salinization degree. Characteristic ion ratios, strontium isotope (87Sr/86Sr), and pure mixing modelling identified the current seawater intrusion as a main salinity source, also highlighting the contribution of water–rock interaction to groundwater composition and excluding influence from Cretaceous paleo-seawater. Only the combined approach of all the methodologies allowed a clear identification of the main sources of salinization, excluding other less probable ones (e.g., paleo-seawater). The proposed approach enables effective investigation of processes governing salinity changes in coastal aquifers, to support more informed management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Helen of Troy’s myth inspired poets and artists from classical Antiquity. We will review the portrayal of her reunion with Menelaus during the Ilioupersis in the Italian peninsula, back in the 4th century BC. In Magna Graecia, and especially in Apulia, the illustrators develop a specific depiction inspired by the iconographic scheme of Cassander’s aggression by Ajax of Oilée during the same night. In Etruria, there is also a correlation between the two heroines. On a series of mirrors depicting the same scene, we find this “slip” of the iconographic scheme. Through these various representations, we see the development in the Italian world of a specific mythological iconography that testifies to a coherent iconographic network and perhaps intercultural exchanges between Magna Graecia and the Tyrrhenian world.