Andrea Francesca Bellia

University of Malta · Department of Biology

This study represents a preliminary assessment of the efficiency of drones in surveying land cover at both large (c. 10 ha) and smaller (1 m 2) spatial scales. A DJI Mavic 2 drone was used to image the entire area of study and an orthomosaic was produced. This was converted into a land cover map through k-means clustering, with k = 3, where 'Vegeta...

We investigated the influence of 6 morphometric and geographic factors on the structure and composition of plant communities in 56 temporary freshwater rockpools from 7 pool landscapes in the Maltese Islands. The factors considered were water depth, sediment depth, surface area, shading, distance from the coast, and elevation above sea level. Cover...

The 8th International Symposium "Monitoring of Mediterranean Coastal Areas. Problems and Measurements Techniques" was organized by CNR-IBE in collaboration with FCS Foundation, and Natural History Museum of the Mediterranean and under the patronage of University of Florence, Accademia dei Geogofili, Tuscany Region and Livorno Province. It is the oc...

The occurrence of the amphibious plant Elatine gussonei in Mediterranean Temporary Ponds (EU priority habitat 3170* and Natura 2000 site) is patchy, with a strong stochastic component. The specific environmental conditions and tolerance ranges that determine its presence in a pool are not known. This represented the knowledge gap that this study ai...

The frequency of endemism in the flora of Mediterranean Islands does not follow a straightforward species-area relationship, and the determinants of endemism are several and complex. The aim of this study was to estimate the explanatory power of a small number of variables on the species richness of vascular plants on selected Mediterranean islands...

Even though plants represent an essential part of our lives offering exploitational, supporting and cultural services, we know very little about the biology of the rarest and most threatened plant species, and even less about their conservation status. Rapid changes in the environment and climate, today more pronounced than ever, affect their fitne...

This study is the first to describe a dense dinoflagellate bloom from an inland water body in the Maltese Islands. The bloom in the perennial pond at L-Għadira ta' Sarraflu, in Gozo, Malta was first noted towards the end of April 2020 and was investigated in May 2020. Microscopic analysis indicated a unialgal bloom comprised predominantly of Peridi...

The occurrence of the amphibious plant Elatine gussonei in Mediterranean temporary ponds is patchy and has a strong stochastic component. It is however as yet unknown what affects the presence of E. gussonei in such temporary freshwater rockpools (TFRs). The range of conditions within which it survives and reproduces has also not yet been fully cha...

A popular article for CA18201: ConservePlants about work carried out by co-chair Giovanna Aronne on cliff species.

It is well known that Tardigrades are extremotolerant, earning them the title of one of the toughest animals on Earth (Guidetti, Rizzo, Altiero, & Rebecchi, 2012; Weronika, & Łukasz, 2017). Such tolerance means that they are able to survive in space, and are capable of withstanding lunar and martian conditions (Guidetti, Rizzo, Altiero, & Rebecchi,...

The core theory of Island Biogeography (Core IBT) has informed ecological thought for over half a century and has inspired several other ecological theories. Although the original IBT was concerned with dispersal of biota from species-rich 'mainlands' to islands surrounded by water, its authors pointed out that the principles underlying the theory...

The effect of EM radiation on living organisms is well characterised and is a principal cause of genetic mutation. Nonetheless, several species are able to tolerate relatively high levels of short-wavelength radiation without undergoing apparent harm. The investigation of such extremophiles provides deeper insight into the characteristics which all...

Titan is the only moon in our solar system known to retain a relatively dense atmosphere. This mainly consists of diatomic nitrogen and methane, with the concentration of methane varying considerably with altitude, with highest concentrations closest to Titan's surface. The similarities between Titan's reducing atmosphere and hypothesized primordia...

The present study aimed to assess the efficiency of using drones to map shallow-water benthic assemblages, compared with that of manual survey techniques. It also aimed to develop an ‘optimum protocol’ to characterize shallow-water benthic assemblages. The efficiency of mapping was assessed in terms of its comparative accuracy and cost-effectivenes...

A popular article for CA18201: ConservePlants about the effect COVID-19 has had on communication and dissemination within this Action.