Sitemap
A list of all the posts and pages found on the site. For you robots out there is an XML version available for digesting as well.
Pages
Posts
Future Blog Post
Published:
This post will show up by default. To disable scheduling of future posts, edit config.yml and set future: false.
Blog Post number 4
Published:
This is a sample blog post. Lorem ipsum I can’t remember the rest of lorem ipsum and don’t have an internet connection right now. Testing testing testing this blog post. Blog posts are cool.
Blog Post number 3
Published:
This is a sample blog post. Lorem ipsum I can’t remember the rest of lorem ipsum and don’t have an internet connection right now. Testing testing testing this blog post. Blog posts are cool.
Blog Post number 2
Published:
This is a sample blog post. Lorem ipsum I can’t remember the rest of lorem ipsum and don’t have an internet connection right now. Testing testing testing this blog post. Blog posts are cool.
Blog Post number 1
Published:
This is a sample blog post. Lorem ipsum I can’t remember the rest of lorem ipsum and don’t have an internet connection right now. Testing testing testing this blog post. Blog posts are cool.
packages
EcoCoupleR: a computational implementation of ecosystem coupling in R
An R package that offers functions for calculating ecological coupling.
portfolio
publications
Ecotoxicity and biodegradation of the bacteriostatic 3,3′,4′,5-tetrachlorosalicylanilide (TSCA) compared to the structurally similar bactericide triclosan
Published in Sience of the Total Environment, 2021
This article studies the ecotoxicity of 3,3′,4′,5-tetrachlorosalicylanilide (TCSA) using different bioassays and examines its fate in activated sludge batch experiments. Despite of the common use of TCSA as chemical uncoupler in wastewater treatment systems and as preservative in several products, limited data has been published for its ecotoxicity, while no information is available for its biodegradation. Among different bioassays, the highest toxicity of TSCA was noticed for Daphna magna (48-h LC50: 0.054 mg L−1), followed by Vibrio fischeri (15-min EC50: 0.392 mg L−1), Lemna minor, (7-d EC50: 5.74 mg L−1) and activated sludge respiration rate (3-h EC50: 31.1 mg L−1). The half-life of TSCA was equal to 7.3 h in biodegradation experiments with activated sludge, while use of mass balances showed that 90% of this compound is expected to be removed in an aerobic activated sludge system, mainly due to biodegradation. A preliminary risk assessment of TSCA using the Risk Quotient methodology showed possible ecological threat in rivers where wastewater is diluted up to 100-fold. Comparison with the structurally similar 5-chloro-2-(2,4-dichlorophenoxy)phenol (triclosan, TCS) showed that both compounds have similar biodegradation potential and seem to cause analogous toxicity to Vibrio fischeri and activated sludge. Specifically, TCS was biodegraded quite rapidly by activated sludge (half-life: 6.2 h), while EC50 values equal to 0.134 mg L−1 and 39.9 mg L−1 were calculated for Vibrio fischeri, and activated sludge respiration rate. Future research should focus on monitoring of TSCA concentrations in the environment and study its effects in long-term toxicity and bioaccumulation tests.
Recommended citation: Gatidou, G., Chatzopoulos, P., Chhetri, R.K., Kokkoli, A., Giannakopoulos, A., Andersen, H.R., Stasinakis, S.A., Ecotoxicity and biodegradation of the bacteriostatic 3,3′,4′,5-tetrachlorosalicylanilide (TSCA) compared to the structurally similar bactericide triclosan, Science of The Total Environment, Volume 769, 2021, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.144960. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0048969721000267
Height–diameter allometry for a dominant palm to improve understanding of carbon and forest dynamics in forests of Puerto Rico
Published in Biotropica, 2024
Tropical forests play a major role in the global carbon cycle but their diversity and structural complexity challenge our ability to accurately estimate carbon stocks and dynamics. Palms, in particular, are prominent components of many tropical forests that have unique anatomical, physiological, and allometric differences from dicot trees, which impede accurate estimates of their aboveground biomass (AGB) and population dynamics. We focused on improving height estimates and, ultimately, AGB estimates for a highly abundant palm in Puerto Rico, Prestoea acuminata. Based on field measurements of 1003 individuals, we found a strong relationship between stem height and diameter. We also found some evidence that height–diameter allometry of P. acuminata is mediated by various sources of environmental heterogeneity including slope and neighborhood crowding. We then examined variability in AGB estimates derived from three models developed to estimate palm AGB. Finally, we applied our novel height:diameter allometric model to hindcast dynamics of P. acuminata in the Luquillo Forest Dynamics Plot during a 27-year period (1989–2016) of post-hurricane recovery. Overall, our study provides improved estimates of AGB in wet forests of Puerto Rico and will facilitate novel insights to the dynamics of palms in tropical forests.
Recommended citation: Chatzopoulos, P., Lammerant, R., Thompson, J., Uriarte, M., Zimmerman, J. K., & Muscarella, R. (2024). Height–diameter allometry for a dominant palm to improve understanding of carbon and forest dynamics in forests of Puerto Rico. Biotropica, 00, 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1111/btp.13297 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/btp.13297
talks
Information and data architecture in Ecology: Folder structure, metadata and project management through GitHub
Published:
During my academic pursuit in ecology, I recognized a need for ecologists to adapt to the evolving landscape of data-driven research. This realization led me to develop and deliver a three-hour talk/lecture titled “Information and Data Architecture in Ecology: Folder Structure, Metadata, and Project Management through GitHub.” In this talk, I address the need to optimize our workflow by utilizing tools and knowledge from information architecture and computer science. The lecture does not focus solely on statistical analyses but on practical aspects, such as project organization, script writing, and the utilization of tools like R-projects and GitHub. The goal is to empower fellow students/researchers to navigate the complexities of the computational dimension in ecology, fostering a more efficient and collaborative approach to ecological research in the era of big data and AI. For more information you can visit the GitHub repository of the talk here.
Of fire, plastics and fascists: mapping out environmental racism in Greece
Published:
Accepted Abstract
Through moving in land and sea, those seeking refuge in Europe reshaped the European migration regime and altered the sociopolitical reality of local communities. During the summer of 2015, more than 900 thousand people crossed the Aegean sea from Turkish shores to the Greek island of Lesvos. The unprecedented numbers of border crossers tested local infrastructure and services that lacked funding due to the economic crisis. Drawing upon a published scientific article addressing environmental concerns of plastic accumulation due to migration, the local far-right and so called ‘patriotic groups’ shifted the public debate against refugees. The latter were now accused “not only of violating our societal space but our ecological as well”. Eight years later, in August 2023, Greece confronted the most significant environmental disasters in its modern history. The largest ever fire recorded in the EU ravaged the country’s northern border, destroying ~ 22,000 hectares of old-growth forest. While summer fires represent a customary disturbance which shapes and regulates Mediterranean ecosystems, allegations surfaced within right-wing propaganda and local media attributing responsibility for the fires to refugees traversing the nearby Turkish border. Within a couple of days videos circulated with right wing militia patrolling the land to prevent “arson” and abducting refugees in their modified 4x4 trucks. The greek government, reportedly accused of sliding into authoritarianism, adopted the far right discourse, indicating a correlation between the fire and asylum seeker’s presence in the area. In this presentation we map out a genealogy of environmental racism in greece. Drawing from two different examples we delineate how far right rhetoric emerging in Lesvos is now diffused into the discourse of mainstream politics, regularising racist border practices. In doing so, we identify how refugees are rendered as the root cause of environmental harm concluding that academia ought to improve its public output given the consequences of global change on ecosystems and the environment.