Enmanuel Cruz Muñoz

Popillia japonica is an invasive, highly polyphagous scarab beetle causing substantial economic and ecological impacts in invaded regions. In Italy, monitoring and management programs largely rely on pheromone‐based traps and attract‐and‐kill devices, while the effectiveness of feeding kairomones alone and the role of lure formulation parameters remain insufficiently evaluated. We assessed the field performance of synthetic kairomone blends based on 2‐Phenylethyl propionate and eugenol, testing the effects of blend concentration, ethanol content and the addition of geraniol. Field experiments were conducted at four sites in Northern Italy. Captures and sex ratio were analysed using generalised linear mixed‐effects models. Feeding‐kairomone lures captured significantly more beetles than apple cider vinegar and water controls. Within kairomone treatments, higher blend concentrations increased captures, while ethanol content also significantly influenced trap efficiency, with the 10% ethanol dilution outperforming the 30% dilution. In contrast, the addition of geraniol did not affect trap efficiency. Lure formulation did not introduce any detectable sex bias, as the sex ratio of captured beetles was not influenced by lure concentration or composition. These results demonstrate that feeding kairomones alone provide a robust attraction cue for P. japonica and that lure formulation is a key determinant of trap performance, supporting their use in pheromone‐independent monitoring and management strategies.

Although pyrite (FeS₂) is highly reactive in oxygen-rich environments and is expected to be largely consumed through the weathering zone, observations from Taiwan indicate that pyrite grains can survive and be transported by fluvial systems. This rapidly uplifting island exhibits exceptionally high erosion rates driven by frequent earthquakes, typhoons, and pervasive landsliding.In this study, we examine the distribution and preservation of detrital pyrite in river sediments from southeastern Taiwan. Using petrographic, heavy-mineral, Raman spectroscopy and SEM-EDS data, we assessed pyrite abundance, grain morphology, and oxidation state across catchments spanning a range of erosion regimes. The results reveal that pyrite abundance and persistence scale with erosion rates: catchments eroding faster than 1 mm/yr export up to ~30% of the exhumed pyrite, accounting for more than 1% of the total sediment load, primarily as fresh fragments, whereas lower-relief catchments are dominated by oxidized pyrite grains. Fresh pyrite is particularly abundant in sands sourced from the Central Range, where erosion rates are highest and landsliding triggered by typhoons is widespread. These observations indicate that rapid erosion, rather than mineralogical resistance or external geochemical controls, is the primary factor governing pyrite survival in Taiwan’s river systems. Detrital pyrite can therefore bypass oxidative weathering in fast-eroding orogenic settings, with important implications for sulfur and carbon cycling and for the preservation of pyrite in the sedimentary record.

Sustainable food production systems based on the use of biofertilizers and soil improvers are proposed to mitigate agricultural-related environmental impacts and address the climate crisis. In particular, plant growth-promoting microbes (PGPM) and biochar (Char) have been reported to improve plant growth, soil quality, and crop yield; however, their effects on food quality remain debated. In this study, untargeted metabolomics based on ultra-high performance liquid chromatography–ion mobility–high-resolution mass spectrometry (UHPLC-IMS-HRMS) and proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (¹H-NMR) are proposed to achieve a comprehensive investigation of the effects of Char, PGPM and Char+PGPM on durum wheat. A total of 88 metabolites were annotated by UHPLC-IMS-HRMS, mainly belonging to carbohydrates, flavones, flavonoids, glycerophospholipids, and glycolipids, while 30 compounds were annotated by ¹H-NMR, mostly amino acids and short-chain carboxylic acids. The two datasets were merged with the gluten protein content dataset by using low- and mid-level data fusion approaches, obtaining models that exhibit excellent classification performance. Integrated analysis highlighted that the combined Char+PGPM treatment induced metabolic changes across multiple chemical classes, including enrichment of flavonoids and lipids, and downregulation of carbohydrate metabolites, suggesting a redistribution of carbon resources and modulation of secondary metabolism with potential implications on wheat grain quality.