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59 ± 0.12; DR 4071.4 ± 1068.2 m) or on mixed farms (ACT 0.57 ± 0.29; DR 5431.1 ± 1939.5 m) in all the periods studied. Red deer selected land cover with forage and shelter when foraging and resting, respectively. When drive hunt events occurred (mixed farms and fenced hunting estates), the deer were more prone to select safer habitats (scrublands) and avoid open areas (crops or grasslands) than were their counterparts in protected areas. The patterns observed can be explained by sexual and seasonal differences as regards requirements, the response to disturbances and, interestingly, population management. Our results provide useful information with which to design scientifically-based species adaptive management in response to relevant and timely situations in Europe, such as the potential transmission of shared infections, vehicle collisions, and damage to crops and ecosystems.Many aggressive plants possess high tolerance to heavy metals, but little is known about their invasiveness at heavy metal polluted sites. We performed a greenhouse experiment to examine the impacts of Cd (0, 10, 30, 60, and 100 mg kg-1) and inter-specific competition on the reproductive capability of an invasive plant, Alternanthera philoxeroides, and its native congener, Alternanthera sessilis. We also examined the population dynamics of both native and invasive species in a simulated field experiment. Compared with A. philoxeroides, native A. sessilis was a stronger competitor as measured by vegetative growth, sexual reproduction, and dominance status in a mixed culture. However, A. philoxeroides showed great plasticity in root mass ratio that was positively affected by inter-specific competition and high Cd levels. Such high root allocation might allow for delayed growth of A. CCT251545 datasheet philoxeroides rhizomes as the relative cover of A. philoxeroides to A. sessilis in the field experiment gradually increased and > 1 after nine months culture, especially at high Cd treatment. Our results suggest that the invasiveness of A. philoxeroides is highly context- and time-dependent. In severely polluted environments, clonal propagation of A. sessilis is likely inhibited by the synergistic negative effects of inter-specific competition and heavy metal pollution, and a long time co-existence of these two competing species would facilitate the colonization of invasive plant.The concepts of sustainability and sustainable development have acquired great relevance in scientific research about environmental issues, policies linked to environmental management, and industrial and agricultural production, among others. Although these two concepts are frequently used as synonyms, they are immersed in debates regarding their meaning and their possibilities for application to real systems. This review analyzes the main theoretical definitions of both concepts, together with their potentials and limitations, emphasizing the differences between their meanings. A bibliographic search was carried out in the Web of Science database and other sources from official organizations of international relevance and authors referenced by them. The works providing substantive definitions of sustainability and sustainable development from a complexity theory perspective were selected for discussion throughout the article. The main results showed a strong criticism of the concept of sustainable development due to its imprecise definition, the emergence of the concept of sustainability in the debate of the 1990s and its consolidation in certain fields of knowledge, and the emergence of new alternatives to sustainable development such as degrowth and buen vivir. The results also show the potential of the concept of sustainability as a still-developing framework for scientific research and environmental management.Improving our understanding of how different land uses and management practices affect soil nutrient outflows in sub-Saharan Africa could aid in developing sustainable practices. The objective of this study was to analyse the variation in outflows of soil total nitrogen (TN) and available phosphorus (Pav) as influenced by land use types (cropland, grazing land, and bushland) and land management practices (soil bunds for cropland and exclosures for non-croplands) in the three contrasting agro-ecological zones of the Upper Blue Nile basin, Ethiopia. Field data were collected for TN and Pav outflows by water erosion (Eo), leaching (Lo), product harvest (Ho), and gaseous emissions (Go) from 18 runoff plots (30 m × 6 m) for two years (2018-2019). TN and Pav losses significantly varied (p Go. In plots with land management practices, TN and Pav losses associated with Eo, Lo, and Go were reduced on average by 44-76%, 9-47%, and 1%-36%, respectively. These practices were most effective to reduce Eo nutrient losses. Further study is required to analyzing the soil nutrient balance and identify priority areas for implementing mitigation measures.Monitoring of COVID-19 infections within communities via wastewater-based epidemiology could provide a cost-effective alternative to clinical testing. This approach, however, still requires improvement for its efficient application. In this paper, we present the use of wastewater-based epidemiology in monitoring COVID-19 infection dynamics in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa, focusing on four wastewater treatment plants for 14 weeks. The SARS-CoV-2 viral load in influent wastewater was determined using droplet digital PCR, and the number of people infected was estimated using published models as well as using a modified model to improve efficiency. On average, viral loads ranged between 0 and 2.73 × 105 copies/100 ml, 0-1.52 × 105 copies/100 ml, 3 × 104-7.32 × 105 copies/100 ml and 1.55 × 104-4.12 × 105 copies/100 ml in the four wastewater treatment plants studied. The peak in viral load corresponded to the reported COVID-19 infections within the districts where these catchments are located. In addition, we also observed that easing of lockdown restrictions by authorities corresponded with an increase in viral load in the untreated wastewater. Estimation of infection numbers based on the viral load showed that a higher number of people could potentially be infected, compared to the number of cases reported based on clinical testing. The findings reported in this paper contribute to the field of wastewater-based epidemiology for COVID-19 surveillance, whilst highlighting some of the challenges associated with this approach, especially in developing countries.