United States

For centuries, the Plio-Pleistocene deposits of Tuscany (central Italy) have been the location of prime discoveries of fossil vertebrates. Though such finds have significantly contributed to international vertebrate palaeontology, many of these historical finds lack precise stratigraphic whereabouts; furthermore, correlations between continental and marine assemblages have always been difficult, thus hampering integrative palaeoecological reconstructions. Here, we provide a preliminary characterization of the vertebrate assemblage from La Serra quarry (Pisa Province, Tuscany), were the exposed Pliocene sediments are arranged into a transgressive-regressive cycle that testifies to coastal marshes, deltaic-estuarine environments, semi-protected lagoons and shoreface settings. The vertebrate assemblage from these deposits features some fifteen species of mammals, reptiles and fishes. Mammals are mostly represented by isolated remains referable both to juvenile and adult individuals of Proboscidae indet., a small-sized Cervinae, a large-sized Cervidae, and Sus cf. S. arvernensis. The proboscideans are represented by large-size vertebrae and ribs. Cervidae are documented by isolated teeth and some postcrania that resemble the late Ruscinian Cervinae. The suid is represented by a juvenile specimen, smaller than Sus strozzii and Propotamochoerus provincialis, and closer to the relatively small-size suid from the Baccinello V3 fauna. The fish remains include dental and dermal elements of Carcharhinus cf. perezi, Carcharias taurus, Carcharodon carcharias, Galeocerdo cuvier, Myliobatis sp., Dasyatidae? Indet. (including the longest tail spine ever reported from the fossil and Recent records), Sparidae indet., and Tetraodontidae indet. The turtles are represented by a cervical vertebra of Chelonioidea indet. as well as by plastral and carapacial elements of Mauremys sp. and Testudo sensu lato. By including terrestrial, freshwater, and marine forms, the vertebrate assemblage from La Serra represents an ideal scenario for providing a synoptic glimpse into a Pliocene paralic ecosystem of Tuscany, as well as for elaborating novel correlations between terrestrial, freshwater and marine vertebrate assemblages.

SGI 2021

Living along a Pliocene Tuscan coast: terrestrial, freshwater and marine vertebrates from La Serra quarry (Tuscany)

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L'Istituto Nazionale di Oceanografia e Geofisica Sperimentale - OGS e il Dipartimento di Matematica e Geoscienze dell'Università di Trieste sono orgogliosi di ospitare il 90° Congresso della Società Geologica Italiana a Trieste dal 14 al 16 settembre 2021. La modalità del congresso è interamente online.

Con il motto "Geologia senza frontiere" questo evento mira a promuovere le Scienze della Terra come disciplina scientifica proiettata nel futuro, oltre i confini geografici, politici e disciplinari, per comprendere meglio l'interno del Pianeta Terra e la struttura del sottosuolo, difendere la società da pericolosi eventi geologici, comprendere meglio la variabilità climatica, pianificare l'utilizzo delle georisorse in modo etico e nel rispetto dell'ambiente.


**Please note, times listed in the SCHEDULE tab (calendar icon) reflect YOUR LOCAL TIME ZONE. The main timezone for this conference will be Central European Summer Time.**

The National Institute of Oceanography and Experimental Geophysics - OGS and the Department of Mathematics and Geosciences of the University of Trieste are proud to host the 90th Congress of the Italian Geological Society in Trieste on 14-16 September 2021.  The Congress will be held entirely online.

With the motto "Geology Without Borders" this event aims to promote Earth Sciences as a scientific discipline projected into the future, beyond geographical, political and disciplinary boundaries, to better understand the interior of Planet Earth and the structure of the subsurface, defend society from dangerous geological events, better understand climatic variability, plan the use of geo-resources in an ethical way and respecting the environment.


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Earth Sciences should be understood not only as necessary for a better understanding of the interior of the planet Earth, but also as a defense of society from dangerous geological events, for the understanding of climatic variations, for the planning and use of georesources in a ethical and respecting and protecting the environment.

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Determination and authentication of the geographical origin of food products have recently become relevant in investigations against frauds for consumer protection. Studies on territoriality are based on the hypothesis that chemical elements detected in plants and their products reflect those contained in the soil. Geographical features of the production area are considered relevant factors affecting the specific designation such as the composition of the parent rock, soil-forming process, climate, topography, and land use. As suggested by Pepi et al (2017; 2018), geochemical characterization, based on the determination of major and trace elements, is commonly used to establish the geographical origin of products. This work aims to present a preliminary study on soil samples to establish a method to identify the geographical origin of two different types of red chicory (long-leaves and round-leaves). Granulometric analysis and the major element composition, on a set of 12 samples of agricultural soils from the southern Po Delta area were used for local soil characterization. The samples come from a site located in Massenzatica (Municipality of Mesola, Province of Ferrara, NE of Italy) and sampling has been undertaken between October and December 2020 in different fields: 6 samples came from two fields inside the area of the Consorzio Uomini di Massenzatica (CUM), where the other 6 came from an area outside CUM. Grain size analysis shows a high similarity for all samples, with an average amount of sand of 85.76% (±1.47), 10.11% (±1.52) of Silt and 4.13% (±0.77) of Clay. According to USDA classification, the samples can be classified as Loamy Sand and Sand. Concerning the major element compositions (SiO2, Fe2O3, CaO, MgO, Al2O3), the samples are comparable, and aluminum plays an important role as a constituent of the clay fraction of soil, as a good reference element. Differences emerge when alkaline elements (K2O, Na2O) are considered: K concentration discriminates in the soil characterization between the two cultivated varieties.

Geochemical characterization and granulometric analysis of agricultural soils as a tool for geographical origin identification: preliminary results from the case study of Massenzatica (Ferrara)

A promising method to trace the geographical provenance of products of the agro-food sector consists in using petro-chemical tracers derived from the geological substratum of the production area. The radiogenic isotope 87Sr is one of the most robust tracer used. Indeed, Sr is ubiquitous in rocks and soils at ppm levels. Its isotopic composition depends on the parent/daughter ratio (87Rb/86Sr), the age and the origin of the bedrock. Another possible geochemical tracer is represented by REEs (Rare Earth Elements) patterns, which varies depending on the geological and petrological setting. Pelacani et al. (2017) showed that the REEs and the 87Sr/86Sr are absorbed from soil and transferred to the olive pulp of Olea Europea, without any significant elemental and isotopic fractionation, meaning that 87Sr/86Sr of plants and fruits reflects the 87Sr/86Sr ratio of the bioavailable soil fraction. In order to assess if Sr isotopes and REE patterns can be used as geographical tracers also for olive oil, we investigate sixteen olive groves from different geological and geomorphological setting of Tuscany, located in Chianti, High Tiberina Valley and Maremma. Particular attention was paid to minimize local differences in climate, topography, and cultivar. Samples of soil, olives and extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) were collected from each olive grove. The main challenge is represented by the low content of REEs and Sr in EVOO, especially for Heavy REEs with concentrations < 4 pg g-1. We set up in our lab a procedure to extract REEs and Sr from olive oil and olives involving mechanical stirring and ultrasound assisted extraction (Turk et al., 2019), followed by Sr purification using standard chromatographic techniques. 87Sr/86Sr measurements in soil, olives and olive oil were performed by TIMS, while the REE content was determined by ICP-MS. Preliminary results suggest that this analytical procedure is able to concentrate more Sr and REEs from EVOO, allowing more precise measurements.

Tracing the provenance of Tuscan Extra Virgin Olive Oil using Sr isotopes and Rare Earth Elements

The ichnological survey of the track-bearing surface in the Pontrelli quarry (Altamura, Apulia) was performed using both traditional and new methodologies. Approximately 26,000 footprints were identified, 600 of which arranged in 12 quadrupedal trackways. Close-range photogrammetry was applied to gain accurate 3D models of the best-preserved specimens. The ichnological study, supported by morphometric analysis and photogrammetric models, led to the identification of different morphotypes, produced by two dinosaur trackmakers. In the Morphotype 1 are included the specimens characterised by tridactyl pes, which digits are lobe-shaped, and smaller manus (i.e., heteropody index between 1:5 and 1:2) with three subcircular pads. This ichnotaxonomical group includes the ichnospecies Apulosauripus federicianus, established by Nicosia et al. (2000) to describe the trackway ACDL99/3 . Nevertheless, numerous footprints can be also morphologically matched to the ichnogenus Caririchnium Leonardi, 1984. Six trackways can be assigned to this morphotype, including the two longest trackways of the ichnosite (represented by 75 and 88 manus-pes couples). The specimens of Morphotype 1 are referred to ornithopod dinosaurs, likely to medium-sized hadrosaurs with a hip height between 74 and 125 cm and up to 4.5 m long. The closest candidate is to date Tethyshadros insularis, 4-5 m long hadrosauroid from the upper Campanian-lower Maastrichtian deposits of Villaggio del Pescatore (Trieste, NE Italy). The Morphotype 2 is represented by a broad tetradactyl pes and a slightly smaller manus (i.e., heteropody index between 1:3 and 1:2 on average, in some specimens up to 1:1), in which four or five digits are barely recognizable. Six trackways are referable to this morphotype, among which the longest is constituted by 39 quadrupedal steps. The morphological features of these tracks closely match those of to the ichnogenus Tetrapodosaurus Sternberg, 1932, typically attributed to ankylosaurs. According primarily to the medium size of the ankylosaurian trackmaker of Altamura (hip height = 60-92 cm, body length = 2.5-4.5 m), the coincidence correlation method (Carrano & Wilson, 2001) suggests a nodosaurid as most suitable candidate, similar to the 2.5 m long Struthiosaurus or the 4 m long Hungarosaurus from the Santonian-Maastrichtian deposits of Europe. The occurrence of these two dinosaur groups in the Late Cretaceous of the Apulian Carbonate Platform can represent the keystone to enhance the knowledge on the palaeogeographic framework of the Periadriatic region.

The hadrosaur and nodosaur ichnoassemblage from the Altamura dinosaur tracksite (early Campanian; Apulia, southern Italy)

The Lavini di Marco ichnosite (Trentino-Alto Adige), discovered in 1989, is one of the most extensive European dinosaur tracksites, being the subject of several studies since early 90’s. The track-bearing layers are referred to the Monte Zugna Fm. (Hettangian-lower Sinemurian) of the Calcari Grigi Group, settled down within the palaeogeographic domain of the Trento carbonate Platform. In 2018, a new field survey was performed, as part of a joint project between MUSE - Science Museum of Trento, Sapienza University of Rome and Autonomous Province of Trento. The goal was to carry out an ichnological review and to realize the first geothematic map of the whole tracksite. During the survey both traditional and innovative methods were used, such as aerial and close-range photogrammetry. More than 700 tridactyl tracks and about 200 quadrupedal tracks were detected, and we mapped 27 trackways of both bipedal and quadrupedal dinosaurs. Close-range photogrammetry allowed to gain detailed morphological information, thus refining the ichnotaxonomical assignment. Morphological and morphometrical analyses allowed to assign most of the tridactyl tracks to the ichnogenus Kayentapus, although some specimens can be referred to the ichnogenera Anchisauripus, Grallator and Eubrontes. The occurrence of ornithischian ichnotaxon Anomoepus (previously hypothesized on the basis of two sub-parallel elongated tracks) was denied by the photogrammetric model, revealing the overlap of two tridactyl footprints with different size. The ichnotaxonomical review of quadrupedal trackways led to the emandation of the diagnosis of the ichnospecies Lavinipes cheminii and to assign several other sparse tracks and trackways to the same ichnotaxon. Panguraptor-like and Sinosaurus-like theropods have been identified as most suitable trackmakers for the tridactyl footprints, whereas the sauropodomorph Gongxianosaurus has been hypothesized as the most likely producer of Lavinipes cheminii. The occurrence of isolated tracks left by large theropods, which autopodium is still unknown in the skeletal fossil record, was also reported. The ichnoassemblage and the possible trackmakers thus suggest a palaeobiogeographic dispersal between Laurasia and the Trento Platform during the Hettangian, providing an accurate constraint to hypothesize their connection through northern and western sectors of Alpine region. Aerial photogrammetry was performed by using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (i.e., drones) allowed to obtain orthophotos and orthoplanes of the whole tracksite. The map was realized in digital vector format with different level of knowledge with the aim of producing a comprehensive tool. The obtained geothematic map represents a complete documentation that will be useful for future work of enhancement, preservation and valorisation of the tracksite.

Geothematic map and ichnological review of dinosaur tracks from the Lavini di Marco ichnosite (Early Jurassic, Southern Alps, NE Italy)

In the Latina Valley (Central Apennines, Italy) several discontinuous bitumen outcrops and a well-known oil field occur, cultivated since the 19th century. The distribution of such deposits is strongly controlled by faults, which have a fundamental role in controlling hydrocarbon migration, entrapment, and/or leakage within fold-and thrust belts. However, little attention has been dedicated in the past to the role of post-orogenic normal faults in controlling hydrocarbon migration during the orogenic collapse. Field and subsurface data are here combined with geological evidence from the Ripi oil field, and a conceptual model is proposed for hydrocarbon migration along post-orogenic normal faults and entrapment within shallow reservoirs. Results show that post-orogenic normal faults promoted updip hydrocarbon migration from Upper Triassic mature source rocks, which generated oil during foreland/foredeep flexure and subsequent involvement into the accretionary wedge. Where pre-orogenic deposits were covered by less-permeable syn-orogenic sandstones, marls, and clays, hydrocarbons moved laterally from normal faults and impregnated high-porosity sandstone lenses, generating discontinuous and heavy oil reservoirs. On the contrary, where syn-orogenic deposits were eroded in response to orogenic uplift, hydrocarbons leaked at the Earth’s surface. Results from this study can be applied to reduce risks during hydrocarbon exploration and appraisal in similar tectonic settings.

The role of post-orogenic normal faulting in hydrocarbon migration in fold-and-thrust belts: insights from the Latina Valley (central Apennines, Italy)

Sclerobiont bryozoans have been found in the pelagic Maiolica Fm. of the Umbria-Marche Basin (Monte Acuto, Northern Apennines, Italy). The studied specimens, collected as loose material, are three sub-circular colonies of small size with tube-shaped zooecia, radially developing from the centre. Observable characters prevent generic or specific classification and only allow assignation to the Suborder Tubuliporina. Calpionellid assemblages constrain the bryozoan-bearing rock sample to the early Berriasian. This finding represents the first occurrence of isolated bryozoans in the Maiolica Fm., enriching our knowledge about the fauna of this stratigraphic unit in pure basinal settings. The fossil fauna of the unit in fact is commonly composed of radiolarians, calpionellids, dinoflagellate cysts and rare macrofossils (ammonites and aptychi), including only very rare benthic organisms (gastropods, brachiopods and bivalves). No sclerobiont organisms in ‘normal’ pelagic Maiolica facies were known up to date, due to the lack of suitable substrates to be colonised. Based on our material, encrustation of a planktonic or nektonic hard-shelled organism seems the most parsimonious hypothesis supporting this occurrence.

Sclerobiont Bryozoans from the Maiolica of the Umbria-Marche Domain (Northern Apennines, Italy)

This work provides the new geological-structural map of the southern Serre Massif (SM), an area extended for ~ 290 km2, located within the central sector of the Calabrian-Peloritani-Orogen (CPO). This segment of the CPO is characterized by the presence of a nearly entire Variscan crustal section, presently lying in a tilted position after the final stages of the tectonic uplift, associated with the later surficial stage of the Apennine stage of the Alpine orogeny. The map fits into this complicated geological-structural context with the aim to clarify the SM geodynamics. The new obtained geological map follows map design rules that aim to the concept of interoperability as one of the most important tasks of the modern cartography, useful to provide geologic maps more consistent in both appearance and database content. In the last years the interoperability concept and the geological data harmonization have become fundamental, with the statement of several new standards such as GeoSciML data model (www.geosciml.org). Therefore, standardization is now essential in the geoscience field because it allows to discuss and share the scientific data easier and faster (Ortolano et al., 2015). In the present work we used the esriNCGMP Online Geologic Mapping Template, a GIS-based solution that collects together cartography and data structures of the FGDC (Federal Geographic Data Committee), the Esri Geologic Mapping Template geodatabase schema and the NCGMP (National Cooperative Geologic Mapping Program) schema.  The use of this data models was essential to harmonize symbols and terminology that came from different original surveys and it focuses on two important aspects: the information about scientific confidence and locational accuracy of contacts and faults. and the information about data sources.  The “Scientific confidence” expresses a geologist level of certainty regarding the “identity” and “existence” of all features. The “identity” expresses if the observations and data support the nature, origin or geometry of a geologic feature. The “existence” expresses if the observations and data support the continuity or existence of a concealed or unseen geologic feature. Instead, the “Locational accuracy” is based on the relationship between a mapped feature location in the field and its position on the basemap. Therefore, the NCGMP data model clarifies these concepts providing appropriate terminology and symbol styles to adopt in each case.

Modern interoperability concepts applied to the new Geological Structural map of the Serre Massif Upper crust

The estimation of landslide hazard triggered by seismic events has been studied since 1965 through Newmark’s studied (Newmark, 1965). From the beginning up today, the mechanical approach to slope instability has been extended to GIS-based methods which are enable to consider the spatially distributed geomorphological and seismological variables strictly related this type of instabilities. Both predisposing and triggering variables are commonly combined by different methods (i.e. data driven, geostatistical, machine learning) to create maps at regional and urban scale. This latter scale is currently used worldwide for developing seismic microzonation of slope instabilities affecting urban areas threatened by high-magnitude earthquakes in several different geological contests. In the American continent, USGS collected in continuously updated web-GIS database informations about earthquake-induced landslides. It is the case of El Salvador, located in Central America, where the complex geodynamic is characterized by the interaction of four major tectonic plates and several microplates on their boundaries that cause high-magnitude seismic phenomena. Additionally, the lithostratigraphic and geomorphological characters (i.e. acid pyroclastites, volcanic ashes and pomices), are commonly affected by heavy rainfalls, so that hundreds of landslides are generated and consequently a huge number of casualties and economic losses. In this country, the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS) funded the CASTES project, which is devoted, among the numerous objectives of this international collaboration programme, to study unstable co-seismic effects induced within El Salvador territory. To this aim, a preliminary approach to define landslides hazard induced by the 2001 earthquake sequence has been applied. This latter consists of detecting the seismically-induced landslide inventory from aerial obtained after the two main shocks occurred on 13 January and 13 February 2001 (Mw 7.7 and 6.6, respectively). Then, the two magnitudes and landslides epicentral distances have been compared with the Keefer’s and Martino’s landslide triggering thresholds (Martino et al., 2014). These curves are useful in microzonation activities to estimate the possible occurrence of earthquake-induced landslides both in soils and rock formations related to all kind of kinematics. Nonetheless, according to the present authors’ knowledge, these curves have not been calibrated through volcanic geological territories, yet. Hence, this contribution is aimed at investigating the peculiar characters of the seismically-induced landslides in volcanic territories and to compare their triggering threshold to those ones identified worldwide.

Seismically-induced landslide estimation at regional scale in El Salvador volcanic territory

The study of the relationships between the natural characteristics of the environment and the quality of the wine highlights the existence of a specificity. The basic element of the viticultural vocation is the territory, which materializes in a geographical space within which the work of nature and the centuries-old intervention of man have given rise to a food that cannot be produced elsewhere, whose qualitative excellence manifests itself continuously, therefore even in the most difficult years. It is from the interaction between natural and human factors that the peculiarities of wine are born. The high number of different areas dedicated to wine production is to be considered an element of the value of Italian viticulture, together with the great wealth of national varieties. The analysis of the various factors that lead to the qualitative expression of wines has been the subject, in the last twenty years, of numerous scientific studies, which have highlighted in the first instance, i.e. on a fairly large geographical scale, the fundamental contribution that geology and the geomorphology contribute to the peculiarities of the wine-growing areas. These factors contribute to determining the characteristics and qualities of the soil, some of which have a decisive effect on the viticultural and oenological response. In particular, the characteristics that condition water and mineral nutrition, such as water retention capacity, depth and volume that can be explored by the roots, stoniness and colour (mirror of its chemical composition), superficial and deep drainage, richness in active limestone as well as in macro and microelements, they are the basis for the quality of the grapes and the subsequent qualitative expression of the wines. Wine-growing areas located on fissured and karstified limestone rocks, which favour the removal of excess water through deep drainage, often have a high viticultural vocation. Where the parent material is calcareous marl, the soils are generally clayey and silty, retain a good amount of water and give finesse to the wines, while the granites and sandstones produce sands and gravels by alteration, which dry out very easily and contain vigour. Soils on volcanic basalts, rich in nutrients, give an imprint of robustness and fullness to the wines. Soils on alluvial sediments rich in clay are suitable for vigorous vines and wines with character. The best terroirs are rooted in soils where for most years the crop yield is moderate but of good quality, without a massive integration of chemical fertilizers and unsustainable risks for the conservation of soil quality.

Soil functional factors of Italian wines

Asthma is a main chronic respiratory disease worldwide, affecting over 330 million people of all ethnic groups throughout all ages. In the US, asthma is one of the most common and costly diseases and it is responsible for more than 5000 deaths annually. An association between climatic conditions (drought) and asthma mortality has been widely assumed. However, it is unclear whether climatic variations have a fingerprint on asthma dynamics over long time intervals. The global environment has been facing large changes during the last century, which can also affect respiratory health with increased asthma frequency worldwide. According to McCabe et al. (2004), spatial and temporal variances in multidecadal drought frequency over the contiguous US are attributable to the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation (AMO) and the Paciﬁc Decadal Oscillation (PDO) interaction. In view of the statement of the Global Asthma Network, we hypothesized that drought and asthma mortality may show similar periodicity in the contiguous US. To detect a possible correlation between drought and asthma mortality rates annual data (from 1950 to 2015) of asthma mortality were downloaded from the US National Center for Health Statistics. AMO and PDO data were downloaded from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The analysis of the signals was performed by applying the Empirical Mode Decomposition algorithm of Huang et al. (1998). To compare the dominant periodicities (asthma versus AMO versus PDO) we applied a bandpass filter. We found that asthma death rates evaluated in 4 different age groups share the same pattern of fluctuation throughout the 1950-2015 time interval, but different trends. Annual asthma death rates turned out to be correlated with the dynamics of the AMO, modulated by the PDO, and sharing the same averaged ∼44 year-periodicity. The results of the current study (Bonomo et al, 2019) have suggested an influence of climate patterns on asthma mortality rates in the US. This has prompted us to assess whether a similar association may be found for asthma incidence in Italy. A collaborative research (within the domain of the “One Health” concept) using data from the Italian branch of the European Community Respiratory Health Survey is ongoing to find a possible relationship of asthma incidence with drought indices.

Living along a Pliocene Tuscan coast: terrestrial, freshwater and marine vertebrates from La Serra quarry (Tuscany)

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Geochemical characterization and granulometric analysis of agricultural soils as a tool for geographical origin identification: preliminary results from the case study of Massenzatica (Ferrara)

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