No abstract

The crested porcupine Hystrix cristata L. is a large rodent, which mainly occurs in agro-forestry ecosystems in Italy. In this study, we modelled the occupancy of this species in forest ecosystems, to identify environmental characteristics affecting its presence. The study was conducted at Lago di Vico Natural Reserve (Latium, Central Italy) in 2018–2019. The sampling design included a 1 km2 grid, where 263 detections were recorded at 39 out of 57 camera-trap points. Dendroauxometric data were collected at each site as covariates in the statistical models. According to our best occupancy model, the crested porcupine mostly occurs in habitats not totally covered by forests, but composed by mixed landscape patches both for the land use (crops, woods) and for the coverage (forested areas, open areas, bushes). We also analysed activity rhythms of the crested porcupine across seasons and in relation to the moon phases. The analysis of 543 videos showed that crested porcupine is strictly nocturnal throughout the year and avoided bright nights, despite the local absence of potential predators.

No abstract

Abstract. The Preschool Self-Regulation Questionnaire (Questionario di Valutazione dell’Autoregolazione [QUVA-p]) is a teacher-completed screening tool for assessing child dysregulation at preschool age. This study presents the psychometric properties of the questionnaire, which was investigated in a sample of 413 preschoolers. We tested for construct validity, measurement invariance across gender, subscale internal consistency, subscale convergent validity with executive control tasks (working memory, inhibitory control, and cognitive flexibility), and power to detect child differences in executive control. Results show that the factorial structure of the QUVA-p is in line with Nigg’s theoretical model of self-regulation and the subscales have good reliability. Measurement invariance is maintained across gender; the instrument reveals small but significant associations with executive control tasks, and it could be useful to detect child differences in executive control.