Faunistic research in a fluvial ecosystem study: The case of the River Adige

Abstract

Abstract The faunistic research carried out in the Adige basin, often together with ecological researches, has underscored the following aspects: 1) the faunistic composition as the ≪historical memory≫ of the evolution of the river environment, its loss of biodiversity, and the worsening of water quality; 2) the contribution made by faunistic studies to the methods of the biological evaluation of the quality of running waters and, vice versa, the contribution made to faunistic studies by the use of these methods; 3) the support given by faunistic studies in formulating and verifying the basic concepts of the fluvial ecosystem.