Species Of Community Interest Research Articles

New records of <em>Austropotamobius pallipes</em> (Decapoda: Astacidae) relict populations from the Ticino River

Based on available literature, the white-clawed crayfish Austropotamobius pallipes complex, a species of Community interest according to the EU Habitats Directive, has not been reported in the Lombard Park of the Ticino Valley (Northern Italy) since almost two decades, with the last findings dating back to 2005. In 2021, we found two small populations in the northernmost area of the park (Sesto Calende, province of Varese). These observations support the urge for implementing actions focused on the monitoring and conservation of this endangered species in the Lombard Park of the Ticino Valley in order to avoid its local extinction.

Far from home: Genetic variability of Knipowitschia sp. from Italy revealed unexpected species in coastal lagoons of the Tyrrhenian coast

Coastal lagoons are resilient and productive ecosystems that support high biological and habitat diversity, but are increasingly affected by several threats due to human exploitation. Many resident species of these environments show a restricted geographical range and a strict association with specific habitats, thus they could represent ecological indicators of these ecosystems. Data on the genetic variability distribution in populations of these species are crucial to identify the presence of different evolutionary units across their geographical distribution ranges and to plan actions for their management and conservation. In this context, the assessment of the genetic variability and structure of Italian specimens of the Adriatic dwarf goby Knipowitschia panizzae, a brackish species endemic in the Adriatic Sea, and included among the species of Community interest in Annex II of Habitats Directive, was carried out. To this purpose, goby samples were collected both from Italian sites where the species is native (Adriatic) and non-native (Tyrrhenian), probably introduced due to the practice of stocking lakes and coastal lagoons with juvenile of euryhaline species to sustain local fisheries. Results show the presence of high values of haplotype diversity, and no shared haplotypes between fish from sites where the species is native or introduced. Moreover, in Tyrrhenian Italian lagoons we identified an allochthonous species of Knipowitschia, previously undetected in Italy: the Corfu dwarf goby K. goerneri. This species was originally described as endemic to the Korission Lagoon catchment on Corfu Island, but recently found also in Butrinti lagoon in Albania. The presence of this species, that almost totally replaced Adriatic dwarf goby in the Tyrrhenian lagoons under study, can be ascribed to the stockings of wild fry of commercially important species originating from Balkan countries.

Assessment of the State of Ichthyofauna from Danube River – Caleia Branch, Romania: A Sustainable Development Context

Evaluating the state of ichthyofauna at both the Lower Danube level and at the national level contains knowledge gaps regarding species dynamics, with the most complex studies regarding species composition being undertaken more than 50 years ago. Over time, the Danube River - an important navigation route that connects Western Europe with Asia - has suffered a series of anthropogenic interventions that led to river discharge regularization, interruptions of longitudinal/latitudinal connectivity and reductions in floodplain area. These anthropogenic activities may negatively impact suitable fish habitats leading to demographical effects. The Danube is regarded as a river with high species richness that provides a source of income for the local population by the practice of commercial fishing. The area of interest for this study was selected taking into account the fact that, in the last decade, it was subject to hydrotechnical works that aim to redistribute the river discharge to improve navigation conditions. The ichthyofauna population dynamics is analyzed using an 8 year-long dataset that includes baseline data before the project started and a monitoring period after the project ended. The results indicate the presence of 38 fish species (excluding anadromous fish species – sturgeons and shads). The identified fish species are classified in two categories: 1) species of commercial interest and 2) species of Community interest. This study provides evidence that the high mobility capacity of the fish species is the main factor affecting species dynamics as support of the national efforts in action to stop the degradation of aquatic habitats and biodiversity, in response to goal 15 “Life Earth” of the UN 2030 AGENDA for sustainable development.

Distribution model and habitat characteristics of Morimus asper funereus Mulsant, 1863 (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) in Bulgaria

Morimus asper funereus is a protected longhorn beetle species of community interest and conservation importance. It is included in Annex II of the Habitats Directive (as M. funereus) and protected under the Bulgarian Biodiversity Act. Although this saproxylic beetle is widespread in old-growth forests or well-structured woodlands in Central and Southeast Europe, its populations are currently threatened by forest practices, such as the removal of wood (branches and logs) (Hardersen et al. 2017). The species is with limited dispersal ability (due to lack of wings) and is very likely to possess very isolated and localized populations. In addition, M. asper funereus is of considerable interest from a taxonomic point of view with unclear taxonomic status for as much as Morimus asper is a morphologically highly variable species. At present, at least three species/subspecies of the genus Morimus are known from the territory of Bulgaria - Morimus asper, M. orientalis and M. vercundus bulgaricus (Danilevsky et al. 2016). Although, it is considered M. asper to be met almost everywhere in Bulgaria, its distribution is still not sufficiently known. We started a systematic and more intensive study on the species distribution in 2012 with the mapping of NATURA 2000 sites. Until the present study 54 localities from the literature had been known, after 562 new records have been added. The available information is organised in a database incorporated into the platform “SmartBirds Pro” - https://smartbirds.org (Popgeorgiev et al. 2015), part of which gives the possibility for registration of protected beetle species. In addition, the platform provides free access to all data (type, location, coordinates, date, observer). Here we present all available data for the species records, and its potential distribution and habitat preference for the territory of Bulgaria via deductive model, using the possibilities of GIS and MAXENT (Fourcade et al. 2014).

Quantifying the conservation value of Sacred Natural Sites

Many have asserted that Sacred Natural Sites (SNS) play an important role in nature protection but few have assessed their conservation effectiveness for different taxa. We studied sacred groves in Epirus, NW Greece, where a large number of such SNS have been identified. Based on historical, ethnographic and ecological criteria, we selected eight of these groves and matching control sites and in them we studied fungi, lichens, herbaceous plants, woody plants, nematodes, insects, bats and passerine birds. Our results reveal that the contribution of SNS to species conservation is nuanced by taxon, vegetation type and management history. We found that the sacred groves have a small conservation advantage over the corresponding control sites. More specifically, there are more distinct sets of organisms amongst sacred groves than amongst control sites, and overall biodiversity, diversity per taxonomic group, and numbers of species from the European SCI list (Species of Community Interest) are all marginally higher in them. Conservationists regard the often small size of SNS as a factor limiting their conservation value. The sizes of SNS around the globe vary greatly, from a few square meters to millions of hectares. Given that those surveyed by us (ranging from 5 to 116 ha) are at the lower end of this spectrum, the small conservation advantage that we testified becomes important. Our results provide clear evidence that even small-size SNS have considerable conservation relevance; they would contribute most to species conservation if incorporated in networks.

Effectiveness of the Natura 2000 network in protecting Iberian endemic fauna

AbstractThe Iberian Peninsula is a major European region of biodiversity, as it harbours more than 30% of European endemic species. Despite a number of studies having evaluated the ability of nature reserves to protect certain taxa, there is still a lack of knowledge on how Iberian endemic fauna are represented in these reserves. We detected biodiversity hotspots of Iberian endemicity and evaluated the effectiveness of the Natura 2000 network (N2000) in representing 249 endemic species from eight animal taxonomic groups (amphibians, mammals, freshwater fishes, reptiles, water beetles, butterflies, lacewings and dung beetles). We found that only the 10% of these Iberian endemic species are considered species of community interest (i.e. species included in the Annexes of the Habitats Directive). We conducted gap analyses and null models of representativeness in N2000. Generally, N2000 is effective in its representation of Iberian endemic fauna, although we detected species and few hotspots of endemism that were still not represented. It is necessary to declare a few new protected areas, thus enhancing N2000's effectiveness in the conservation of the Iberian endemic fauna. Although the aim of N2000 is to protect species listed in the Birds and Habitats Directives, the conservation status of endemic species from one of the most important areas of Europe in terms of biodiversity, could be also a concern for the European Union. Our results are useful in the context of the recent European Commission mandate calling for a ‘fitness check’ of the Birds and Habitats Directives. This approach could be also applicable to other regions with high value of endemicity.

Multimedia database development for innovative application about fish fauna for inland water ecosystem management

This paper describes the development of an innovative application with a multimedia database, concerning the management of fresh water fish fauna in the inland water ecosystems of Greece. This database is a baseline for keeping descriptive information of fresh water fish fauna and bibliographic spread reports. The database has provision for both descriptive and geographic mapping (GIS). The sources of the data used for the database population were from a) The Red Book of Endangered Animals of Greece b) IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature and c) Ministry of Environment & Energy (Study 6: Supervision and Evaluation of the Conservation status of fish species of Community interest in Greece). A detailed description will be made for the development of the stages of the database (Conceptual - Logical - Physical Design). The database management system was developed in Microsoft Access and in pgAdmin, which is an open source administration and development platform for PostgreSQL. In addition, we will mention the filling of the database and the Entity - Relationship Model. The database due to its structure and data it will be able to provide answers to hypothetical scenarios to the application that will use it. Furthermore, the aim of this project is to construct a database that will provide ichthyologic and environmental data. The main advantage is the compatibility with various software platforms and that it can be easily expanded.

Quality of non-expert citizen science data collected for habitat type conservation status assessment in Natura 2000 protected areas

EU biodiversity conservation policy is based on the Habitats Directive (92/43/EC), which aims that habitat types and species of Community interest should reach ‘favourable conservation status’. To this end, Member States are obliged to perform periodic assessment of species and habitat conservation status through biodiversity monitoring, which, in almost all cases, was performed by experts implementing standardized field protocols. Here, we examine the quality of data collected in the field by non-experts (citizen scientists) for the conservation status assessment of habitat types, and specifically for the criteria ‘typical species’, ‘specific structures and functions’, and ‘pressures and threats’. This task is complicated and demands different types of field data. We visited two Natura 2000 sites and investigated four habitat types (two in each site) with non-experts and compared their data to the data collected by experts for accuracy, completeness and spatial arrangement. The majority of the non-expert data were accurate (i.e. non-experts recorded information they observed in the field), but they were incomplete (i.e. non-experts detected less information than the experts). Also, non-experts chose their sampling locations closer to the edge of the habitat, i.e. in more marginal conditions and thus in potentially more degraded conditions, than experts.

Mount Cavallo Botanical Path: a proposal for the valorization of an area of the Orobie Bergamasche Regional Park (Southern Alps)

The identification of elements of special environmental interest present in protected areas is indispensable in order to fully valorize the resources of such areas. This is even more important in protected areas that have only recently been established, such as the Orobie Bergamasche Regional Park (Lombardy, Italy). This article reports the results of the analysis of the flora of the Mount Cavallo path, a little-known and little-used area of the Orobie Bergamasche Park. The floristic census conducted, which led to the identification of 241 species, showed that the study area has a high number of endemic (some of which are steno-endemic) and / or rare plants, including Linaria tonzigii Lona, which is also a species of community interest. Given the wealth and significance of the floral heritage of the study area, as well as its unique geological and environmental characteristics, a proposal is presented for its valorization, involving the construction of a nature trail: the Mount Cavallo Botanical Path. This study, which presents the distribution maps of the various endemic species along the path and the results of the chorological and ecological analyses of the local flora, provides the scientific background knowledge for the development of a project for the promotion and enhancement of one of the most interesting and beautiful areas of the Orobie Bergamasche Park.

Habitat mapping of coastal wetlands using expert knowledge and Earth observation data

Summary Long‐term habitat mapping and change detection are essential for the management of coastal wetlands as well as for evaluating the impact of conservation policies. Earth observation (EO) data and techniques are a valuable resource for long‐term habitat mapping. Although the use of EO data is well developed for the automatic production of land cover (LC) maps, this is not the same for habitat maps, which are highly related to biodiversity. In a previous paper, we used the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) Land Cover Classification System (LCCS) environmental attributes (e.g. water quality, lithology, soil surface aspect) for LC‐to‐habitat class translation. However, these environmental attributes are often not openly available, not updated or are missing. This paper offers an alternative, knowledge‐based solution to automatic habitat mapping. When only expert rules and EO data are used, the final overall map accuracy, which is obtained by comparing reference ground truth patches to the ones depicted in the output map, is lower (75·1%) than the accuracy obtained using environmental attributes alone (97·0%). Some ambiguities that still remain in habitat discrimination are resolved by integrating the use of LCCS environmental attributes (if available) and expert rules. In this paper, we use very high‐resolution (VHR) satellite data and LIDAR data. LC classes are labelled according to the LCCS taxonomy, which offers a framework to integrate EO data with in situ and ancillary data. Output habitat classes are labelled according to the European Habitats Directive (92/43 EEC Directive) Annex I habitat types and Eunis habitat classification. Two Natura 2000 coastal wetland sites in southern Italy are considered. Synthesis and applications. In this paper, we study the exploitation of ecological rules on vegetation pattern, plant phenology and habitat geometric properties for automatic translation of land cover (LC) maps to habitat maps in coastal wetlands. The methodology is useful for relatively inaccessible sites (e.g. wetlands) as it does not require in‐field campaigns (generally costly) but only the elicitation of ecological expert rules. This can support site (e.g. Natura 2000) managers in long‐term automatic habitat mapping. Habitat changes can be automatically detected by comparing map pairs, and trends can be quantified. This is particularly useful to satisfy the commitments of the European Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC), which requires Member States to take measures to maintain as, or restore to, favourable conservation status those natural habitat types and species of community interest that are listed in the Annexes to the Directive.

Information technology used in preparing the national reports on Species of Community Interest. Study case: Vipera ursinii in Pontic bioregion

Information technology used in preparing the national reports on Species of Community Interest. Study case: Vipera ursinii in Pontic bioregion

Image Analysis Methods to Monitor Natura 2000 Habitats at Regional Scales – the MS. MONINA State Service Example in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany

Summary: The Natura 2000 network of protected sites is one of the means to address the issue of biodiversity conservation in Europe. Protected under the habitat directive, EU member states have to undertake surveillance of habitats and species of community interest and report every six years on habitat range and distribution, conservation status and the future prospects of the habitats within and outside of protected sites. Remote sensing techniques have been applied successfully to monitor habitat changes relevant for Natura 2000 monitoring using multioral satellite image data, but many challenges remain especially outside protected sites to assess the development of habitats over time. A flexible information layer concept was developed within the FP7 project MS.MONINA to address the complex task of monitoring natural habitats. In this paper the new approach to classify grassland land cover classes in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, will be presented. Based on ecological parameters experts defined simple description models, which were used by image analysts to extract corresponding image features for four different grassland types. Information layer operators were defined to extract image features for subsequent classifications. (Less)

New Data on the Knowledge of Beetle Fauna (Insecta: Coleoptera) in the “Bârnova-Repedea Forest” Site of Community Importance (Rosci 01235, Iaşi, Romania

Abstract 103 coleopteran species, belonging to 11 families were found during our faunal sampling in 2012 in the Bârnova-Repedea Forest site. Out of them Carabus variolosus Fabricius, Lucanus cervus (Linnaeus), Cerambyx cerdo Linnaeus, Morimus funereus Mulsant and Rosalia alpina (Linnaeus) are species of community interest, included in the Annex II of the Habitat Directive. Carpelimus gusarovi Gildenkov and Stenus doderoi Bondroit were collected by the authors, for the first time in Romania. Carabus excellens (Fabricius), a rare species, was rediscovered in this site, and specific faunistic data on the species Colon (Myloechus) dentipes (C. R. Sahlberg) are provided for the first time.

Hierarchical analysis of the threats for Species of Community Interest in the Iron Gates Natural Park, Romania

Threats to biodiversity are diverse and the management of these threats is a major research direction in the conservation of biological diversity. Determining the status of a species is essential in identifying those in danger of becoming extinct and also to establish conservation priorities. For the management of all types of threats that manifest themselves for certain species of community interest in the Iron Gates Natural Park, we must first understand their causes and effects. Conservationists are increasingly interested in determining threats to biological communities, this being an important part of territorial and environmental planning strategies. The analysis undertaken for some geographical areas showed that the most important threats are the socioeconomic and demographic variables, the fragmentation, destruction and degradation of habitats through various practices, the introduction of non-native species, illegal hunting or overfishing. In this context, for elaborating sustainable patterns of habitat management we must analyze and prioritize the threats that we are dealing with. The method requires an inventory of the main threats in the Iron Gates Natural Park, the threats for certain Species of Community Interest (Tulipa hungarica, Colchicum arenarium, Pulsatilla grandis). We have also applied a method used by WWF in order to achieve a hierarchy of the main threats and to establish logical and efficient actions that can be locally applicable.

Population and habitat status of two endemic sand gobies in lagoon marshes – Implications for conservation

Ensuring biodiversity, through the conservation of natural habitats, such as wetlands, and of their wild flora and fauna, is the main objective of the Habitat and Species Directive 92/43/EC. Within this framework, two species of Community interest, Pomatoschistus canestrinii and Knipowitschia panizzae (Gobiidae, Osteichthyes), endemisms of the Northern Adriatic lagoons, were considered. The population structure, reproductive effort, somatic growth and production of such species were investigated in marsh habitats of the Venice lagoon, as indicators of the status of the populations and their habitats. The lagoon marsh habitats hosted abundant and well structured populations, functioning also as breeding areas for these species. A certain spatial variability was also observed, possibly related to the shelter conditions of different marsh sub-habitats (e.g. marsh creeks vs. adjacent mudflats). These results were discussed in the light of the available ecological knowledge on the two species, with a particular attention to the conservation priority focused on the protection of biodiversity and of key habitats.

Conserving indigenous crayfish: stock assessment and habitat requirements in the threatened Austropotamobius italicus

Abstract As part of the Austropotamobius pallipes species complex, the crayfish Austropotamobius italicus is a species of community interest whose preservation requires the designation of Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) (Annex II, EU Habitats Directive). This study aimed at (1) assessing the conservation status of this threatened indigenous species by stock assessment in central Italy and (2) identifying some aspects of its elective habitat. Surveys were conducted in nine streams harbouring A. italicus (streams WI) and in 10 streams where crayfish populations became extinct at least 5 years before the study (streams WO). The results confirmed that A. italicus is a K‐selected species, with a relatively slow growth rate (males: 0.34; females: 0.37) and a long life expectancy (males: 8.2 years; females: 7.8 years). The extant populations are healthy, showing balanced sex‐ratios and well structured age‐class compositions. Mortality is mainly due to fishing, which is illegal in Tuscany. Principal Components Analyses showed that the streams WI and WO differ in the abundance of allochthonous plant detritus but not in the taxonomic composition of their macroinvertebrate communities. Age classes were found to be spatially segregated, juveniles mainly using cobbles as substrates and adults seemingly avoiding them. The loss of the pristine riverine landscape seems to have been responsible, together with illegal fishing, for the local extinction of the species. As a consequence, retaining, enhancing, and restoring the habitat and its complexity are required for the preservation of A. italicus. The designation of SACs might help in this endeavour if accompanied by programmes aimed at publicizing the need for conservation of this species. Unfortunately, crayfish‐focused projects supported by LIFE in Italy since 1992 (4%) and the SACs involved (1.4%) have been relatively few, despite the poor conservation status of this species and its well recognized ecological role. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

PROTECTION AND RESTORATION OF REMAINING POPULATIONS OF ABIES ALBA MILL., PICEA EXCELSA LAM. AND TAXUS BACCATA L. IN THE EMILIAN APENNINES

The main goal of the Life Nature 95 project Misure di salvaguardia delle popolazioni relitte di Abies alba Miller, Picea excelsa Lam, Taxus baccata L. e dei loro habitat naturali sull'Appennino Emiliano, cofinanced by the European Commission and Regione Emilia-Romagna is the protection and restoration of silver fir, Norway spruce and yew stands of the Western Emilia Apennines (Dir CEE43/92). The specific goals are the conservation of the vegetational habitats, the foundation of new groups of autochthonous trees and the sensitization of public opinion about the conservation of autochthonous genetic resources. The populations will be genetically characterized to ascertain their autochthonous origin. The characterization will be carried out using molecular markers (RAPDs) to recognize polymorphisms at the DNA level. Life is a financial tool provided by the European Commission to contribute to the development of the Community environmental policy. This project is comprised in the Sector, having the right of priority, Habitats and nature protection; particularly, it follows the Program of protection or restoration of natural habitats and animal and vegetal species of Community interest that are comprised in Attachment I and II of Directive 92/43/CEE of the European Council, concerning the conservation of natural habitats and wild flora and fauna.