Five alien achatinid land snails (Gastropoda, Eupulmonata) first reported in greenhouses of Italian botanical gardens

Plant trade and exchange for horticulture, recreation or research play a significant role in the dispersal of molluscs. Alien slugs and snails accidentally introduced into Europe have established rich communities in several countries, but although these introductions could have ecological and economic implications, mollusc xenodiversity in Italian botanical gardens, plant nurseries, and greenhouses has never been investigated. Facilities throughout the country were therefore visited between 2017 and 2023. Here the list of the achatinoidean species so far recorded from Italian greenhouses is provided, giving a short description of their diagnostic characters. The greenhouses of Trento and Padua host interesting assemblages of achatinoideans: the results of this study include the first reports of four achatinids, namely Allopeas clavulinum, Opeas hannense, Paropeas achatinaceum and Subulina octona from Italy and the first record of Geostilbia aperta from Europe. Reproductive anatomy of all species except Geostilbia aperta is illustrated in detail, integrating anatomical knowledge of this group of tiny molluscs, some of which are known mainly from their shell characters. The systematics of all the species is discussed, highlighting topics for future research (e.g., status of Allopeas mauritianum, real identity of Helix hannense, anatomy of Opeas hannense, species-level taxonomy of Subulina, systematic relationships and species-level taxonomy of Geostilbia)

Collezioni malacologiche e monitoraggi delle comunità di molluschi terrestri del Delta del Po e della Pianura Padana orientale: il Progetto CoSMoS – Collecting Snails, Monitoring Snails

The CoSMoS project is an initiative of Citizen Science with teaching and educational modules for students and citizens. The project examines the terrestrial molluscs (gastropods) in seven sites in the Po Delta and in the Eastern Po Valley (3 in the province of Ravenna and 4 in the province of Ferrara) and considers the monitoring and the comparison of current and historical faunal data. The latter can be derived from the malacological collection “Giorgio Lazzari” of the Natural History Museum of Ferrara. 51 species were collectively assessed, 44 of which were present in the historical surveys. Almost all species found are indigenous: only three are alien. From an ecological point of view, species closely linked to forest environments prevail, but there are also typical entities of other environments or very adaptable entities. From the biogeographical point of view, the most interesting result is the discovery, south of the Po, of two entities (Fruticicola fruticum and Monachoides incarnatus) which have a European distribution and in our country usually occur in Alpine and pre-Alpine area

Checklist of macro-invertebrates of the special conservation area “Poggi di prata”(Grosseto, Central Italy) through a citizen-science and expert-based approach

The assessment of species composition in a certain area may become outdated over time due to community dynamics including species range expansion, but also to local extinctions, species introductions and taxonomic redefinition. Therefore, updated checklists are required for animal conservation and management. Exhaustive checklists of invertebrate species may be challenging, as species determination often requires the analysis by specialists, but they are fundamental for local conservation practices. In this work, we provided an annotated preliminary checklist of invertebrates of the Special Conservation Area “Poggi di Prata” (province of Grosseto, southern Tuscany), detected through field samplings with experts, and a permanent Bioblitz set out on an online citizen-science platform (iNaturalist.org). The final dataset (1898-2020) included 329 records of 282 species (217 insects, 34 gastropods, 30 arachnids and 1 chilopod). Most records were uploaded on iNaturalist (about 56.5%), others came from observations or sampling collections (37%) and were determined by specialists. Only the remaining 6.5% of records came from published studies. Three species were protected by the Habitat Directive, 15 by the Tuscan Regional Law. We also detected two endemic or near-endemic taxa of this area: the beetle Paramaurops diecki massetanus and the land snail Marmorana saxetana. The unexpected (Italian southernmost) record of Gaurotes virginea needs to be deepened. Furthermore, 12 alien species, including insects affecting human economy and wellness (e.g., Rhinchophorous ferrugineus, Aedes albopictus, Halyomorpha halys, Dryocosmus kuriphilus and Cydalima perspectalis), were also detected. With our work, we confirmed that citizen-science platforms (e.g. iNaturalist) are valuable tools, complementary to field-work by specialists, to map local biodiversity and they may help to improve biogeographical knowledge

DYNAMAP - Development of low cost sensors networks for real time noise mapping

The Environmental Noise Directive (END) requires that regular updating of noise maps is implemented every five years to check and report about the changes occurred during the reference period. The updating process is usually achieved using a standardized approach, consisting in collating and processing information through acoustic models to produce the updated maps. This procedure is time consuming and costly, and has a significant impact on the budget of the authorities responsible for providing the maps. Furthermore, END requires that simplified and easy-to-read noise maps are made available to inform the public about noise levels and actions to be undertaken by local and central authorities to reduce noise impacts. To make the updating of noisemaps easier and more cost effective, there is a need for integrated systems that incorporate real-time measurement and processing to assess the acoustic impact of noise sources. To that end, a dedicated project, named DYNAMAP (DYNamic Acoustic MAPping), has been proposed and co-financed in the framework of the LIFE 2013 program, with the aim to develop a dynamic noise mapping system able to detect and represent in real time the acoustic impact of road infrastructures. In this paper, after a comprehensive description of the project idea, objectives and expected results, the most important steps to achieve the ultimate goal are described

Exploring Monacha species from the island of Corfu (NW Greece) by an integrative approach: new insights on M. claustralis (Rossmässler, 1834), M. parumcincta (Rossmässler, 1834) and allied species (Gastropoda, Eupulmonata, Hygromiidae)

The Greek island of Corfu (Kérkyra) is considered the type locality of two Monacha species described in 1834 by Rossmässler, namely Monacha claustralis and M. parumcincta. In this work, Corfu populations of these species were investigated by an integrative approach including analysis of morphological features of shell and distal genitalia as well as molecular features of selected mitochondrial and nuclear gene fragments to establish the relationships between Corfu M. claustralis and M. cartusiana as well as between Corfu and Italian M. parumcincta. Shell features did not differentiate the pairs analysed, i.e. Monacha claustralis vs M. cartusiana and Corfu vs Italian M. parumcincta, whereas features of distal genitalia structure and nucleotide sequences of mitochondrial genes (COI and 16SrDNA) distinguished them significantly. Nuclear gene sequences (ITS2 flanked with 5.8S and 28SrDNA fragments) also differentiated between Corfu and Italian M. parumcincta. It is therefore postulated that these two pairs are composed of four separate species: M. claustralis, M. cartusiana, Corfu M. parumcincta, and Italian M. parumcincta, which are distinct from each other and from the other species of the genus Monacha used here for comparison (the six lineages of M. cantiana s.l. and M. pantanellii)

Backdating systematic shell ornament making in Europe to 45,000 years ago.

Personal ornaments are commonly linked to the emergence of symbolic behavior. Although their presence in Africa dates back to the Middle Stone Age, evidence of ornament manufacturing in Eurasia are sporadically observed in Middle Palaeolithic contexts, and until now, large-scale diffusion has been well documented only since the Upper Palaeolithic. Nevertheless, little is known during the period between ca. 50,000 and 40,000 years ago (ka), when modern humans colonized Eurasia replacing existing hominin populations such as the Neandertals, and a variety of “transitional” and/or early Upper Palaeolithic cultures emerged. Here, we present shell ornaments from the Uluzzian site of Grotta del Cavallo in Italy, southern Europe. Our results show evidence of a local production of shell beads for ornamental purposes as well as a trend toward higher homogeneity in tusk bead shape and size over time. The temporal interval of the layers of interest (45–40 ka) makes Cavallo the earliest known shell ornament making context in Europe

Contributi per una flora vascolare di toscana. IX (507-605)

Contributions for a vascular flora of Tuscany. IX (507-605). New localities and/or confirmations concerning 98 specific and subspecific plant taxa of Tuscan vascular flora, belonging to 81 genera and 42 families are presented: Alisma, Baldellia (Alismataceae), Chenopodium (Amaranthaceae), Sternbergia (Amaryllidaceae), Bupleurum (Apiaceae), Vinca (Apocynaceae), Muscari, Polygonatum (Asparagaceae), Carlina, Centaurea, Chondrilla, Filago, Pallenis, Tagetes, Tr a - gopogon, Tyrimnus (Asteraceae), Impatiens (Balsaminaceae), Campsis (Bignoniaceae), Cardamine, Iberis, Isatis, Lepidium, Rorippa (Brassicaceae), Humulus (Cannabaceae), Centranthus (Caprifoliaceae), Atocion, Paronychia, Sabulina, Scleranthus (Caryophyllaceae), Euonymus (Celastraceae), Fumana (Cistaceae), Phedimus, Sedum (Crassulaceae), Juniperus (Cupressacesae), Carex, Cyperus, Schoenus (Cyperaceae), Erica (Ericaceae), Euphorbia (Euphorbiaceae), Astragalus, Cytisus, Gleditsia, Lotus, Trifolium, Vicia (Fabaceae), Geranium (Geraniaceae), Philadelphus (Hydrangeaceae), Phacelia (Hydrophyllaceae), Hermodactylus, Iris, Romulea (Iridaceae), Salvia, Ziziphora (Lamiaceae), Gagea, Lilium (Liliaceae), Lindernia (Linderniaceae), Mirabilis (Nyctaginaceae), Nymphaea (Nymphaeaceae), Ligustrum (Oleaceae), Oenothera (Onagraceae), Oxalis (Oxalidaceae), Plantago, Veronica (Plantaginaceae), Armeria (Plumbaginaceae), Eleusine, Festuca, Phleum, Setaria, Stipa, Tragu s (Poaceae), Stuckenia (Potamogetonaceae), Anemonoides, Ranunculus (Ranunculaceae), Reseda (Resedaceae), Aphanes, Cotoneaster, Eriobotrya, Malus, Rosa (Rosaceae), Galium (Rubiaceae), Nicotiana, (Solanaceae). In the end, the conservation status of the units and possible protection of the cited biotopes are discussed