Evaluating the Effectiveness of a Conservation Project on Two Threatened Birds: Applying Expert-Based Threat Analysis and Threat Reduction Assessment in a MediterraneanWetland

We applied two recent approaches largely used in biological conservation: Threat Analysis (TAN) and Threat Reduction Assessments (TRAs), assessing the effectiveness of a project focused on two water-related bird species (common tern, Sterna hirundo and little tern, Sternula albifrons), commonly breeding in some wetlands of Italy. We used the IUCN standardized lexicon for the classification of threats, utilizing a panel of experts to assess a set of regime attributes (extent, severity and magnitude) of each human-induced disturbance. Our aims were: (i) through the TAN approach, to carry out an arrangement and quantification of the main threats acting on our focal species and select the priority ones; (ii) through the TRA approach, to test the effectiveness of an operational project focused on mitigating the threats and improving the breeding success of species (i.e., building rafts and floating islands to encourage their nesting). Using the TAN approach, experts identified the following human-induced threats (IUCN code): 6.1—Generic disturbance; 7.2—Water stress; 7.3—Salinization; 8.8—Vagrant dogs; 8.8—Mediterranean gulls; 8.8—Wild boars, all significantly different in their magnitude. Among them, wild boars and Mediterranean gulls appeared the priority threats with the greatest extent, intensity and magnitude. Using the TRA approach, after the project, we assessed an overall decrease in the threat magnitude of 23.08% (21.42% when considering only the threats directly affected by our project). These data suggest that further efforts should be devoted to achieving greater effectiveness of conservation actions focused on our target species. With limited time and resources to quantify threats, expert-based approaches could be useful for rapidly assessing the effectiveness of small conservation projects by providing a range of scores obtained following an analytical procedure. In this regard, Threat Analysis and Threat Reduction Assessment could be considered useful tools to support adaptive management in project management cycles

Monitoring Effectiveness of an Operational Project on Two Threatened Landbirds: Applying a Before–After Threat Analysis and Threat Reduction Assessment

Human activities are at the origin of anthropogenic threats altering ecosystems at any hierarchical level. To mitigate them, environmental managers develop projects to obtain effective outcomes on biological targets of conservation concern. Here, we carried out two new approaches (TAN = Threat Analysis and TRA = Threat Reduction Assessment) aimed at assessing the effectiveness of conservation actions on two threatened beach-nesting landbird species, the Kentish Plover (Charadrius alexandrinus) and the Little Ringed Plover (C. dubius), breeding along a coastal beach of central Italy. Using a score-based evaluation (TAN approach), a panel of experts assessed the extent, intensity, and magnitude of a set of species-specific threats, ranking them from more to less impacting. Domestic dogs, dune trampling, and synanthropic predators appeared as the threats with the most significant magnitudes. Using the TRA approach, experts obtained a rank of threats that were more urgent to solve: i.e., domestic dogs and dune trampling. To contrast with these threats, in 2021, we carried out a conservation project with specific measures that were aimed at reducing the threat magnitude on birds. They included: dune borders demarcation, anti-predatory cages on plover nests, the removal of beach-stranded fishing lines and hooks, field surveillance by volunteers, dog control, social- and mass-media communication, and alliances with stakeholders and institutions. After the project, mechanical beach grooming (>80%), dune trampling, and synanthropic predators (both >60%) showed the highest percentage of impact reduction. The project showed a medium–high level of effectiveness in reducing the total threat magnitude (TRA-I index = 63.08%). The Threat Analysis should be routinely used to arrange a causal chain that is useful for defining the relationships among human-induced threats and ecological targets, selecting the threats with the highest magnitudes. After the projects, the Threat Reduction Assessment may assess the level of threat reduction, suggesting measures for adaptive management. © 2023 by the authors

Can the grey literature help us understand the decline and extinction of the Near Threatened Eurasian otter Lutra lutra in Latium, central Italy?

AbstractTo trace the local extinction of the Eurasian otter Lutra lutra in Latium, central Italy, and examine the causes of the species' disappearance, we reviewed and classified information from both the scientific and grey literature according to the reliability and geographical accuracy of the records. The temporal and spatial patterns of 160 records from 23 geographical subunits from 1832 to 2006 suggest that the species collapsed between 1960 and 1975; two different extinction patterns were revealed by a set of multivariate analyses. In northern Latium the species collapsed because of several independent local threats. In central and southern Latium the species collapsed because of catastrophic habitat alteration (land reclamation during the 1930s) that negatively affected the source population. After this event the species went extinct in hilly and mountainous areas, where several population sinks occurred. We presume that this latter process drove the remnant otter subpopulations to extinction in central Italy, emphasizing the role of an extinction vortex in causing the collapse of this metapopulation rather than the classical threats recognized for this species. The value of the grey literature for a posteriori historical analysis of local extinction dynamics is highlighted by this research

Effet du stress hydrique hivernal sur la communauté d’oiseaux nicheurs d’une zone humide résiduelle en Italie centrale

We evaluated the effects of winter water stress on breeding bird communities and two assemblages of species (wet-reed species and open-habitat species) in a remnant coastal wetland of central Italy. Data were obtained by means of mapping method, on a five year-period (2001-2005), comprising a water stress year (2002). At community level, species richness, diversity index, evenness and consuming biomass showed the lowest values in the 2002 breeding season, but only the last parameter showed significant differences with the previous (2001) and subsequent (2003) years. In the paired years 2001-2002 and 2002-2003, species turnover was highest and percentage similarity index was lowest. Only considering the wet-reed assemblage, we observed that: species richness decreased in 2002 in comparison to other years; the values of diversity index and consuming biomass changed significantly between that year and both previous (2001) and subsequent year (2003); ecological density (i.e. density in the suitable habitat) of these species was significantly lower in 2002 year compared to 2001. The significant decrease of the consuming biomass was due to the local disappearance of the species more strictly linked to water habitats and to the Phragmites reed-beds, with a higher mean body mass as compared to open-habitat species. No similar changes were observed for open-habitat species. Changes between years were more due to species turnover rather than abundance turnover. Wetland habitat conditions, i.e. linked to water level, were crucial to year-to-year variation in breeding bird species richness and density in the study areaNous avons évalué les effets du stress hydrique hivernal sur les peuplements d'oiseaux nicheurs et deux communautés d'espèces (des roselières humides et des milieux ouverts) dans une zone humide résiduelle du centre de l'Italie. Les données ont été obtenues par cartographie durant une période de cinq ans (2001-2005) comprenant une année de stress hydrique (2002). Au niveau du peuplement, la richesse spécifique, l'indice de diversité et celui de l'équirépartition ainsi que la biomasse consommante ont affiché leurs plus faibles valeurs durant la saison de reproduction 2002 mais seul le dernier paramètre a montré des différences significatives avec l'année précédente (2001) et suivante (2003). Durant les périodes appariées 2001-2002 et 2002-2003, le renouvellement des espèces fut le plus grand et l'indice de similarité le plus petit. En ne considérant que la communauté des roselières humides, on a observé que la richesse spécifique a diminué en 2002 comparativement aux autres années; les valeurs de l'indice de diversité et la biomasse consommante ont changé de manière significative entre cette année et à la fois la précédente (2001) et la suivante (2003); la densité écologique (i.e. la densité dans l'habitat convenable) de ces espèces fut significativement plus faible en 2002 qu'en 2001. La baisse significative de la biomasse consommante fut due à la disparition locale des espèces plus strictement liées aux habitats aquatiques et aux phragmitaies, avec une masse corporelle moyenne plus forte que celle des espèces des milieux ouverts. Aucun changement similaire ne fut observé chez les espèces des milieux ouverts. Les changements entre années furent plus dus au renouvellement des espèces qu'à celui de leurs abondances. Les conditions d'habitat des zones humides, i.e. liées au niveau d'eau, ont été cruciales pour la variation interannuelle de la richesse spécifique et de la densité des oiseaux nicheurs dans la zone d'étude

Assemblages d’oiseaux sur une plage sableuse méditerranéenne structuralement simplifiée : analyse spatio-temporelle

Studies on the bird richness and abundance patterning in sandy coastal areas are almost neglected. A better knowledge of bird assemblage structure could permit the developing of appropriate conservation strategies in these key ecosystems. In this study, we aimed to test the hypothesis that a patchy and structurally oversimplified ecosystem, as a Mediterranean sandy beach, may host bird assemblages highly variable in space and time and relatively poor in richness and abundance, whose structure should be therefore affected by chance. In 2007 a transect laid along a sandy beach was carried out, allowing to analyse the data temporally (six 2-month periods) and spatially (three longitudinal habitat types), either at single species or assemblage level. We observed a total of 25 bird species. Bird assemblages showed a taxonomical, phenological and ecological heterogeneity. In late autumn-winter the beach hosted the richest assemblage, in summer-autumn the lowest. Differences in mean values among 2-month periods were significant for species richness. Beaches represent patchy ecosystems with a different availability of resources in space and time. The presence of vegetation and linked trophic resources presumably permits the occurrence of a large variation in resource availability that determines a high turnover for different species along the temporal and spatial niche. Finally, we observed an inverse relationship between human presence and species richnessLes études des patterns de richesse et d'abondance spécifique sur les côtes sableuses sont quasi négligées. Une meilleure connaissance de la structure des assemblages d'oiseaux pourrait permettre le développement de stratégies de conservation appropriées dans ces écosystèmes-clés. Dans la présente étude, nous nous proposons de tester l'hypothèse qu'un écosystème aussi morcelé et structuralement aussi simplifié qu'une plage sableuse méditerranéenne pourrait abriter des assemblages d'oiseaux hautement variables dans le temps et dans l'espace et relativement pauvres en richesse et abondance, dont la structure serait donc affecté par le hasard. En 2007 un transect a été établi le long d'une plage sableuse afin d'analyser les données temporelles (six périodes de deux mois) et spatiales (trois types d'habitats longitudinaux) au niveau d'une espèce ou d'un assemblage. Nous avons observé un total de 25 espèces. Les assemblages d'oiseaux ont montré une hétérogénéité taxinomique, phénologique et écologique. La plage hébergeait l'assemblage le plus riche en fin d'automne-hiver, le plus pauvre en été-automne. Les valeurs moyennes de la richesse spécifique se sont avérées significativement différentes selon la période de deux mois. Les plages représentent des écosystèmes morcelés avec des disponibilités en ressources différentes dans le temps et dans l'espace. La présence de végétation et des ressources trophiques associées permet vraisemblablement une grande variation de la disponibilité des ressources qui détermine un fort renouvellement des diverses espèces le long de la niche spatio-temporelle. Enfin, nous avons observé une relation inverse entre la présence humaine et la richesse spécifique

First Worldwide Evidence of Bronchopulmonary Strongyle Nematodes and the First Report on Italy of Cryptosporidium sp. in Allochthonous Nutria (Myocastor coypus)

Nutria (or coypu, Myocastor coypus), is a semi-aquatic rodent that is native to South America and has been introduced almost all over the world since the end of the 19th century. In Europe, this rodent is considered an invasive species. In this report, we analyzed nutria fecal samples in a small coastal wetland of Central Italy, using different techniques (fresh smear, direct immunofluorescence, Baermann technique, flotation, ethyl acetate sedimentation) to obtain an arrangement of eukaryote endoparasites (Protozoa and Helminths) and compare them with data available in the literature for both Italy and worldwide. We recorded five taxa, with a dominant occurrence (>70%) of nematodes of the genus Strongyloides. Moreover, we reported for the first time in nutria a bronchopulmonary strongyle nematode (Muellerius vel. Angiostrongylus) and, for the first time in Italy, protozoans of the genus Cryptosporidium. Since nutria co-occurs with humans and domestic animals in the study area, we highlighted possible sanitary and management implication

Non-volant mammals of the 'Lago di Tarsia' Regional Nature Reserve and Special Conservation Area (IT93100055; Cosenza, Southern Italy)

In this study we improved the knowledge about terrestrial mammals (excluding Chiroptera) of the 'Lago di Tarsia' Regional Nature Reserve (Special Conservation Area; Cosenza; Southern Italy), collecting a large amount both of direct and indirect original data (including road-killing remains and items obtained by small mammal traps, owl pellets, and phototraps), and bibliographic ones. We obtained 424 records belonging to 22 taxa classified at species level and one requiring a further taxonomic diagnosis (Microtus savii vel brachycerchus). Hystrix cristata Linnaeus, 1758, Vulpes vulpes (Linnaeus, 1758) and Martes sp. were the taxa with the highest number of records (> 10%). Sciurus meridionalis (Lucifero, 1907), Martes foina (Erxleben, 1777), Glis glis (Linnaeus, 1758), Apodemus cfr. flavicollis (Melchior, 1834), Lepus europaeus Pallas, 1778, Talpa romana (Thomas, 1902), Rattus cfr. rattus (Linnaeus, 1758), Arvicola amphibius (Linnaeus, 1758) were the taxa with the lowest number (<1%). Almost half of the records have been obtained by indirect traces (hairs, excrements, fingerprints, burrows, etc.). Records from owl pellets represented an important percentage. Although the study area is restricted in size, the high environmental heterogeneity make possible the co-occurrence of a high number of species, including specialized taxa (e.g., forest mammals, mustelids and Soricomorpha). Some species, occurring in the neighbouring, although not recorded in our study (e.g. Sorex spp., Neomys sp., Elyomis quercinus Linnaeus, 1766), could be confirmed improving the research effort. Further studies are necessary in this regard, also focusing on the role of this reserve as dispersal corridor for rare carnivores, occurring in the massifs and rivers neighbouring to the Reserve (e.g. Lutra lutra Linnaeus, 1758 and Canis lupus Linnaeus, 1758)

Parallel disasters: Wars and biodiversity loss in mountain areas

It is widely accepted that the Mediterranean Basin is a prominent hotspot of biodiversity hosting a significant richness of plant lineages and fauna.  Projected trends in the context of global change suggest this area will cope with strong increases in temperature and decreases in precipitation with consequent effects on forests and ecosystem services. Upward shifts of species range and/or mass extinction are expected to occur on a broad scale, especially in the Mediterranean.  Here, mountain ecosystems would undergo the most severe reduction and fragmentation events.  Further human based impacts aggravate the effects of global warming.  Among them, wars and civil disorders seriously affect mountain landscapes, marking them over time.Presently, many threats of war are occurring in the Mediterranean and mostly in mountain areas at a high level of biodiversity. Furthermore, these same scenarios are overlapped with global warming, thus exposing many species to an actual risk of extinction.The aim of this study was to find a solution to the disturbances created in the forest ecosystem by the consequences of war of an identified area in the Mediterranean basin

Activité alimentaire et utilisation de l’espace dans une population naturalisée de Myiopsitta monachus dans une zone urbaine méditerranéenne

We studied a naturalized population of monk parakeet breeding in an urban park in Rome, by collecting data on the diurnal and feeding activity, space use (e.g, roosting preferences, flight height) and behavioural traits (e.g., cluster size). Consideration on the potential ecological impact of the species is also made. The diurnal activity of parakeets did not differ between morning and afternoon. Most individuals were observed in flight 6-10 m from the ground, and when at roost, parakeets preferred perch es higher than 5 m. The clusters sighted on ground were significantly larger in size than those observed on roosts, while cluster size was not linked to flight height. For this species, the observed roost preference indicates that the availability of perches on high trees seems to be an important factor for habitat selection: standing on trees may increase the chances to identify trophic resources, reduce the risk of predation when at rest, and prevent overheating from high summer temperatures during the day. Regarding to feeding habits, at our study site the monk parakeet fed on different plant species both on the trees and at the ground level (e.g., Fabaceae, Ulmaceae, Poaceae, Rosaceae), showing a clear preference towards some plant species, irrespective to their abundance, and with Scolymus hispanicus (Asteraceae) as the most exploited species by farNous avons étudié une population naturalisée de la perruche Myiopsitta monachus dans un parc urbain de Rome en recueillant des données sur les activités diurnes et de recherche de nourriture, de même que l'utilisation de l'espace (e.g. préférences pour les reposoirs, hauteur de vol) et les traits comportementaux (e.g. taille des regroupements). L'impact écologique potentiel de l'espèce a également été pris en considération. L'activité diurne des perruches ne montre aucune différence entre le matin et l'après-midi. La plupart des individus volent 6-10 m au-dessus du sol et, aux reposoirs ils préfèrent des perchoirs situés à plus de 5 m de hauteur. Les groupes étaient significativement plus grands au sol que dans les reposoirs tandis que leur taille n'était pas liée à la hauteur de vol. Les préférences observées quant aux reposoirs indiquent que la disponibilité de perchoirs dans de hauts arbres est, pour cette espèce, un facteur important du choix de l'habitat: une remise dans les arbres peut accroître les chances d'identifier des sources de nourriture, réduire les risques de prédation au repos et protéger des fortes chaleurs quand les températures diurnes estivales sont très élevées. En matière d'habitudes alimentaires, dans notre site d'étude, cette perruche se nourrissait de diverses espèces végétales tant sur les arbres qu'au sol (e.g. Fabacées, Ulmacées, Poacées, Rosacées), montrant une nette préférence pour quelques espèces quelle que soit leur abondance, Scolymus hispanicus (Astéracées) étant de loin la plus exploitée