C. Montagnani

Is legal protection sufficient to ensure plant conservation? The Italian Red List of policy species as a case study

The conservation of species listed in the Bern Convention and European Directive 1992/43/EEC (so-called policy species) is mandatory for European Union (EU) countries. We assessed the conservation status of Italian policy species, based on the IUCN categories and criteria, to evaluate the effectiveness of existing protection measures at the national level. Among the 203 vascular plants, bryophytes and lichens evaluated, 41.9% are categorized as threatened, and one is already extinct, indicating that the protection measures for policy species are inadequate. Our results for the Italian policy species are consistent with those of an assessment at the EU level. Conservation priorities should be established at both the national and regional scales. An effective conservation strategy is needed, and in situ and ex situ actions focused on threatened species should be promoted.

Are Red Lists really useful for plant conservation? The New Red List of the Italian Flora in the perspective of national conservation policies

“The New Red List of the Italian Flora” includes all the Italian policy species and other species of known conservation concerns for a total of 400 taxa, 65% of which are threatened with extinction. The Red List is based on a huge georeferenced data-set useful for conservation purposes.

Conserving plant diversity in Europe: outcomes, criticisms and perspectives of the Habitats Directive application in Italy

Habitat Directive is the core strategy of nature conservation in Europe aiming at halting biodiversity loss. In this study the results of the third Italian assessment regarding the conservation status (CS) of plants listed in the Habitat Directive (Flora of community interest—FCI) was presented. Data was collected from several sources related to plant distribution, population data, habitats and pressures. Following the official European procedure, all parameters were evaluated and combined to give the CS of each taxon in each biogeographical region of presence. A comparison between the recent Italian IUCN and Reporting assessments was performed in order to evaluate the consistency between these two assessments. The official EU checklist comprises 113 Italian plant taxa, 107 of which were examined in this study. Our results showed a critical situation with only 34% of favourable CS, while 50% were unfavourable (40% inadequate plus 10% bad) and 16% unknown, in particular in the Mediterranean bioregion, where the unfavourable assessments reach the 65%. The results of the Report were consistent with those of the IUCN assessment, in which 41.9% of plants were threatened with extinction. This report highlighted some benefits and criticisms at national level, but it may have a wider significance. Although a general advance of knowledge, a great effort is needed to reach the Habitats Directive goals. Despite the limited resources, monitoring activities needs to be improved in order to close information gaps for several plants. A positive outcome was the development of a specific national project funded by the Italian Ministry of Environment, with the ambitious target to set future monitoring activities for FCI and optimize monitoring efforts.

Effect of Soil pH on the Growth, Reproductive Investment and Pollen Allergenicity of Ambrosia artemisiifolia L.

Despite the importance of soil reaction for alien plant establishment, few and incomplete studies have included this key factor so far. In this study, we investigated the effects of soil pH on the germination, growth (plant height, width, dry weight, etc.) and reproductive investment (inflorescence size and n° of flowers) of Ambrosia artemisiifolia (common ragweed), an allergenic species that is highly invasive and alien in Europe, through a replicated experiment in controlled conditions. In addition, we determined if soil pH has an effect on the total pollen allergenicity of the species. After preliminary germination tests on agar at different pH (from pH4 to pH8), plants were grown in natural soils with pH values of 5 (acid), 6 (sub-acid) and 7 (neutral) obtained by modifying a natural soil by liming methods (calcium hydroxide solution). Results showed that plants grown at pH7 were shorter and developed leaves at a slower rate than those grown at pH5 and pH6; plants grown at pH7 did not produce flowers and pollen. We also observed that, at pH5 and pH6, larger plants (as assessed by the dry weight of the aerial biomass) had both larger and more numerous inflorescences and emitted pollen earlier. Finally, the IgE-binding signal was higher in pollen samples collected from plants grown at pH5 (Integrated Optical Density, IOD, range: 1.12–1.25) than in those grown at pH6 (IOD range: 0.86 −1.03). Although we acknowledge the limitations of only testing the effects of pH in controlled conditions, this study suggests that soil pH greatly affects the growth and development of A. artemisiifolia and indicates that it may have a role in limiting the distribution and hazardousness of this plant. Future field tests should therefore assess the effectiveness of liming in the management and control of ragweed and other alien species.

Genetic structure of Leucojum aestivum L. in the Po Valley (N-Italy) drives conservation management actions

The aim of this study was to assess the genetic variation and population structure of the geophyte Leucojum aestivum L. across the Po river valley (N-Italy), to inform conservation management actions with the selection of most suitable source populations for translocation purposes. L. aestivum is self-incompatible and occurs in S-Europe in fragmented wetlands and lowland forests along rivers. The species is particularly interesting for habitat restoration practices for its simplicity of ex situ conservation and cultivation. AFLP analyses were carried out on 16 fragmented populations, using four primer combinations. Correlations between genetic variation and demographic and ecological traits were tested. AFLP produced a total of 202 bands, 95.5% of which were polymorphic. Our results suggest that L. aestivum holds low to moderate levels of genetic diversity (mean Nei’s genetic diversity: Hu2009=u20090.125), mostly within-population. We found a gradient of two main biogeographic groups along western and eastern populations, while the STRUCTURE analysis found that the most likely number of clusters was Ku2009=u20093, shaping a partially consistent pattern. We explain the unusual negative correlation between genetic variation and population size with the high rate of vegetative reproduction. The levels of population differentiation suggest that fragmentation in L. aestivum populations has occurred, but that an active gene flow between fragmented populations still exists, maintained by flooding events or pollinators. Conservation management actions should improve habitat connectivity, especially for pollinators that vehicle upstream gene flow. Moreover, the west–east structure due to the lithological composition of the gravel and sand forming the alluvial plain of the Po river, should be considered when selecting source populations for translocation purposes.

First record of two potentially toxic dinoflagellates in tide pools along the Sardinian coast

Abstract Nowadays harmful algal blooms (HABs) represent a serious problem for the conservation of the biodiversity in the Mediterranean Sea. Nevertheless the knowledge on the presence of potentially toxic benthic microalgae in particular habitats, such as tide pools, is still scarce. In order to detect HAB-producing benthic microalgae in tide pools of the rocky intertidal zone, a pilot study was conducted in Tavolara Punta Coda Cavallo Marine Protected Area (MPA) during the late spring of 2016. Three different pools were sampled in two study sites (six pools were sampled in total) and the cell density of toxic species was estimated in each. In all the collected samples, the two potentially toxic dinoflagellates, Prorocentrum lima (Ehrenberg) F. Stein and Coolia monotis Meunier, were recorded and significant differences in their density were observed, in relation to both sites and pools.

Are Red List really useful for plant conservation? The New Red List of the Italian Flora as a study case in the perspective of national conservation policies

“The New Red List of the Italian Flora” includes all the Italian policy species and other species of known conservation concerns for a total of 400 taxa, 65% of which are threatened with extinction. The Red List is based on a huge georeferenced data-set useful for conservation purposes.