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This article examines crosses and other religious symbols on summits in the Apennines and the Alps, mapped by altimetric bands. These anthropic signs have different causes and effects on the cultural and environmental levels. Using citizen science models, after mapping the 2,000-metre peaks in the Apennines, we conducted surveys of those of 3,000 metres in the Dolomites, and of 4,000 metres in Protected Areas within the Italian Alps. We suggest that our mapping of these cultural sites should be exported as a shared practice with other Italian and cross-border Alpine associations to preserve the historical memory of the signs on the peaks. In the light of the quantitative and qualitative results, and considering the impact of the symbols on the landscape and ecosystems, it is recommended that no new artefacts should be built, in order to transmit the concepts of restraint and naturalness to future generations; the sustainable use of stone cairns should be preferred. An ecological re-purposing of some summit crosses as temporary high-altitude meteorological stations is suggested, with the aim of collecting data and increasing our knowledge of climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A comparative analysis of environmental conditions between Alpine and Apennine lakes/ponds which represent different faces of European mountain regions was conducted. The data set was created on the basis of previous works carried out by national and international institutions including biological, physical–chemical, geographic, and precipitation data from 27 lakes/ponds placed at altitudes ranging from 2334 ± 294 m a.s.l. (in the Alps) and 1541 ± 154 m a.s.l. (in the Apennines), with mean maximum depths of about 5.5 ± 4.6 m. A specific focus was dedicated to chironomids as outstanding sentinels for local and global changes in habitat conditions. Species richness and Taxonomic Distinctness Indices were applied to lakes/ponds macroinvertebrates to highlight differences in the biodiversity of the two areas. Subsequently, associations between descriptors of the mountain region climate, lithology, water chemistry, lake morphology, geography, macroinvertebrate assemblage richness, and distinctness were examined through Principal Component Analysis, Analysis of Variance, and Non-metric Multi-dimensional Scaling. Results showed strong positive correlations between mean annual precipitation and temperature with lake macroinvertebrate biodiversity as a whole and with chironomid in particular. Thus, these shore habitats face a threat under climate change conditions (impacting thermal and precipitation regimes). These results are also central in showing that even small ecosystems are important sources of biodiversity for the lower altitudes, stressing the urgency of including them within targeted monitoring and action plans to preserve their peculiar habitat, flora, and fauna. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Situla Art is an Iron Age artisanal tradition dated to c. 660/650–275 BC, corresponding to the Hallstatt C2 to the La Tène B2 phases. It is characterised by striking sheet-bronze objects with embossed and/or incised decoration in Orientalising taste with animals, plants and/or human figures generally distributed in friezes. Situla Art is documented between the Apennines and the eastern Alps, and Este is suggested as its key centre. This paper provides a long overdue literature review, a working definition for Situla Art and an updated catalogue with 306 objects. It also (re-)investigates the influences which may have led to the emergence of Situla Art, its development and decline. Hats and earrings depicted in Situla Art are investigated to highlight their identity valencies, and to provide socio-political insights on the Iron Age elite who used Situla Art as a non-linguistic symbol-based system to acquire, exhibit and legitimate power over time in the area of its distribution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change represents a threat to narrow-ranged mountain species living in low-altitude massifs. We studied the disjunct Apennine population of Lasiommata petropolitana (Lepidoptera, Nymphalidae) in the Gran Sasso and Monti della Laga National Park. We quantified the altitudinal shifts undergone in the last decades (1964–2021) in the Alps and Apennines and estimated the local extinction risk due to climate change. We also sequenced the COI mitochondrial marker of seven Apennine specimens, comparing them with those available across the Palearctic. We projected the probability of presence for the species under a future climatic scenario using an ensemble forecasting approach. We found that, despite geographical isolation, the Apennine population of L. petropolitana displays a single widespread COI haplotype also occurring in most European populations. In the Alps and Apennines, this species has shifted uphill an average of 6.3 m per year since 1964. Accordingly, our model predicted a likely extinction in the Apennines by about 2060, due to a reduction of the climatic suitability in this region. Implications for insect conservation: Implications for insect conservation Despite its potential loss in the Apennines would not erode mitochondrial diversity, L. petropolitana characterises the butterfly community of the Gran Sasso massif as an alpine enclave. The loss of the Apennine population, together with those of other orophilous butterflies, could trigger a homogenization of alpha and beta diversity and induce a loss of functional diversity in the impoverished high-altitude biotas. As habitat heterogeneity is a key aspect for populations to endure climate change, the maintenance of varied microhabitats, mainly through grazing management, could address the decline of this population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Throughout their range, red deer are a well-studied species. In Italy, this species occupies two ecologically different ranges: the Alps and the Apennines. Although several studies have described the spatial behaviour of red deer in the Italian Alps, no data are available for the Apennine population. Results: The spatial behaviours of 13 deer from the Northern Apennines range were analysed for the first time using GPS-GSM telemetry from 2011 to 2017. Red deer displayed two coexisting strategies, i.e., migratory and stationary. In our sample, females tended to migrate more than males. We found a high level of interindividual variability in the date of migration/return, while each migratory deer was very conservative during the study period. The migration ranges were on average 12 ± 4.2 km from the resident range. Both migratory and resident deer displayed high site fidelity. No switch from the migratory to stationary strategy was observed for any deer during the study period; however, the period could have been too short to detect any switch. At the management level, over 18 management cycles occurred during the study period, and a spatial mismatch was found between deer range and management units (districts) in 38.9% (7) of the cases. Merging the districts belonging to each province to obtain an area of approximately 1000 km2 would partially address such spatial mismatch, reducing its occurrence to 22%. Conclusions: Despite the small sample size, these results can guide future management actions. However, an in-depth study with a larger sample size is required to better understand and manage the red deer Apennines population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The dynamics of the Alps and surrounding regions is still not completely understood, partly because of a non‐unique interpretation of its upper‐mantle architecture. In particular, it is unclear if interpreted slabs are consistent with the observed surface deformation and topography. We derive three end‐member scenarios of lithospheric thickness and slab geometries by clustering available shear‐wave tomography models into a statistical ensemble. We use these scenarios as input for geodynamic simulations and compare modeled topography, surface velocities and mantle flow to observations. We found that a slab detached beneath the Alps, but attached beneath the Northern Apennines captures first‐order patterns in topography and vertical surface velocities and can provide a causative explanation for the observed seismicity. Plain Language Summary: Present‐day surface deformation, including earthquakes, plate motion, and mass (re)distribution, results from processes operating at the surface and in the interior of the Earth. Understanding these processes and their coupling is of utmost importance in light of the hazard they pose to society. The Alps provide an excellent natural laboratory to understand such coupling. Here, we use seismic tomography models to constrain its upper‐mantle architecture. We further use these models to quantify forces originating from the resolved architecture and their effects on the present‐day surface deformation. The models can reproduce first‐order patterns in the observed topography and vertical surface motions. We found a causative correlation between the presence of a shallow slab attached to the overlying lithosphere in the Northern Apennines and the seismicity in the region. Our results allow us to better understand the transfer of internal forces to the surface, thereby helping to quantify the present‐day mechanical setup of the area. Key Points: Statistical ensemble of S‐wave tomography models is used to infer the Lithosphere‐Asthenosphere Boundary configuration and slab geometries in the AlpsThe 3‐D upper‐mantle architecture from the statistics reproduce first‐order patterns in observed topography and Global Navigation Satellite Systems vertical velocitiesA shallow/attached slab in the Northern Apennines is consistent with the mantle depth seismicity observed in this region [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High‐altitude insects are expected to be strongly affected by climate change because of their limited range. Phytophagous species will be subject to further threats because of their dependence on host plants.We investigated the impact of climate change on the distribution of Italian high‐altitude longhorn beetles (Cerambycidae) using a maximum entropy approach based on bioclimatic variables. We used 510 presence records for 15 species distributed throughout the Italian Alps and Apennines. Then, we combined climate‐based predictions with vegetation data to predict the future changes in the extent of suitable areas.All species but two will move uphill to track suitable climates and will face a range contraction (with an average loss of 44%) under both climatic change scenarios considered. Suitable vegetation covers, on average, only 56% of the estimated current species ranges, which means that the future distribution will be even more limited. Given the importance of Italian mountains as hubs of diversity in the Mediterranean hotspot, these results are particularly alarming.Conservation actions that can mitigate the effects of climate change on high‐altitude cerambycids should be focused on contrasting habitat loss and degradation through land preservation and the adoption of appropriate forest management practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We announce the formation of the "GLORIA ITALIA NETWORK" and present an overview of the Italian alpine plant communities changes that have occurred in the last 20 years. This network will provide coordination between Italian GLORIA sites and enhance public awareness of changes in alpine plant diversity under climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change is causing shifts in the distribution of many species and populations inhabiting mountain tops are particularly vulnerable to these threats because they are constrained in altitudinal shifts. Apennines are a relatively narrow and low mountain chain located in Southern Europe, which hosts many isolated populations of mountain species. The butterfly Erebia pandrose was recorded for the last time in the Apennines in 1977, on the top of a single massif (Monti della Laga).We confirmed the presence of a small, isolated population of E. pandrose in the Apennines, at a distance of more than 400 km to any other known populations. Then, we examined the cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 mitochondrial DNA marker of this species across the Palaearctic area and estimated the potential decline over the Alps and the Apennines due to future climatic changes.The Apennine population represents an endemic lineage characterised by eight mutations over the 658 bp analysed (1.2%). In the Alps and Apennines, this species has shifted uphill more than 3 m per year since the end of the 19th century and more than 22 m per year since 1995. Species distribution models suggested that these mountain populations will experience a generalised loss of climatic suitability, which, according to our projections, could lead to the extinction of the Apennine population in a few decades.Erebia pandrose has the potential to become a flagship species for advertising the risk of losing unique fractions of genetic diversity for mountain species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Treeline position is mainly determined by growth season temperature, but the response of treelines to climate warming is not uniform worldwide. We compared treeline structure, dynamics and thermal profile in nearby areas with different treeline type, species composition and bioclimatic conditions. We performed a detailed survey of different treeline types in three areas of Italian Alps and northern Apennines. Every tree individual was recorded along altitudinal transects from the closed forest to the species limit. Treeline structure and dynamics were described through altitudinal limits of tree height, density and age. Data were elaborated by principal components analysis. Temperature regime of the three sites was assessed from homogeneous historical climatic data. Treeline was different in the three areas for species composition, shape and dynamics. Both Alpine sites showed diffuse treeline, but only one showed advancing dynamics. Apennine treeline was abrupt and static, with higher temperature at the tree limit. Our study showed the variable dynamics of treelines within a relatively restricted area and the connection between treeline shape and dynamics. An important role is played by species composition, determined by bioclimatic and historical features. These factors should be taken into account when modelling future treeline dynamics at global scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The construction of five crustal-scale profiles across the Western Alps and the Ivrea mantle wedge integrates up-to-date geological and geophysical information and reveals important along strike changes in the overall structure of the crust of the Western Alpine arc. Tectonic analysis of the profiles, together with a review of the existing literature allows for proposing the following multistage evolution of the arc of the Western Alps: (1) exhumation of the mantle beneath the Ivrea Zone to shallow crustal depths during Mesozoic is a prerequisite for the formation of a strong Ivrea mantle wedge whose strength exceeds that of surrounding mostly quartz-bearing units, and consequently allows for indentation of the Ivrea mantle wedge and eastward back-thrusting of the western Alps during Alpine orogeny. (2) A first early stage (pre-35 Ma) of the West-Alpine orogenic evolution is characterized by top-NNW thrusting in sinistral transpression causing at least some 260 km displacement of internal Western Alps and E-W-striking Alps farther east, together with the Adria micro-plate, towards N to NNW with respect to stable Europe. (3) The second stage (35-25 Ma), further accentuating the arc, is associated with top-WNW thrusting in the external zones of the central portion of the arc and is related to the lateral indentation of the Ivrea mantle slice towards WNW by some 100-150 km. (4) The final stage of arc formation (25-0 Ma) is associated with orogeny in the Apennines leading to oroclinal bending in the southernmost Western Alps in connection with the 50° counterclockwise rotation of the Corsica-Sardinia block and the Ligurian Alps. Analysis of existing literature data on the Alps-Apennines transition zone reveals that substantial parts of the Northern Apennines formerly suffered Alpine-type shortening associated with an E-dipping Alpine subduction zone and were backthrusted to the NE during Apenninic orogeny that commences in the Oligocene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this contribution the results of a zoogeographical analysis, carried out on the 123 endemic leaf beetle species (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) occurring in Italy and its immediately adjacent regions, are reported. To assess the level of faunistic similarity among the different geographic regions studied, a cluster analysis was performed, based on the endemic component. This was done by calculating the Baroni Urbani & Buser's similarity index (BUB). Finally, a parsimony analysis of endemicity (PAE) was used to identify the most important areas of endemism in Italy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Alps and Apennines developed along opposite subductions, which inverted the tethyan passive continental margins located along the boundaries of Europe, Africa and the Adriatic plates. The Alps have higher morphological and structural elevation, two shallow, slow subsiding foreland basins. The Apennines have rather low morphological and structural elevation, one deep and fast subsiding foreland basin. While the Alps sandwiched the whole crust of both upper and lower plates, the Apennines rather developed by the accretion of the upper crust of the lower plate alone. Alpine relics are boudinated in the hangingwall of the Apennines, stretched by the Tyrrhenian backarc rifting. Relative to the upper plate, the subduction hinge moved toward it in the Alps from Cretaceous to Present, whereas it migrated away in the Apennines from late Eocene to Present, apart in Sicily where since Pleistocene(?) it reversed. The asymmetry appears primarily controlled by the slab polarity with respect to the westward drift of the lithosphere. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Alps and Apennines are juxtaposed within an approximately 100 km-wide area covered by the Upper Eocene to Miocene successions of the Tertiary Piedmont Basin. The Upper Eocene–Oligocene evolution of this area was characterized to the north and west by the propagation of the SE-verging Southalpine thrust-fold belt that can be traced from the Po Plain subsurface until the Torino Hill-Saluzzese area, and to the south by a high-angle, broadly E–W oriented megashear zone that led to the juxtaposition of different crustal levels and controlled the development of a mosaic of partly independent sub-basins. Since the latest Oligocene the N-verging Apenninic tectonics prevailed in the collisional system and the Tertiary Piedmont Basin evolved as a wide thrust-top basin, bounded to the north by the N-verging Monferrato arc and characterized by a tectono-sedimentary evolution recording changes of subsidence and shift of depocentres in relation to crustal structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In SW Piemonte the Western Alps arc ends off in a narrow, E-W trending zone, where some geological domains of the Alps converged. Based on a critical review of available data, integrated with new field data, it is concluded that the southern termination of Western Alps recorded the Oligocene-Miocene activity of a regional transfer zone (southwestern Alps Transfer, SWAT) already postulated in the literature, which should have allowed, since early Oligocene, the westward indentation of Adria, while the regional shortening of SW Alps and tectonic transport toward the SSW (Dauphinois foreland) was continuing. This transfer zone corresponds to a system of deformation units and km-scale shear zones (Gardetta-Viozene Zone, GVZ). The GVZ/SWAT developed externally to the Penninic Front (PF), here corresponding to the Internal Briançonnais Front (IBF), which separates the Internal Briançonnais domain, affected by major tectono-metamorphic transformations, from the External Briançonnais, subjected only to anchizonal metamorphic conditions. The postcollisional evolution of the SW Alps axial belt units was recorded by the Oligocene to Miocene inner syn-orogenic basin (Tertiary Piemonte Basin, TPB), which rests also on the Ligurian units stacked within the adjoining Apennines belt in southern Piemonte. The TPB successions were controlled by transpressive faults propagating (to E and NE) from the previously formed Alpine belt, as well as by the Apennine thrusts that were progressively stacking the Ligurian units, resting on the subducting Adriatic continental margin, with the TPB units themselves. This allows correlation between Alps and Apennines kinematics, in terms of age of the main geologic events, interference between the main structural systems and tectonic control exerted by both tectonic belts on the same syn-orogenic basin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Southern European countries are often affected in summer by transboundary air pollution from Saharan dust. However, very few studies deal with Saharan dust pollution at high altitudes in winter. In Italy, the exceptional event occurred on February 19, 2014, colored in red the entire mountain range (Alps and Apennines) and allowed to characterize the particulate matter deposited on snow from a morphological and chemical point of view. Snow samples were collected after this event in four areas in the Alps and one in the Apennines. The particulate matter of the melted snow samples was analyzed by scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry (SEM-EDS) and by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). These analyses confirmed the presence of Saharan dust particle components in all areas with similar percentages, supported also by the positive correlations between Mg-Ca, Al-Ca, Al-Mg, and Al-K in all samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]