Search

Mediterranean temporary ponds (MTP) are considered among the most interesting habitats in the Mediterranean bioclimatic region due to the range of rare and threatened taxa they host. Their ephemeral vegetation presents a particular floristic composition, adapted to unstable ecological conditions due to the alternation between flood and drought. Indeed, these amphibian plant species are established on soils flooded in winter and dry since early summer. The water depth and inundation period determine the plant communities distribution. The vegetation can be referred to the class Isoeto-Nanojuncetea, that has a wide distribution and is represented in the study area by two orders: Isoetetalia, Mediterranean and W-European, with spring and early summer bloom, and Nanocyperetalia, C-European, with late summer and autumn bloom. This study describes for the first time the Isoeto-Nanojuncetea plant communities in Puglia Region, in SE-Italy, where the class distribution was unknown up to now. The here adopted syntaxonomical scheme is consistent with numerical analysis, resulting in homogenous floristic and ecological communities that correspond to syntaxa at association level. The phytosociological approach to the interpretation and management of vegetation and biodiversity has been recently revived by the habitat-type classification adopted by the European 92/43/EEC "Habitat" Directive in its Annex I. The here considered plant communities belong to the priority habitat "3170∗ Mediterranean temporary ponds". Aiming to typify them, 170 surveys were carried out in temporary pools over a wide area resulting from a detailed survey that took into account the whole Puglia territory. These complexes of vegetation are very sensitive to the environmental and anthropic disturbance, so they might be good bioindicators with high value for habitat monitoring and conservation.

Spunnulate consist of wide, not deep collapse dolines developed in carbonate rocks mainly of Quaternary age, related to the existence of caves usually with active speleogenetical hyperkarst processes. They occur along the coastal plains of the Apulia and especially of its south sub region, the Salento peninsula, where the term spunnulate derive from a dialectical verb (spunnare) which means: to break, to sink. Each of this karst morphologies can be a potential geosite, whereas, as a whole, they constitute a geological heritage particularly vulnerable to the human activities and structures. At these karst sinkholes has been attributed the role of "ecological refuge" for numerous species of plants and animals, such as some stygobiont, peculiar hypogean invertebrates. Their morphological and idrological conformations have concurred the maintenance of different phytochoenosis, such as those typical of Mediterranean sclerophyllous. Moreover, spunnulate are object of hydrogeologic protection and belong to the safeguarded speleological patrimony from the Apulian Region. The aims of this research were to carry out: the census of spunnulate present along Porto Cesareo and Nardò coastal plains (east Salento), the geomorfological and floristic features, the estimate of the human impact using the plants and the habitats as bioindicators following the hemeroby approach, an ecological tool introduced as an integrative measure for the impact on ecosystem and later extended to plant communities. All the data were integrated in a software GIS, as tools to support the knowledge useful to the fruition and the conservation of this geological heritage. Totally 117 karst features have mapped (66 of which are buried or destroyed spunnulate) and 252 species of plants have recognized. Dolines are usually arranged into group, according to the tectonic fracture systems, or form compound-synks of singular landscape value. The flora shows elements of remarkable interest from the phytogeographyc point of view and heterogenous habitat (Priority Habitats and Habitat of communitary Interest) and from Habitat of Regional Interest according to regional laws. The anthropic impact, analyzed through the hemeroby index, evidences how human activities and structures influence the floristic system and habitat. At present, such disturb is not yet push to the maximum level of distance and extraneity from the natural condition but is moderate in the greatest part of the examined cases. Anyway, the different estimates risks of alteration require various regimes of protection. The spunnulate offer opportunities for both environmental education and human impact study through changes in vegetative structure with time. Nevertheless, incorporating geology into conservation policies at the same level as biology is necessary. Therefore, operative action of geoconservation of this geological heritage must be adopted to preserve the geodiversity but need of integration into protected area management similar to that given to the bioconservation. To put it better, all natural processes must be considered together into a general strategy of oloconservation.

This present checklist is based on a screening of relevant and recent literature and on field observations and floristic collections carried out over the last fifteen years. The flora of the Salento includes 1340 specific and subspecific taxa organised into 115 families and 560 genera.

The subject of the present research is the phytosociological study of some typologies of semideciduous and evergreen wood vegetation of the Apulia region, in the south-east of peninsular Italy. The associations, which have been defined on the basis of 152 phytosociological relevées and elaborated by cluster analysis methods, are: the Aleppo pine woods (Thymo capitati-Pinetum halepensis and Cyclamino hederifolii-Pinetum halepensis ass. nova), the cork oak woods, which in Apulia find the eastern limits of their distribution (Carici halleranae-Quercetum suberis ass. nova), the kermes oak shrubbery (Arbuto unedi-Quercetum calliprini) and woods (Hedero helicis-Quercetum calliprini ass. nova), the holm oak woods, which represent the major vegetational potentiality of the region (Cyclamino hederifolii-Quercetum ilicis, Cephalanthero longifoliae-Quercetum ilicis and Festuco exaltatae-Quercetum ilicis), the Trojan oak woods, which find the western limits of their distribution in the area of Murge, between Apulia and Basilicata (Euphorbio apii-Quercetum trojanae and Teucrio siculi-Quercetum trojanae), and the woods of Quercus virgiliana (Irido collinae-Quercetum virgilianae ass. nova and Cyclamino hederifolii-Quercetum virgilianae ass. nova) and of Quercus dalechampii (Stipo bromoidis-Quercetum dalechampii ass. nova.). Finally, the complete syntaxonomic scheme of the forest vegetation of Apulia is presented.

Peoples living inside flat karstic areas frequently deal with both socio-economic and environmental problems related to the superficial waters management. Karst morphologies, such as dolines and water sinks mostly, characterize the plane territory of Salento (southern Italy). Since their first settlements, Salento landscapes had been modified to drain surface waters, discharge floods and reclaim marshlands. This contribution deals with the Asso graben-polje which is about 200 kmq wide and lies in a regional lowered tectonic structure. It is highly vulnerable owing to both flooding and groundwater pollution and the hazard due to the occurrence of sinkholes is impending. The Asso streams is network of natural and artificial channels which was linked to six water sinks about 75 years ago, i. e. during the last extensive hydrographic arrangement to solve flooding and epidemiological problems. At present, the terminal sinks of the Asso fluvial-karst system absolved the functions of: storm water drainage wells, aquifer remediation-related wells and underground injection regulated wastewater disposal systems. So, the water management of the system is an hard task, being the mitigation of the amplitude of flooding events, achieved by means of the increasing of water sinks discharge, in contrast with the safeguard aquifers by pollutant displacements and the need to protect the public health. In spite of the efforts made till now by Public Bodies, the knowledge related to the speleogenesis and the hydraulic properties of the sinks is disregarded by the current water resource management. The carried out geomorphological researches allow us to distinguish natural, partially modified and human bored water sinks. Some of the natural water sinks can be described us collapse dolines, but a number of them present different origin and development, as karst wells and karst shaft. To each water sink type, specific drainage properties can be assigned. Even if the depressions prone to be flooded are thought by geologists as hazard zones, they also represent ecologically significant habitats. Moreover, natural vegetation is a good indicator of the local environmental characteristics of the hydrographical system. So, this study also dealt with the definition of the plant communities and the characterization of the habitats related to such communities. Through the sampling and the analysis of the hydrophitic and riparian vegetation, a series of plant communities is been characterized. Such communities responds to the length of the period of flooding, to the typology of substratum and to the form of the river bed section. In order to make tools useful to the catchment basin management, existing and collected geological and ecological data are in phase of implementation in a Geographical Information System database.

The Western Ionian coast of Salento (Sothern Apulia), between Torre Castiglione (Porto Cesareo) and Serra Cicora (Nardò), is characterized by not very deep cave-collapse sinkholes (named "spunnulate") showing different degrees of morphological evolution. They are developed in carbonate rocks, mainly of Quaternary age. Their interior usually is filled with brackish water because of its proximity to the sea; this involves hyperkarst chemical and morphological phenomena. According to Directive 92/43/EEC, the "spunnulate" are classified as "Cave not open to the public" and "Submerged or partially submerged sea caves", that are natural habitats of Community importance, as "Coastal lagoons" priority habitat, and as habitats of some pretected animal species. Collapse events are subtle type of hazard, which produced serious and unexpected damages to the anthropogenic infrastructures and constructions. In the study area, they occured as rapid to very rapid collapses, and their final evolution was matter of a few hours, if not minutes. The aims of this study are the assessment of the sinkhole susceptibility and the analysis of the anthropogenic factors that negatively affects the conservation status. Geologic, vegetation and environmental stress land data, collected at a fine scale, were recorded and analysed. About 60 "spunnulate" with different morphologic and ecologic features are identified. Sinkhole susceptibility was performed on the base of an approach derived by mine engineering. GIS technology is employed for the analysis at a wider scale to make a vegetation and land use map of the "spunnulate"'s geographic neighbourhood.

Le Vore di Barbarano sono due delle più ampie cavità carsiche, a prevalente sviluppo verticale, del Salento. Esse risultano morfologicamente più complesse di altre cavità analoghe, quali le Vore di Spedicaturo e le Grotte della Poesia. Le osservazioni speleologiche, geomorfologiche, stratigrafiche, idrogeologiche e biologiche, permettono di individuare i meccanismi speleogenetici all'origine delle vore. Sono state così individuate le fasi evolutive dalla formazione delle protogrotte sino alle aperture degli accessi.

Numerosi e frequenti crolli di blocchi di roccia interessano la falesia di Roca Vecchia e gli ipogei delle Grotte della Poesia. Le ricerche condotte hanno individuato i processi ed evidenziato le differenti azioni carsiche attive all'origine dei fenomeni gravitativi. In particolare, il mescolamento delle acque dolci meteoriche e di falda con quelle marine è causa di ipercarsismo chimico, molto aggressivo sul calcare. Altri processi ipercarsici derivano dall'idrodinamismo costiero che causa, specie nel sopratidale e intertidale, variazioni di umidità e salinità. Importanti risultano anche le azioni di bioerosione esercitate da organismi, specie in corrispondenza del solco di battente alla base della falesia. Di modesta entità risultano invece gli effetti delle azioni meccaniche dovute all'idrodinamismo costiero. Il carsismo contribuisce significativamente a determinare il "rapido" arretramento della linea di costa.

This research has been carried out in three phases: 1) definition of Salento coastal zone; 2) analysis of the vegetational trasformations in the coastal trait of the territory of Porto Cesareo; 3) interpretation of the results in a conservation point of view. At first, the delimitation of territorial neighbourhood in order to define the coastal zone was conducted. This was made considering the anthropic and vegetational characteristics of the landscape. This zone was delimitated throught a spatial analysis based on the vegetation and land-use maps, at the 1:10000 scale, referred to five coastal sites. So the coastal zone is rapresented by a 500 m buffer from the coastal line. Second, the typification of actual vegetation in this trait of coast was made throught sampling and analysis of phytosociological reléve. The spatialization of point data was made throught the photointerpretation of orthorectyfied aereal photos; in this way a choroplate vegetation map was produced at the 1:10000 scale. The vegetation maps since 1943 were made throught visual interpretation of hystorical aerial photos. Throught the overlay of themes the vegetational trasformation map and the inerent trasformation matrix were produced. Third, the vegetation maps related to each year were reclassified in according to habitat categories refered to CEE/92/43 Habitat Directive and P.U.T.T./p of Apulia Region (L.R. 5/95). 1) Priority habitat, 2) habitat of comunity interest, 3) of regional interest and 4) without environmental value were identified. Thought the map overlay the habitat trasformation map and the related trasformation matrix were producted. As results, after the laws of environmental conservations in this region, an increase of coverage of habitat of regional interest was registered. This represents a transition from priority habitat to habitat of regional interest, so to a fewer naturalistic value habitat.

In this contribution, new data concerning the distribution of native vascular flora in Italy are presented. It includes new records, confirmations, exclusions, and status changes to the Italian administrative regions for taxa in the genera Ajuga, Chamaemelum, Clematis, Convolvulus, Cytisus, Deschampsia, Eleocharis, Epipactis, Euphorbia, Groenlandia, Hedera, Hieracium, Hydrocharis, Jacobaea, Juncus, Klasea, Lagurus, Leersia, Linum, Nerium, Onopordum, Persicaria, Phlomis, Polypogon, Potamogeton, Securigera, Sedum, Soleirolia, Stachys, Umbilicus, Valerianella, and Vinca. Nomenclatural and distribution updates, published elsewhere, and corrigenda are provided as Suppl. material 1.

Poa jubata A. Kern., an annual South-eastern European species, is reported for the first time from Italy. It is a therophyte linked to temporary ponds with soils flooded during the winter period. It is a very rare and enigmatic species, currently known only from a few localities of the Balkan Peninsula. Recently, it was surveyed in an Apulian wetland, near Brindisi, where it grows with several other annual hygrophytes. For its taxonomical isolation, it is included in a monospecific section, as P. sect. Jubatae. In addition to a detailed description, the chromo-some complement (2n = 14) of this species is examined for the first time and a new iconography is provided.

The article aims to examine the main water chemistry parameters (i.e. conductivity, pH, dissolved O2) and the ecological responses of 20 guide species in Mediterranean Temporary Ponds (MTPs). A complete data-set of 37 MTPs located in two different regions of Italy, Sardinia and Apulia, was compiled and the data were examined by means of Principal Component Analysis (PCA). The pattern of MTPs into the water chemistry space showed a clear separation between the two geographical regions. A “daisy diagram” obtained by overlapping five typologies of MTPs, obtained by the fuzzy cluster analysis and the PCA, revealed a good agreement between the sequence of groups and the water chemistry gradient. Groups of species sharing similar responses to the same chemical features were finally identified. These groups could be effective to acquire detailed information on the characteristics of MTPs and to improve their classification into different typologies. The guide species respond selectively to the wide variability range of conductivity, pH and dissolved oxygen. Despite the small size and the short hydroperiod water parameters in MTPs presented specific patterns to which the guide species are able to give specific responses.