Further additions to the grass moth (Lepidoptera: Crambidae) fauna of Croatia

Six species of grass moths (Crambidae) were recorded for the first time in Croatia. Chilo luteellus, Chilo pulverosellus and Thopeutis galleriellus were recorded in the Neretva River delta, showing the importance and great biodiversity of this Ramsar site, one of the largest Mediterranean wetlands. Euchromius rayatellus was recorded near Žmanska Lakes, a wetland area on Island Dugi otok. Two montane species were also recorded for the first time in the country, Catoptria combinella from Mt. Risnjak and Udea cyanalis from four montane areas across Croatia. The known range of occurrence of each of the recorded species in the Balkan peninsula is accordingly expanded. The discovery of these species shows the need for additional Microlepidoptera surveys in the country. With these records, the fauna of Crambidae of Croatia has now risen to 218 species. This number is however probably far from final and new surveys are expected to reveal additional species for the fauna of Croatia.

Advances in Mountain and Mediterranean Wetlands Conservation

It is well known that wetlands are one of the most threatened ecosystems in the world, being also considered as environments with great natural, economic, and socio-cultural values [...]

Biogeochemistry of Mediterranean Wetlands: A Review about the Effects of Water-Level Fluctuations on Phosphorus Cycling and Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Although Mediterranean wetlands are characterized by extreme natural water level fluctuations in response to irregular precipitation patterns, global climate change is expected to amplify this pattern by shortening precipitation seasons and increasing the incidence of summer droughts in this area. As a consequence, a part of the lake sediment will be exposed to air-drying in dry years when the water table becomes low. This periodic sediment exposure to dry/wet cycles will likely affect biogeochemical processes. Unexpectedly, to date, few studies are focused on assessing the effects of water level fluctuations on the biogeochemistry of these ecosystems. In this review, we investigate the potential impacts of water level fluctuations on phosphorus dynamics and on greenhouse gases emissions in Mediterranean wetlands. Major drivers of global change, and specially water level fluctuations, will lead to the degradation of water quality in Mediterranean wetlands by increasing the availability of phosphorus concentration in the water column upon rewetting of dry sediment. CO2 fluxes are likely to be enhanced during desiccation, while inundation is likely to decrease cumulative CO2 emissions, as well as N2O emissions, although increasing CH4 emissions. However, there exists a complete gap of knowledge about the net effect of water level fluctuations induced by global change on greenhouse gases emission. Accordingly, further research is needed to assess whether the periodic exposure to dry–wet cycles, considering the extent and frequency of the cycles, will amplify the role of these especial ecosystems as a source of these gases and thereby act as a feedback mechanism for global warming. To conclude, it is pertinent to consider that a better understanding about the effect of water level fluctuations on the biogeochemistry of Mediterranean wetlands will help to predict how other freshwater ecosystems will respond.

Zooplankton Community Dynamics in Temporary Mediterranean Wetlands: Which Drivers Are Controlling the Seasonal Species Replacement?

Temporary Mediterranean wetlands are characterized by both intra and interannual variations in their environmental conditions. These inherent fluctuations in limnological features affect the seasonal variation in the structure and dynamics of the aquatic communities. In this study, we hypothesized that zooplankton community is coupled to seasonal changes of the environmental variables along the hydroperiod. To get this purpose, the study was focused in monitoring, by collecting monthly samples during an annual period, seven temporary Mediterranean ponds located in the south-eastern region of the Iberian Peninsula (Alto Guadalquivir region, Andalusia). The relationships between zooplankton community and the different limnological variables were analyzed based on two approaches: a Spearman correlation analysis and a correspondence canonical analysis (CCA). The results have shown that chlorophyll-a concentration, Secchi depth, total nitrogen concentration, wetland area and depth were the variables with a greater influence on the zooplankton community, explaining the zooplankton species replacement. Moreover, optima and tolerance of the zooplankton species were obtained from the position of species within CCA diagram, allowing the separation of different groups of zooplankton along the hydroperiod. We finally highlight that the monitoring of zooplankton community and environmental conditions are necessary to evaluate how theses singular and endangered aquatic ecosystems will be affected by anthropogenic activities in the future.

Reptile diversity in a Mediterranean wetlands landscape (Alto Guadalquivir region, southeastern Spain): are they affected by human impacts?

This study was carried out to evaluate the diversity in reptile communities in wetland landscapes located in the Mediterranean region. For this, the status of the reptile populations linked to different Mediterranean wetlands in relation to the different types of land use established in the nearby drainage basins (500 m around the wetlands perimeter) was determined. The different types of land use were determined together with the presence/absence, abundance and size class of the different reptile species. The results showed that areas with high anthropic pressure had a lower diversity of species, as well as a less balanced community structure, that could put at risk the effective recruitment and hence the maintenance of the reptile populations in these areas. The reasons behind the decline in the reptile community are similar to those put forward for explaining the decline in amphibians in the same area.

Dragonfly assemblages in four Mediterranean wetlands of Samos Island, Greece (Odonata)

Dragonflies (Odonata) are considered to be valuable indicators of hydroecosystems. This study reports the composition of the dragonfly assemblages in four wetlands of Samos Island, Greece, in a geographic area especially vulnerable to climate change where a trend towards a drier climate has been observed in the last decades. Dragonfly assemblages have not yet been studied on Samos. The analysis based on the number of different species and their autochthony revealed clear differences among the wetlands. The eutrophic Glyfada Lake, despite its variable hydrology resulting from drought – the seasonal decrease in water availability – harboured the largest diversity of dragonflies, larger than the oligotrophic Mesokampos Lake. The assemblage of the spring and rivulet at Mytilini, although also influenced by drought, had its own set of species of high autochthony. The seasonal brackish lake and marsh of Psili Ammos had the lowest number of species and was dominated by one very abundant breeding species. Drought was the main factor affecting the number and composition of species. The collected data create a reference for the future monitoring of trends in the composition of odonatofauna under the changing climate of Samos Island.