Evidence of dramatic biodiversity loss in a wet biotope calls for urgent conservation strategies

Abstract

The small lake “Lago di Corree”, located in the middle Volturno plain (Campania Region, Italy), is a biotope belonging to the Roccamonfina–foce Garigliano Regional Park. It is a “habitat island” in a landscape matrix characterised by intensive agriculture. In the present investigation, plant biodiversity loss, assessed by means of historical and recent field floristic surveys, is related to the lake dynamics and landscape transformation inferred using remote sensing (photointerpretation). A dramatic reduction of plant diversity, and the regional-scale local extinction of several aquatic species are reported

Keywords:

• Landscape transformation
• local extinction
• plant biodiversity
• residual ecotopes
• wetlands

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank M. Longrigg for the language revision, and the anonymous referees for their detailed and valuable comments.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

V. La Valva

V. La Valva died in 2010