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Duckweeds are considered suitable plants for bioremediation of wastewaters because they can tolerate and take up diverse pollutants and large quantities of nutrients. They have year-round vegetative growth that can reach very high rates using wastewater nutrients that can accumulate intracellularly or be utilized to produce new biomass. The constructed wetland that services the town of Forano (Central Italy) is composed of three interconnected, but distinct, treatment pools (P1, P2, P3). In this study the phytoremediation performance of the whole treatment system was assessed taking into consideration pH, temperature, oxygen, nitrates, phosphates, sulphates, and pathogenic bacteria (Escherichia coli) at the inlet and outlet of each pool once per season over a year. The remediation efficiency of P2 was lower than in P1 and P3, and this was shown to be due to an extended, dense free-floating Lemna mat. The mat was thick enough (18–30 mm) to block light penetration, and heat and gas exchange to the underlying water resulting in dark, cool and near-anaerobic conditions. These conditions limited aerobic biodecomposition processes and natural control of the E. coli population. The underlying fronds of the Lemna mat in P2 were highly necrotic and became a source of nutrients, shown by an increase in nitrates and phosphates from the inlet to the outlet. Lemna use in phytoremediation is often considered highly important, but it is shown here that active management interventions are required and should involve periodic harvesting of Lemna fronds to avoid mat over-development and formation of necromass.

The American duckweed Lemna minuta is invasive in freshwater habitats across much of Europe, often causing serious ecological impacts. To date, few studies have addressed how to halt its expansion. However, encouraging empirical evidence of L. minuta control by the aquatic herbivorous larvae of the insect Cataclysta lemnata is emerging. To better understand the biocontrol capacity of C. lemnata, information on overlap in the phenology and the growth conditions in nature of both species is fundamental. In this study, L. minuta and C. lemnata populations were analyzed in the field to define (i) their phenological features, (ii) the main environmental characteristics where the two species occur, and (iii) any overlap or difference in phenology and ecological requirements. The seasonal occurrence of the two species and environmental data were collected from 31 wetlands in central Italy. The two species showed a large phenological overlap and ecological similarities. Populations of L. minuta and C. lemnata were found all year long, although abundances were greater in spring and summer. Both species preferred waters that were shallow, circumneutral, with moderately high conductivity and trophic level and with low dissolved oxygen. The phenology and ecology of the two species were shown to be compatible, suggesting the insect could be released in natural sites invaded by the alien L. minuta where could act as potential biocontrol agent of it.

The project "Biodiversity MARE Tricase" aims to research and promote coastal and marine biodiversity at the MARE Outpost (Avamposto MARE), a marine station established in Tricase (Lecce, Italy) in 2015. From March 2016 to September 2017, the first biodiversity inventory of the Tricase coastal area (Ionian Sea) was realized with the aid of citizen scientists (e.g. local fishermen, divers, bathers, and tourists). Preliminary results include 556 taxa, of which the 95% were identified at the species level. Despite the broad knowledge on Mediterranean coastal biodiversity, 71 species represented new records for the Ionian Sea. In parallel with the research activities, people's awareness of the value of biodiversity was raised with scientific dissemination initiatives, involving about 1700 people. The "Biodiversity MARE Tricase" project realized a first small-scale species inventory contributing to the distributional, taxonomic, and ecological knowledge of the present Mediterranean biota. The coastal area of Tricase will be soon included in a new Marine Protected Area and this project represents a step forward for the sustainable development of the community of this coast.

Utricularia australis is an aquatic rootless carnivorous plant that takes up nutrients through shoots or from trapped prey digested in its bladders. As the information on the ecology of this species is scarce, the main environmental factors which favour or limit its growth were analysed. Habitat characterization was carried out on 23 aquatic sites in Central Italy where U. australis occurred. Diverse water chemical and physical factors and aquatic plant dominants were sampled and compared to Utricularia coverage. Species response curves with respect to each analysed ecological factor were elaborated. Despite the large environmental variation among sites, U. australis did show some ecological preferences. Optimal growth of Utricularia was associated with sunny sites (~ 1500µmol photon m−2s−1) and shallow waters (< 20cm) that were warm (~ 26°C), alkaline (pH 8.3 median value), with moderate-high conductivity (700µScm−1) and with low aquatic inorganic phosphorus (< 10µgL−1) but higher nitrogen (800–1600µgL−1). Dissolved and particulate organic nutrients (mainly phosphorus) were highly important in determining U. australis ecology and its distribution. The knowing of theecological preferences ofU. australis, a plant that is becoming increasingly rare in Central Italy, could be very useful to identify and protect its habitats or to identify new potential sites and to avoid further population losses.

The American duckweed Lemna minuta Kunth is considered an invasive species in several European countries (e.g., Belgium, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy), but its invasiveness outside its original range remains poorly studied. We therefore analyse: (i) the speed with which L. minuta has spread throughout Europe; and (ii) its capability to compete with L. minor L., the most common European native duckweed. Based on literature data, the increasing number of observations of L. minuta since it was reported for the first time in France (1966) indicated the wide extent reached by this species in most of Europe, highlighting its high capacity to colonize new areas. By sampling Lemna populations from 41 stations in standing waters in Central Italy, it emerged that the frequency of the two species was similar, but the alien species was more abundant than the native one, showing generally higher coverages, and predominating in mixed Lemna populations. A negative correlation between L. minuta and L. minor was observed in our study. This relationship was not explained by different ecological requirements, since the two species responded similarly to the main environmental gradient, but was linked to an antagonistic dynamism between both species. A multitemporal analysis, based on the comparison of Lemna coverage data recorded at the same stations at two different times (last vs. first record), revealed that L. minuta had appeared where it had been absent previously and that its abundance had increased to the detriment of L. minor, which in some cases disappeared within a few years. The arrival of L. minuta in a site can be considered a real threat to conservation of the native plant diversity due to its competition with the congeneric L. minor.

Wild and semi-wild plants are factual resources for a local community when they satisfy its needs. According to the bio-cultural approach, these plants and associated knowledge help define the cultural identity of each community, and ethnobotanical plants constitute a particular facet of the cultural relationships between people and nature. By referring to the concept of Cultural Keystone Species (CKS), a group of species considered in the same way within a community represents a homogeneous bio- cultural trait. We tested the hypothesis that the CKS model and the related index, the Identified Cultural Importance (ICI) of species, could be useful tools to culturally define and describe groups of species as bio-cultural traits. As a dataset to test this hypothesis we considered the wild and semi-wild plants used for food and nutraceutical purposes in 13 Aga villages in Bali. Data were collected through an ethnobotanical study in 2014. A multivariate analysis method based on the Fuzzy Set Theory was used to perform quantitative analyses to find clusters of plants. The Graph Theory was instead applied in order to detect trajectories and similarity gradients in the system of groups of species. The results confirmed that groups of species can be considered as bio- cultural traits, spreading within a cultural area in different ways and conveying information about their relationship with the native culture. The ICI index and CKS concept helped us to interpret the bio-cultural traits in terms of their cultural salience, considering them as general descriptors of the bio-cultural system of a community according to bio-cultural diversity and Traditional Ecological Knowledge. In the case of the Bali Aga villages, the partition of species showed 11 groups, and several species resulted of relevant cultural importance. Among them, Arenga pinnata (Wurmb) Merr. can be considered a CKS.

In Europe, the duckweed Lemna minuta is an invasive alien that can cause severe abiotic-biotic alterations of lentic aquatic ecosystems. Its invasion history across Europe was spatio-temporally reconstructed from its various introductions to its present distribution by analyzing georeferenced historical records obtained from different sources (bibliography, national-international digital databases). Fuzzy clustering, a form of classification in which an element belongs to different clusters according to a degree of belonging, was used to identify the most important temporal invasion events (pulsations). Geographical representation of these pulsations in invasion maps simplified the detection of the main dynamics of L. minuta movements across Europe. Based on the analyses of the historical data, five main invasion pulsations were identified (1965, 1982, 1991, 2000, 2010). Invasions in Europe began along the Atlantic coasts around the 1950s–1960s. Around the 1980s, L. minuta spread extensively across the United Kingdom and Central Europe. After this, it started to invade Southern and also Eastern Europe, mainly stabilizing around the 2000s. In the last decade, L. minuta consolidated its occurrence in Western and Central Europe, while it continues to colonize new Mediterranean and Eastern European regions. This analysis type is effective in determining spatial-temporal dynamics of invasive alien plants using georeferenced historical data and it also offers insight into the behavior of a biological invader by identifying the main invasion routes and areas most susceptible to future invasion. This latter information can be useful for development of management strategies for preventing invasions and conserving aquatic ecosystems potentially under threat.

The American duckweed Lemna minuta shows an invasive behaviour in Europe, causing weed problems in aquatic habitats there. Few studies addressed this species' ecological requirements for a suitable establishment in a site. In this paper, L. minuta populations were analysed through field surveys so as (1) to define the autoecology of this duckweed as regards the main environmental factors characterizing invaded habitats, and (2) to identify possible overlaps/differences in ecological requirements between the alien L. minuta and the common native L. minor, with which it is often associated and in direct competition. The occurrence/abundance of the two species and environmental data were collected from 41 wetlands in central Italy. Currently, L. minuta is more common and abundant than L. minor in the study-area, despite its recent arrival there (2007). The two species have a partially overlapped autoecology. However, L. minuta differs from L. minor since it occurs in waters which are less alkaline, slightly less warm, and richer in nitrates. It shows tolerance for environmental conditions which are limiting for most of macrophytes, including L. minor, such as high shading and low water oxygenation. This enables L. minuta to increase its invasion potentiality and thus to enlarge its distribution area.

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.

In this study, we support the hypothesis that wall plant species come mainly from rocky habitats, taking into account that ancient walls show similar characteristics to rocks. The occurrence of wall species in natural habitats was investigated. The main literature concerning wall and natural vegetation of central-southern Italy was viewed. Vegetation synoptic tables were analysed through statistical procedures for comparing occurrence and behaviour of wall species in ruderal habitats as archaeological sites and natural ones.The study pointed out that wall species show similar ecological and coenological features in both habitats. This confirms that the main natural habitat from which wall species come from are rocks, but secondarily also ephemeral Mediterranean meadows and garrigues. Particularly, some wall species belonging to Parietarietea judaicae class are participating in the formation of natural rocky communities of Asplenietea trichomanis. Species occurring on emerging ruins form ephemeral meadows belonging to Helianthemetea guttati, also found in natural Mediterranean environment. On wide tops of ruins, where community dynamism is higher, some perennial herbaceous and shrubby species participate in the formation of impoverished communities matching to natural aspects of Mediterranean maquis. The knowledge of the natural habitat of wall species can be useful for a better management of archaeological sites.

With this paper we want to stress that, on the basis of some matrix algebraic theorems, eigenvectors of similarity matrices are strictly related with clusters that we can obtain with clustering procedures applied to the same similarity matrices and that the fuzzy sets obtained by cluster analysis can be efficiently used as ordination axes and also as tools to measure the diagnostic value (or the indicator value) of attributes (species or other characters) of the ecological systems.

The island of Bali has several aga (indigenous) villages that have survived despite the pressures of an intense tourist industry and agricultural changes. A rich ethnobotanical culture persists, but the meaning of differences in traditional ethnobotanical knowledge (TEK) remains under-explored. We analyzed information obtained from interviews of inhabitants from diverse villages on food and nutraceutical plants to identify plant patterns, i.e., relevant plant groups with species sharing a similar occurrence. Through cluster analysis, we identified 12 main groups of species and found that species were grouped based on traditional knowledge and the use each community made of plants on the whole, and not on growth forms nor on specific uses. The frequency distribution of species clusters showed a bimodal trend, with several groups present only in few villages, and a few groups present in almost all villages. The latter are defined as “core groups,” and represent the shared TEK of each aga community. Other “satellite species groups” embodied in the local TEK were related to small isolated communities. Cultural erosion caused by modernization, with the consequent fragmentation of information, was judged to be one of the main causes of increasing TEK heterogeneity.

This study analyses the plant colonization of the stone embankments along the Tiber River (the Lungotevere) in relation to changes of lithotype (travertine, tuff, cement), inclination (80°, 60°, 45°), stone size, and exposure. The surveys of plant communities were carried out according to the phytosociological method and considering the variability of the ecological conditions. The vegetation data were analyzed using multivariate statistical analysis (cluster analysis) in order to highlight the affinity among the various groups of sampling areas. The ecological features of the vegetation, according to Ellenberg indicator values, were considered for the ecological interpretation. Results showed that many environmental factors interact in giving rise to a differential plant cover and species richness, but that some are more relevant than others, such as the lithotype nature, especially in relation to the differential stone porosity. Also, changes in inclination of the walls cause variations in plant colonization, especially in the case of travertine and less in the case of tuff, as a consequence of the differing porosity of these materials. The study also confirms the subordinate role of exposure with respect to other factors.

In this article, we consider the meaning of the phytosociological releve´ of the Braun-Blanquet’s approach as a source of biodiversity matrices. We stress the importance of phytosociological releve´ for the integrated vegetation studies dedicated to understand the vegetation system and its ecosystem role at different hierarchical levels. We review the state of the art of building databases of the Italian vegetation under the perspective to develop a knowledge database of Italian vegetation based on formal ontologies. This would constitute a node in the possible network of knowledge databases of European Union and of the world that is proposed within the International Association of Vegetation Science.

River damming leads to strong hydromorphological alterations of the watercourse, consequently affecting river vegetation pattern. A multitemporal and spatial analysis of the dam effect on composition, structure and dynamic of the upstream vegetation was performed on Tiber River at Nazzano-dam (Rome). The main research questions were as follows: How does plant landscape vary over time and along the river? Where does the dam effect on vegetation end? How does naturalistic importance of the vegetation affected by damming change over time? Data collection was performed mapping the vegetation in aerial photos related to the period before (1944), during (1954) and after dam construction (1984, 2000). The plant landscape has significantly changed over time and along the river, particularly as a result of the dam construction (1953). The major vegetation changes have involved riparian forests and macrophytes. Dam effect on vegetation is evident up to 3 km, and gradually decreases along an attenuation zone for about another 3 km. Despite the fact that the damming has caused strong local hydromorphological modification of the river ecosystem transforming it into a sub-lacustrine habitat, it has also led to the formation of wetlands of considerable naturalistic importance. Indeed, in these man-made wetlands, optimal hydrological conditions have been created by favouring both the expansion of pre-existing riparian communities and the rooting of new aquatic communities, albeit typical of lacustrine ecosystems. Some of these plant communities have become an important food resource, refuge or nesting habitats for aquatic fauna, while others fall into category of Natura 2000 habitats. Therefore, river damming seems to have indirectly had a "favourable" effect for habitat conservation and local biodiversity.

A method for studying the response of vegetation to environmental gradients, based on the community niche and fuzzy set theory, is presented. The approach is illustrated using an example from perennial halophilous vegetation along the Northern Adriatic coast of Italy. Compatibility curves are obtained by fuzzy set theoretical methods, and are used tomodel the response functions of plant associations to environmental gradients, including soil and ground water salinity, soil pH, soil and ground water temperature, percentage of sand, and variations in the ground water level. The compatibility curves summarize the similarity of a given plant community, with a particular value of an environmental variable, to the species combination of a given plant association. Compatibility curves offer an alternative approach to non-linear regression and best fit analyses normally used to model single species responses to environmental gradients. The approach is particularly useful given there is no singlemechanisticmodel t...

Freshwater red algae are rarely documented in Italy, although their presence is quite common in European watercourses. The few data available about this algal group are reported in broader studies concerning algal flora of Italian rivers. This paper is aimed to broaden the knowledge on red algae in Italian running waters, by providing new findings on this algal group occurrence in Italy. Samples of Lemanea fluviatilis, Batrachospermum gelatinosum, Bangia atropurpurea, Compsopogon caeruleus, Hildenbrandia rivularis and samples at sporophytic Chantransia stage, were collected from 29 sites along 16 watercourses of central Italy. For each species, we provided a review on the geographical distribution, mainly at European and Italian scale. We also contributed to better define the autoecology of these species, by increasing data on their ecology and defining quantitatively their ecological responses to main environmental factors. In this study we recorded the first finding of a spontaneous population of the subtropical C. caeruleus in Italy. © 2013E. Schweizerbart'sche Verlagsbuchhandlung.

Tribulus terrestris L. (Zygophyllaceae) is an annual plant commonly known as Puncture vine. It is dramatically gaining interest as a rich source of saponins. T. terrestris is a promising ingredient for many industries and recent patents on dermatological applications support the use of this plant for cosmetics and hygiene. Nonetheless problems arise in the selection of the material to be used. The extracts of different origins may differ substantially. Natural speciation processes normally influence ‘variations’ in wild-crafted medicinal plants. The genus Tribulus is emblematic. Taxonomic status of T. terrestris is complicated by the wide geographical distribution leading to high levels of genetic polymorphism. Being aware of such variability we selected 3 commercial Tribulus extracts and compared their biological effect on Candida albicans with the effect produced by an extract from local plants (South of Apulia, Italy). One of the commercial extracts with the best anti-candida performance was used to substitute triclosan in a detergent formulation and it proved to improve the product performance in the control of potentially pathogenic skin flora such as C. albicans.

A survey of 18 watercourses of the Tiber River basin was carried out to define the ecological niche breadth of some aquatic bryophyte species in relation to environmental factors. Aquatic bryophytes were sampled and water environmental parameters were measured at 99 stations distributed along the catchment (from the headwater regions to the downstream reaches). The datasets of the collected species and environmental data were analyzed by using a multivariate statistical analysis (PCA biplot). Ecological responses of the recorded aquatic bryophytes were obtained using a fuzzy set approach, and were compared with data from literature. The results show that the presence of the aquatic bryophytes in watercourses is affected negatively by the reduction of water velocity, clearness, substratum size and the worsening quality of the water physico-chemical status. In fact, aquatic bryophytes show a general preference for stations characterized by medium-large granulometry, and fast-flowing, clear, oxygenated (mean value 9.2 mg/l), cool waters (mean value 15.0 °C), with low loads of nutrients, particularly ammonia (mean value 0.10 mg/l) and phosphates (mean value 0.09 mg/l). However, ecological responses reveal different patterns in the distribution of aquatic bryophyte species mainly in relation to water physico-chemical parameters (e.g. temperature, conductivity, ammonia, phosphates). E.g. Palustriella commutata var. commutata, Cratoneuron filicinum, Fissidens viridulus and Cinclidotus aquaticus show high preference for clear, turbulent and fast-flowing waters, with temperature below 12 °C, conductivity below 300 μS/cm, and concentrations about 0.01 mg/l for phosphates, not exceeding 0.10 mg/l for ammonium ions and 0.90 mg/l for nitrates. Leptodictyum riparium and Riccia fluitans are for their part more linked to turbid and slow waters affected by eutrophication, showing optimum values for about 0.30 mg/l for ammonia concentration, 0.90 mg/l for nitrates and 0.11 and 0.22 mg/l for phosphates respectively. Conversely, Fontinalis antipyretica is not closely related to specific conditions, showing wide ecological ranges for most of the analyzed environmental factors. This paper has evaluated and discussed the possible use of sampled species as bioindicators for biomonitoring of the water quality.

""The flora of the archaeological area of Maxentius’s villa (Rome) was tested as bioindicator of buried remains of masonry and pavements. A total of 53 floristic surveys provided the occurrence of each. species in the sample units, as well as some their phenological features. The data were elaborated through multivariate statistical analysis in order to assess floristic affinity\\\/differences among sample units, and to define their ecological characteristics. The fuzzy set methodology was applied to evaluate relation between floristic richness, plant cover and soil depth. Results show that the buried remains of stonework create a discontinuity in the ground, influencing the flora growing above it. This phenomenon. may give rise to differential presence of some species (e.g., Cota tinctoria, Trifolium scabrum ssp. scabrum. on thin soil; Ranunculus bulbosus, Trifolium pratense on deeper soil), but will not have such a great effect on floristic richness. The bioindication of this phenomenon also occurs through phenological irregularities in single specimens and changes in plant cover. Nevertheless other environmental factors (soil moisture\\\/aridity, trampling, enrichment of nitrogen, cutting, ground depression), can interfere with the use of plants as bioindicators in archaeological prospection. It is therefore necessary to consider other environmental factors influencing each site when using plants as bioindicators in the archaeological prospection.""

Chronic exposure to solar UVB radiation damages skin, increasing the risk to develop cancer. Hence the identification of compounds with a photoprotective efficacy is essential. This study examined the role of saponins derived from Tribulus terrestris L. (TT) on the modulation of apoptosis in normal human keratinocytes (NHEK) exposed to physiological doses of UVB and to evaluate their antitumoral properties. In NHEK, TT saponins attenuate UVB-induced programmed cell death through inhibition of intrinsic apoptotic pathway. In squamous cell carcinomas (SCC) TT saponins do not make the malignant keratinocytes more resistant to UVB and determine an enhanced apoptotic response. The photoprotective effect of TT saponins is tightly correlated to the enhancement of NER genes expression and the block of UVB-mediated NF-κB activation. Collectively, our study shows experimental evidence that TT has a preventive efficacy against UVB-induced carcinogenesis and the molecular knowledge on the mechanisms through which TT saponins regulate cell death suggests great potential for TT to be developed into a new medicine for cancer patients.

Common reed die-back is a widely investigated phenomenon in Central Europe, not frequently recorded in S-European areas and almost unknown in the Mediterranean Basin. Symptoms of reed decline recently observed in the Italian Peninsula provided the starting point for a detailed investigation on a reed population in one of the largest freshwater ecosystems in Central Italy. The analyses were conducted over two vegetative seasons in 19 plots at seven locations. A set of 13 morphologic and phenologic reed traits were screened, monitored and statistically analysed. The data indicated the presence of the reed die-back syndrome in a wet Mediterranean ecosystem and enabled us to highlight a set of usable traits to detect the condition of decline. Among them, the stem height and diameter, the number of nodes, the relative growth rate and the lateral root diameter resulted the most significant factors highlighting the declining condition. Some environmental characteristics of the reed stands were also taken into account. The period of submersion and the presence of standing litter emerged as important features of the stands, strictly related to the degree of decline in the population. The results draw attention to the risk, in southern Europe too, of the loss of an ecosystem which plays an important role in biodiversity conservation.

The aquatic plant communities of the Tiber River basin have been examined to evaluate their role as bioindicators of the water quality of the Italian peninsular rivers. The compatibility curves of phytocoenoses to water chemico-physical gradients show a correlation between the distribution pattern of the vegetation types and the water’s chemico-physical features, such as different levels of water pollution. In particular, Fontinaletum antipyreticae, Ranunculo-Sietum, Elodeo-Potametum crispi and Nasturtietum officinalis develop in meso-eutrophic and fairly clean water, Potamogeton nodosus community and Ceratophylletum demersi in eutrophic water of medium quality, while Myriophylletum spicati and especially Potametum pectinati and algal communities with Entheromorpha flexuosa are found in hypertrophic water of poor quality. These phytocoenoses can be utilised as valid bioindicators of water quality. On the contrary, Callitrichetum stagnalis, Myriophylletum verticillati, Najadetum marinae and algal communities with Cladophora glomerata are not effective bioindicators, showing a wide and sometimes unclear synecology.

This article presents the floristic, structural, and syntaxonomical features of plant assemblages in temporary wetlands and the pattern of the corresponding habitat types; according to the Habitats Directive. Nine pristine temporary wetlands covering a wide range of shapes, elevations and substrates were monitored. The "within temporary wetlands" hydrological gradient was strong enough to drive the vegetation and habitat type patterns. Plant assemblages presented a spatial arrangement in three concentric belts repeatedly present in each site in the same relative position. The presence of the H3120 habitat type was recognized in the central and in the intermediate belt. The outer belt was the more suitable for the presence of the H3170* priority habitat. Therefore, it should represent the main conservation target within temporary wetlands. On the other hand, it was the smallest in size (only 13% of the total surface) and in some cases absent, inconspicuous, or severely fragmented.

Isoetes iapygia from the Apulia region (southern Italy) is described as a new species and illustrated. It differs in several characters from the other Mediterranean Isoetes species, but has some intermediate characteristics similar to terrestrial and amphibious Isoetes. I. iapygia is similar to the amphibious species for the lack of phyllopodia, even if it has scales; it is similar to terrestrial species for the complete velum and tuberculate macrospores. A completely unique character is represented by the two air chambers. Its habitat is on limestone rocks, in temporary pools.

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.

Species abundance data from 32 representative stands are used to evaluate the vegetation in the heavily grazed Serengeti short grasslands. The abundant species are: Kyllinga nervosa, Sporobolus ioclados, S. kentro-phyllus and Eustachys paspaloides, all occurring in elevated areas, and Hypoestes forskalei, which is found in the drainage areas. Numerical classification and fuzzy set ordination revealed four main grassland communities associated with a topographic gradient. The communities are considered distinct since their niches, as computed in the community and environmental fuzzy system space are not overlapping. Leaching, erosion and animal disturbance effects correlated with the topographic gradient are found to determine species composition and overall community structure in the grasslands.

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.

The composition of officinal plants in terms of active principles exhibits high intraspecific variability which is determined not only genetically but also by environmental conditions, growth area and harvesting time. This study analyzed the essential oil variability in Thymbra capitata (L.) Cav. in specimens growing wild in 23 places in Southern Puglia (Italy). The results show high chemical polymorphism in the oil content of T. capitata. Application of the spatial autocorrelation index to the principal components highlighted a relationship between thermal parameters and the composition in terms of active principles. The carvacrol chemotype was only present under the hottest and driest conditions. These results show that not only is the biosynthetic pathway of phenolic monoterpenes in T. capitata favored in high-temperature environments, as reported in other Lamiaceae, but also that carvacrol is present only in markedly “Mediterranean-like” environments.

This study provides an update of phytosociological knowledge of the vegetation of Apennine grasslands that belongs to Brometalia ercti, and it includes a new syntaxonic revision * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

The definition of vegetation types at different hierarchical levels, both to study the vegetation processes and for practical cartography representation, is still considered a critical issue in many circles of plant ecologists. The problems are mainly related to the misleading idea that classification of the vegetation system, as developed by European phytosociologist during the last century within the discipline called syntaxonomy, would imply the assumption of the organismic concept of the plant community. After a short discussion on the role of Braun- Blanquet approach in plant ecology and in landscape ecology, the methods to detect multispecies responses along environmental gradients are briefly reviewed. In the main part of this article, we intend to stress that concepts considered critical, such as plant association and its ecological niche, are just operational tools that have nothing to do with the individualistic or organismic interpretation of plant communities in vegetation studies. Important to our views on vegetation, we believe that plant associations as well as the higher sintaxa can be regarded as fuzzy sets in an operational context for describing vegetation along ecological gradients in synthetic ways and can further the understanding of vegetation variation.

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.