IMPRECO is a transnational network of protected areas and local communities pursuing one common goal: safeguarding the capacity of natural ecosystems to provide the services that are fundamental for the well-being, security and prosperity of the Adriatic Ionian Region. Indeed, protected areas are key players in the protection, conservation and connectivity of ecosystems as well as hot spots for the ecosystem services flows towards local communities. As first project action, IMPRECO involved the following 7 protected areas to test 7 innovative measures for reducing pressures on ecosystems while maintaining, enhancing and restoring their capacity to provide services vital to local communities.
1. FOCE DELL’ISONZO NATURE RESERVE (Riserva Naturale Regionale Foce dell’Isonzo) – ITALY
The Foce dell’Isonzo Regional Nature Reserve is located in the east of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, along the final section of the Isonzo River. It develops across the municipalities of Staranzano, San Canzian d’Isonzo, Fiumicello and Grado, covering an area of 2,338 hectares, 1,154 of which are marine environments.
The Reserve stretches up to the far east of the Po Valley (Isonzo Plain) and includes the final part of the fluvial section on the high plain. It is characterised by evident gravelly alluvium, while in areas on the low plain, with their predominantly loamy soils, we find extensive reclamation areas from the twentieth century. In this section, there are still several remnants of an alluvial forest and channelled spring water courses. In the most southern part of this area, we find an entire estuary environment, most of which is still marshland, featuring brackish and salt clayey alluvium (flood plains, sandbanks and mudflats) as well as sand deposits on the bar of the estuary which emerge as a few small islands.
Since the 1990s, this area known as Isola della Cona has undergone a series of initiatives which have led to the creation of a temporary freshwater marsh known as “il Ripristino”. Along with the establishment of the Foce dell’Isonzo Nature Reserve in 1996 and the launch of a programme to reconstruct infrastructures and for renaturation, these initiatives have significantly increased the number of species found in these wetland environments, and in particular the birdlife, with over 300 species being recorded of migratory, winter, summer and non-migratory birds.
Most of the reserve corresponds with the SCI “Foce dell’Isonzo – Isola della Cona” IT3330005 and with the SPA of the same name. In fact, there are 20 habitats of Community interest (3 are priorities), with two plant species listed in Annex 1 of the “Habitats Directive” (the Gladiolus and the priority Salicornia veneta) and 98 species of birds included in Annex 1 of the “Birds” Directive.
2. BOSCO NORDIO NATURE RESERVE (Riserva Naturale Integrale Bosco Nordio) – ITALY
Bosco Nordio is situated on the most ancient dune system of the coastal area of Venetia between Chioggia (VE) and the river Po, which probably dates back to at least 2 million years ago. The dunes of the wood and the stretch of Rosolina Mare (RO) are the result of the building activity by the rivers Po and Adige during the last 4,000 years. Bosco Nordio, which was once called Fosson or Cerreto, seems to have pre-Roman origins. It belonged first to the town of Chioggia, it was then given to the Nordio family in 1565, which completely destroyed the wood in order to cultivate the land. Andrea Nordio, at the end of the 18th century, wanted to plant a pinewood with stone pines on the rests of the ancient wood consisting of holm oaks, laurels, and other Mediterranean species. Today only about 160 hectares of the original forest remain. In 1959, 113 hectares were sold to the State and became national Natura Reserve with the decree D.M. 26/7/1971. Nowadays it is managed by Veneto Agricoltura.
Quercus ilex, Quercus robur and Fraxinus ornus are the most common tree species. The clearings in the forest show a rare, typical vegetation of the ancient dunes (“Grey dunes”) . Bosco Nordio is a SCI/SPA (cod. 3250032), and present 8 habitats of Community interest (3 are priorities habitats). The Reserve has a important herpetofauna, with 16 species, (1 priorities, 4 in annex II and 4 in annex IV of “Habitats Directive”).
3. AQUATINA DI FRIGOLE – ITALY
Aquatina di Frigole is a NATURA 2000 site (code IT9150003), established in accordance to European Habitat Directive 92/43/CEE. This site is located on the Adriatic Sea coastline of the Salento peninsula (South-East Italian coast, 40.4425N – 18.2376E), about 13 km North-East of the town of Lecce (Italy). The NATURA 2000 covers both marine and terrestrial habitats. A lagoon of about 43 hectares is included among the terrestrial habitats. Information concerning both the environment quality and the fishery in the lagoon was already available in XVIII century publications, but the first scientific paper on the fish yield was published when the lagoon was proposed to develop aquaculture activities in 1982). The University of Salento has been managing the lagoon of Aquatina since 1985 and the Research Centre for Aquiculture and Fisheries was established. Actually the lagoon is also utilized to promote activities concerning environmental education and sustainable aquatic sports (e.g., snorkeling, SUP). The Aquatina di Frigole NATURA 2000 site is characterized by a variety of fauna and flora species, which can be divided into following groups: plants, algae, zooplankton, macroinvertebrates assemblages, fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals. Recently new Mediterranean endemic species (e.g., Pinna nobilis) and alien species (e.g., Callinectes sapidus) were recognized as well as the impact of plastics and micro-plastics were underlined.
4. ŠKOCJANSKI ZATOK NATURE RESERVE (Naravni rezervat Škocjanski zatok) – SLOVENIA
Škocjanski zatok Nature Reserve is a coastal wetland located in the outskirts of the city of Koper on Slovenian coast in North-East Adriatic. It’s a state-owned nature reserve and from 1999 on managed by an NGO – DOPPS-BirdLife Slovenia. It was designated in 1998 in quite degraded state, but after extensive habitat restoration finished in 2007, reserve hosts a huge variety of birds and other fauna and flora. Birds are the most outstanding fauna group: a reserve area of only 122 hectares hosts over 245 species and the number is still increasing. This is over 60% of all bird species observed in Slovenia. The outstanding biodiversity is a direct positive result of the carefully planned and implemented restoration and management of the reserve. Due to the extremely positive impact to the reserve’s biodiversity increase, the restoration is considered one of the biggest success stories of modern nature conservation in Slovenia.
In the beginning of March 2016, the reserve was reopen after the construction of visitor facilities with a primary goal to improve the quality of the visitor experience. Besides the visitor center, the majority of the buildings were built for the observation of wildlife. Among them, the round central observatory is definitely the most exciting one, showing the views all around the reserve as well as the underwater view of the freshwater marsh. The construction of the facilities followed the sustainable construcion principles and was co-financed by European Regional Development Fund. Besides visitor centre, several observation hides and a theme trail illustrate the area’s diverse range of plant and animal life, including many rare and endangered species. Camargue horses and Podolian cattle, which help to maintain the vegetation balance of the freshwater marsh, add to the diversity of the Reserve. The story of Škocjanski zatok is a story of protection and restoration of the area, inspired by remarkable commitment and love for nature.
5. PAKLENI ISLANDS – CROATIA
The Pakleni Islands is an archipelago of 19 islands and islets declared a significant landscape in November 1968 because of their complex and deeply indented geography stretching over 634.38 ha. The undersea environments surrounding the islands are part of the European Ecological Natura 2000 network with the aim of preserving colonies of posidonia, reefs with established algal and coral biocenosis, infralittoral sands and marine caves.
The Pakleni Islands are among the most beautiful and geomorphologically interesting on Adriatic coast. The islands are made of limestone and on the largest, Sv. Clement, dry land reaches a height of 96 meters. The Vinogradišce bay is remarkable for its diluvian sand which forms a picturesque sandy beach. The natural vegetation is made up primarily of machete and Aleppo pine that, with their limestone shorelines, give the islands their characteristic green bordered with white appearance from the air.
The biodiversity of the islands’ marine habitats is characterized by the western region of the archipelago, which includes the large island of Vodnjak with its surrounding islets and reefs, Močiguzica Point and the island of Stambedar with its Pločica islets. In these areas dense sea-grass fields are found, as well as other important habitats, such as coral and sea cave communities, which are exceptionally developed in some locations.
Among such exceptional micro-locations are the shallows near the Vodnjak Veliki Island, known as Kampanel. The Kampanel shoal is a complex underwater rocky ridge extending from 10 m to nearly 60 m deep. At the depth of 15 m there is a very well-developed coral community with large and dense settlements of gorgonian species Paramuricea clavata and Eunicella cavolini, as well as numerous cracks and fissures with a complex of sea caves. At a depth of 30 m, there is a natural tunnel which one can pass from one side of the ridge to the other. Due to the variety and richness of habitats and taxa, Kampanel is listed as one of the 10 most attractive diving sites on the Adriatic, so this place is visited by an enormous number of diving boats.
In their local dialect, the inhabitants of Hvar call the Pakleni Islands “Škoji”, however the name Pakleni is derived from the word paklina, meaning pine resin, which was harvested there in years past and used as water-proofing for the boat building and repair done in Hvar’s many protected harbors.
The Pakleni Islands are located in the heart of historic central Adriatic navigation routes, which shaped their current development. In recent decades the islands have been subject to high tourist pressure, both from their own reputation and due to their close proximity to the significant tourist center of Hvar. This pressure is most evident from the construction of illegal tourist facilities and poorly managed nautical tourism, particularly from marine litter and careless anchoring endangering undersea habitats.
6. SHKODRA LAKE AND BUNA DELTA – ALBANIA
Shkodra Lake, the largest lake on the Balkan Peninsula, is located on the border between Montenegro and Albania, in the southern part of the Dinaric Alps. The catchment basin is about 5,500 km2 (4,470 km2 in Montenegro and 1,030 km2 in Albania), and flows south-east into the Adriatic via the Buna (Bojana) River. On the Albanian part, there are about 170,000 inhabitants in the Shkodra Lake area divided in several local administrative units. The Buna River is the outflow of the Lake Shkoder and receives the waters of the Drin River Basin with a total area of about 21,000 km2. The Buna River – Velipojë Protected Landscape (BRPL or the Landscape) comprises one of the most important coastal wetlands areas of the country. Located between Lake Shkodra and the Adriatic Sea, the area was designated as a protected landscape in 2005, with a total extent of 23,027 ha. Situated around the delta of the Buna River, the Park supports a great variety of wetland communities. Together with recent coastal dune deposits and inland low karst ridges, the landscape includes a wide diversity of geological types, landscapes, habitats and plant and animal species. From a human perspective the BRPL includes parts of eight municipal units, for which the total area is 49,294 ha and the total population (2011) was 68,128 inhabitants. Local livelihoods, in the form of crop and livestock production, fishing and tourism, are strongly dependent on the use of constituent natural resources within the BRPL.
7. NORTH-EASTERN EDGE OF CRETE – GREECE
Three partly overlapping NATURA 2000 sites are designated in the North-Eastern Edge of Crete (NEEC for short). NEEC is also part of the UNESCO “Sitia Natural Park”. NEEC is a complex area of importnat habitats, which includes the unique in Europe Vai Palm Forest (one of the 19 “Aesthetic Forests” of Greece, under the management of the Forestry Department), Sidero peninsula, small coastal wetlands protected by the Greek legislation, Dyonissades and Elassa groups of islets and adjacent marine area.
NEEC is one of the driest areas of Greece. Geologically it consists of limestones and dolomites of the upper Cretaceous, bedded crystalline limestones of the Permian, phylites and neogene and alluvial deposits. The vegetation is mainly phrygana. There are a lot of valleys with maquis, some of them degrading. The Theophrastus palm forest (Phoenix theophrastii) of Vai is situated in a coastal valley. There are plantations of bananas in greenhouses and the land near the villages is cultivated. At the eastern coast there are sand dunes. On the west side of Sidero peninsula there are Posidonia oceanica beds and flocs of Tursiops truncatus have been observed. On the tip of Sidero peninsula there is a military base. The Dyonisades islets group consists of Permian limestone while Elasa islet consists of dolomites and limestones of upper Cretaceous. The vegetation on the islets is phrygana. In the larger islet of Dyonisades group as well as on the opposite coast of Crete the coastline is characterized by sea cliffs. In 2015, the site was extended 2nm off the Cretan and surrounding islet coasts, to include important and vulnerable habitats of the circalittoral and deep zone, including biodiversity-rich facies of coralligenous assemblages (deep counterpart of Habitat Type 1170), and extensive detritic and rhodolith beds, at depths below ~40 m. Several islets, reefs and shoals add to the geographic and topographic complexity of the site.
A significant number of Cretan endemic plant species and protected plant species occur in this area. The non-endemic Lygeum spartum belongs to the desert-like floristic element, occurring only in steppe communities in Crete but nowhere else in Greece (it occurs at similar habitats in Spain, Sardinia, Sicily and Italy). Concerning the fauna, there are a lot of invertebrate endemic species and some vertebrate endemic subspecies. Reptiles Lacerta trilineata and Podarcis erhardii, besides being legally protected, they are also considered species of Community interest (Annex IV, Directive 92/43/EEC). The mammal Pipistrellus savii is considered species of Community interest (Annex IV, Directive 92/43/EEC) and protected by the Greek Law (Presidential Decree 67/1981) and by the Bern Convention (appendix II). A lot of land snail species are endemic to the site or to Crete.
The Dyonissades islet group has been characterised as an Important Bird Area, especially for birds which live at cliffs. Species of interest are Falco eleonorae, Falco naumani and Calonestris diomedea. C. Diomedea’s Dionyssades population is one of the largest breeding populations of species in the Aegean Sea. Adjacent marine waters include shearwater foraging, resting and rafting areas.
The marine area around Dionyssades and Elassa is threatened by illegal fishery, whereas the islets themselves are vulnerable due to overgrazing. Sandy coasts along Sidero peninsula attract numerous tourists. The Vai plam forest is threatened by underground water over-pumping for irrigation purposes and by the alien species of Phoenix dactylifera, which is related to Phoenix theophrastii. Other threats are intensive cultivation, overgrazing, which is sometimes combined with intentional fire setting, illegal hunting and camping.