Climate Change and Wetland Ecosystems: The Effects on Halophilous Vegetation Diversity in Il-Ballut ta’ Marsaxlokk Natura 2000 Site (Malta)
Author:
Tavilla Gianmarco1ORCID, Lamoliere Arthur2ORCID, Gabarretta James3, Attard Vincent3, Henwood Jonathan4, Stevens Darrin T.4, del Galdo Gianpietro Giusso1, Minissale Pietro1ORCID, Ranno Veronica1, Adamo Maria5ORCID, Tomaselli Valeria6ORCID, Sciandrello Saverio1ORCID, Lanfranco Sandro7
Affiliation:
1. Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences, University of Catania, 95125 Catania, Italy 2. Institute of Earth Systems, University of Malta, MSD 2080 Msida, Malta 3. Nature Trust-FEE Malta, Wied Ghollieqa Environment Centre, Lower Level, Car Park 1, University of Malta, MSD 2080 Msida, Malta 4. Environment and Resources Authority (ERA), MRS 1441, Marsa, Malta 5. National Research Council of Italy, Institute of Atmospheric Pollution Research (CNR-IIA), c/o Interateneo Physics Department, 70125 Bari, Italy 6. Department of Biosciences, Biotechnologies and Environment, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, 70125 Bari, Italy 7. Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, University of Malta, MSD 2080 Msida, Malta
Abstract
Climate change poses a fundamental threat to the wetlands. The Mediterranean basin is a biodiversity hotspot, and wetlands are important for maintaining this status. The current study evaluated the halophilous vegetation diversity of one of the most relevant Maltese wetlands, Il-Ballut ta’ Marsaxlokk Natura 2000 site, also identified under the Water Framework Directive. A vegetation analysis was carried out according to the Braun–Blanquet approach. The processed dataset included both data from the literature and unpublished data. To quantify vegetation structure and diversity, a hierarchical classification (Chord distance; Ward linkage) and diversity and ecological indices were performed. Diachronic analysis of the taxonomic diversity indices and the Ellenberg indicator values were taken into account. We used an NMDS analysis to assess the ecological fingerprint of the vegetation. In addition, we provided an actual vegetation map for Il-Ballut ta’ Marsaxlokk, based on drone orthophotos. We identified five EU Directive habitats in the study area (1150*, 1310, 1410, 1420, and 92D0) of which one (1150*) was reported for the first time. The ecological fingerprint of the halophilous vegetation has undergone changes over time, particularly due to increasing temperatures. In fact, the results showed that nutrients and temperature were the strongest environmental drivers of the site. The results and methodology of this study demonstrate how vegetation studies can serve as tools to improve knowledge, management actions, and landscape planning of Natura 2000 sites.
Funder
University of Catania
Subject
Nature and Landscape Conservation,Ecology,Global and Planetary Change
Reference69 articles.
1. Zribi, M., Brocca, L., Tramblay, Y., and Molle, F. (2020). Water Resources in the Mediterranean Region, Elsevier. 2. Changing landscapes: Habitat monitoring and land transformation in a long-time used Mediterranean coastal wetland;Tomaselli;Wetl. Ecol. Manag.,2023 3. Wetlands, carbon, and climate change;Mitsch;Landsc. Ecol.,2013 4. Pachauri, R.K., Allen, M.R., Barros, V.R., Broome, J., Cramer, W., Christ, R., Church, J.A., Clarke, L., Dahe, Q., and Dasgupta, P. (2014). Climate Change 2014: Synthesis Report. Contribution of Working Groups I, II and III to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, IPCC. 5. NOAA (2023, July 25). National Centers for Environmental Information, Monthly Global Climate Report for Annual 2022, Available online: https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/monthly-report/global/202213.
|
|