Can Austropotamobius Italicus Meridionalis Be Used as a Monitoring Instrument in Central Italy? Preliminary Observations

Scalici, Massimiliano; Gibertini, Giancarlo

doi:10.1051/kmae:2005019

Cited by 21 publications

(29 citation statements)

References 29 publications

(22 reference statements)

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“…An alarming decrease in the abundance of A. italicus populations has also been noted in the last 30 years if compared with previous surveys (Mancini, 1986). Indeed, the biomass and the CPUE values of the study populations are comparable with those recorded in A. italicus and A. pallipes populations of other Italian regions and European countries (Fu¨reder et al, 2003;Lyons and Kelly-Quinn, 2003;Scalici and Gibertini, 2005). This might suggest that the trend documented here is a reflection of a general phenomenon occurring across the entire distribution range of the A. pallipes species.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 84%

“…Conversely, the mortality as a result of fishing is high, confirming the previous hypothesis (Renai et al, 2006) that this activity, illegal in Tuscany, has been the main cause of local extinction of A. italicus in several basins. In fact, fishing has been found to cause a drastic reduction in the carrying capacity of some populations (Scalici and Gibertini, 2005) and seems to have contributed to decreased genetic diversity S. Bertocchi et al, unpublished data) that makes the affected populations highly vulnerable to both environmental stressors and stochastic events.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For each population, measurements were made of the catch per unit effort (CPUE, the number of crayfish divided by the time spent sampling; Demers and Reynolds, 2002;Scalici and Gibertini, 2005), density (individuals m À2 ), and biomass (the total weight of the captured crayfish divided by the area of each transect). Crayfish weight (W) was estimated by applying the formulae obtained from preliminary measurements of individuals collected from the same area (B.…”

Section: Population Abundance Structure and Dynamicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Aphanomyces astaci; Gherardi and Holdich, 1999). Similarly to A. pallipes (Holdich and Reeve, 1991;Reynolds et al, 2002;but see Trouilhe´et al, 2006), Austropotamobius italicus is extremely sensitive to slight changes in environmental conditions, so that several authors classify it as a good bioindicator of water quality (Scalici and Gibertini, 2005;Renai et al, 2006). This study assessed the status of some populations of A. italicus in Central Italy by providing information about their size and structure.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

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Conserving indigenous crayfish: stock assessment and habitat requirements in the threatened Austropotamobius italicus

Brusconi¹,

Bertocchi²,

Renai³

et al. 2008

Aquatic Conservation

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ABSTRACT1. As part of the Austropotamobius pallipes species complex, the crayfish Austropotamobius italicus is a species of community interest whose preservation requires the designation of Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) (Annex II, EU Habitats Directive). This study aimed at (1) assessing the conservation status of this threatened indigenous species by stock assessment in Central Italy and (2) identifying some aspects of its elective habitat.2. Surveys were conducted in nine streams harbouring A. italicus (streams WI) and in 10 streams where crayfish populations became extinct at least 5 years before the study (streams WO).3. The results confirmed that A. italicus is a K-selected species, with a relatively slow growth rate (males: 0.34; females: 0.37) and a long life expectancy (males: 8.2 years, females: 7.8 years). The extant populations are healthy, showing balanced sex-ratios and well structured age-class compositions. Mortality is mainly due to fishing, which is illegal in Tuscany.4. Principal Components Analyses showed that the streams WI and WO differ in the abundance of allochthonous plant detritus but not in the taxonomic composition of their macroinvertebrate communities. Age classes were found to be spatially segregated, juveniles mainly using cobbles as substrates and adults seemingly avoiding them.5. The loss of the pristine riverine landscape seems to have been responsible, together with illegal fishing, for the local extinction of the species. As a consequence, retaining, enhancing, and restoring the habitat and its complexity are required for the preservation of A. italicus.6. The designation of SACs might help in this endeavour if accompanied by programmes aimed at publicizing the need for conservation of this species. Unfortunately, crayfish-focused projects supported by LIFE in Italy since 1992 (4%) and the SACs involved (1.4%) have been relatively few, despite the poor conservation status of this species and its well recognized ecological role.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 84%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Population Abundance Structure and Dynamicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Conserving indigenous crayfish: stock assessment and habitat requirements in the threatened Austropotamobius italicus

Brusconi¹,

Bertocchi²,

Renai³

et al. 2008

Aquatic Conservation

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“…The main purposes are also to give a contribution for improving feedstuff production in aquaculture and to give more information for a better management of this species, which has an important role in water ecosystems (Momot 1995;Covich et al 1999) and is currently considered an important managerial instrument (Fü reder & Reynolds 2003;Scalici & Gibertini 2005).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Feeding habits of the crayfishAustropotamobius pallipes(Decapoda, Astacidae) in a brook in Latium (central Italy)

Scalici¹,

Gibertini²

2007

Italian Journal of Zoology

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The several studies regarding the feeding habits of freshwater decapods have provided a few detailed descriptions of their natural diets and have seldom analysed variations in their feeding habits due to season, size, age, and changes in their physiological state. This situation led us to analyse the stomach content of different age classes of the crayfish Austropotamobius pallipes, in order to increase the knowledge available on this species' diet. Ingestion index, vacuity frequency, and occurrence frequency were calculated; then, a graphical representation was carried out only for the animal component (mainly insect larvae) observed within the stomach. The results show A. pallipes to be an omnivorous and opportunistic animal. Its diet includes the exploitation of more easily accessible vegetal and detritus resources, which are the main sources of energy and proteins in freshwater ecosystems. Invertebrates are very important for the crayfish diet; in fact, the animal component, and in particular Tricoptera, Diptera, and shellfish, plays a very important role for juveniles and adult females. Feeding strategies might reduce competition between sexes, satisfying their energetic and nutritional needs. The acquired knowledge of the crayfish trophic niche may be used, for example, to improve the diet of animals kept in captivity.

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Monitoring crayfish using a mark-recapture method: potentials, recommendations, and limitations

et al. 2008

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Crayfish are regarded as useful indicators of environmental quality and freshwater biodiversity. However, reliable methods for monitoring their populations are needed so that this potential can be fully utilised. We report and discuss methodological aspects of the white-clawed crayfish (Austropotamobius pallipes complex) survey conducted in Piedmont, Italy, with the use of mark-recapture. The results suggest that the method can serve as a convenient tool for estimating the size of crayfish populations and inferring their temporal trends. The two populations investigated appeared closed except for wintertime and July. Consequently, the Robust Design, which is regarded as the most reliable mark-recapture approach, can be easily applied. The minimum effective sampling plan for monitoring purposes should comprise one primary period per year, conducted in the summer-autumn season, and consisting of three capture sessions. If gaining insight into the ecology of the investigated species is the prime objective and sufficient resources are available, the optimal plan should include two primary periods (in spring and the summerautumn season) of five capture sessions each. Capture sessions need to be separated by roughly 2-week intervals in order to avoid the strong, but short-term, negative effect of capturing crayfish on their recapture chances. As the model without heterogeneity in capture probabilities ensures better estimate precision we recommend that data collected for both sexes are analysed separately. Taking into consideration higher male catchabilities and sex ratio being invariably 1:1, it also seems beneficial to estimate only male numbers and double them to achieve total population sizes.

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Can Austropotamobius Italicus Meridionalis Be Used as a Monitoring Instrument in Central Italy? Preliminary Observations

Cited by 21 publications

References 29 publications

Conserving indigenous crayfish: stock assessment and habitat requirements in the threatened Austropotamobius italicus

Conserving indigenous crayfish: stock assessment and habitat requirements in the threatened Austropotamobius italicus

Feeding habits of the crayfishAustropotamobius pallipes(Decapoda, Astacidae) in a brook in Latium (central Italy)

Monitoring crayfish using a mark-recapture method: potentials, recommendations, and limitations

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