Special Issue "Biodiversity in Italy: Past and Future Perspectives"
A special issue of Diversity (ISSN 1424-2818). This special issue belongs to the section "Biodiversity Conservation".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2023 | Viewed by 11772
Special Issue Editors
Interests: biodiversity; molecular ecology; conservation genetics; conservation biology; zoology; population genetics; molecular biology; ecology; evolution; genotyping and sequencing; phylogeny; phylogeography; biogeography; genetic diversity; molecular markers; animal forensics
Interests: benthic habitat mapping; vulnerable marine ecosystems; hydrothermal vents and cold seeps; humane pressures; biodiversity monitoring
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The Italian peninsula represents a biodiversity hotspot for both terrestrial and marine environments. For its central position in the Mediterranean basin, the Italian peninsula is a crucial crossroad in the migration pathways of several migratory animals (both marine and avian species)., In fact, Italy represents an important biodiversity hotspot for many terrestrial and aquatic species (vertebrates, invertebrates, plants, fungi and microorganisms), spread from glacial to deep marine refugia and differentiated during past geological eras. The variety of biogeographical conditions that can be found throughout Italy continually lead populations and species to differentiate. In the country, there are numerous endemism, and occurrence of several vulnerable habitats, which characterize the regions and habitats of mountainous, coastal landscapes, until the marine realm (pelagic, intertidal, subtidal, deep, and submerged cave environments).
In recent decades, research concerning Italian biodiversity has flourished but has sometimes been limited to niche fields. This Special Issue aims to collect studies on a wide area of interest, inviting manuscripts focused on systematic, ecological, genetic, conservation aspects, terrestrial and marine habitats distribution, and humane pressures affecting biodiversity. The collected research will contribute to linking information on different aspects of Italian biodiversity in order to obtain a past picture of its richness and a summary of the current knowledge highlighting the urgent need for conservation strategies for biodiversity protection.
Dr. Luisa Garofalo
Dr. Michela Ingrassia
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Diversity is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- species diversity
- genetic diversity
- ecosystems
- endemism
- biological invasions
- biogeography
- phylogeography
- population dynamics
- animal forensics
- management and conservation
- marine environment
- habitats distribution
- vulnerable ecosystems
- humane pressures
Planned Papers
The below list represents only planned manuscripts. Some of these manuscripts have not been received by the Editorial Office yet. Papers submitted to MDPI journals are subject to peer-review.
Title: Avian haemosporidian parasites infection in wild birds inhabiting Sicily Island in the central Mediterranean
Authors: Ilahiane L.1, Boano G.2, Cucco M.*1, Nasuelli M.1,Pavia M.3, Voelker G.4, Pellegrino I.1
Affiliation:
1. Dipartimento per lo Sviluppo Sostenibile e la Transizione Ecologica, University of Piemonte Orientale, Vercelli, Italy
2. Museo Civico di Storia Naturale di Carmagnola, Carmagnola, Italy
3. Museo di Geologia e Paleontologia, Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, University of Torino, Torino, Italy
4. Department of Ecology and Conservation Biology, Biodiversity Research and Teaching Collections, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA
Abstract: Parasites are little studied, although their relevant role in ecosystems and their potential in affecting wildlife species. Avian haemosporidians (Haemoproteus, Plasmodium and Leucocytozoon genera) were studied in different geographic areas, nevertheless, considerable gaps involve several biodiversity hotspots. Sicily is the largest insula in the Mediterranean region and hosts 155 breeding bird species. Here, we aim to provide a first assessment of haemosporidian occurrences in Sicily, by means of molecular screening of 321 blood samples relative to 33 bird species, collected from nine study sites and distributed in four habitats. We tested six environmental determinants and four species traits which could affect the probability of haemosporidian infection occurrence. We detected 101 individuals infected representing a mean prevalence of 30%. The 80% of infections are due to Plasmodium and Haemoproteus in equal proportion and the most frequent haplotypes were the SGS1 and SYAT05 pertaining to Plasmodium genus. Analysis of host-parasite network suggest a specialized pattern of haemosporidian haplotypes in infecting host species. Environmental predictors (i.e., altitude, climate, and habitat) and species traits differently affected the probability of haemosporidian infection on the whole avian community.