Po Basin mixed forests
| Po Basin mixed forests | |
|---|---|
_2.jpg) Po River at San Benedetto | |
 Location of the Po Basin mixed forests | |
| Ecology | |
| Realm | Palearctic |
| Biome | Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests |
| Borders | |
| Geography | |
| Area | 42,149 km2 (16,274 sq mi) |
| Countries | |
| Conservation | |
| Conservation status | Critical/endangered |
| Protected | 3,572 km2 (8%)[1] |
The Po Basin mixed forests is a temperate broadleaf and mixed forests ecoregion in the basin of the Po River in northern Italy and Switzerland's Ticino canton.
Geography
[edit]The Po Basin is bounded on the north and west by the Alps, and on the south by the Apennine Mountains. It opens onto the Adriatic Sea on the east.
Flora
[edit]Terrestrial plants
[edit]The Po Basin mixed forests consists of remnants of:
1. Mixed deciduous oak/hornbeam forest -
- Quercus robur
- Quercus cerris
- Quercus petraea
- Carpinus betulus
- Ulmus minor
- Ulmus glabra
- Fraxinus ornus
- Fraxinus excelsior
2. Riparian forest, as well as flood-plain vegetation of the Po Basin -
- Fraxinus oxycarpa
- Fraxinus excelsior
- Salix alba
- Alnus glutinosa
- Ulmus minor
- Ulmus glabra
- Populus alba
- Populus nigra
- Quercus robur
- Quercus petraea
- Picea abies
- Fagus sylvatica
- Taxus baccata,
- Acer pseudoplatanus
- Malus sylvestris
- Viburnum lantana
- Tilia cordata
- Aesculus hippocastanum
- Rhamnus cathartica
- Pinus sylvestris
- Betula pendula
- Populus tremula
- Juglans regia
- Corylus avellana
- Abies alba
3. Coastal submediterranean forest -
- Quercus ilex
- Quercus cerris
- Olea europaea
- Pinus pinea
- Carpinus betulus
- Fraxinus ornus
- Juglans regia
- Corylus avellana
- Ziziphus spina-christi
- Balanites aegyptiaca
- Cupressus sempervirens
- Vachellia tortilis
- Phoenix canariensis
- Phoenix dactylifera
- Salix alba
- Populus nigra
- Quercus pubescens
- Quercus rotundifolia
- Quercus coccifera
- Quercus suber
- Pinus nigra
- Pinus pinaster
- Pinus pinea
- Pinus halepensis
- Ceratonia siliqua
- Arbutus unedo
- Erica arborea
- Laurus nobilis
- Vachellia flava
- Senegalia senegal
- Prosopis cineraria
- Aerva javanica
- Prunus amygdalus
Aquatic plants
[edit]The freshwater ecosystems (zona umida) have a high level of biodiversity.
Threatened (in Italy) plant species include
- Leucojum aestivum
- Halocnemum strobilaceum
- Nymphaea alba
- Bassia hirsuta
- Limonium bellidifolium
- Utricularia australis
- Thelypteris palustris
- Salvinia natans
- Sagittaria sagittifolia
- Plantago cornuti
Fauna
[edit]Less-disturbed wetlands which are important breeding areas for many bird species are most significant biodiversity of the ecoregion. Examples are grey heron, purple heron, great egret, little egret, squacco heron, cattle egret, great bittern, little bittern, pygmy cormorant and ferruginous duck.
Conservation
[edit]The region is industrialised and has a long history of human pressure (shrinkage of wetlands, invasive species, and unsustainable hunting of waterfowl).
Protected areas
[edit]A 2017 assessment found that 3,572 km2, or 8%, of the ecoregion is in protected areas. Only 2% of the unprotected area remains in natural habitat.[1] Protected areas include Panfilia Wood,[2] the Euganean Hills Regional Park, Po Delta Regional Parks, and Valli del Mincio Nature Reserve.
External links
[edit]- "Po Basin mixed forests". Terrestrial Ecoregions. World Wildlife Fund.
References
[edit]- ^ a b Eric Dinerstein, David Olson, et al. (2017). An Ecoregion-Based Approach to Protecting Half the Terrestrial Realm, BioScience, Volume 67, Issue 6, June 2017, Pages 534–545; Supplemental material 2 table S1b. [1]
- ^ Vito De Santis (June 2007). "The Panfilia Wood". rivista.fondazionecarife.it. Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Ferrara. Retrieved 1 September 2023.