ECOlogical observing System in the Adriatic Sea: oceanographic observations for biodiversity Priority Axis 3: Environment and cultural heritage Specific Objective 3.2: Contribute to protect and restore biodiversity D4.2.1 Review of the knowledge of the target species at the selected Natura 2000 sites WP4 – Establishing the Ecological Observing System in the Adriatic Sea (ECOAdS) A4.2 – Integration of ecological observing system with Natura 2000 target species PP5 Blue World Institute / Jure Miočić-Stošić, Grgur Pleslić Other involved partners: PP1, PP4, PP6, PP8 Final Public 29th June 2020 European Regional Development Fund www.italy-croatia.eu/ecoss Contents 1. INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................................................... 4 2. ALGAE .................................................................................................................................................... 7 2.1 Fucus (Fucus virsoides) ........................................................................................................................ 7 3. PLANTS .................................................................................................................................................. 9 3.1 Virginia saltmarsh mallow (Kosteletzkya pentacarpos) ...................................................................... 9 3.2 Venice salicorne (Salicornia veneta) ................................................................................................. 10 3.3 Slender seagrass (Cymodocea nodosa) ............................................................................................. 11 4. SPONGES ............................................................................................................................................. 14 4.1 Geody (Geodia cydonium) ................................................................................................................. 14 5. CORALS ................................................................................................................................................ 16 5.1 Cushion coral (Cladocora caespitosa) ............................................................................................... 16 6. MOLLUSCS ........................................................................................................................................... 18 6.1 Date mussel (Litophaga litophaga) ................................................................................................... 18 6.2 Noble pen shell (Pinna nobilis) .......................................................................................................... 19 7. FISH ..................................................................................................................................................... 22 7.1 Adriatic sturgeon (Acipenser naccarii) .............................................................................................. 22 7.2 Twaite shad (Alosa fallax) ................................................................................................................. 23 7.3 Adriatic dwarf goby (Knipowitschia panizzae) .................................................................................. 25 7.4 Po brook lamprey (Lampetra zanandreai) ........................................................................................ 26 7.5 Sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) .................................................................................................. 27 7.6 Canestrini’s goby (Pomatoschistus canestrinii)................................................................................. 28 8. AMPHIBIANS ....................................................................................................................................... 30 8.1 Common spadefoot (Pelobates fuscus) ............................................................................................ 30 9. REPTILES .............................................................................................................................................. 32 1 9.1 Loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta) ........................................................................................... 32 9.2 European pond turtle (Emys orbicularis) .......................................................................................... 34 10. BIRDS ............................................................................................................................................... 36 10.1 Mediterranean gull (Larus melanocephalus) .............................................................................. 36 10.2 Mediterranean shag (Phalacrocorax aristotelis desmarestii) ..................................................... 37 10.3 Yelkouan shearwater (Puffinus yelkouan) .................................................................................. 38 10.4 Common kingfisher (Alcedo atthis) ............................................................................................. 39 10.5 Purple heron (Ardea purpurea) ................................................................................................... 41 10.6 Squacco heron (Ardeola ralloides) .............................................................................................. 42 10.7 Eurasian bittern (Botaurus stellaris) ........................................................................................... 43 10.8 European nightjar (Caprimulgus europaeus) .............................................................................. 45 10.9 Black tern (Chlidonias niger) ....................................................................................................... 46 10.10 Western marsh harrier (Circus aeruginosus) .......................................................................... 47 10.11 Hen harrier (Circus cyaneus) ................................................................................................... 48 10.12 Montagu’s harrier (Circus pygargus) ...................................................................................... 50 10.13 Great white egret (Egretta alba) ............................................................................................. 51 10.14 Little egret (Egretta garzetta) ................................................................................................. 52 10.15 Black winged stilt (Himantopus himantopus) ......................................................................... 54 10.16 Little bittern (Ixobrychus minutus) .......................................................................................... 55 10.17 Black crowned night heron (Nycticorax nycticorax) ............................................................... 57 10.18 Pigmy cormorant (Phalacrocorax pygmeus) ........................................................................... 58 10.19 Ruff (Philomachus pugnax) ..................................................................................................... 59 10.20 Greater flamingo (Phoenicopterus roseus) ............................................................................. 61 10.21 European golden plover (Pluvialis apricaria) .......................................................................... 62 10.22 Pied avocet (Recurvirostra avosetta) ...................................................................................... 63 10.23 Little tern (Sterna albifrons) .................................................................................................... 64 10.24 Common tern (Sterna hirundo) ............................................................................................... 66 2 10.25 Sandwich tern (Sterna sandvicensis) ....................................................................................... 67 10.26 Kentish plover (Charadrius alexandrinus) ............................................................................... 68 10.27 Red-backed shrike (Lanius collurio) ........................................................................................ 70 10.28 Lesser grey shrike (Lanius minor) ............................................................................................ 71 11. MAMMALS ...................................................................................................................................... 73 11.1 Common bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) ..................................................................... 73 12. CONCLUSIONS ................................................................................................................................. 78 13. LITERATURE ..................................................................................................................................... 84 14. ANNEXES ......................................................................................................................................... 96 3 1. INTRODUCTION This review aims to summarize currently available knowledge of target species at six Natura 2000 sites in the Adriatic Sea that were selected as case studies within the project ECOSS. The sites included are: Trezze San Pietro e Bardelli (IT3330009), Delta del Po (IT3270017 and IT3270023; two sites geographically overlapping and thus here combined), Tegnùe di Chioggia (IT3250047), Cres-Lošinj (HR3000161), Vis (HR3000469) and Malostonski Bay (HR4000015). For most of the Natura 2000 sites, the review is given for species