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Assessing the impact of artificial summer drainage on the benthic macroinvertebrates in a freshwater wetland in northeast Italy

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Abstract

Valle Mandriole is one of the two last remaining freshwater wetlands in the coastal area of Ravenna (NE Italy). In 2011, a management technique that involves the complete drainage of the southern portion of Valle Mandriole during summer has been undertaken. In the present study, the effects of this artificial drying on the benthic macroinvertebrate fauna were assessed using a beyond before-after-control-impact (beyond BACI) sampling design. Macroinvertebrates dwelling on macrophytes and in bare sediments were sampled in the impact location and in four control locations, two times before and two times after the drying period. Simultaneously, water samples were collected to monitor chemical properties potentially affecting the studied organisms. Biological and chemical data were analysed by multivariate statistical methods. The statistical analysis did not detect any significant effect of the management action on the benthic macroinvertebrates or on the water chemical and physical properties. This contrasts with some previous results, suggesting that the effects of a management strategy based on draining completely dry and then reflooding a wetland area are site specific. However, it is necessary to consider that the present study does have some limitations, in particular, the differences between impact and control locations and the timing of the sampling. The highest biodiversity was observed in one small and isolated control location; this highlights how maintaining, protecting, restoring and even creating small ponds may play an important role in biodiversity conservation.

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available at: https://www.arpae.it/dettaglio_documento.asp?id=6312&idlivello=2020). VMS: Valle Mandriole South (impact location); VMN: VMN: Valle Mandriole North; PAN, PAS: Punte Alberete north and south; SV: San Vitale. Riverine locations: Lamone, Destra Reno, Reno. Boxes: 2nd and 3rd quartile; the whiskers represent the whole range without outliers. Outliers are defined as value outside 1.5 times the interquartile range above the 3rd quartile and below the 2nd quartile

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Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful to Dr Giorgio Lazzari for their valuable information and suggestions. This study was founded by the Ricerca Fondamentale Orientata program of the Italian Ministry of University and Research. The Ministry did not have any role in study design, in the collection, analysis and interpretation of data, in the writing of the report and in the decision to submit the article for publication.

Funding

This study was founded by the Ricerca Fondamentale Orientata program of the Italian Ministry of University and Research.

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  1. Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences, University of Bologna, via Sant’Alberto 163, 48123, Ravenna, Italy

    Riccardo Beltrami, Nicolas Greggio, Enrico Dinelli & Andrea Pasteris

  2. Interdepartmental Research Centre for Environmental Sciences, University of Bologna, via Sant’Alberto 163, 48123, Ravenna, Italy

    Riccardo Beltrami, Nicolas Greggio, Enrico Dinelli & Andrea Pasteris

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  1. Riccardo Beltrami
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Correspondence to Andrea Pasteris.

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Beltrami, R., Greggio, N., Dinelli, E. et al. Assessing the impact of artificial summer drainage on the benthic macroinvertebrates in a freshwater wetland in northeast Italy. Hydrobiologia 849, 571–587 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-021-04708-5

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