Local Economic Conditions Affect Aedes albopictus Management

Invasive mosquitoes are an emerging public health issue, as many species are competent vectors for pathogens. We assessed how multiple environmental and socio-economic factors affected the engagement of municipalities in Italy (n = 7679) in actions against Aedes albopictus, an invasive mosquito affecting human health and well-being, between 2000 and 2020. We collected information about mosquito control from official documents and municipal websites and modeled the role played by multiple environmental and socioeconomic factors characterizing each municipality through the random forest algorithm. Municipalities are more prone to manage A. albopictus if more urbanized, in lowlands and with long infestation periods. Moreover, these variables are more predictive of management in municipalities with a high median income and thus more economic resources. Only 25.5% of Italian municipalities approved regulations for managing A. albopictus, and very few of them were in Southern Italy, the most deprived area of the country. Our findings indicate that local economic conditions moderate the effect of other drivers of mosquito control and ultimately can lead to better management of A. albopictus. If the management of invasive mosquitoes, or other forms of global change, is subjected to local economic conditions, economic inequalities will jeopardize the success of large-scale policies, also raising issues of environmental and climate justice.

First evidence of widespread positivity to anticoagulant rodenticides in grey wolves (Canis lupus)

Second-generation Anticoagulant Rodenticides (ARs) can be critical for carnivores, due to their widespread use and impacts. However, although many studies explored the impacts of ARs on small and mesocarnivores, none assessed the extent to which they could contaminate large carnivores in anthropized landscapes. We filled this gap by exploring spatiotemporal trends in grey wolf (Canis lupus) exposure to ARs in central and northern Italy, by subjecting a large sample of dead wolves (n = 186) to the LC-MS/MS method. Most wolves (n = 115/186, 61.8 %) tested positive for ARs (1 compound, n = 36; 2 compounds, n = 47; 3 compounds, n = 16; 4 or more compounds, n = 16). Bromadiolone, brodifacoum and difenacoum, were the most common compounds, with brodifacoum and bromadiolone being the ARs that co-occurred the most (n = 61). Both the probability of testing positive for multiple ARs and the concentration of brodifacoum, and bromadiolone in the liver, systematically increased in wolves that were found at more anthropized sites. Moreover, wolves became more likely to test positive for ARs through time, particularly after 2020. Our results underline that rodent control, based on ARs, increases the risks of unintentional poisoning of non-target wildlife. However, this risk does not only involve small and mesocarnivores, but also large carnivores at the top of the food chain, such as wolves. Therefore, rodent control is adding one further conservation threat to endangered large carnivores in anthropized landscapes of Europe, whose severity could increase over time and be far higher than previously thought. Large-scale monitoring schemes for ARs in European large carnivores should be devised as soon as possible.

A human-neutral large carnivore? No patterns in the body mass of gray wolves across a gradient of anthropization

The gray wolf (Canis lupus) expanded its distribution in Europe over the last few decades. To better understand the extent to which wolves could re-occupy their historical range, it is important to test if anthropization can affect their fitness-related traits. After having accounted for ecologically relevant confounders, we assessed how anthropization influenced i) the growth of wolves during their first year of age (n = 53), ii) sexual dimorphism between male and female adult wolves (n = 121), in a sample of individuals that had been found dead in Italy between 1999 and 2021. Wolves in anthropized areas have a smaller overall variation in their body mass, during their first year of age. Because they already have slightly higher body weight at 3-5 months, possibly due to the availability of human-derived food sources. The difference in the body weight of adult females and males slightly increases with anthropization. However, this happens because of an increase in the body mass of males only, possibly due to sex-specific differences in dispersal and/or to "dispersal phenotypes". Anthropization in Italy does not seem to have any clear, nor large, effect on the body mass of wolves. As body mass is in turn linked to important processes, like survival and reproduction, our findings indicates that wolves could potentially re-occupy most of their historical range in Europe, as anthropized landscapes do not seem to constrain such of an important life-history trait. Wolf management could therefore be needed across vast spatial scales and in anthropized areas prone to social conflicts.

Insights on the best release strategy from post-release movements and mortality patterns in an avian scavenger

Conservation translocations involving vultures rely either on soft- or hard-release strategies. To investigate whether these strategies affect home range stability and survival, we compared the spatial behavior and mortality of 38 Griffon vultures (Gyps fulvus) released in Sardinia. Griffons were released after no acclimatization or after 3 (short) or 15 (long acclimatization) months in an aviary. In the two years that followed their release, griffons without acclimatization did not stabilize their home range size, while those subjected to long acclimatization stabilized it in the second year. Short-acclimatized griffons always had a large home range, soon after their release. The number of individuals that reached sexual maturity was higher (71.4%) in long-acclimatized griffons than in short-acclimatized ones (40%) or in griffons that were hard released (28.6%). Soft release with a long acclimatization period seems to be the most successful method to ensure stable home ranges and the survival of griffon vultures.

Combining surveys and on-line searching volumes to analyze public awareness about invasive alien species: a case study with the invasive Asian yellow-legged hornet (Vespa velutina) in Italy

The Asian yellow-legged hornet (Vespa velutina) has been invading Italy since 2013, and it was subjected to management programs to counter its spread and raise awareness about its impacts. We administered a questionnaire to a sample of 358 beekeepers in Italy, asking them about their sources of information on V. velutina and their perception of its potential impacts and severity, compared to other threats to beekeeping. We also explored Internet searching volumes on Google and Wikipedia about V. velutina, to identify seasonal and long-term trends in public awareness. Workshops, journals or bulletins, the Internet and word-of-mouth with colleagues were the primary sources of information about V. velutina. Internet searches peaked during the activity period of the species and increased over time, with thousands of visits to Wikipedia each month. Beekeepers believed V. velutina to affect beekeeping by predating on honey bees (Apis mellifera), paralyzing foraging, reducing honey availability and depleting the winter cluster. Moreover, V. velutina has been deemed a severe threat to beekeeping, similar to other threats like pesticides and the varroa mite (Varroa destructor). Our findings indicate that beekeepers seem to be aware of the potential impacts of V. velutina in Italy, both within and outside of its invaded area, considering it a major threat to beekeeping. Moreover, citizens seem to have become progressively curious about the species. Information campaigns on the Internet and specialized magazines might be helpful to communicate about the impacts of the species, and the need to develop diffused surveillance networks.

Usutu virus in blackbirds (Turdus merula) with clinical signs, a case study from northern Italy

Usutu virus (USUV) is a mosquito-borne virus belonging to the family Flaviviridae, genus Flavivirus. Natural transmission cycle of USUV involves mosquitoes and birds, so humans and other mammals are considered incidental hosts. In this study, USUV infection was diagnosed in all wild blackbirds, collected from July to September 2018 in a wildlife recovery center in the province of Bologna, in the Emilia-Romagna region, northern Italy. All blackbirds showed neurological clinical signs, such as overturning, pedaling, and incoordination. Moreover, the subjects died shortly after arriving at the hospitalization center. Virological investigations were performed by real-time PCR on frozen samples of the spleen, kidney, myocardium, and brain for the detection of Usutu (USUV) and West Nile (WNV) viruses. The small and large intestine were used as a matrix for the detection of Newcastle disease virus (NDV). All 56 subjects with neurological clinical signs were positive for USUV, only one subject (1.8%) tested positive for WNV, and no subject was positive for NDV. The most represented age class was class 1 J (58.9%), followed by class 3 (25.0%), and lastly from class 4 (16.1%). Most of the blackbirds before dying were in good (51.8%) and fair (39.3%) nutritional status, while only five subjects (8.9%) were cachectic. The USUV genomes detected in the blackbirds of this study fall within the sub-clade already called EU2 that has been detected since 2009 in the Emilia-Romagna region. Neurological clinical signs in USUV-affected blackbirds are still widely discussed and there are few works in the literature. Although our results require further studies, we believe them to be useful for understanding the clinical signs of Usutu virus in blackbirds, helping to increase the knowledge of this zoonotic agent in wild species and to understand its effect on the ecosystem. The goal of this study was to report—in the context of the regional passive surveillance program—the detection of USUV RNA in its most important amplifying host, the common blackbird, when showing clinical signs before death.

Blacklists do not necessarily make people curious about invasive alien species. A case study with Bayesian structural time series and Wikipedia searches about invasive mammals in Italy

Blacklists of invasive alien species (IAS) are a popular tool for managing and preventing biological invasions. Moreover, blacklists also have the potential to make the general public more curious about biological invasions, usually by benefiting from media coverage and providing accessible examples of IAS.

We have tested if the implementation of the first List of IAS of Union concern by the European Union increased visits to Wikipedia pages on invasive alien mammals in Italy. We adopted causal impact analysis to quantify changes in the overall volume of visits to pages about invasive alien mammals that appeared on the list, by using pages about native mammals as a control. Following the publication of the first Union list, there was no increase in the amount of visits to Wikipedia pages on invasive mammals, regardless of their inclusion in the Union list. Rather, visits to Wikipedia were irregular in time, coinciding with media coverage of single, charismatic species.

Our results indicate that important policymaking initiatives do not necessarily increase curiosity about biological invasions, even when they are covered by generalist media and are relatively easy to understand. We would therefore emphasise that policymaking initiatives should be coupled with adequate communication campaigns and should adopt communication guidelines for generalist media.

COVID-19, media coverage of bats and related Web searches: a turning point for bat conservation?

SARS‐CoV‐2, the virus that caused the COVID‐19 pandemic, is genomically similar to a SARS‐like beta‐coronavirus found in Asian rhinolophid bats. This evolutionary relationship impressed the global media, which then emphasised bats as key actors in the spillover that resulted in the pandemic. In this study, we highlight changes in the traditional and new media coverage of bats and in Internet search volumes that occurred since the beginning of the COVID‐19 pandemic in 2020.

We analysed Google and Wikipedia searches for bats and coronaviruses in 21 countries and eight languages, as well as television broadcasts in the USA, some of which have global coverage, between January 2016 and December 2020. In January 2020, the amount of television news about bats boomed, and news associated with the term ‘bat’ shifted to COVID‐19‐related topics. A nearly identical pattern was observed in Google searches during 2020 at the global scale. The daily time series of television coverage and Internet search volumes on bats and coronavirus in the USA covaried in the first quarter of 2020, in line with the existence of a media bubble. Time‐series analysis revealed that both the Google Trends index and visits to Wikipedia pages about bats boomed in early 2020, despite the fact that this time of year is usually characterised by low search volumes.

Media coverage emphasised, correctly or not, the role of bats in the COVID‐19 pandemic and amplified public interest in bats worldwide. The public image of these mammals, in many cases threatened and important ecosystem service providers, was seriously compromised. We therefore recommend that policymakers and journalists prioritise scientifically accurate communication campaigns about bats, which would help counteract the surge in bat persecution, and leverage interest towards positive human–bat interactions.

Use of European Funds and Ex Post Evaluation of Prevention Measures against Wolf Attacks (Canis lupus italicus) in the Emilia-Romagna Region (Italy)

INTRODUCTION

Compensation programs are an important tool for mitigating conflicts between farmers and large predators. However, they present significant weaknesses and faults. For years, the EU has been prioritizing programs for the prevention of damage caused by large carnivores, rather than compensation programs, introducing compulsory compensation for the purposes of decision EC (2019) 772 of 29/01/19. This manuscript reports the experience with the wolf damage prevention programs in an Italian region, Emilia-Romagna, which implemented a pilot project, adopting a new method to interface with the farmers involved in the prevention programs.

METHODS

Starting in 2014, a project aimed at spreading prevention measures was financed through regional and European resources, accompanied by resources sharing and technical assistance with breeders from the regional body. In detail, (i) standardized types of intervention were defined and technical assistance was structured; (ii) ex post, the effectiveness of the interventions carried out was assessed; and (iii) the difficulties encountered in using the various financing instruments were analyzed.

RESULTS

Overall, 298 farms were analyzed, of which 166 applied for regional calls and 132 applied for European funds. The mitigation measures produced a reduction in predatory phenomena of 93.4%, i.e., from 528 to 35 predations over a period of 4-6 years. This study shows that more than one-third of the farmers were forced to abandon the two tenders, mainly due to the lack of liquidity in anticipating the prevention measures.

CONCLUSION

In the years examined by this study, the prevention programs in the Emilia-Romagna region, due to the technical support offered, proved to be a functional and effective tool, capable of significantly reducing the wolf predation on livestock. However, this work highlights the high percentage of denials of mitigation measures by farmers interested in adopting these tools, stressing the need for regional agencies to focus on new policies that can provide advance economic resources to farmers and solve the authorization problems related to the various bodies with which the participant in the tenders must interface.

A Mathematical Model Supporting a Hyperpredation Effect in the Apparent Competition Between Invasive Eastern Cottontail and Native European Hare

In this work a mathematical model is built in order to validate on theoretical grounds field study results on a three-species system made of two prey, of which one is native and another one invasive, together with a native predator. Specifically, our results mathematically describe the negative effect on the native European hare after the introduction of the invasive Eastern cottontail, mediated by an increased predation rate by foxes. Two nonexclusive assumptions can be made: an increase in cottontail abundance would lead to a larger fox population, magnifying their predatory impact ("hyperpredation") on hares; alternatively, cottontails attract foxes in patches where they live, which are also important resting sites for hares and consequently the increased presence of foxes results in a higher predation rates on hares. The model results support hyperpredation of increasing fox populations on native hares.

A framework for prioritising present and potentially invasive mammal species for a national list

The European Union (EU) has recently adopted a regulation on invasive alien species that foresees the possibility of developing lists of species of National Concern. We developed a prioritisation process for alien mammals already established in Italy, but not yet included in the EU list (n = 6 species) and a systematic horizon-scanning procedure to obtain ranked lists for those species that are already introduced worldwide or traded in Italy (n = 213). Experts were asked to score these species, by evaluating their likelihood of establishment and spread and the magnitude of their potential impacts on biodiversity, economy, human-health and society. The manageability of each species was also evaluated, both for the proritisation and the horizon-scanning processes. We produced five lists that ranked species according to their potential spread and impacts and their manageability. These will allow policy-makers to select outputs according to a balance between risk assessment and risk management, establishing priorities for alien species management at the national level.

Using online questionnaires to assess marine bio-invasions: A demonstration with recreational fishers and the Atlantic blue crab Callinectes sapidus (Rathbun, 1986) along three Mediterranean countries

Marine bioinvasions require integrating monitoring tools with other complementary strategies. In this study, we collected information about the invasive alien crab Callinectes sapidus in Italy, Croatia and Montenegro, by means of online questionnaires administered to recreational fishers (n = 797). Our records matched the current distribution of the species: C. sapidus resulted far more common in the Adriatic/Ionian than in the Tyrrhenian/Ligurian sector. Most respondents rated the species as 'occasional' or 'rare'. Moreover, the more C. sapidus was considered to be abundant, the more fishers tended to perceive it as a negative disturbance over fisheries and the environment. Our findings suggest that C. sapidus is more common than previously thought in most of the study area, and it could have reached the levels of a true invasions in the south-eastern Adriatic Sea. This experience demonstrates that online questionnaires can be appropriate tools to effectively engage stakeholders in alien species monitoring.

Climate change, biological invasions, and the shifting distribution of Mediterranean fishes: A large-scale survey based on local ecological knowledge

Climate change and biological invasions are rapidly reshuffling species distribution, restructuring the biological communities of many ecosystems worldwide. Tracking these transformations in the marine environment is crucial, but our understanding of climate change effects and invasive species dynamics is often hampered by the practical challenge of surveying large geographical areas. Here, we focus on the Mediterranean Sea, a hot spot for climate change and biological invasions to investigate recent spatiotemporal changes in fish abundances and distribution. To this end, we accessed the local ecological knowledge (LEK) of small-scale and recreational fishers, reconstructing the dynamics of fish perceived as "new" or increasing in different fishing areas. Over 500 fishers across 95 locations and nine different countries were interviewed, and semiquantitative information on yearly changes in species abundance was collected. Overall, 75 species were mentioned by the respondents, mostly warm-adapted species of both native and exotic origin. Respondents belonging to the same biogeographic sectors described coherent spatial and temporal patterns, and gradients along latitudinal and longitudinal axes were revealed. This information provides a more complete understanding of the shifting distribution of Mediterranean fishes and it also demonstrates that adequately structured LEK methodology might be applied successfully beyond the local scale, across national borders and jurisdictions. Acknowledging this potential through macroregional coordination could pave the way for future large-scale aggregations of individual observations, increasing our potential for integrated monitoring and conservation planning at the regional or even global level. This might help local communities to better understand, manage, and adapt to the ongoing biotic transformations driven by climate change and biological invaders.