Emerging Threats and Conservation Challenges for Freshwater Biodiversity

Dear Colleagues,

Freshwater environments are particularly vulnerable to anthropogenic impacts as they act as a mirror of land use and are heavily influenced by human activities in the surrounding areas. Furthermore, freshwater systems are largely affected by atmospheric pollution and show evidence of climate change in the alterations to their hydrological regime, which have become increasingly extreme in recent years. These alterations heavily impact freshwater biodiversity, which has already suffered by the hand of many introduced allochthonous species due to habitat and trophic competition. Moreover, in many cases, non-native organisms are much more tolerant to environmental changes than native ones. Since human survival depends on freshwater environments and their quality, it is essential to adopt adequate conservation strategies to protect these systems and the biodiversity they host.

It is essential to rethink the transformations of freshwater environments, seeking their requalification where possible. First of all, these projects should aim to recreate riverside vegetation as a defense mechanism. These areas are ecotones between terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems and represent an important filter against pollutants, especially (but not only) in agricultural contexts. In addition, it is critical that we reflect on our efforts to recreate environmental biodiversity, which very often compromises the banalization of riverbeds and bank areas. Great attention should be paid to the hydrological regime, which must be adequate to ensure the survival of the freshwater systems themselves but also to allow these environments to respond with adequate self-purifying processes. Environmental requalification is of pivotal importance in guaranteeing the survival of freshwater communities, including strictly aquatic ones and those which use water for reproductive purposes, as in the case of amphibians. Many of these communities, not least fish assemblages, include an increasing number of species at risk of extinction, as shown by the compilation and updates of the various national Red Lists.

Dr. Elisabetta Pizzul
Dr. Marco Bertoli
Guest Editors

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