Forschen und Sammeln.

The presence of Hystrix cristata in the province of South Tyrol was documented by two independent records of quills found at two different locations. While further official confirmations beyond single quill records are required to confirm the occurrence of permanent populations, these findings already provide important information to increase the attention on this protected species and to understand its range expansion mechanisms. H. cristata is known to currently spread northwards in Italy and the records reported here represent the northernmost distribution record in Europe, suggesting a potential expansion within the Alpine area and adjacent countries.

Attalus minimus is here reported with three independent findings for South Tyrol after the last record in 1911. This rediscovery was possible thanks to sightings reported by three different observers on the social media and citizen science platform iNaturalist.org.

New and remarkable bryophyte records in the Province of South Tyrol, Italy. II. Three species of bryophytes (Plagiothecium neckeroideum, Pohlia camptotrachela and Pohlia sphagnicola) are reported new to Italy, six are first records for the region of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol (Cephaloziella stellulifera, Scapania verrucosa, Bryoerythrophyllum ferruginascens, Pohlia andrewsii, P. bulbifera, Sphagnum inundatum) and another nine species are new to South Tyrol: Anastrophyllum assimile, Cephaloziella hampeana, Gymnomitrion alpinum, Andreaea alpestris, Buxbaumia aphylla, Campylopus gracilis, Schistidium brunnescens, S. teretinervis and Stereodon hamulosus. 30 species were re-found after more than 100 years, and 45 rare or under-recorded species are also reported. The number of known bryophyte taxa from South Tyrol increases to 928.

The catalogue of the vascular plants of South Tyrol: additions and corrections (10) in the present tenth edition, again new additions to the flora are published, but also adaptations and corrections regarding the data in the catalogue, which have become necessary due to new knowledge. The following species, to be considered either certainly or probably native, are new: Bolboschoenus maritimus s.str., B. planiculmis, Euphorbia triflora subsp. kerneri, Hypericum humifusum, Orobanche beauverdii, Spiranthes spiralis, Stellaria media s.strictiss. and S. ruderalis. Among the non-native species, the following are already considered naturalized or at least locally persistent: Cotoneaster dammeri, Galium murale, Sagittaria latifolia, Telekia speciosa, Teucrium scorodonia, while Ammi majus, Anaphalis margaritacea, Bidens triplinervia, Carduus pycnocephalus, Cenchrus setaceus, Cortaderia selloana, Deutzia crenata, Echinacea purpurea, Erodium malacoides, Erythronium dens-canis, Euphorbia palustris, Euphorbia saratoi (discovered during a revision of herbarium material of “E. esula” and “E. virgata”), Helleborus foetidus, Hydrocotyle sibthorpioides, Linum grandiflorum, Ocimum basilicum, Platanus ×hispanica, and Ricinus communis are classified as casuals. A local stand of Androsace septentrionalis proved to be deliberately introduced. New distribution data in areas where the species was previously unknown are available from Botrychium matricariifolium and Pedicularis hacquetii, and reconfirmations of historically documented species are given for the allochthonous casuals Calendula arvensis and Mentha suaveolens, as well as for the autochthonous Plantago arenaria (probably a casual re-introduction), Solanum alatum, and Trifolium ochroleucon. In the case of Trichophorum pumilum the correction of already communicated distribution data is necessary, in the case of Glechoma hirsuta even the deletion of the species from the South Tyrolean Flora.

Climate change will fundamentally affect the vegetation in high elevations. Via long term monitoring programs, substantial information can be obtained about the ongoing dynamics. The aim of the present study was to analyze diversity changes at four summits of the GLORIA target region Texelgruppe – Gruppo di Tessa (South Tyrol, Northern Italy) from 2003 to 2017. Knowing that new colonization mainly occurs on the eastern and southern aspects of the Alpine summits, we compared the summit vegetation to the plant communities along the southern slopes of each summit from the treeline upward. We expected to gain information on potential migrators approaching the summits. We asked if cryophilic species disappear on the summits and if thermophilic species approach the summit area. With exception of the highest summit, an increase in species numbers throughout the years occurred. The newcomers at the lower summits were predominantly thermophilic species. Here, invasion of thermophilic species might limit cryophilic species in the near future. This process will be intensified due to increasing abundance of dwarf shrubs and trees. At the higher summits, where cryophilic species are still dominant, we assume that this species group will prevail on the long term.

In September 2019, thousands of colonies of the freshwater bryozoan Cristatella mucedo Cuvier, 1798 (Phylactolaemata: Cristatellidae) were discovered during dives in the Large and Small Lake of Monticolo / Montiggl (Province of Bolzano / Bozen, Italy) between 3 and 5 m of depth. They were attached on large stones and submerged branches. The colonies ranged from about 1 cm to over 10 cm in length. Within the framework of a study carried out in the years 2019 – 2020 in the two lakes aiming at documenting the colonies, also free statoblasts (spinoblasts), resistant dormant stages with diameters between 700 and 750 μm, were found. This is the first confirmed record of C. mucedo in South Tyrol.

Nel settembre 2019 nel Lago Grande e nel Lago Piccolo di Monticolo (Provincia di Bolzano) durante immersioni subacquee sono state avvistate per la prima volta migliaia di colonie del briozoo d’acqua dolce Cristatella mucedo Cuvier, 1798 (Phylactolaemata: Cristatellidae), su grandi pietre e rami sommersi tra i 3 e i 5 m di profondità. Le colonie erano lunghe da circa 1 cm a oltre 10 cm. Nei due laghi di Monticolo colonie di C. mucedo sono state trovate negli anni 2019 – 2020 da giugno a ottobre e nel mese di ottobre sono stati raccolti statoblasti, stadi dormienti resistenti, con diametro tra 700 e 750 μm. Si tratta della prima segnalazione di C. mucedo in Alto Adige.

The zooplankton of the Lakes of Monticolo/Montiggl from 1979 – 2015 (Überetsch, South Tyrol) Results of a zooplanktonic rotifer and crustacean monitoring carried out from 1979 to 2015 on two medium altitude lakes located near Bolzano (Italy) are presented. The two adjacent lakes, affected by high natural pollution and rapidly increasing anthropogenic stress, underwent rapid eutrophication requiring restoration since the seventies. Zooplankton species diversity and composition were similar for the two lakes, with the same rotifer species dominating, Filinia terminalis, Keratella cochlearis and Polyarthra dolichoptera, but with Keratella cochlearis as the most frequent species in the Large Lake of Monticolo/Montiggl and Filinia terminalis in the Small Lake of Monticolo/Montiggl. The prevailing cladocerans were small forms (Bosmina spp. and Ceriodaphnia spp.) for both lakes. Among the copepods the calanoid species Eudiaptomus gracilis predominated, while cyclopoid copepods only played a role in the Large Lake. In both lakes the withdrawal of nutrient-rich deep water, a restoration measure, caused a sharp decrease in the rotifer densities during the first years of the study and remained more or less constant afterwards. The density of the copepods decreased slightly from 1979 to 2015 in the Large Lake, while no significant long-term changes were observed for cladocerans. The zooplankton-based trophic evaluation yielded a mesotrophic state with tendency to eutrophy for both lakes. When comparing the zooplankton of the two lakes, differences emerged in the quantitative occurrence of individual species, mainly due to differences in morphometry and catchment area.

First finding of Bicolorana bicolor (Philippi, 1830) and Euchorthippus declivus (Brisout de Barneville, 1848), new to the orthoptera fauna of South Tyrol (Insecta). In the framework of the ongoing project Biodiversity Monitoring South Tyrol findings of two orthopteran species hitherto unknown to the fauna of South Tyrol were made: both, Bicolorana bicolor and Euchorthippus declivus were found in summer and autumn 2021 in the surroundings of Altrei/Anterivo in the south of South Tyrol. The distribution of the species is shortly discussed and a suggestion for their red-list status is given. Due to their small range of distribution both should be treated as VU (Vulnerable).

Plinthisus brevipennis (Latreille, 1807) (Heteroptera: Rhyparochromidae) new for South Tyrol. The seed bug species Plinthisus brevipennis was first recorded for South Tyrol (Trentino- Alto Adige/Südtirol, Italy) using soil core samples. The species is widely distributed but tends to go unrecorded because of its small size (approx. 3 mm) and life history, mainly occurring in plant litter near the soil surface. The species was found by soil samples in a semi-arid grassland west of Bolzano.