Corresponding authors: Lara Ivanković Tatalović (
Academic editor: Dimitris Poursanidis
The Mediterranean is characterised by high biodiversity and numerous endemic species. These species are not only present in natural habitats, but also inhabit areas under human influence, such as agricultural lands. In the biodiversity assessment of Mediterranean vineyards and olive orchards within Zadar County, in Croatia, we identified eight endemic species with Mediterranean distribution, six with a Balkan Peninsula distribution, four with Dinaric Alps distribution and three species rare and endangered in Europe. Alongside these species, we have recorded five new species for Croatian fauna, many of those identified by combining morphological characteristics and the DNA barcoding tool.
Neonicotinoids and Copper in the Mediterranean Agriculture – their effects on non-target invertebrates (MEDITERATRI Project (HRZZ UIP 05-2017-1046)).
Krio EntoArka – barkodiranje i pohrana DNA i tkiva ugroženih i zaštićenih kukaca u Hrvatskoj (10-102/324-247-2021).
Department of Biology, Faculty of Science at the University of Zagreb.
The coastal part of Croatia, which is situated in the wider Mediterranean region and Balkan Peninsula, has high biodiversity and numerous endemic species (
This paper aimed to identify rare and endemic invertebrate species in agricultural landscapes as a part of biodiversity assay and to analyse the proportion of endemics within vine and olive groves in Zadar County in Croatia. Fauna of rare, endemic and newly-recorded species were presented for the following invertebrate groups:
Studied vineyards and olive groves were situated in Zadar County, in the south of Croatia (Fig.
Gastropods were identified using the key of
Species pertaining to the following groups:
The information on species distribution was obtained from the following bases: Fauna Europaea (
Evenness, as well as Shannon, Simpson and Margalef diversity indices were calculated in PAST 4.03 (
A Venn diagram, depicting number of species per sampling method, was plotted using online software at
Altogether, 280 species of
Of the invertebrate fauna collected in vineyards and olive orchards in Zadar County, spiders contributed with the highest number of endemic species, six, distributed either in the Mediterranean Region or in the Dinaric Alps (Table
The ratio of endemic, rare and newly-recorded species within
Comparison of newly-recorded, endemic and rare species distribution amongst our sampling sites showed that, overall, olive orchards with EPM harboured the highest share of endemic species, but not individuals pertaining to these species (Fig.
The Shannon Diversity Index was slightly higher in EPM sites than those with IPM for spiders, but the opposite values were for carabid beetles and gastropods. A similar trend can be observed with Evenness and species richness shown as the Margalef Index, which were higher in IPM than EPM sites. The higest values of diversity indices for
The biodiversity of the Balkan Peninsula is still poorly researched, with new species and new records to Croatia being continuously reported (e.g.
The Mediterranean Region, from the Iberian Peninsula to the Balkans, is the main centre of diversity and endemism of non-marine molluscs (
Spiders provided the highest number of endemic species in this study because of their capacity to colonise large areas, including agricultural locations (
There is only ten records of
The area of
This species was recorded for Croatia for the first time by
Two carabid endemic species from this study with the area limited to the Balkan Peninsula belong to the genus
All three orthopteran endemics belong to the family
In the case of carabid beetles, notable was the record of the critically-endangered species
This herbivorous carabid species is endemic to the Balkan Peninsula (
There are five species of genus
The Coleopteran species of genus
The
The distribution of this species encompasses European countries: Austria, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Spain and Turkey and North America (
We confirmed that endemic and rare species are present in agricultural areas of the Mediterranean part of Croatia supporting the importance of agricultural land in preserving and promoting biodiversity. Rare and endemic species were found under both EPM and IPM management systems, showcasing the positive impact of these closer-to-nature management types. Additional research on regional biodiversity in agricultural landscapes is necessary especially having in mind several endangered species being recorded and agriculture as one of the main drivers for biodiversity decline. Additionally, the first records we had for the area justify the need of further biodiversity assessments, in which agricultural sites should be included.
We are grateful to Josip Skejo for his contribution in identifying
No conflict of interest to declare
Disclaimer: This article is (co-)authored by any of the Editors-in-Chief, Managing Editors or their deputies in this journal.
Map of Zadar County, Croatia with four study sites (Transverse Mercator Projection, HTRS96/TM): (1) a vineyard with IPM (located in Baštica); (2) an olive orchard with IPM (located in Škabrnja); (3) a vineyard with EPM (located in Nadin); (4) an olive orchard with EPM (located in Poličnik).
The amount of pesticides added at each study site during 2018, shown as grams of active substances applied per hectare. For site abbreviations, see Table 1.
Venn diagram depicting the number of all collected species per sampling method.
Ratio of endemic and rare to globally distributed spiders (a), carabid beetles (b) and gastropods (c) analysed for all the sites together.
Heat map depicting the ratio of each site in the number of endemic, rare and newly-recorded species (a) and the abundance of the corresponding individuals (b). Study sites are denoted with abbreviations as follows: OE - olive orchard with EPM; OI - olive orchard with IPM; VE - vineyard with EPM; VI - vineyard with IPM.
The list of study sites with additional information on location of the site, abbreviation, pest management type applied on the site, size of the area, vegetation and weed processing and soil processing in the terms of mulching, ploughing and number of pesticides treatment. Added pesticides have been grouped according to the main active compounds, those being synthetic (Organochlorides and chlorinated hydrocarbons, Organophosphates, Pyrethroids, Neonicotinoids and Ryanoids), biological (Bt kurstaki, Spinosad) and copper ones (Copper(I) oxide or copper oxychloride).
Type of Study Site | Location | Abbreviation | Pest Management Type | Area (ha) | Vegetation and weed procession | Mulching | Ploughing | Synthetic pesticides* | Biological pesticides** | Copper compounds |
Olive orchard | Poličnik, Zadar County, Croatia | OE | ecological | 24 | Rocky soil with little plant coverage and regular mowing | Yes | No | 0 | 4 | 5 |
Škabrnja, Zadar County, Croatia | OI | integrated | 0,85 | Grass coverage, surrounded by coppice, and regular mowing | Yes | No | 6 | 0 | 3 | |
Vineyard | Nadin, Zadar County, Croatia | VE | ecological | 15 | Tilled soil with weeds | Yes | Yes | 0 | 0 | 6 |
Baštica, Zadar County, Croatia | VI | integrated | 6 | Tilled soil with weeds | Yes | Yes | 12 | 0 | 3 |
Total number of identified species per taxonomic group and per sampling method used. Number zero (0) indicates that no specimens were caught by the method, while dash (/) indicates that specimens were caught, but not identified to the species level.
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Pitfall traps | Beating stick | By hand | Tullgren funel | |
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11 | / | / | 0 |
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116 | 30 | 7 | 0 |
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/ | 11 | 0 | 0 |
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65 | 0 | 24 | 0 |
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/ | 0 | 8 | 0 |
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5 | 11 | 3 | 1 |
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/ | 15 | 7 | 0 |
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/ | 14 | 2 | 0 |
List of endemic, rare and endangered species collected in all four sampling sites. M – species with the area limited to the Mediterranean Region; D – species with the area limited to the region of the Dinaric Alps; B – species with the area limited to the Balkan Peninsula.
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Diversity indices for
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Olive orchard with EPM |
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0.01 | 0 | 0.51 | 0.15 |
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3.54 | 0.96 | 0.63 | 9.87 | |
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1.87 | 0.71 | 0.27 | 4.22 | |
Olive orchard with IPM |
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1.41 | 0.69 | 0.68 | 0.98 |
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3.29 | 0.93 | 0.33 | 11.72 | |
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2.3 | 0.86 | 0.3 | 4.47 | |
Vineyard with EPM |
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1.26 | 0.8 | 1.17 | 1.24 |
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3.53 | 0.95 | 0.69 | 9.27 | |
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2.02 | 0.8 | 0.24 | 3.93 | |
Vineyard with IPM |
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1.01 | 0.44 | 0.46 | 1.41 |
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3.21 | 0.91 | 0.41 | 9.8 | |
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2.14 | 0.83 | 0.28 | 4.42 |
Supplementary figure 1
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Supplementary figure 3
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Supplementary figure 4
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