
Daniela GiganteUniversity of Perugia | UNIPG · Dept. of Agricultural, Food and Environmental sciences
Daniela Gigante
Dr. PhD
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194
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Introduction
Additional affiliations
January 2006 - present
Publications
Publications (194)
The current issue is the first one of the journal Vegetation Ecology and Diversity, formerly Plant Sociology, the international peer-reviewed journal of the Italian Society of Vegetation Science (SISV). Vegetation Ecology and Diversity (VED) publishes original research articles covering all aspects of vegetation, ranging from plant communities to l...
An entomological research and collecting expedition took place in Mongolia, from July 30 till August 20, 2022.
This three-week excursion in the northeast of Mongolia investigated the insect fauna in a range of habitats across the aimaks of Ulaanbaator, Khentii and Dornod. The habitats included parts of the southern border of taiga forests of Siber...
The inventory of the taxa collected in 2021 during the annual field trip of the Working Group for Floristics, Systematics, and Evolution of the Italian Botanical Society is reported. The field trip was held in the Mount Pennino massif, between Umbria and Marche administrative regions (central Italy). The flora documented for the study area amounts...
Introduction
Crop Wild Relatives (CWR) have great socioeconomic importance for humans harbouring a broad spectrum of diversity and being important elements of different habitats. Beta vulgaris subsp. maritima ((L.) Arcangeli), also known as sea beet, is an important CWR of cultivated beets (GP-1). The high adaptability of this taxon to different en...
In accordance with the 92/43/EEC “Habitats” Directive, Mediterranean temporary ponds are identified as a priority natural habitat within the European context. They are a very interesting and unique habitat type, as ecological conditions can vary greatly in a short period of time. Due to their small size, many Mediterranean hydrophytic bryophytes ty...
This study contributes to the knowledge and understanding of Annex I priority habitat 3170*, where bryophytes play an essential role in the ecological patterns and are a significant indicator, especially concerning habitat monitoring, assessment and management.
In this paper, we analyze the bryological component of Mediterranean temporary ponds in...
Crop Wild Relatives (CWR) are wild plant taxa genetically close to a crop. Being a precious source of genetic variability and of traits for crop improvement, CWR have a high socioeconomic value and are identified among the main plant genetic resources. Alarming enough, the inter-and intraspecific diversity, as well as their habitat diversity, is un...
Seminatural grasslands are among the most threatened habitats in Europe and worldwide, mainly due to changes in/abandonment of their traditional extensive use by grazing animals. This study aimed to develop an innovative model that integrates plant biodiversity, animal husbandry, and geo-informatics to manage and preserve seminatural grasslands in...
Grasslands cover a substantial portion of the earth’s surface and agricultural land and is crucial for human well-being and livestock farming. Ranchers and grassland management authorities face challenges in effectively controlling herders’ grazing behavior and grassland utilization due to underdeveloped infrastructure and poor communication in pas...
Understanding grassland habitat dynamics in space and time is crucial for evaluating the effectiveness of protection measures and developing sustainable management practices, specifically within the Natura 2000 network and in light of the European Biodiversity Strategy. Land cover maps, derived from remote sensing data, are essential for understand...
Recently, object recognition and image segmentation have gained much attention in the computer vision field and image processing for effective object localisation and identification. Researchers have applied semantic segmentation and instance segmentation in diverse application areas. However, the least research has been performed in natural habita...
New Italian data on the distribution of the Annex I Habitats are reported in this contribution. Specifically, 8 new occurrences in Natura 2000 sites are presented and 49 new cells are added in the EEA 10 km × 10 km reference grid. The new data refer to the Italian administrative regions of Campania, Calabria, Marche, Piedmont, Sardinia, Sicily, Tus...
Understanding how habitats in the European Natura 2000 network change over time and space is crucial to evaluating the effectiveness of protective measures and developing sustainable management practices. Satellite remote sensing through Earth observation offers a cost-effective, timely, reproducible vegetation analysis. This study aims to analyze...
Despite the remarkable growth of the global market for robotics, robotic monitoring of habitats is still an understudied topic. This is true, among others, for the species-rich EU Annex I habitat “6210 - Semi-natural grasslands and scrubland facies on calcareous substrates”. This habitat is typically surveyed by human operators. In this work, we pr...
We propose methods to automatically assess the conservation status of a habitat. Habitat monitoring is usually performed by botanists and other specialists in their field work, searching for the presence or lack of typical plant species (Evans D, Arvela M (2011) Assessment and reporting under Article 17 of the Habitats Directive. Explanatory Notes...
In this paper, we first discuss the challenges related to habitat monitoring and review possible robotic solutions. Then, we propose a framework to perform terrestrial habitat monitoring exploiting the mobility of legged robotic systems. The idea is to provide the robot with the Natural Intelligence introduced as the combination of the environment...
New Italian data on the distribution of Annex I Habitats are reported in this contribution. Specifically, 8 new occurrences in Natura 2000 sites are presented and 27 new cells are added in the EEA 10 km × 10 km reference grid. The new data refer to the Italian administrative regions of Apulia, Campania, Calabria, Lazio, Tuscany, Umbria, Sardinia, a...
As reflectance measured via remote sensing is connected to plant light use and morpho-structural features, it can be used to derive spectral proxies of functional traits, or spectro-functional traits. Focusing on disentangling intraspecific trait variability in nature, we evaluated the links between haplotype and spectro-functional traits in Phragm...
Aim of this work is to evaluate the in situ status of different crop wild relative species in Italy by analysing the geographic distribution of their populations and to suggests possible strategies to improve their future conservation. The work has been focused on different species of the Allium, Beta, Brassica, Secale and Triticum genera that are...
As reflectance measured via remote sensing is connected to plant light use and morpho-structural features, it can be used to derive spectral proxies of functional traits, or spectro-functional traits. Focusing on disentangling intraspecific trait variability in nature, we evaluated the links between haplotype and spectro-functional traits in Phragm...
Take home Message: Grazing goats vary the ingestion and select different portions of grasses, shrubs, and trees to adapt to changeable grazing conditions and to optimize fiber and protein intake across different seasons. The quality of milk changes depending on goat feeding behavior.
Introduction:
Goat farming is ideally associated with unfavourab...
In this contribution, new data concerning the distribution of native vascular flora in Italy are presented. It includes new records, confirmations, and exclusions to the Italian administrative regions. Nomenclatural and distribution updates, published elsewhere, and corrigenda are provided as Suppl. material 1.
New Italian data on the distribution of the Annex I Habitats 1510*, 2130*, 2250*, 3180*, 3260, 5230*, 6410, 7140, 7220*, 9320 are
reported in this contribution. Specifically, 14 new occurrences in Natura 2000 sites are presented and 20 new cells are added in the
EEA 10 km × 10 km reference grid. The new data refer to the Italian administrative regi...
The main purpose of the 92/43/EEC Habitats Directive is to contribute to the conservation of biodiversity, understood as habitat types and species of the flora and fauna of the European Union. To achieve this goal, natural and semi-natural biodiversity as a whole must be recognized and included in its annexes. As for the conservation of biotopes, n...
In this contribution, new data concerning the distribution of native vascular flora in Italy are presented. It includes new records, confirmations, exclusions, and status changes to the Italian administrative regions. Nomenclatural and distribution updates, published elsewhere, and corrigenda are provided as Suppl. material 1.
Habitat monitoring in Europe is regulated by Article 17 of the Habitats Directive, which suggests the use of typical species to assess habitat conservation status. Yet, the Directive uses the term “typical” species but does not provide a definition, either for its use in reporting or for its use in impact assessments. To address the issue, an onlin...
With the general objective of producing a 2018–2020 Land Use/Land Cover (LULC) map of the Maiella National Park (central Italy), useful for a future long-term LULC change analysis, this research aimed to develop a Landsat 8 (L8) data composition and classification process using Google Earth Engine (GEE). In this process, we compared two pixel-based...
In this contribution, new data concerning the distribution of vascular flora alien to Italy are presented. It includes new records, confirmations, exclusions, and status changes for Italy or for Italian administrative regions. Nomenclatural and distribution updates published elsewhere are provided as Suppl. material 1.
Wild harvested plants (WHP) and crop wild relatives (CWR), part of the segment of natural diversity that is collectively known as ‘Plant Genetic Resources’, have great socioeconomic importance for humans because they are used either directly or in crop breeding. In order to lay down a solid base for constructing conservation strategies for Italy, a...
Italy has a rich natural heritage, which is dangerously under pressure. In recent years, there is an increased awareness of the crucial role of plants in ecosystem functioning and in providing ecosystem services. Consequently, an updated Red List of the Italian vascular flora was compiled in this work, at the request of the Ministry for Environment...
Italy is located in the heart of the Mediterranean Basin, a region considered one of the most threatened global biodiversity hotspots. Its environmental and climatic heterogeneity allowed the differentiation of a large number of plant species (more than 8.200 taxa), that however are subjected to an increased number of threats due to changes in soci...
Invasive alien plants are a major threat to biodiversity and they contribute to the unfavourable conservation status of habitats of interest to the European Community. In order to favour implementation of European Union Regulation no. 1143/2014 on invasive alien species, the Italian Society of Vegetation Science carried out a large survey led by a...
The current issue is the first one of the new version of Plant Sociology , the international peer-reviewed journal of the "Società Italiana di Scienza della Vegetazione" (SISV). The technical management of the journal has been entrusted to the editorial platform Pensoft, the Editorial Board has been largely reshaped, now including also a dedicated...
Coastal dunes are among habitats with the worst conservation status on a global, European and national scale. Monitoring and reporting are of strategic importance to determine the effectiveness of the implementation of Habitats Directive and to preserve the unique biodiversity heritage of the Italian dunes. In this study we show main results of the...
This study provides a first step toward the knowledge of the alien-dominated and co-dominated plant communities present in Italy. The first ever checklist of the alien phytocoenoses described or reported in literature for the Italian territory has been compiled, produced by data-mining in national and local thematic literature. The resulting vegeta...
The conservation status of plant species is an important tool for their effective conservation, but it has been evaluated only in a low number of taxa up to now. In this frame, the national assessment of Juncus atratus Krock., a Central European-South Siberian wet meadow species, is here provided. J. atratus is a rare and threatened species in Cent...
The 4th edition of the International Code of Phytosociological Nomenclature (ICPN) was prepared by the Steering Committee of the IAVS Working Group for Phytosociological Nomenclature (GPN). The edition consists of 14 Definitions, 7 Principles, 53 Articles, and 7 Appendices. When compared with the previous edition, the main amendments are (1) the ac...
In this contribution, new data concerning the distribution of native vascular flora in Italy are presented. It includes new records, confirmations, exclusions, and status changes to the Italian administrative regions for taxa in the genera Ajuga , Chamaemelum , Clematis , Convolvulus , Cytisus , Deschampsia , Eleocharis , Epipactis , Euphorbia , Gr...
In this contribution, new data concerning the distribution of the Annex I Habitats 5110, 6110*, 6510, 7210* are reported. In particular, five new cells in the EEA 10 km x 10 km reference grid and two new occurrences in Natura 2000 Sites are presented. No Habitat is proposed for elimination from any cell. The novelty of these data refers to the resu...
New data concerning the distribution of the 92/43/EEC Directive's Annex I Habitats 3160, 3170*, 3240, 4090, 6110*, 6510, 9540 in Italy are reported. They include four new occurrences in Natura 2000 Sites and 12 new cells in the EEA 10 km x 10 km Reference grid. This is the first contribution focused on reporting about new national and regional Anne...
Large thematic databases of vegetation plots are increasingly needed for vegetation studies and biodiversity
research. In this paper, we present the CircumMed Pine Forest Database (GIVD ID: EU-00-026), which in
November 2018, comprised records from 6317 pine-dominated vegetation plots (relevés) and associated vegetation
types from 20 countries of t...
Patterns and trends of declining reed-beds in four freshwater ecosystems in central Italy are investigated through an aerial orthoimagery-based diachronic analysis over a period of 24 years. Extent variations and retreat from the waterfront are detected in all sites, compensated only in few cases by backwards enlargements. These shape and size modi...
Phragmites australis die-back is a well known phenomenon in Central Europe and rather recently observed also in some Mediterranean wetlands. In this study we analyze the genetic structure of a reed-bed in a protected wetland in N-W Tuscany (Italy) recently showing some clear symptoms of die-back, in particular the clumped growth-form, searching for...
The first overview of the bryophytic vegetation of the Mediterranean temporary ponds in Umbria region is reported. Phytosociological relevés were carried out in a scattered system of ephemeral pools, where seasonal fluctuation in the water level is the main driving factor. By applying Braun-Blanquet's approach to sample the bryo-communities and mul...
The microbiota inhabiting the soil, as well as the rhizosphere, represents a key determinant of several plant functions. Like for humans, dysbiosis of the plant-associated microbiota may be a co-causal agent in disease with still obscure eziology. In the last decades, the common reed Phragmites australis has been deeply studied for its disappearanc...
Taxa endemic to a country are key elements for setting national conservation priorities and for driving conservation strategies, since their persistence is entirely dependent on national policy. We applied the IUCN Red List categories to all Italian endemic vascular plants (1,340 taxa) to assess their current risk of extinction and to highlight the...
Sexual plant reproduction is a strategy that allows plant populations to increase genetic variability, and consequently to be more efficient in adapting to new environments and to overcome stress conditions. Here, we focus on the reproductive mode of Phragmites australis, an important sub-cosmopolite species that can spread both by clonal propagati...
New national and regional bryophyte
records, 55
L. T. Ellis1, O. M. Afonina2, M. Aleffi3, R. L. Andriamiarisoa4, M. Bačkor5,
M. Goga5, H. Bednarek-Ochyra6, D. A. Callaghan7, P. Campisi8, M. G. Dia8,
M. L. Marino8, J. Enroth9, P. Erzberger10, V. Hugonnot11, E. A. Ignatova12,
T. Kiebacher13, J. Kučera14, M. Lebouvier15, G. M. Maria16, S. S¸ tefănut¸1...
The importance of taking into account ecosystems, plant communities and habitats for the development of biodiversity
conservation strategies is increasingly acknowledged. Recently, the first ever European Red List of Habitats was produced,
which provided an evaluation of the extinction risk of EUNIS-based natural and semi-natural habitats in Europe...
The importance of taking into account ecosystems, plant communities and habitats for the development of biodiversity conservation strategies is increasingly acknowledged. Recently, the first ever European Red List of Habitats was produced, which provided an evaluation of the extinction risk of EUNIS-based natural and semi-natural habitats in Europe...
Phragmites australis is a subcosmopolitan species typical of wetlands being studied in Europe for its disappearance from natural stands, a phenomenon called reed die-back syndrome (RDBS). Although it is conjectured that low genetic variability contributes to RDBS, this aspect remains neglected to this day. Using a molecular fingerprinting approach...
The Authors present a list of marshy and wet vegetation described or present in Italy included in the Magnocaricetalia Pignati 1953 Order (Phragmito-Magnocaricetea Klika in Klika et Novák 1941 Class) focusing on nomenclatural, floristic, physiognomic and ecological traits reported by Authors in the examined literature.
Widespread trends of abandonment have strongly affected Mediterranean mountains after the Second World War, triggering spontaneous recolonisation of forests. A diachronic analysis of the landscape in a Natura
2000 site (Tuscany, Italy) was carried out using digital aerial photographs (1954, 2013) and a GIS-based methodology, focusing on territories...
Mediterranean temporary ponds (MTP) are considered among the most interesting habitats in the Mediterranean bioclimatic region due to the range of rare and threatened taxa they host. Their ephemeral vegetation presents a particular floristic composition, adapted to unstable ecological conditions due to the alternation between flood and drought. Ind...
It is well known that since more than half a century, in Europe, Phragmites australis is suffering a process of decline, known in literature as 'common reed die-back'. Several hypotheses have been formulated but the actual causes of the phenomenon have been only partially understood. The several studies produced on this topic generally focused on t...
Phragmites australis (Cav.) Trin. ex Steud. die-back is a widely-studied phenomenon that was first discovered in northern Europe and that, until recently, was almost unknown in the Mediterranean basin. It has been described as a complex syndrome affecting reed populations leading to their retreat and decline, with significant impacts on valuable ec...