Introduction

The Sila Massif is a very peculiar mountainous area, located at the southern part of the Apennines (Italy). It is geologically a piece of Alps which has been migrated with Corsica and Sardinia from Provence across the Mediterranean Sea toward the current position. The geological substratum is mainly granitic, differing from the calcareous-karst of the rest of Apennines, promoting a pronounced surface hydrography. The richness of waters in this area, joined with the characteristics of rocks, confers a typical cold-humid climate. The acid substratum, the high soil permeability due to the sands derived from the meteoric alteration of granitic rocks, and the large surface of territory with an altitude higher than 1100 metres above the sea level, create climatic and environmental conditions favouring the presence of relict populations of plants and animals usually distributed at higher latitudes (BRANDMAYR et al., 2013). The Sila Massif is characterized by the forests of Calabrian black pine, Pinus laricio calabrica (Loudon) Cesca & Peruzzi, an endemic conifer subspecies which extends along the Italian regions of Calabria and Sicily (CESCA & PERUZZI, 2002). Calabrian black pine forests of the Sila Massif appear heterogeneous, interrupted by pastures, crops and beech forests, sometimes mixed with silver fir trees. During and after the Second World War, pine forests of the Sila Massif were intensively deforested causing a large soil erosion and altering the natural evolution of woodlands. A great part of pure pine forests, located between 900 and 1300 m asl, are reforestations carried out between the years 1950 and 1970 (IOVINO & MENGUZZATO, 2000; CIANCIO et al., 2005). Over time, Sila pine forests acquired a great conservation importance and most of the pine forests are nowadays within the Sila National Park (CIANCIO et al., 2010), which includes several Sites of Community Importance (SCI) (BRANDMAYR et al., 2013). Furthermore, this forest type is included among the (Sub-) Mediterranean pine forests with endemic black pines (Habitat Code 9530) (Habitat Directive 92/43/EEC).

Lepidopteran fauna of the Sila Massif was explored by several authors which highlighted the great interest of this mountainous area providing always surprises to lepidopterists. For example, the recently described Nothocasis rosariae Scalercio, Infusino & Hausmann, 2016 (Geometridae) has here its locus typicus (SCALERCIO et al., 2016). Among macrolepidoptera, one species is endemic of this massif, Itame messapiaria Sohn-Rethel, 1929 (Geometridae), a number of species has relict populations here, some of which reported in Italy with certitude only for the Alps and for Sila Massif and neighbouring areas, namely Brenthis ino (Rottemburg, 1775) (Nymphalidae), Acossus terebra ([Denis & Schiffermüller], 1775) (Cossidae), Eupithecia indigata ([Hübner, 1813]) (Geometridae), Dichagyris signifera ([Denis & Schiffermüller], 1775) (Noctuidae). Furthermore, Zygaena nevadensis Rambur, 1858 (Zygaenidae) and Eupithecia conterminata (Lienig, 1846) (Geometridae) are known with certitude in Italy only from the Sila Massif (EFETOV et al., 2011; INFUSINO & SCALERCIO, 2015). Although its great biogeographic importance, very few data concerning abundance and community composition of moths inhabiting the Sila Massif are available (SCALERCIO et al., 2008; INFUSINO et al., 2017a), and none of these is specifically devoted to the fauna of Calabrian black pine forests. This kind of data are of crucial importance for identifying modifications in the ecosystem due to land-use and climate changes.

The aim of this study was to improve the knowledge about moth fauna inhabiting Calabrian black pine forests, exploring mature forests, young reforestations, and non-forested habitats surrounded by a forest matrix. We reported the complete checklist of sampled moth species, with abundance and phenology data.

Material and methods

STUDY AREA

The massif is conventionally divided into three geographic zones, named Sila Greca, Sila Grande and Sila Piccola, from the North to the South. This study was carried out in the Sila Grande, largely covered by Calabrian black pine forests. Investigated forests are partly included in the Sila National Park and extend between 1270 and 1446 meters of altitude. We sampled 15 stands, grouped in 5 threes (SL_A_1,2,3, SL_B_1,2,3, SL_C_1,2,3, SL_D_1,2,3, SL_E_1,2,3). Stands composing a threes were located in the same locality in order to reduce the bias due to uncontrolled environmental parameters. Furthermore, any threes are composed by one mature pine forest, one reforestation, and one open habitat surrounded by a forest matrix (Figure 1, Table I).

SAMPLING DESIGN

Moth sampling was carried out by using UV-Led light traps (further details in INFUSINO et al 2017b). One trap was positioned in each stand, activated one night per month during nights favorable to the moth activity (i.e. low wind intensity, no full moon interference, no or very low rainfall, temperatures near the average of the period). The sampling was carried out in two years, from May to November 2015 in the threes SL_A, SL_B and SL_C, and from April to November 2016 in SL_A, the only threes replicated for two years, SL_D and SL_E. In detail, 2015 sampling nights were 18-V, 15-VI, 17-VII, 18-VIII, 7-IX, 5-X, and 4-XI, and 2016 sampling nights were 12-IV, 11-V, 7-VI, 5-VII, 25-VII, 13-IX, 3-X, and 7-XI.

Collected specimens were identified according to the available literature and preserved in the collection of the Council for Agricultural Research and Economics, Research Centre for Forestry and Wood (CREA-FL), Rende (Cosenza), Italy. Most difficult species were dissected for a correct identification. Nomenclature follow the most recent version of Fauna Europaea (KARSHOLT & NIEUKERKEN, 2013). Species are listed in alphabetical order within any family.

Results

A total of 367 species and 18,827 individuals belonging to 13 families was collected. In the following faunistic list we reported for any species the number of individuals collected in each stand, the total abundance and the phenology indicated as the month of sampling.

Discussion

Most abundant species in Calabrian black pine forests were Thaumetopoea pityocampa (Notodontidae) (11.7%) and Alcis repandata (Geometridae) (10.5%). The first species, already known for its role as defoliator, usually lives in sub-nemoral habitats and has oligophagous larvae feeding on conifers, mainly Pinus spp., Larix spp., Picea spp., and Juniperus spp. (BERTACCINI et al., 1997). The second species usually prefers nemoral habitats and has polyphagous larvae mainly feeding on trees and shrubs (HELLMANN & PARENZAN, 2010). The 65% of individuals belonged to 23 species only, whilst the remaining 344 species, with less than the 1% of occurrence each, represented the 35.7% of total abundance (Figure 2).

Conifers are the main larval foodplant of 11 species and 4,984 individuals, representing the 26.5% of the whole community (Table II). Particularly interesting was the abundance of Eupithecia indigata, a species only recently discovered in Italy outside the Alps in a mixed reforestation of broadleaves and conifers of the Catena Costiera mountains, Calabria (SCALERCIO, 2004, 2014). Successively, it was also found in a beech forest (SCALERCIO et al., 2008) and in a mixed forest (INFUSINO & SCALERCIO, 2015) of the Sila Massif, always with rare individuals. This species was particularly abundant in pure Calabrian black pine stands because larvae are oligophagous on conifers (MIRONOV, 2003). Also, the recently described Italian endemic Hylaea mediterranea, another species with larvae feeding on conifers, was abundant, and together with E. indigata contributed to compose and unique species assemblage univocally characterizing moth fauna of the Calabrian black pine forests of the Sila Massif.

Species feeding only on herbaceous plants composed the most richs (164 species), and abundant (5,594 individuals) portion of the community, representing about the 30% of the total abundance (Table II). Most of them are nemoral or sub-nemoral such as Epirrhoe galiata (n=655), E. alternata (n=232), Idaea deversaria (n=651), Scotopteryx luridata (n=259), Cerastis rubricosa (n=255), Charanyca ferruginea (n=215), and Pachetra sagittigera (n=472), whilst species preferring grasslands were less represented with only Agrotis cinerea (n=390) and Chiasmia clathrata (n=207) collected in a high number of individuals. Also, the abundance of Colostygia sericeata (n=200) should be underlined, as the taxonomic identity of southern Italy populations is still uncertain (HAUSMANN & VIIDALEPP, 2012).

During the spring, communities were dominated by Eupithecia indigata, particularly common within denser forest stands, whilst open habitats were characterized by Agrotis cinerea. Well represented were also Epirrhoe galiata, Pachetra sagittigera and Cerastis rubricosa. During the summer, several species attained high abundance values among which Thaumetopoea pityocampa, Alcis repandata, Idaea deversaria, and Dendrolimus pini were dominant. During the autumn most abundant species, were Pennithera firmata and Colostygia sericeata, accompanied by Larentia clavaria and Conistra torrida. Species characterizing the fauna of Calabrian black pine forests were generally monovoltine, as usually occur in mountain habitats, with the exception of Hylaeamediterranea on wings from May to July and from September to October. The endemic Itame messapiaria is likely monovoltine although it showed a prolonged flying period lasting from May to early September. Other bivoltine species, such as Aplocera plagiata, Charissa onustaria, Cosmorhoe ocellata, Gymnoscelis rufifasciata, Peribatodes rhomboidaria, and Pseudoterpna coronillaria, were widespread, occurring in southern Italy within several habitat types at different altitudes.

In this paper we confirmed the presence in the Sila Massif of several species of great biogeographic interest: Acossus terebra and Dichagyris signifera known in Italy with certitude outside the Alps only in the Sila Massif (PARENZAN, 1982; ZILLI, 2005); Acasis appensata, Mesotype didymata, and Plusidia cheiranthi known in southern Italy only in the Sila Massif (PARENZAN, 1979; INFUSINO et al., 2017c); Trichopteryx carpinata and Lithophanesocia only recently found in Calabria for the first time (INFUSINO et al., 2017c), but the latter erroneously identified as L. semibrunnea due to a mistake in a plate of BERIO (1985) used for the species identification. The relevant interest of the fauna of this forest type was completed by the presence of the following Italian endemic species: Hydriomena sanfilensis, Idaea mutilata, Itame messapiaria, Megalycinia serraria, Nychiodes ragusaria, and Xanthorhoe vidanoi.

Conclusions

Calabrian pine forests are differently managed depending on their location. Inside the boundaries of the Sila National Park, the pine forests are preserved for conservation purposes, outside the Park they are submitted to various timber harvest strategies. Several reforested hectares are only rarely managed and then prone to fires and damages due to severe climatic conditions (NICOLACI et al., 2014). We sampled moth communities within all these differently managed Calabrian black pine forests, that showed in all cases a very interesting and characteristic spectrum of species, rich of relicts and endemics. Furthermore, sampled communities are a faunistic unicum as host species the range of which is overlapped only in this forest type of the Calabria region. In addition, preliminary results showed that also the most abundant species trophically linked to conifers, Thaumetopoea pityocampa, has a population genetically different from those of the rest of the Apennines (TREMATERRA et al., 2017), confirming the long isolation history of this conifer forest composed by an endemic tree.

Aknowledgement

We thank Marco Infusino, Carlo Di Marco, Carlo De Donato, and Antonio Impieri (Italy) for helping in the field. The current investigation was funded as part of the Project “ALForLab” (PON03PE_00024_1) co-funded by the National Operational Programme for Research and Competitiveness (PON R&C) 2007-2013, through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and national resource [Revolving Fund - Cohesion Action Plan (CAP) MIUR].

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Author notes

*Autor para la correspondendcia / Corresponding author E-mail: stefano.scalercio@crea.gov.it