Lake Trasimeno (2768)
Italy, Europe
Site overview
KBA status: confirmed
Year of last assessment: 2002
National site name: Lago Trasimeno
Central coordinates: Latitude: 43.1500, Longitude: 12.0833
System: freshwater, terrestrial
Elevation (m): 258 to 262
Area of KBA (km2): 148.00172
Protected area coverage (%): 96.60
KBA classification: Regional
Legacy site: Yes
Site details
Site description: A freshwater eutrophic lake, about 10 km west of the town of Perugia. It is the largest lake in central Italy (12,000 ha) and the fourth-largest in the country. There is a belt of reeds Phragmites, of variable width, all around the lakeshore, and submerged beds of waterweed (Potamogeton, Ceratophyllum) offshore. Wet woodlands (Salix, Alnus, Ulmus) and grasslands are also present. Tourism is the main activity; pig-farming and intensive agriculture dominate the surrounding area.
Rationale for qualifying as KBA: This site qualifies as a Key Biodiversity Area of international significance that was identified using previously established criteria and thresholds for the identification of Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBAs) and for which available data indicate that it does not meet global KBA criteria and thresholds set out in the Global Standard.
Additional biodiversity: An area of international importance for wintering Phalacrocorax carbo and other waterbirds collectively (more than 20,000 occur on a regular basis, mainly Fulica atra) and for the presence of a mixed heronry. Winter count data refer to January 1993, 1994 and 1996. The number of wintering birds has greatly increased (especially Fulica atra) following the declaration of the Regional Park in 1995 and the lowering of water-levels.
Habitats
Land use: agriculture (5%) | fisheries/aquaculture (80%) | nature conservation and research (100%) | tourism/recreation (5%) | urban/industrial/transport (5%)
| IUCN Habitat | Coverage % | Habitat detail |
|---|---|---|
| Wetlands(Inland) | 87 | |
| Artificial - Terrestrial | 13 |
Threats
Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: The main threats are: the pollution of the wetland by nutrients and pesticides from the surrounding agricultural areas; the reduction in reedbed extent due to erosion; the creation of new beaches; the creation of new arable land; fires in the reedbeds; coypu Myocastor coypus, a non-native aquatic rodent, has dramatically reduced the extent of floating water-lilies Nymphaea; extraction of water for agriculture. Some or all of the site is covered by a management plan. Research is carried out on hydrobiology (Università di Perugia), botany (Università di Perugia, Università di Camerino) and ornithology (Provincia di Perugia).