Bioblitz 2016 Lago dell’Accesa

The Maremma Natural History Museum is active in the field of Citizen Science at the Tuscan, national and international level. Among the founding bodies of the European Citizen Science Association (ECSA), it has promoted meetings for a national Citizen Science strategy in Italy, actively participated in the drafting of national guidelines on the subject and developed Citizen Science projects in Tuscany and other regions nearby. BioBlitzes are one of the best-known activities in the field of environmental Citizen Science. In May 2016, the Museum organized its fourth BioBlitz at the Accesa Lake Special Protection Area. On this occasion, data collected attested the presence of 784 different taxonomic entities, 678 of which were identified at the species level and 18 at the subspecies level. Nineteen alien species and two endemic species have been identified. Thirty-nine species protected by national or international laws and 13 endangered species have been detected. The area has been confirmed to be an important biodiversity hotspot; future utilization plans must be developed with due consideration for the fragility of the habitats close to the lake from the conservation point of view.