Description
LIFE+ TEN project: species protection demonstration action - safeguarding marble trout populations
The species
The marble trout(Salmo marmoratus), a species of Community interest, is a fish that can greatly exceed one metre in length and ten kilos in weight. It lives in rivers and streams at medium and low altitudes characterised by cool, well-oxygenated water, rich in rocks, boulders and gravel and with deep holes.
The problem
The rarefaction of marble trout has been caused
- by water pollution
- by the alteration of the water regime of watercourses
- by structural modifications caused by weirs and other hydraulic works that isolate marble trout populations and prevent spawners from reaching their traditional spawning sites.
- especially in the past, by genetic pollution resulting from the introduction by fishermen of brown trout(Salmo fario) with which marble trout can hybridise.
Objective of the action
Along the Adige river, upstream of the confluence of the Avisio stream, a NATURA 2000 Network site Foci dell'Avisio, the banks will be remodelled with the creation of submerged obstacles to make them more similar to natural banks and consequently more suitable to the ecological needs of marble trout.
Expected results:
- Significant environmental improvement of an important stretch of the largest water course in Trentino so as to substantially increase its capacity to host marble trout specimens.
Documentation