The Mediterranean basin is one of the most important biodiversity hotspots. However, only 5% of its original vegetation is still in place, and the landscape has been managed and transformed by humans for at least the last two millennia. In the last century the mechanization of agriculture and the overuse of semi-natural habitats have influenced the region even more than before, with huge consequences, especially on islands. Sardinia is the second largest island in the Mediterranean basin, and it has been considered for long as a semi-natural area with an economy based on traditional agroforestry and pastoral practices. Considering four maps covering Sardinia and ranging from 1935 to 2007, we measured the rate of forest changes demonstrating a constant trend towards forest increase, and with a complete recovery of the total forest surface compared to the late 1800s.The traditional agroforestry practices decrease in time due to socio-economic reasons, with deeper consequences for the mosaic of traditional agricultural areas and semi-natural habitats, as well as for the conservation of the unique biodiversity of Sardinia. Species typically linked to Mediterranean forests recovered and are recovering, while species linked to traditional semi-natural landscapes decreased, facing conservation problems. We suggest that the current challenges for biodiversity conservation in the island should be focused together with the agricultural policies towards the preservation and improvement of traditional open areas, even important in the history of the entire Mediterranean hotspot.

The Corsican red deer, a sub-species of the European red deer endemic to Sardinia and Corsica, was abundant on both islands at the beginning of 1900. It went extinct in Corsica and reached a minimum of 100 individuals in Sardinia by 1970. Numbers have recovered in Sardinia with more than 1,000 rutting males now present; in the 1980s the deer was reintroduced to Corsica, but the Sardinian population remains fragmented. We developed a potential distribution model in Sardinia using Ecological Niche Factor Analysis. To assess the deer's protection status we compared the model with the existing and proposed conservation areas and investigated different conservation scenarios in relation to the expansion of its current range and resilience to future changes in land use and predicted trends of desertification. According to our results over 70% of Sardinia is unsuitable to the deer, nevertheless high suitability areas (Mediterranean forests away from main roads) are available throughout the island, particularly in the south and in the central-eastern part. Existing protected areas do not provide for the conservation of the deer but public owned forests, where hunting is prohibited, extend some level of protection, and the protected areas proposed by the Regional administration, if implemented, will be increasing this protection. Three main areas have emerged as conservation priorities to guarantee adequate conservation potential in the future. Our approach provides valuable data to inform conservation policy, and could be easily replicated in other parts of the Mediterranean

The crested porcupine Hystrix cristata L. is a large rodent, which mainly occurs in agro-forestry ecosystems in Italy. In this study, we modelled the occupancy of this species in forest ecosystems, to identify environmental characteristics affecting its presence. The study was conducted at Lago di Vico Natural Reserve (Latium, Central Italy) in 2018–2019. The sampling design included a 1 km2 grid, where 263 detections were recorded at 39 out of 57 camera-trap points. Dendroauxometric data were collected at each site as covariates in the statistical models. According to our best occupancy model, the crested porcupine mostly occurs in habitats not totally covered by forests, but composed by mixed landscape patches both for the land use (crops, woods) and for the coverage (forested areas, open areas, bushes). We also analysed activity rhythms of the crested porcupine across seasons and in relation to the moon phases. The analysis of 543 videos showed that crested porcupine is strictly nocturnal throughout the year and avoided bright nights, despite the local absence of potential predators.