Low Adriatic Species and Habitat
The contraction of biological diversity (number, variety and variability of living organisms) affects not only the natural environment, but also our economic and social goals. The priority of preserving biodiversity, and the possible consequences of not doing so, makes it a cross - border issue: it is important to maintain and strengthen ecosystems by giving them space to develop all their functions and to flexibly react on climate change and human effects. For these reasons four management bodies of parks and protected areas in Italy (three located in Puglia and one in Molise) and both national agencies for the management of national parks of Albania and Montenegro  decided to implement together a common action to promote and support the biodiversity safeguard and to develop joint management plans for cross-border habitat and ecosystem. Particularly, the project LASPEH (Low Adriatic Species and Habitat) focused its attention on three species and three habitat  very important for their ecological value, extinction concerns or endemic aspects in the Low Adriatic basin.  The three species (and their pilot areas) are: tetrao urogallus (National Park Mali Tomorrit/Albania), botaurus stellaris (Regional Natural Reserves of the Eastern Coast of Taranto/Puglia) and aythya nyroca (Regional Natural Park "Litorale of Ugento"/Puglia); the three habitat (with their pilot area) are: pseudo - steppe with grasses and annuals of Thero - Brachypodietea (Regional Natural Park "Coastal dunes from Torre Canne to Torre San Leonardo"/Puglia), Tilio - Acerlon forests of slopes, screes and ravines (Oasi WWF Guardiaregia-Campochiaro/Molise) and Macedonian pinus peuce forests (National Park of Lovcen/Montenegro). For each identified species/habitat PPs will develop a specific pilot project activity and plan (together) common cross - border guidelines for the management in the program area of the same species/habitat.