Biota of coastal wetlands of Praia da Vitória (Terceira Island, Azores): Part 2 - Bryophytes.

Background: During the LIFE-CWR project "Ecological Restoration and Conservation of Coastal Wet Green Infrastructures", there was the opportunity to undertake a systematic record of bryophytes at (PPV), (PBJ) and (PPCP), three coastal wetland areas of (Terceira, Azores, Portugal). The objective of the study was to perform a biodiversity assessment, comparing the three sites at two different moments, before and after the implementation of several conservation measures. This project also contributed to improve the knowledge of Azorean bryophyte diversity at both local and regional scales, including the recording of two new taxa for the Azores and three new taxa for Terceira Island.

Biota from the coastal wetlands of Praia da Vitória (Terceira, Azores, Portugal): Part 3 - Birds.

Background: The data presented here come from field observations of Aves between August 2013 and October 2018 as part of a LIFE research project aiming to preserve and restore three coastal wetlands from Praia da Vitória (Terceira Island, Azores, Portugal). Systematic monthly observations were carried out for five years in order to provide a checklist and monitoring of bird species and subspecies observed in three sites: Paul da Praia da Vitória (PPV), Paul do Belo Jardim (PBJ) and Paul da Pedreira do Cabo da Praia (PPCP). Main objectives were to determine their ornithological richness while also adding data to the overall knowledge of Azorean Avifauna and to monitor seasonal and between-year variation on species abundance.

Species conservation profiles of cave-dwelling arthropods from Azores, Portugal.

Background: Azorean volcanic cave biodiversity is under considerable pressure due to ongoing threats of pollution, land use change, touristic activities or climate change. In this contribution, we present the IUCN Red List profiles of 15 cave-adapted arthropod species, endemic to the Azorean archipelago, including species belonging to the speciose genus (Carabidae), which is represented in Azores by seven species. The objective of this paper is to assess all endemic Azorean cave-adapted species and advise on possible future research and conservation actions critical for the long-term survival of the most endangered species.

Biota from the coastal wetlands of Praia da Vitória (Terceira, Azores, Portugal): Part 1 - Arthropods.

Background: During a LIFE research project aiming at the implementation of the conservation of the habitats and restoration of coastal wetland areas of Praia da Vitória (Terceira, Azores, Portugal), there was the opportunity undertake a systematic record of several groups of arthropods in three wetland areas: Paul da Praia da Vitória (PPV), Paul do Belo Jardim (PBJ) and Paul da Pedreira do Cabo da Praia (PPCP). The objective of the study was to perform a rapid biodiversity assessment, comparing the three sites in two different years, before and after the implementation of several conservation measures. This project also contributed to improve the knowledge of Azorean arthropod diversity at both local and regional scales, including new taxa for Terceira island and new records for Azores.

Conservation status of the forest beetles (Insecta, Coleoptera) from Azores, Portugal.

Background: Island biodiversity is under considerable pressure due to the ongoing threats of invasive alien species, land use change or climate change. The few remnants of Azorean native forests harbour a unique set of endemic beetles, some of them possibly already extinct or under severe long term threat due to the small areas of the remaining habitats or climatic changes. In this contribution we present the IUCN Red List profiles of 54 forest adapted beetle species endemic to the Azorean archipelago, including species belonging to four speciose families: Zopheridae (12 species), Carabidae (11 species), Curculionidae (11 species) and Staphylinidae (10 species).

Birds from the Azores: An updated list with some comments on species distribution.

Background: An updated checklist of the Birds of the Azores is presented based on information compiled from Rodrigues et al. (2010) and from the websites, Azores Bird Club. (2014), Aves dos Açores (2014) Azores Bird Sightings (2014) and Vittery (2014), since 2010.

PESI - a taxonomic backbone for Europe.

Background: Reliable taxonomy underpins communication in all of biology, not least nature conservation and sustainable use of ecosystem resources. The flexibility of taxonomic interpretations, however, presents a serious challenge for end-users of taxonomic concepts. Users need standardised and continuously harmonised taxonomic reference systems, as well as high-quality and complete taxonomic data sets, but these are generally lacking for non-specialists.