DIVERSITÀ BIOCULTURALE DI ALCUNI PAESAGGI MEDITERRANEI DI MONTAGNA

The work presents a biocultural diversity interpretation of traditional Mediterranean agricultural landscapes. These landscapes are the result of complex interactions between biodiversity (at all levels, including species richness, ecosystem and biotope diversity) and cultural diversity, including material and immaterial aspects (architectural heritage, traditions, customs, local traditional agricultural practices, dialectal culture, etc.). The main theme is the traditional use of water related to traditional hydraulic systems, which in some areas date back to medieval times. Traditional agricultural landscapes grant a variety of ecosystem services and play a key role in biodiversity conservation. They support the persistence of a rich heritage of cultivated plant varieties and, at the same time, determine an ecosystem infrastructure that preserves wild animal and plant biodiversity.