CHECK LIST AVIFAUNISTICA DEI PRINCIPALI LAGHI ARTIFICIALI DELLA SICILIA OCCIDENTALE

New data on the birds of the humid zones of western Sicily. Over time, the significance of checklists as essential tools for managing Sicily’s natural heritage has been underscored by the requirements outlined in international, particularly in relation to implementing the Habitats Directive. Compiling and updating checklists of fauna and flora for each specific region is necessary due to the present growing interest in biodiversity, which serves as a foundational and indispensable knowledge base. In this paper, a first detailed and complete checklist of the bird species of western Sicily is presented, with a comment only on records considered “of interest”. The criteria used for the selection of commented species have been: a) species with low numbers and records for Sicily, generally or during the winter/migration; b) uncommon/rare species for which the study area represents an important breeding/wintering/migratory site; c) unusual number recorded; d) species lacking of recent published data. Censuses in these wetlands were conducted on a random unstandardized basis. Despite this, the data collection has highlighted the importance of migration, wintering and breeding of many waterbirds’ species. A more targeted and programmed data collection would likely increase the importance of wildlife in these wetlands. It is known that natural wetlands are ecosystems with the highest biodiversity. This study indicates that artificial wetlands such as dams have become important habitats for bird species over time. It has also shown that the anthropogenic effects on wetlands are common, without distinction between natural and artificial wetlands.