Assessment of local biodiversity. Macroinvertebrate diversity

Within the DEMETRA Project the aim of the study was to evaluate species richness, abundance, and macroinvertebrate diversity in the different study sites and, in particular, on the inflorescences of sunflower, maize, rapeseed crops and of wild poplar trees. For this reason standard sampling methods replicable both in space and time were used. These methods were very efficient and adequate for ecological studies but were less effective for entomological inventories. Another aim of the study was to investigate on the role of the experimental crops (possible GMOs) within the food webs. The isotope signatures of carbon and nitrogen were determined for the macroinvertebrates associated to the inflorescences using stable isotope analysis, a technique commonly used in several fields of study such as anthropology, archaeology, agriculture, ecology and for conservation purposes. This technique permits the determination of the trophic levels of the different species and to appoint species to different trophic guilds.