The first video, titled “How to Eradicate Fish from High-Mountain Lakes,” presents the project’s main goals, focusing on the conservation and restoration of these lake ecosystems. High-mountain lakes are traditionally isolated from valley rivers by natural barriers that prevent the arrival of fish. However, many of these lakes now host fish species introduced through historical interventions, which have disrupted the natural ecological balance. These introduced species have become invasive, negatively affecting native fauna and the ecological quality of the habitat.

The video also highlights the collaboration with the FishME project, which uses a multidisciplinary approach to analyze the impact of fish and pollution, and to develop practical tools for managing and restoring mountain lakes.

In the second video, “Mountain Lake Rewilding Works!” Dr. Ventura explains how, after removing the introduced fish species, the original fauna of these lakes begins to recover. This rewilding has led to the return of native species, especially amphibians and macroinvertebrates, and has facilitated the recolonization of small mammals such as the Pyrenean desman, a rodent that relies on aquatic insects for food.

These videos emphasize the importance of conserving and restoring mountain ecosystems and demonstrate essential tools for effective, evidence-based management of these unique natural environments.

Lucia presented the effects of introduced fish on insectivore shrews, one of the topics of her PhD project titled “Cascading ecological effects of alien fish introduction and removal in high mountain lakes” (financed by the LIFE RESQUE ALPYR).

PhD Day at the University of Calabria

PhD Day at the University of Calabria was a day entirely dedicated to the University’s doctoral students who presented the research activities carried out, with the aim of raising awareness of the scientific value of the doctoral path and making people reflect on the benefits generated in society.

At the end of the day, the PhD Competition, an exciting “competition” divided into two sections: the Poster Competition in which the competitors illustrated the posters created specifically for their research topic, and the Pitch Competition, a presentation of a few minutes focused on the studies conducted. Rita Megale, a PhD student in Physical, Chemical, and Materials Sciences and Technologies, won the Pitch Competition. The Poster Competition for the Technical-Scientific Area was won by Lucia Bello, a PhD student in Life Science and Technology, while for the Socio-Economic and Humanistic Area, Aurelia Zucaro, a PhD student in Politics, Culture, and Development, was awarded.

The morning was opened by greetings from the Rector Nicola Leone, who underlined the increasingly important importance that research doctorates will assume in the training of the future ruling class.

You can find the prize-giving session of the day here.