Freshwater ecosystems, though covering only 0.01% of Earth’s water, support an astonishing 12% of all known species. Yet, these ecosystems face significant challenges globally, from pollution to habitat fragmentation, exacerbated by climate change and unsustainable land use. The Western Balkans, a biodiversity hotspot, exemplifies these challenges, with amphibians being disproportionately impacted. To protect these critical habitats and their local communities, we need to bridge the gap between ecological science and actionable conservation planning.
During my research endeavors, we have investigated pollution impacts on amphibian communities along the Vjosa River, Europe’s last major free-flowing river, located in Albania. Through surveys at 14 sites, water quality and ecotoxicological analyses, and drone surveying, we identified stunted development and cellular damage in amphibians due to localized pollution near human settlements. These findings confirm the severity of the freshwater crisis in the country, while providing a baseline for future, more expansive studies in the region and wider.
Building on this, my doctorate research at the Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries expands to the entire Western Balkan region. Utilizing high-resolution hydrographic datasets (hydrography90m) and advanced ecological modeling tools, we aim to map amphibian species and functional diversity. This multiscale approach will identify biodiversity and functional uniqueness hotspots and priority areas. This will hopefully provide a replicable framework for freshwater biodiversity assessments at any scale and scope, globally.
Critically, this research provides tools and insights for researchers, conservationists and policymakers, facilitating the integration of biodiversity data into conservation planning. This work contributes to the development of more effective impact assessments, prioritization frameworks, and adaptive management strategies.
The presentation will highlight amphibians’ role as sentinels of ecosystem health and demonstrate the scalability of an integrative, science-policy approach to addressing global freshwater conservation challenges.