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JOURNAL OF MAPS, 2016
VOL. 12, NO. 5, 845–851
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17445647.2015.1094969
SCIENCE

Phytosociological survey vegetation map of Sicily (Mediterranean region)

b
a
Lorenzo Gianguzzi , Fabio Papini and Dario Cusimano a
a b
Department of Agricultural and Forest Sciences, Università degli Studi di Palermo, Palermo, Italy; Agristudio S.r.l., Firenze, Italy
ABSTRACT ARTICLE HISTORY
We present the results of a study aimed at developing a vegetation map of Sicily (Italy) including Received 7 October 2014
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the smaller circum-Sicilian islands, for an area of approximately 25,703 km . The work is a Revised 26 July 2015
synthesis of studies carried out in accordance with the survey methodology of Accepted 1 September 2015
phytosociology in the last 40 years over the whole study area. The vegetation map of Sicily KEYWORDS
was compiled in a Geographical Information Systems (GIS) environment, in order to produce
Sicily; phytosociology;
a cartographic representation at a scale of 1:10,000 (reduced to a scale of 1:250,000). The vegetation map; GIS; habitat
physiognomic-structural characteristics of the plant landscape of Sicily are analyzed, conservation; Mediterranean
providing a general and, at the same time, detailed overview of the phytocoenotic aspects region
represented on the territory, as well as of the relative bibliographic references. At the
reference scale, 36 types are represented, 16 of which are related to zonal vegetation
(Mediterranean maquis, Quercus ilex woods, Quercus suber woods, Castanea sativa woods,
Quercus pubescens deciduous woods, mesophilous deciduous woods, Fagus sylvatica woods,
Betula aetnensis woods, woods dominated by woody gymnosperms, forest edge shrubs,
orophilous pulvinate shrubs, shrublands and garrigues, Ampelodesmos mauritanicus
grasslands, mesophilous and sub-hygrophilous grasslands and pastures), 11 are related to
azonal vegetation (riparian, psammophilous herbaceous, chasmo-halophitic, etc.) and 9 are
related to anthropogenic vegetation (arable lands and extensive herbaceous crops,
vineyards, olive groves and dry cultivation mosaics, hazelnut groves, irrigated citrus groves
and orchards, greenhouses, built-up areas).

1. Introduction Madonie Mts., Nebrodi Mts., Sicani Mts. and Alcantara
River) and over 70 natural reserves; (2) the Habitats
Vegetation maps – produced at different scales
Directive 92/43/EEC, which led to the identiﬁcation
(1:50,000, 1:25,000 and 1:10,000), according to the
of 234 Natura 2000 sites (205 Sites of Community
degree of detail – represent phytocoenoses and provide
Importance [SCIs], 15 Special Protection Areas
useful quali-quantitative assessments of biological
[SPAs], 14 SCIs and SPAs).
resources in a speciﬁc area (Pedrotti, 2004). In prelimi-
The vegetation map of Sicily is a useful synthesis of
nary studies for land planning and management, they
the regional plant landscape, whose complexity and
represent important summary documents, whose
variety reﬂect the large physiographic, lithological,
graphic design is now performed through Geographic
geomorphological and bioclimatic variability of the
Information Systems (GIS), often applying the survey
territory. Moreover, this landscape has been affected
methodology of Phytosociology (Biondi, 1996; Biondi
by human activity, within an area in the centre of his-
& Calandra, 1998; Biondi et al., 2007; Rivas-Martínez,
toric and cultural events that have characterized the
2005). This paper provides an example of this method-
civilization of the whole Mediterranean region.
ology by compiling a map at a scale of 1:250,000, based
on a ﬁeld survey at a scale of 1:10,000. The surveyed
area is Sicily, the largest Mediterranean island
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(25,432 km ), including its smaller islands (the archi- 2. Study area
pelagos of the Aeolian, Aegadian and Pelagie Islands, Sicily is in the central part of the Mediterranean Sea,
Ustica and Pantelleria islands), for a total area of separated from the Italian Peninsula by the Strait of
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25,703 km . Messina and washed by the Ionian Sea (eastward),
The study is the result of years of research in the area the Tyrrhenian Sea (northward) and the Channel of
and gives an overview of the extensive phytosociologi- Sicily (southward), which separates Sicily from Africa
cal–cartographic literature on this territory produced (Figure 1). The small circum-Sicilian islands are the
in the last 40 years. Some of the main incentives of Aeolian Islands (northeastward), the Ustica Island
this research are related to two important laws con- (northwestward), the Aegadian Islands (westward),
cerning Sicily: (1) the Regional Law 98/1981, which the Pantelleria Island (southwestward) and the Pelagie
led to the establishment of 5 natural parks (Mt. Etna, Islands Lampedusa and Linosa (further south).

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