La Notte dei Rospi
This campaign aims at drawing attention to the preservation and protection of wetlands and amphibians, with particular attention to the “Bufo bufo” that is the common toad, during its spring migration in late February - early March.
Big eaters of animals which humans find pesky (such as mosquitoes) and are harmful to agriculture (such as snails and other invertebrates), their presence in the territory is crucial for the maintenance of an ecological balance. They also are 'biomarkers' of the quality of the environment.
The initiative is aimed at raising awareness and preserving habitats and species threatened by human activities, with informational actions to raise awareness on wet systems. The campaign promotes concrete interventions to protect and defend the natural environment.
The main causes are:
• viability: for many animal species, and in particular for the Amphibians, the roads are an insuperable obstacle, especially during the reproductive migrations
• damage or destruction of smaller wetlands (ponds, puddles, sources, and also old wash houses, fountains, drinking troughs, etc ..)
• absurd and pointless persecution due to ignorance and prejudice: the lack of knowledge of these animals and their vital ecological role has often led to an unjustified sense of revulsion toward amphibians from humans.
Legambiente Lecco takes part with excitement in the campaign, working with several companies which operate and coordinate themselves in the area, focusing on the road from Lecco to Bellagio, and in particular on the localities of Melgone and Onno. The Triangle of Lake Como has one of Europe's largest colonies of Bufo Bufo, which comes down from the mountains to Lake Como to reproduce. Heavy traffic run over them and their population could shrink dramatically and disappear within a few years without the repairing intervention of many volunteers.
