The functional role of microhabitats in the constructed wetland at Giare di Mira (Venice Lagoon watershed)

Thanks to the legislation “Piano direttore 2000”, dating in 2000, flow-superficial constructed wetlands (FSW) are becoming increasingly important in the context of the Venice lagoon watershed as nature-based solutions to contrast pollution and biodiversity loss due to consistent presence of agricultural landscape and consequent habitat fragmentation. Multifunctionality should be one of the prerogatives of a constructed wetland. Presence of macrophytes, algae and phytoplankton allow phytoremediation processes that provide water quality and a decrease in pollutants loads reaching the Venice lagoon. Dissolved oxygen plays an important role for biogeochemical cycle and presence of oxygenated and anoxic zones are essential in creating different microhabitats for nitrifying and denitrifying organisms and allowing their corresponding reactions . Then, finally, wetlands often provide connection, breeding refuges, and stopover sites of many bird’s species also of conservation priorities. Such diverse ecological services are often provided by the presence of different microhabitats as well. In this experimental case study at Parco delle Giare constructed wetlands (Venice lagoon watershed) we surveyed the ecological role of microhabitats on phytoremediation, dissolved oxygen, and bird’s diversity restoration ecosystem services