Editing Corfu (section)

===Fauna===
Corfu is a [[continental island]]; its fauna is similar to that of the opposite mainland.

====Birds====
Avifauna is extensive, with around 300 bird species recorded since the 19th century. Species vary in size from the [[greater flamingo]] to the [[goldcrest]].<ref>Gasteratos, I. unpublished data.</ref> Some species have become extinct, such as the [[rock partridge]] and the [[grey partridge]], or no longer breed on the island, like the [[eastern imperial eagle]], the [[white-tailed eagle]], the [[Bonelli's eagle]], the [[griffon vulture]] and the [[Egyptian vulture]].<ref>Γαστεράτος Ι. 2020: Τα Πουλιά των Προστατευόμενων Περιοχών της
Κέρκυρας. Διημερίδα 'Οι Προστατευόμενες Περιοχές του Φορέα Διαχείρισης Καλαμά – Αχέροντα – Κέρκυρας' 24-25/1/2020.</ref><ref>Γαστεράτος, Ι. 2019: Αλλαγές σε οικοσυστήματα της Κέρκυρας. Κάποια παραδείγματα. Επιστημονικό – Εκπαιδευτικό Συνέδριο 'Βιοποικιλότητα – Κλιματική αλλαγή και επιπτώσεις της σε νησιωτικά οικοσυστήματα.' Κέρκυρα 6-8/3/2020.</ref>

====Mammals====
Around 40 species of mammals live on the island and in the sea around it. [[Fin whale]]s, [[sperm whale]]s, [[Cuvier's beaked whale]]s, [[common bottlenose dolphin]]s, [[short-beaked common dolphin]]s, [[striped dolphin]]s and [[Risso's dolphin]]s are the regularly present cetaceans.<ref>Frantzis, A. 2009: Cetaceans in Greece: Present status of knowledge. Initiative for the Conservation of Cetaceans in Greece.</ref> [[Mediterranean monk seal|Monk seals]] appear from time to time without breeding there anymore. [[Eurasian otter]]s still survive in the lagoons and streams of Corfu.<ref>Ruiz-Olmo, J. 2006: The Otter (Lutra lutra L.) on Corfu Island (Greece): Situation in 2006. IUCN Otter Spec. Group Bull. 23: 17-25.</ref><ref name="Stilles et Gasteratos 2021 a">Stille, M., Gasteratos, I. & B. Stille 2021: Larger mammals of Corfu, Ionian Islands, Greece – status and potential threats. Russian Journal of Theriology 20(2): 204-214.</ref><ref>Roberts, G. 2022: Otter survey of the island of Corfu 2021. OTTER, Journal of the International Otter Survival Fund 2022: 39-42.</ref> The [[European jackal|golden jackal]] was very common till the 1960s, but after persecution it became extinct, with the last individuals observed in the first half of the 1990s.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Masseti |first=M. |year=2010 |title=Homeless mammals from the Ionian and Aegean islands |journal=Bonn Zoological Bulletin |volume=57 |issue=2 |pages=367–373}}</ref><ref>Gasteratos, I. & Z. Fondoulakou 2018: [https://www.researchgate.net/publication/328723727_The_presence_and_the_extinction_of_the_Golden_Jackal_Canis_aureus_from_the_Island_of_Corfu_northwestern_Greece The presence and the extinction of the Golden Jackal ''Canis aureus'' from the Island of Corfu, northwestern Greece.] Conference: 2nd International Jackal Symposium: Marathon, Greece.</ref> Recent sightings indicate a recolonization effort from the nearby mainland.<ref name="Stilles et Gasteratos 2021 a" /> [[Wild boar]]s were exterminated after 2000, after farmers complained about crop damage, but at the moment they recolonized Corfu, swimming from the mainland.<ref name="Stilles et Gasteratos 2021 a" /> [[Red fox]]es, [[beech marten]]s, [[least weasel]]s, [[European hare]]s, [[northern white-breasted hedgehog]]s are quite widespread, as some of the smaller mammals like the [[European edible dormouse]], the [[hazel dormouse]], the [[house mouse]], the [[yellow-necked mouse]], the [[western broad-toothed field mouse]], the [[wood mouse]], the [[lesser white-toothed shrew]], the [[etruscan shrew]], as well as several species of bats.<ref name="Stilles et Gasteratos 2021 a" /><ref>Hanák, V., Benda, P., Ruedi, M., Horacek, I. & T.S. Sofianidou 2001: Bats (Mammalia: Chiroptera) of Eastern Mediterranean. Part 2. New records and review of distribution of bats in Greece. Acta Societatis Zoologicae Bohemicae 65: 279-346.</ref><ref>Life GRECABAT: Κατάλογος σπηλαίων με εποχές παρουσίας σημαντικών αποικιών (accessed in: 28/4/2021).</ref> [[Coypu]]s, [[fallow deer]], [[red deer]], [[Indian crested porcupine]]s, [[Siberian chipmunk]]s and [[raccoon]]s have been observed recently, but they are escapees and only the coypu and the raccoon have established viable populations.<ref>Stille, M., Gasteratos, I. & B. Stille 2021: Alien and invasive terrestrial vertebrate species on Corfu, Ionian Islands, Greece. Journal of Vertebrate Biology 70(1): 1-13.</ref><ref name="Stilles et Gasteratos 2021 a" />

====Amphibians and reptiles====
Eight species of amphibians and 31 species of reptiles live or have been recorded on and around Corfu.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Stille |first1=Bo |title=The Herpetofauna of Corfu and Adjacent Islands |last2=Stille |first2=Marie |publisher=Edition Chimaira |year=2017 |isbn=978-3-89973-524-6 |location=Frankfurt am Main |pages=1–354 |language=English}}</ref>

The [[Lissotriton|Greek newt]], the [[Macedonian crested newt]], the [[common toad]], the [[European green toad]], the [[European tree frog]], the [[agile frog]], the [[Epirus water frog]] and the [[Balkan frog|Greek marsh frog]] are the representatives of the Amphibia Class.

[[Loggerhead sea turtle]]s nest on the sandy beaches. On land, the [[Hermann's tortoise]] is widespread, while the [[marginated tortoise]]'s status is unclear. In freshwater wetlands [[European pond turtle|European pond terrapins]] and [[Balkan pond turtle|Balkan terrapins]] are common, but the last few years face the competition of the introduced [[pond slider]].

Lizard species include typical lizards and geckos like the [[Laudakia stellio|starred agama]], the [[Mediterranean house gecko]], the [[Tarentola mauritanica|moorish gecko]], the [[blue-throated keeled lizard|Dalmatian algyroides]], the [[Podarcis muralis|common wall lizard]], the [[Podarcis tauricus|Balkan wall lizard]], the [[Balkan green lizard]], the [[European green lizard]] and the [[Ablepharus kitaibelii|snake-eyed skink]] as also the legless Greek slow worm and the [[Sheltopusik|European glass lizard]].

Of the snakes of Corfu, only the [[Vipera ammodytes|nose-horned viper]] is potentially dangerous. The harmless snake list includes the [[Typhlops vermicularis|European worm snake]], the [[Eryx jaculus|javelin sand boa]], the [[Platyceps najadum|Dahl's whip snake]], the [[Balkan whip snake]], the [[Caspian whipsnake|Caspian whip snake]], the [[four-lined snake]], the [[Aesculapian snake]], the [[European ratsnake|leopard snake]], the [[grass snake]], the [[dice snake]], the [[European cat snake]], the eastern [[Malpolon monspessulanus|Montpellier snake]].

====Dragonflies====

Corfu has a rich and diverse dragonfly fauna and 39 out of Europe’s 143 species are presently confirmed to have breeding populations on the island, four of them quite recent additions.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Stille |first1=Marie |title=The Dragonflies of Corfu |last2=Stille |first2=Bo |publisher=Edition Chimaira |year=2020 |isbn=978-389973-040-1 |edition=Revised 2nd |location=Frankfurt am Main |pages=1–251 |language=English}}</ref> The Dainty Bluet (''[[Coenagrion scitulum|Coenagion scitulum]]'') and the Blue-eye (''[[Erythromma lindenii]]'') were reported for the first time in 2013,<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Brochard |first1=Christophe |last2=van der Ploeg |first2=Ewoud |date=2013 |title=Searching for exuviae of endemic Odonata species in Greece. |url= |journal=Brachytron |volume=15 |issue=2 |pages=83–101}}</ref> the Black Pennant (''[[Selysiothemis nigra]]'') was in 2009,<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Sutton |first=Peter G |date=2009 |title=A checklist of the dragonflies (Odonata) of Corfu (Kerkira) including a new record for the Ionian Islands, the Black Pennant Selysiothemis nigra (Van der Linden, 1825) |journal=Bulletin of the Amateur Entomologists' Society |volume=68 |issue=485 |pages=136–144 |via=ResearchGate}}</ref> and the Bladetail (''[[Lindenia tetraphylla]]'') in 2014.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Stille |first1=Marie |last2=Stille |first2=Bo |last3=Schröter |first3=A |date=2014 |title=Lindenia tetraphylla - new for the island of Kerkira (Corfu), Greece (Odonata:Gomphidae). |journal=Notulae Odonatologicae |volume=8 |issue=4 |pages=86–90 |via=ResearchGate}}</ref> The “Critically Endangered” Greek Red Damsel (''[[Pyrrhosoma elisabethae]]'') and the “Near Threatened” Eastern Spectre (''[[Caliaeshna|Caliaeshna microstigma]]'') also have breeding populations on the island but are severely threatened by habitat loss. Some species reported from the island in the beginning of the 20th century have not been found in recent years, and may have been lost to the island. Dragonflies are used as indicators for water quality as their larvae are very sensitive to pollution.

==== Butterflies ====
There are 75 (plus) known species of Corfiot butterfly. Of particular interest are the [[Papilio alexanor|southern swallowtail]], [[southern festoon]], [[Oberthür's grizzled skipper]], [[Lulworth skipper]], [[eastern orange tip]], [[Krueper's small white]], [[eastern baton blue]] and the [[tree grayling]], many of which are of [[Near-threatened species|near threatened status]]. Before the turn of the century, not much had been published about the butterfly fauna of Corfu, and there were only a few short and obscure scientific articles. Recent interest grew when a Facebook discussion page (now called Corfu Butterfly Conservation) was created on 27 April 2014. Since that time, a group of responsible butterfly enthusiasts has grown (731 members at the time of writing) who share their passion for the butterflies and moths found on the island. It is through this work that more is being discovered about the distribution and abundance of butterflies across the island.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=About the Corfu Butterfly Conservation |url=https://www.corfubutterflyconservation.org/ |access-date=2022-03-11 |website=Corfu Butterfly Conservation}}</ref>

===== Corfu Butterfly Conservation =====
Corfu Butterfly Conservation (CBC) was launched in April 2019. The group is composed of concerned residents, island visitors and scientists from throughout Europe.<ref>Danahar G. W. (2020) Corfiot Butterflies – a contemporary perspective and global context, European Butterflies, Issue 3, pages 6-7.
</ref> Their goals are to produce robust scientific data that can be used to influence policy and protect habitat for the benefit of Corfu's butterflies and the wider natural environment, as well as to stimulate public interest in butterfly conservation.

CBC launched its website (www.corfubutterflyconservation.org, funded by the [[Royal Entomological Society]]'s Goodman Award) on the 1 January 2021 to coincide with the launch of the Corfu Butterfly Survey.<ref>Danahar G. W. (2022) Corfu Butterfly Conservation (CBC) – our first year of survey work - 2021, European Butterflies, Issue 5, pages 18 - 21.</ref> The website describes the 75 species of butterflies that have been confirmed by members of CBC from the island. It outlines the value of butterflies as indicators of the island's biodiversity status and encourages enthusiasts to record their sightings on this website, as participants of the survey.<ref name=":0" /> On the 16 December 2021, CBC became a UK registered [[community interest company]] (No.13813164) and so its identity changed from being a project to that of an organisation.<ref name=":0" />