Background Recent studies show a significant decline in native barbel populations (a species of fish) in the main and secondary rivers of northern Italy. The recent IUCN classification of Italian vertebrates raised the risk status of the Barbus plebejus to “vulnerable” and of the Barbus meridionalis (sin. B. caninus) to “endangered”. Particularly the Emilian tributaries of the Po River have faced local population extinctions due to habitat alteration and fragmentation, river discontinuity and competition with alien species. Objectives The project aims to preserve and restore the native populations of the Barbus meridionalis and Barbus plebejus in 14 Natura 2000 sites in the Emilia-Romagna region. The sites are distributed over a wide geographic area, from the Apennines to the Po River plain. Specific project objectives are: The creation of new native barbel populations and/or re-stocking existing populations after evaluating the environmental suitability and composition of existing communities; The identification of threats to the survival of the targeted species at local level and networking activities at interprovincial scale to safeguard their long-term management; The eradication/control of exotic barbus species; and The implementation of guidelines for the conservation and sustainable management of the targeted species for application at local and European level. Expected results: Ecological studies to assess the “state of the art” and the relationships of the targeted species to their habitat; Monitoring plans to verify the presence of exotic species; Genetic characterisation of the different populations to define their molecular variability and their correct taxonomy, with particular reference to the definition of hybridisation events; Identification of the main environmental changes; Implementation of restoration work on at least seven sites; Refurbishment of three existing fish hatcheries; Reintroduction/restocking of the target species in all Natura 2000 sites where the species were previously present; and Agreements on anti-poaching and the sustainable management of water resources.