Black Coral Distribution in the Italian Seas: A Review

Ingrassia, Michela; Bella, Letizia Di

doi:10.3390/d13070334

Cited by 6 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 54 publications

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“…Rhodoliths were found at depths beyond 100 m, and peak live rhodolith densities were recorded at depths of 78 m, which is slightly deeper than the 35–70 m at which Mediterranean rhodolith beds are commonly found (Basso et al, 2017), although beds at depths exceeding 100 m also occur in other places within the Mediterranean (e.g. Aguilar et al, 2009; Ingrassia et al, 2023; Valette‐Sansevin et al, 2019) and elsewhere around the globe (e.g., Foster et al, 2013; Harvey et al, 2016; Littler et al, 1991).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Habitat characterization, anthropogenic impacts and conservation of rhodolith beds off southeastern Malta

Tabone,

Knittweis,

Aguilar

et al. 2024

Aquatic Conservation

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Rhodolith beds, including maerl, are structurally complex perennial habitats that support a high species diversity but are threatened by numerous human activities, particularly in the Mediterranean Sea. Despite their global ecological importance, increased research efforts are needed to facilitate development of effective measures to conserve these habitats. Two areas hosting rhodolith beds are known to occur off the coast of Malta (central Mediterranean), but only one has been previously studied. Through analysis of video footage collected from 56 different stations coupled with a desk study on human activities, the present study characterized the rhodolith bed located off the southeastern coast of Malta, including its extent, rhodolith morphotype composition, associated megabiota and impacts of anthropogenic activities thereon. The bed occurred at depths of 60–95 m and covered an area of approximately 200 km2, making it the second most extensive rhodolith area reported for the Mediterranean to date. It was dominated by spherical and branched rhodoliths whose cover reached a maximum of 74% but was more often <50%, similar to other Mediterranean rhodolith beds. A total of 84 different megafaunal species were recorded, suggesting that the diversity of megafauna associated with rhodolith bed habitats has been previously underestimated. A number of human activities, including extensive vessel anchoring and officially designated areas for aquaculture, bunkering and trawling, overlap with the mapped rhodolith distribution, highlighting the risk of habitat degradation. A holistic approach to the management of all the competing activities and interests relative to the southeastern coast of Malta that gives due consideration to this newly characterized rhodolith bed and the threats it faces is therefore recommended. The legal framework and policy recommendations for better conservation of rhodolith bed habitats in the Mediterranean and European Seas are also discussed.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Habitat characterization, anthropogenic impacts and conservation of rhodolith beds off southeastern Malta

Tabone,

Knittweis,

Aguilar

et al. 2024

Aquatic Conservation

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“…Black coral forests represent an important component of the extensive mesophotic coral assemblages that occur along the continental shelf of Sardinia [55]. The presence of these animal-dominated habitats has been documented by numerous authors across the whole Mediterranean basin [56][57][58][59][60], underlining their importance as essential habitats, nursery grounds, and biodiversity hotspots [61][62][63][64]. In this context, our results expand the knowledge of black coral forests occurrence in the Italian and Mediterranean Seas [60], confirming a shallower bathymetric distribution for A. subpinnata (between 82 and 178 m) compared to the deeper one of L. glaberrima (between 180 and 200 m) [3,65].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Environmental Status and Geomorphological Characterisation of Seven Black Coral Forests on the Sardinian Continental Shelf (NW Mediterranean Sea)

Moccia

Carugati

Follesa

et al. 2022

Biology

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Marine animal forests are key mesophotic ecosystems that are under threat from increasing natural and human pressures. Despite the fact that various international agreements strive to preserve these fragile ecosystems, the environmental status of the majority of these animal-structured environments is unknown. Assessing their environmental status is the first step needed to monitor these essential habitats’ health over time and include them within conservation and protection frameworks, such as the Marine Strategy Framework Directive. Based on Multibeam data and ROV footage, we characterized the geomorphological setting and evaluated the environmental status of seven black coral forests in the centre of the Western Mediterranean Sea, using the Mesophotic Assemblages Conservation Status (MACS) Index. The presence of two antipatharians, Antipathella subpinnata and Leiopathes glaberrima, characterized the seven investigated sites, dwelling on rocky substrate characterized by different environmental drivers (i.e., depth, slope of the substrate, terrain ruggedness, topographic positioning index, and aspect). From the combined evaluation of the associated benthic community status and the anthropogenic impacts affecting it, a “high” and “good” environmental status was assessed for five out of the seven studied black forests, with only two forests classified as having a “moderate” and “poor” status, respectively. Overall, our study showed a site-specific variability of mesophotic black coral forest status, explained by different biological community structures and environmental conditions mainly associated with morphological and anthropogenic factors.

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“…The knowledge linked to the latter habitat has only recently increased [1], and available data regarding their distribution, composition, structure, and natural variability, are still inadequate. To fulfill such knowledge gaps, remote-sensing techniques coupled with ground-truth data provide an effective tool for the large-scale assessment of coralline algae spatial distributions, as well as for other pristine benthic habitats e.g., [16,58,59]. Mapping the extent of rhodolith/maerl beds using information from full-area coverage geophysical data, coupled with ground-truth data, represents a first pivotal step for their effective management and conservation.…”

Section: Coralline Algae Beds At the Costacuti Shoal (Latium Region)mentioning

confidence: 99%

A Review of Rhodolith/Maerl Beds of the Italian Seas

et al. 2023

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Coralline algal beds are comprised of biogenic calcareous formations considered a habitat of high conservation interest, hosting a high great biodiversity. To assess the status of this habitat in the Italian seas, we report results from a systematic analysis of the available scientific literature. Italian rhodolith/maerl beds are reported on 31 Italian sites mostly located around islands, shoals, banks, terraces, and gentley sloping shelves, from 9 m to 130 m water depth (with a mean depth of about 56 m). The dominant species occurring in the Italian submarine sites are Phymatolithon calcareum and Lithothamnion corallioides, with a rich associated fauna including sponges, bryozoans, hydrozoans, polichaetes, molluscs, amphipods, gastropods, echinoderms. Despite the high biodiversity characterizing the Italian rhodolith/maerl beds, only seven submarine sites hosting this sensitive habitat are part of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). This evidence highlights the need for actions focused on the implementation of effective management and proper conservation measures to preserve such precious habitats. Protection of this habitat cannot be effectively provided without access to multidisciplinary data (e.g., geospatial, biological, geophysical, geomorphological data) capable of assessing its spatial distribution and biological characteristics over wide areas. An increased research effort to improve the production of fine-scale distribution maps and monitoring activities is therefore needed.

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Black Coral Distribution in the Italian Seas: A Review

Cited by 6 publications

References 54 publications

Habitat characterization, anthropogenic impacts and conservation of rhodolith beds off southeastern Malta

Habitat characterization, anthropogenic impacts and conservation of rhodolith beds off southeastern Malta

Environmental Status and Geomorphological Characterisation of Seven Black Coral Forests on the Sardinian Continental Shelf (NW Mediterranean Sea)

A Review of Rhodolith/Maerl Beds of the Italian Seas

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