CIGESMED for divers: Establishing a citizen science initiative for the mapping and monitoring of coralligenous assemblages in the Mediterranean Sea

Abstract

BackgroundOver the last decade, inventorying and monitoring of marine biodiversity has significantly benefited from the active engagement of volunteers. Although several Citizen Science projects concern tropical reef ecosystems worldwide, none of the existing initiatives has yet specifically focused on their Mediterranean equivalents. Mediterranean coralline reefs, known as “coralligenous”, are bioherms primarily built by calcifying rhodophytes on hard substrates under dim-light conditions; they are considered hotspots of biodiversity and are extremely popular among divers due to their complex structure, conspicuous biological wealth and high aesthetic value. Nevertheless, data on their distribution, structure and conservation status is lacking for several Mediterranean areas while they are vulnerable to an increasing number of threats.New informationIn the framework of CIGESMED SeasEra (ERAnet) project a specialized Citizen Science project was launched, aiming to engage enthusiast divers in the study and monitoring of Mediterranean coralligenous assemblages through the gathering of basic information regarding their spatial occurrence, assemblage structure and associated pressures or threats. For its active implementation, a data collection protocol and a multilingual website were developed, comprising an educational module and a data submission platform. Georeferenced data reporting focuses on: (a) basic topographic and abiotic features for the preliminary description of each site, and the creation of data series for sites receiving multiple visits; (b) presence and relative abundance of typical conspicuous species, as well as (c) existence of pressures and imminent threats, for the characterization and assessment of coralligenous assemblages. A variety of tools is provided to facilitate end users, while divers have the choice to report additional information and are encouraged to upload their photographs. The long-term goal is the development of an active community of amateur observers providing widespread and ecologically significant data on coralligenous assemblages.

Coralligenous assemblages along their geographical distribution: Testing of concepts and implications for management

“…This process can be achieved in a more industrial, faster, and cheaper way rather than the classification of the individuals into species by professional taxonomists. Hence, cost-effective conservation initiatives may be designed and implemented while citizen science networks may also contribute towards this end through data gathering and reporting to scientists and managers (Gatti et al, 2016;Gerovasileiou et al, 2016).…”

Stirring the strategic direction of scuba diving marine Citizen Science: A survey of active and potential participants

“…These results indicate that advanced and professional divers are likely to be a strong pro-MCS group, and there are a number of possible interpretations of this finding. One reason could be that some scuba diving MCS projects require above-average scuba diving skills in order to carry out specific data collection tasks [ 3 , 65 ]. Experienced and professional scuba divers tend to also possess high levels of local ecological knowledge and other knowledge pertaining to the scuba diving sport (e.g.…”

Taxonomic and functional surrogates of sessile benthic diversity in Mediterranean marine caves

“…Moreover, sponges have been recently used as indicators of habitat quality in a small number of citizen science initiatives, e.g. in tropical coral reefs [ 37 ] and Mediterranean coralligenous formations [ 77 ]. The results of the present study confirmed the significant functional role of sponges, as a keystone taxon [see 2 ], for the marine cave habitat since the sponge functional pattern was highly correlated with the one derived from the analysis of the total community function, further highlighting the potential use of this taxon as an indicator for the monitoring of this particular habitat.…”