Megafaunal assemblages in deep-sea ecosystems of the Gulf of Cadiz, northeast Atlantic ocean

Grinyó, Jordi; Francescangeli, Marco; Santín, Andreu; Ercilla, Gemma; Estrada, Ferrán; Mechó, Ariadna; Fanelli, Emanuela; Costa, Corrado; Danovaro, Roberto; Company, Joan B.; Sobrino, Ignacio; Valencia, Javier; Aguzzi, Jacopo

doi:10.1016/j.dsr.2022.103738

Cited by 5 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 80 publications

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“…For the purposes of marine water circulation, the Gulf of Cádiz is connected to the water inlet system from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean through the Strait of Gibraltar. Studies carried out in recent years [31][32][33][34][35] show that the biodiversity of the Gulf of Cádiz goes far beyond the simple presence of species of commercial interest and that there is an important information gap regarding species without commercial interest, especially when the focus moves away from the coast.…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Unravelling Complex Interaction among Coastal Management and Marine Biodiversity: A Case Study in Southern Spain

et al. 2023

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In this work, we use an integrated modelling approach to explore the complex relationships and interconnections in marine ecosystems among anthropogenic pressures, biodiversity loss, delivery of ecosystem services (ES), and implemented conservation and management strategies. We selected 60 indicators at regional (34), national (12) and international (14) scales that provided long-term information during the 1985–2019 time frame. The results show a decline in marine biodiversity and its associated provisioning services despite the increasing number of responses delivered by a society which are not enough and/or need more time to exert their effects and highlight the pressure on exploited species of unknown conservation status. The decline in Provisioning ES is explained by the decrease in the overall biomass of the captures, mostly large and carnivorous commercially-targeted species and the increase in the number of small-bodied fish species included in the IUCN Red List. The degradation of ecosystem integrity and the continuing loss of biodiversity affect the ability of the ecosystem to provide Regulating ES. The Cultural ES delivery, related to artisanal fisheries, is better preserved in the Gulf of Cádiz. We conclude how the implementation of new management regulations is needed and should be developed through participatory processes to protect and improve marine ecosystem status.

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Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Unravelling Complex Interaction among Coastal Management and Marine Biodiversity: A Case Study in Southern Spain

et al. 2023

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“…F. quadrangularis is a significant habitat-forming species that helps create threedimensional bathyal environments, improves ecological functionality, and provides essential habitat for fish and invertebrates [30,77,86,87]. Therefore, the assessment of its persistence can offer important information for the correct management of the study area; in fact, the possibility of geographically locating the most persistent patches, associated with the measurement of density, can indicate which are the zones most in need of protection.…”

Section: Ecological Aspects and Colonies' Persistencementioning

confidence: 99%

Changes in Abundance and Distribution of the Sea Pen, Funiculina quadrangularis, in the Central Adriatic Sea (Mediterranean Basin) in Response to Variations in Trawling Intensity

Martinelli

Zacchetti

Belardinelli

et al. 2023

Fishes

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Marine resources exploitation through bottom trawling affects marine ecosystems; thus, management should consider the presence of sensitive species as ecosystem health indicators. Epibenthic organisms such as sea pens are widely used to assess benthic conditions, as their populations are declining where trawling is intense. The Pomo/Jabuka Pits fishing ground in the Adriatic Sea, subject to various management measures over the years, is a nursery for European hake and hosts a small, but dense, population of Norway lobster and a remarkable abundance of pink shrimp. The sea pen Funiculina quadrangularis shares its habitat (sandy-muddy bottoms) with these crustaceans. Through UnderWater TeleVision surveys conducted from 2012 to 2019, F. quadrangularis abundance and distribution were quantified in relation to changes in the spatiotemporal distribution of fishing efforts. The average density (n/m2) of colonies was calculated for three periods: BEFORE implementation of measures (before 1 July 2015), during an INTERMEDIATE period in which limitations changed (2 July 2015 to 31 August 2017), and AFTER the implementation of a Fishery Restricted Area (from 1 September 2017). F. quadrangularis revealed an increase in density where fisheries were closed, even after a short period. This showed how management measures can positively influence epibenthic communities and that sea pens can be indicators of impact and/or recovery of habitats.

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Burrow emergence rhythms of deep-water Mediterranean Norway lobsters (Nephrops norvegicus) revealed by acoustic telemetry

Aguzzi

Vigo

Bahamón

et al. 2023

Rev Fish Biol Fisheries

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N. norvegicus supports one of the most commercially-important fisheries in the Mediterranean, and there is considerable interest in developing non-invasive sampling stock assessment methods. Currently, stock assessments are conducted via trawling or by UnderWater TeleVision (UWTV) surveys with limited capacity to provide direct population data due to the burrowing behavior of the species. Here, we used acoustic telemetry to characterize the burrow emergence and movement patterns of N. norvegicus in relation to internal tides and inertial currents in deep-sea habitats of the northwestern Mediterranean. We deployed acoustic tags on 25 adults between May and June 2019, and collected up to 4 months of detection data from each tag. Tagged lobsters spent approximately 12% of their time in door-keeping (i.e., detections at burrow entrance with no displacements) but differences existed among the different behavioral rhythms identified. We observed that mixed day-night, tidal and inertial rhythms in field settings were similar to those observed in laboratory tests. The presence of mixed day-night and tidal periodicity poses the question of why N. norvegicus exhibits flexible responses to environmental cues other than photoperiod. It is possible that tidal regulation of locomotor activity could reduce energy expenditure in relation to hydrodynamic drag. Inertial periodicity occurs in animals with no clear burrowing-oriented activity (always present on the seabed). Possibly, inertial-related movements are the result of a disruption of the biological clock. Our results are discussed in the context of how burrow emergence rhythms may bias UWTV surveys and how novel in situ monitoring approaches address these biases.

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Megafaunal assemblages in deep-sea ecosystems of the Gulf of Cadiz, northeast Atlantic ocean

Cited by 5 publications

References 80 publications

Unravelling Complex Interaction among Coastal Management and Marine Biodiversity: A Case Study in Southern Spain

Unravelling Complex Interaction among Coastal Management and Marine Biodiversity: A Case Study in Southern Spain

Changes in Abundance and Distribution of the Sea Pen, Funiculina quadrangularis, in the Central Adriatic Sea (Mediterranean Basin) in Response to Variations in Trawling Intensity

Burrow emergence rhythms of deep-water Mediterranean Norway lobsters (Nephrops norvegicus) revealed by acoustic telemetry

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