RESQUE: A novel comprehensive approach to compare the performance of different indices in evaluating seagrass health

Oprandi, Alice; Bianchi, Carlo Nike; Karayali, O.; Morri, Carla; Rigo, Ilaria; Montefalcone, Monica

doi:10.1016/j.ecolind.2021.108118

Cited by 8 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 47 publications

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“…Box status has been plotted on radar charts and the uniformity of box status has been assessed through circularity of polygons representing those charts. Circularity is the ratio between the polygon area and the area of a circle having a circumference equal to the polygon perimeter (Oprandi et al, 2021). Perimeter and area have been calculated using ArcGIS Pro 3.0 ® .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…To determine a relevant biological indicator, the main issue is finding the balance between the most suitable descriptors versus the feasibility of methods of implementation according to available human and material resources. Unlike ecosystems of priority interest such as Posidonia oceanica meadows (Montefalcone, 2009;Lopez y Royo et al, 2010;Personnic et al, 2014;Oprandi et al, 2021), no indices or descriptors are available for the functional or ecosystem-based analysis of CDB.…”

Section: An Original Ecosystem-based Quality Index For Coastal Detrit...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Obviously, the future of coastal zone management policies will not be based on a single integrative index (Bond, 2001), but an appropriate combination of the most relevant ones (Pikaver et al, 2004;Paoli et al, 2016;Borja et al, 2021;Oprandi et al, 2021). Indicators are currently used to underpin guidelines for managers and stakeholders.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Ecosystem-based assessment of a widespread Mediterranean marine habitat: The Coastal Detrital Bottoms, with a special focus on epibenthic assemblages

et al. 2023

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IntroductionCoastal detrital bottoms (CDB) are one of the most extensive habitats of the continental shelf worldwide, in the upper levels of the circalittoral zone. Hosting a diverse community structured by sediment grain size, trophic interactions and calcified organisms, CDB exhibit important ecological functions. In the Mediterranean Sea, CDB are constituted by recent elements partly provided by adjacent infralittoral and circalittoral ecosystems. Since the 2010s, the offshore extension of many Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) has resulted in the incorporation of vast areas of CDB, raising the issue of their management. The Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) has embraced the concept of an ecosystem-based approach involving taking into account the functioning of marine habitats and their related ecosystem services. The purpose of this paper is to propose an ecosystem-based quality index (EBQI) tested on CDB from the north-western Mediterranean Sea, focusing mainly on epibenthic assemblages.MethodsThe first step has been to define a conceptual model of the CDB functioning, including the main trophic compartments and their relative weighting, then to identify appropriate assessment methods and potential descriptors. Twenty-nine sites were sampled along the coast of Provence and French Riviera (Southern France). Study sites were chosen with a view to encompassing a wide range of hydrological conditions and human pressures.ResultsVery well-preserved sites were found in Provence in areas without trawling and terrigenous inputs, while impacted and low-ES sites were located in the vicinity of urbanized areas. The cover of rhodoliths characterizes the seascape and might be an indicator of the good ES of CDB and reduced human pressure. However, the absence of rhodoliths may also be induced by natural phenomena.DiscussionThe EBQI designed for CDB proved representative and useful for a functional assessment based on epibenthic assemblages. However, some descriptors have shown their limitations and should be further explored. We highlight here the priority of establishing an index corresponding to a societal demand (e.g., European Directives, Barcelona convention) as a basis for a broad and large-scale assessment, for practical reasons. We stress the need to better apprehend the role of the macro-infauna and to extend this index over a wider geographical scale.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: An Original Ecosystem-based Quality Index For Coastal Detrit...mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Ecosystem-based assessment of a widespread Mediterranean marine habitat: The Coastal Detrital Bottoms, with a special focus on epibenthic assemblages

et al. 2023

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“…In the last decades, a vast array of biotic indices has been developed to this purpose, mostly as a consequence of European Directives [197]. Indices have been devised based on indicators at different ecological complexity levels [198,199]: indices working at individual level take into account the phenology of a key species (e.g., a seagrass); indices at population level use abundance, spatial extent, density or size distribution frequency of a key species; indices at community level consider taxonomic composition, diversity, and the sensibility of different species towards environmental quality; indices at ecosystem level are based on the identification of functional compartments (e.g., in the food web) and on the evaluation of the status of each of them; indices at seascape level typify and quantify different elements and their spatial configuration, paying special attention to the morpho-structural traits of the species. Among the most utilized indices are CARLIT (Cartography of Littoral and upper-sublittoral benthic communities), for shallow water algal-dominated reefs [200], PREI [Posidonia Rapid Easy Index], for Posidonia oceanica meadows [201], ESCA (Ecological Status of Coralligenous Assemblages), for coralligenous reefs [202].…”

Section: What To Monitor?mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Many of these indices are multimetric, combining and integrating several individual indices [203]. Integrated indices are more appealing to environmental managers and administrators, who see in them a clear and synthetic indication of the health state of the habitat in question; however, multimetric indices homogenize the different components and may hide the specific nature of alteration [199,204]. Averaging low-values and high-values of distinct metrics may result in a "mediocre" synthetic value [85], which is not informative about the real ecological status of the habitat.…”

Section: What To Monitor?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Biodiversity Monitoring in Mediterranean Marine Protected Areas: Scientific and Methodological Challenges

et al. 2022

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Biodiversity is a portmanteau word to indicate the variety of life at all levels from genes to ecosystems, but it is often simplistically equated to species richness; the word ecodiversity has thus been coined to address habitat variety. Biodiversity represents the core of the natural capital, and as such needs to be quantified and followed over time. Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are a major tool for biodiversity conservation at sea. Monitoring of both species and habitat diversity in MPAs is therefore mandatory and must include both inventory and periodic surveillance activities. In the case of inventories, the ideal would be to census all species and all habitats, but while the latter goal can be within reach, the former seems unattainable. Species inventory should be commeasured to investigation effort, while habitat inventory should be based on mapping. Both inventories may profit from suitability spatial modelling. Periodic surveillance actions should privilege conspicuous species and priority habitats. Efficient descriptor taxa and ecological indices are recommended to evaluate environmental status. While it seems obvious that surveillance activities should be carried out with regular recurrence, diachronic inventories and mapping are rarely carried out. Time series are of prime importance to detect marine ecosystem change even in the absence of direct human impacts.

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Assessment of natural capital and environmental flows distribution: A Mediterranean case study

Bordoni

Rigo

Dapueto

et al. 2023

Journal of Cleaner Production

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RESQUE: A novel comprehensive approach to compare the performance of different indices in evaluating seagrass health

Cited by 8 publications

References 47 publications

Ecosystem-based assessment of a widespread Mediterranean marine habitat: The Coastal Detrital Bottoms, with a special focus on epibenthic assemblages

Ecosystem-based assessment of a widespread Mediterranean marine habitat: The Coastal Detrital Bottoms, with a special focus on epibenthic assemblages

Biodiversity Monitoring in Mediterranean Marine Protected Areas: Scientific and Methodological Challenges

Assessment of natural capital and environmental flows distribution: A Mediterranean case study

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