workshop on marine reserves - ISMS 2020 · REMAR 2020 Barcelona (Spain), 1st-3rd July 2020 USE OF...

workshopon marinereserves

barcelona, july 01-03

Organizing Committee: Joaquim Garrabou, Diego K. Kersting, Cristina Linares, Bernat Hereu

Scientific Committee: Joan Baptista Company, José García-Charton, José Carlos Hernández, Marta Coll, Antoni García-Rúbies, Josep Lloret, David Díaz, Sylvaine Giakoumi, Alfonso A. Ramos Esplá, Simonetta Fraschetti, Paolo Guidetti Editors: Cristina Linares, Joaquím Garrabou, Bernat Hereu, Diego K. Kersting, Miquel Canals. Abstracts Volume Workshop on Marine Reserves (REMAR 2020), July 2020 ISBN: 978-84-120734-5-4 Linckia

INDEX

ORAL COMMUNICATIONS

ELENA MARTÍNEZ BATALLA

ASSESING THE ROLE OF MARINE PROTECTED AREAS FACING THE CLIMATE CHANGE IN TEMPERATE SEAS

Climate change and marine reserves 5

NATALIA PETIT-MARTY

USE OF THE NUCLEOTIDE DIVERSITY IN COI MITOCHONDRIAL GENE AS AN EARLY DIAGNOSTIC OF CONSERVATION STATUS OF ANIMAL SPECIES: THE ENDANGERED BIVALVE PINNA NOBILIS AS A CASE STUDY

Climate change and marine reserves 7

JOSÉ CARLOS MENDOZA

MODELING THE ROLE OF MARINE PROTECTED AREAS ON THE RECOVERY OF SHALLOW ROCKY REEF ECOSYSTEM AFTER A CATASTROPHIC SUBMARINE VOLCANIC ERUPTION

Detection and monitoring of catastrophic events in marine reserves

9

ANDREU BLANCO CARTAGENA

THE ROLE MARINE PROTECTED AREAS ON MARINE TROPHIC LEVELS: ILLAS ATLANTICAS NATIONAL PARK AS CASE STUDY

Ecological and socio-economic benefits of marine reserves

12

JEAN-BAPTISTE LEDOUX

COMPARATIVE POPULATION GENETICS AND MARINE PROTECTED AREAS: THE CASE STUDY OF TWO HABITAT-FORMING OCTOCORALS IN THE CATALAN SEA


14

LUIS CARDONA PASCUAL

FISHING BLURS THE ECOLOGICAL SIGNIFICANCE OF COLOR MORPHS IN A TEMPERATE COASTAL FISH


15

LUIS CARDONA PASCUAL

FISH FROM THE INFRALITTORAL ROCKY BOTTOMS OF CABRERA ARCHIPELAGO. RESULTS OF 25 YEARS OF PROTECTION


17

MARIA VIGO

SPATIAL ECOLOGY OF THE NORWAY LOBSTER IN DEEP SEA MEDITERRANEAN HABITATS: USEFUL INFORMATION TO DESIGN MANAGEMENT PROTECTED AREAS


19

VIRGINIA MORERA-PUJOL

SPATIAL MISMATCH BETWEEN SEABIRD-FISHERY INTERACTIONS AND MARINE PROTECTED AREAS: WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?


21

DANIEL GÓMEZ GRAS

POPULATION COLLAPSE OF HABITAT-FORMING OCTOCORALS IN SCANDOLA MARINE PROTECTED AREA: THE LONG-TERM STUDY OF GORGONIAN POPULATIONS AFFECTED BY THE 2003 EXTREME WARM SUMMER.

Long-term series in marine reserves 24

DAVID CASALS BLANCH

LONG-TERM MONITORING OF THE ECHINODERM POPULATIONS OF THE PORT-CROS NATIONAL PARK


GRACIEL·LA ROVIRA MESTRES

LONG-TERM MONITORING PROGRAM OF CATALAN NATURAL PARKS (NW MEDITERRANEAN)


POSTER COMMUNICATIONS

XAVIER GRANÉ FELIU

COMPARISON OF DIVER OPERATED STEREO-VIDEO AND VISUAL CENSUS TO ASSESS TARGETED FISH SPECIES IN MEDITERRANEAN MARINE PROTECTED AREAS


MAITE LOUZAO ARSUAGA

SPATIAL EVALUATION OF THE NATURA 2000 NETWORK FOR THE CONSERVATION OF SPECIES OF COMMUNITY INTEREST IN THE SPANISH NORTH ATLANTIC MARINE SUBDIVISION

Marine Protected Areas: connectivity and networks

33

LAURA FIGUEROLA FERRANDO

SPATIAL PATTERNS OF GENETIC DIVERSITY IN HABITATFORMING MARINE SPECIES AND THEIR OVERLAP WITH MARINE PROTECTED AREAS

Population genetics and marine reserves 34

NÚRIA MARGARIT RICART

UNTANGLING THE CONSERVATION STATUS OF RED CORAL POPULATIONS IN THE CAP DE CREUS NATURAL PARK AND THE MONTGRÍ, MEDES ISLANDS AND BAIX TER NATURAL PARK

Climate change and marine reserves

38

YANIS ZENTNER MURLANS

ASSESSING THE EFFECTS OF MARINE HEATWAVES IN THE RED GORGONIAN POPULATIONS AT THE MONTGRÍ, ILLES MEDES AND BAIX TER NATURAL PARK

Climate change and marine reserves

40

ESTHER ARCAS SEN

HOW TEMPORAL VARIABILITY AT DIFFERENT SCALES AFFECTS THE ASSESSMENT OF PROTECTION EFFECTS ON THE FISH ASSEMBLAGE


42

FRANCISCO CARDOSO FERREIRA DAS NEVES

ABUNDANCE, SIZE AND BIOMASS OF THE STALKED BARNACLE POLLICIPES POLLICIPES AT BERLENGAS NATURE RESERVE (PORTUGAL): ARE THERE ANY DIFFERENCES BETWEEN NO-TAKE AND HARVEST ZONES?


44

MARÍA MAESTROMANAGEMENT ANALYSIS OF MARINE PROTECTED AREAS: MARINE PARK OF THE AZORES (PORTUGAL)


45

MARINA J. VERGOTTI

X-RAYING SKELETONS: RECONSTRUCTING ECOLOGICAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL INFORMATION USING CLADOCORA CAESPITOSA CORALLITES IN A MARINE PROTECTED AREA


47

ALBA MEDRANO CUEVAS

EVALUATING THE ROLE OF MARINE PROTECTION ON MACROALGAL COMMUNITIES THROUGH LONG-TERM STUDIES


workshopon marine reserves

oral communications

oralcommunications

climate change and marine reserves

Workshop sobre Reservas Marinas

REMAR 2020 Barcelona (Spain), 1st-3rd July 2020

ASSESING THE ROLE OF MARINE PROTECTED AREAS FACING THE CLIMATE CHANGE IN TEMPERATE SEAS

Martínez-Batalla E*1, Garrabou J1, Cebrian E2, Gori A3, Ledoux JB1,4, López A1, Linares C3, Montero Serra I3, Gomez-Gras D1 and Micheli F5

1 Departament de Biologia Marina, Institut de Ciències del Mar (CSIC), Barcelona, Spain;

[email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]

2 GR MAR, Institut d’Ecologia Aquàtica, Facultat de Ciències, Universitat de Girona, Girona, Spain;[email protected]

3 Departament de Biologia Evolutiva, Ecologia i Ciències Ambientals, Institut de Recerca de la Biodiversitat (IRBIO), Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain; [email protected]; [email protected]

4 CIMAR/CIIMAR, Centro Interdisciplinar de Investigacçao Marinha e Ambiental, Universidade do Porto, Rua dos Bragas 177, 4050-123 Porto, Portugal; [email protected]

5 Hopkins Marine Station, Stanford University, Pacific Grove, California, United States of America; [email protected]

*Correspondence: [email protected]

Abstract: Climate change is one of the major current drivers of disturbance in marine coastal ecosystems. To date, Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are the most effective tool for marine conservation. However, their efficacy in adapting and mitigating the effects of climate change remains controversial. We conducted a comprehensive literature review of climate change effects and MPAs for the last fifteen years (2005-2019). We restricted our review to benthic species living in temperate rocky habitats, which are hotspots of biodiversity worldwide and are being affected by climate change. The number of papers addressing MPAs and climate change has increased steadily over the past decade. The majority of studies (63%) have been carried out on the west coast of the USA, the Mediterranean and the Australian coast, which comprises only 23 of the 79 temperate ecoregions. In 32% of these ecoregions no work was found. Overall, our results show that evidence is lacking to conclude that MPAs promote a greater resistance and a faster recovery of marine ecosystems, that is, their resilience. To date, just a few articles consider this question, and of those only about half consider that reserves play an important role in adapting and/or mitigating the effects derived from climate crisis. Therefore, we conclude that that sound empirical studies specifically designed to test to what extent MPAs are supporting the resilience of ecosystems the face of climate change are urgently needed to support effective biodiversity conservation.

5

Key words: marine heat waves, mass mortality, habitat-forming species, keystone species, management plans

References:

Azzurro, E., et al. (2019). Climate change, biological invasions, and the shifting distribution of Mediterranean fishes: A large-scale survey based on local ecological knowledge. Global change biology.

Bruno, J. F., et al. (2018). Climate change threatens the world’s marine protected areas. Nature Climate Change, 8(6), 499.

Côté, I. M. i Darling, E. S. (2010). Rethinking ecosystem resilience in the face of climate change. PLoS biology, 8(7), e1000438.

Gattuso, J. P., et al. 2018). Ocean solutions to address climate change and its effects on marine ecosystems. Frontiers in Marine Science, 5, 337.

Hughes TP, Baird AH, Bellwood DR, Card M,Connolly SR, et al. (2003) Climate change,human impacts, and the resilience of coral reefs.Science 301: 929–933.

Micheli, F., et al. (2012). Evidence that marine reserves enhance resilience to climatic impacts. PloS one, 7(7), e40832.

Roberts, C. M., et al. (2017). Marine reserves can mitigate and promote adaptation to climate change. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 114(24), 6167-6175.

Sala, E. i Giakoumi, S. (2017). No-take marine reserves are the most effective protected areas in the ocean. ICES Journal of Marine Science, 75(3), 1166-1168.

Garrabou, J., et al (2018). Climate change and interconnected risks to sustainable development in the Mediterranean. Nature Climate Change, 8(11), 972-980.

6



USE OF THE NUCLEOTIDE DIVERSITY IN COI MITOCHONDRIAL GENE AS

AN EARLY DIAGNOSTIC OF CONSERVATION STATUS OF ANIMAL

SPECIES: THE ENDANGERED BIVALVE PINNA NOBILIS AS A CASE STUDY

Petit-Marty N. 1,2*, Vázquez-Luis M.3 and Hendriks I.2

1. School of Biological Sciences and Swire Institute of Marine Biology. Kadoorie Biological Sciences Building, The University of Hong Kong, Pok Fu Lam Road, Hong Kong SAR.

*[email protected]. 2.Global Change Research Group, Mediterranean Institute for Advanced Studies (CSIC-UIB), c/ Miquel Marques 21, 07190 Esporles (Mallorca), Spain.

[email protected]. 3. Instituto Español de Oceanografía (IEO). Centro Oceanográfico de Baleares. Muelle de Poniente s/n, 07015 Palma de Mallorca, Spain. [email protected]

Species assessed as threatened by the IUCN show evidence of declining population sizes. Genetic diversity is lost by this decline, which reduces the adaptive potential of the species and increases its extinction risk in a changing environment. In this study, we collected an extensive dataset of nucleotide diversities in COI mitochondrial gene (COI DNA barcode) for 4363 animal’s species assessed by IUCN and found significantly reduced levels of diversity in threatened species of long-lived animal classes. Then, we built up a comparative frame by getting the 95% CI of mean values of COI nucleotide diversity of bootstrapped samples of non-threatened species. Finally, we tested the comparative frame with data from the critically endangered bivalve species, Pinna nobilis. The evaluation of P. nobilis, shows that before the haplosporidium outbreak that drove the species nearly to extinction, nucleotide diversity levels were already significantly lower than expected from non-threatened bivalve species. P. nobilis populations possibly experienced a strong population decline within the last century, which reduced their capacity to cope with the new pathogen that appeared in 2016. We conclude that nucleotide diversity in COI is a good proxy for a first evaluation of the conservation status of populations of animal species. We propose to use the method as a specific tool for marine species, where previous knowledge is lacking and census are difficult to perform. Key words: adaptive potential, COI, biodiversity conservation, evolution, extinction

Acknowledgments: Funding for this study was provided by the PADI foundation (ID. 32981).

7

oralcommunications

detection and monitoring of catastrophic events in marine reserves



MODELING THE ROLE OF MARINE PROTECTED AREAS ON THE RECOVERY OF SHALLOW ROCKY REEF ECOSYSTEM AFTER A CATASTROPHIC SUBMARINE VOLCANIC ERUPTION

J.C Mendoza *1 and J.C Hernández2

1, 2 Departamento de Biología Animal, Edafología y Geología, Universidad de La Laguna, La

Laguna, ESPAÑA. [email protected], [email protected]

Abstract: The Ecopath with Ecosim (EwE) modeling approach has become an important tool in the study of ecosystems recovery after human and natural disturbances (Christensen and Walters, 2004; Plagányi, 2007). In October 2011, a submarine volcanic eruption in The Punta Restinga – Mar de Las Calmas Marine Protected Area (RMC-MPA) (El Hierro – Canary Islands) caused catastrophic mass mortality. We modeled the recovery dynamics of the three levels of protection of the RMC-MPA (no-take, buffer, and restricted fishing area) to evaluate their resilience and their potential to restore fishing resources after a submarine volcanic eruption. The EwE software was used to build a mass balance model (Ecopath) (Christensen and Pauly, 1992) of the RMC-MPA; to simulate a temporal volcanic eruption scenario (Ecosim) (Walters et al. 1997) and, to evaluate the space-time dynamics (Ecospace) (Walters et al., 1999) in the RMC-MPA sectorization. Recovery varied with functional groups and levels of protection. Benthic macroalgae and parrotfish populations recovered the fastest. Piscivore fishes, macroinvertebrate feeders, and macroinvertebrate detritivores required more extended recovery periods. The levels of protection played a significant role in the recovery, with the no-take zone showing more resilience than the buffer and fished zones. Our results suggest that no-take zones are crucial in the recovery process after catastrophic events. The long-term view of the volcanic effects on the RMC-MPA ecosystem suggests the need for continuous monitoring of long-lived species. We conclude that the temporal-spatial model obtained in this study, can be successfully applied to evaluate the potential effects of other MPA designs, to ensure the recovery of the marine ecosystems in the region and, to be better prepared for future natural catastrophes.

Key words: The Canary Islands, Ecopath with Ecosim, Volcanic eruption, Marine protected areas (MPA), Ecosystem restoration.

9

Acknowledgments: We thank Raquel Modino for including this study in the project ‘Proyecto para el fortalecimiento de la capacidad de adaptación y recuperación en la población de La Restinga (El Hierro, Islas Canarias)’ [Ref.:2017REC23] funded by the ‘Fundación Caja Canarias’ 2017 program. References:

Christensen, V. and Pauly, D. (1992). ECOPATH II—a software for balancing steady-state ecosystem models

and calculating network characteristics. Ecological Modeling 61(3-4), 169-185. Christensen, V. and Walters, C.J. (2004) Ecopath with Ecosim: methods, capabilities and

limitations. Ecological Modeling 172, 109-139. Plagányi, É.E., 2007. Models for an ecosystem approach to fisheries (No. 477). Food and Agriculture

Organization of the United Nations. Walters, C., Christensen, V. and Pauly, D. (1997). Structuring dynamic models of exploited ecosystems from

trophic mass balance assessments. Reviews in fish biology and fisheries 7, 139–172. Walters, C., Pauly, D. and Christensen, V. (1999). Ecospace: prediction of mesoscale spatial patterns in trophic

relationships of exploited ecosystems, with emphasis on the impacts of marine protected areas. Ecosystems 2(6), 539-554.

10

oralcommunications

ecological and socio-economic benefits of marine reserves



THE ROLE MARINE PROTECTED AREAS ON MARINE TROPHIC LEVELS: ILLAS ATLANTICAS NATIONAL PARK AS

CASE STUDY

Blanco Andreu1,2, Olabarria Celia2, Planes Serge3, Beger Maria1,4

1 School of Biology, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Leeds, Leeds, LS2 9JT, United Kingdom

[email protected]

[email protected]

2 Departamento de Ecoloxía e Bioloxía Animal, Universidade de Vigo, Campus As Lagoas-Marcosende, 36310 Vigo, Spain

[email protected]

3 CRIOBE-USR 3278, CNRS-EPHE-UPVD, Laboratoire d’Excellence ‘CORAIL’, 58 Avenue Paul Alduy, 66860, Perpignan, France

[email protected]

4 Centre for Biodiversity Conservation Science, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

Abstract: Some of the most threatening impacts towards the marine environment are coal extraction, aquaculture activity, over-fishing, and tourism (Halpern et al. 2019). However, human action may also contribute to marine species and habitat recovery through management and conservation measures such as marine protected areas (MPAs) (Lotze et al. 2011). As a consequence of banning fishing activities within MPAs, the increasing biomass of predators (both abundance and size) and prey (when they are targeted by fisheries outside the MPA boundaries) enhance the robustness of food-web dynamics and subsequently trophic resilience (Cheng et al. 2019). It is however less known whether trophic relationships can serve as indicators for the effectiveness of MPAs. In the present study, we test this question by sampling the isotopic nitrogen content of several organisms (including macroalgae, invertebrates and vertebrates) inside (n = 4) and outside (n= 4) the Atlantic Islands National Park (Galicia, NW Spain). In order to minimize habitat-related and temporal effects, the sampling was performed in kelp forests and within the same week at all locations. Despite slightly enrichment of stable nitrogen content inside the MPA, preliminary results show that

12

marine protection has no effect on the isotopic values. The lack of a management plan for the MPAs of the Atlantic Islands National Park until just recently may have resulted in no effects of protection on ecosystem functioning, although the effects of other environmental factors should be deeply studied. Trophic interactions are an important monitoring tool and indicator for an effective management of MPA network (Frid et al. 2008), as incorporating food webs into conservations plans would greatly improve both ecological outcomes of the protection and the services it would deliver (Santora et al. 2017).

Key words: trophic interactions, stable isotopes, marine protected areas, ecosystem functioning

Acknowledgments:

Authors would like to thank the Consellería de Cultura, Educación e Ordenación Universitaria and the Consellería de Economía, Emprego e Industria as A. Blanco has been granted with a postdoctoral fellowship Modalidade A (ED481B 2018/68). References:

Cheng, B.S., Altieri, A.H., Torchin, M.E., and Ruiz, G.M., 2019. Can marine reserves restore lost ecosystem functioning? A global synthesis. Ecology, 100 (4), 1–13.

Frid, C.L.J., Paramor, O.A.L., Brockington, S., and Bremner, J., 2008. Incorporating ecological functioning into the designation and management of Marine Protected Areas. Hydrobiologia, 606 (1), 69–79.

Halpern, B.S., Frazier, M., Afflerbach, J., Lowndes, J.S., Micheli, F., O’Hara, C., Scarborough, C., and Selkoe, K.A., 2019. Recent pace of change in human impact on the world’s ocean. Scientific Reports, 9 (1), 1–8.

Lotze, H.K., Coll, M., Magera, A.M., Ward-Paige, C., and Airoldi, L., 2011. Recovery of marine animal populations and ecosystems. Trends in Ecology and Evolution, 26 (11), 595–605.

Santora, J.A., Sydeman, W.J., Schroeder, I.D., Field, J.C., Miller, R.R., and Wells, B.K., 2017. Persistence of trophic hotspots and relation to human impacts within an upwelling marine ecosystem. Ecological Applications, 27 (2), 560–574.

13



COMPARATIVE POPULATION GENETICS AND MARINE PROTECTED AREAS: THE CASE STUDY OF TWO HABITAT-

FORMING OCTOCORALS IN THE CATALAN SEA J.-B. Ledoux1,2, M. Horaud1, R. Arizmendi-Meija1, E. Nebot1, A. Antunes2, A. López-Sanz1,

P. López-Sendino1, I. Monterro-Serra3, C. Linares3, J. Garrabou1,4. 1 Institut de Ciències del Mar, CSIC, Passeig Marítim de la Barceloneta 37-49, 08003 Barcelona, Spain 2 CIIMAR/CIMAR, Centro Interdisciplinar de Investigação Marinha e Ambiental, Universidade do Porto, Porto, 4050-123, Portugal 3 Departament de Biologia Evolutiva, Ecologia i Ciències Ambientals, Universitat de Barcelona, Av. Diagonal 643, 08028 Barcelona, Spain. 4 Aix-Marseille University, Mediterranean Institute of Oceanography (MIO), 13288, Marseille, Cedex 9; Université de Toulon, 83957,

CNRS/IRD, France Email: [email protected] Abstract: Genetic diversity is one of the pillars of biodiversity supporting the responses of natural populations to environmental changes. The maintenance of high genetic diversity within populations ensures populations’ evolutionary potential. Understanding the drivers of genetic diversity patterns is thus key to promote biodiversity conservation. At microevolutionary scale, the patterns of genetic diversity result from the interaction among different eco-evolutionary processes. While their inference is highly challenging, a robust understanding of these eco-evolutionary processes is key to improve the management of marine protected areas. In this context, comparative population genomics among species with contrasted life history traits, across similar area, offers a powerful framework. Our main objective here was to characterize the connectivity within and among two existing MPAs in the Catalan Sea. We developed a comparative population genetics study focused on the red coral, Corallium rubrum, and the red gorgonian, Paramuricea clavata, two habitat-forming species from the coralligenous, which is one of the most diverse but also most threatened Mediterranean communities. We first characterized the spatial genetic structure of each species based on two sets of microsatellites and similar hierarchical sampling among three regions within the two MPAs. We inferred the underlying processes with particular focus on connectivity and genetic drift. We revealed contrasted spatial genetic structures between both species with a stronger association between genetic and geographic patterns in P. clavata compared to C. rubrum. This result was explained by a higher connectivity and lower genetic drift acting on P. clavata compared to C. rubrum. In addition, we showed barriers to gene flow and identified key populations in terms of connectivity. This study illustrates how comparative population genetics studies must be incorporate in the MPA management plans in order to ensure the connectivity among populations and hence to enhance the conservation of marine biodiversity. Key words: Comparative population genetics, genetic diversity, habitat-forming octocorals, Mediterranean sea, Marine protected Areas.

14



FISHING BLURS THE ECOLOGICAL SIGNIFICANCE OF COLOR

MORPHS IN A TEMPERATE COASTAL FISH

Luis Cardona, Luis1, Olga Reñones2, Adam Gouragine3, Fabiana Saporiti,1 Alex

Aguilar1, Moranta, Joan.2

1 IRBio and Department of Evolutionary Biology, Ecology and Environmental Science, University of Barcelona, Spain

[email protected], [email protected] , [email protected] 2 Centro Oceanográfico de Baleares, Instituto Español de Oceanografia, Palma, Spain

[email protected]; [email protected] 3 Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences, Aberystwyth University, Aberystwyth,

UK [email protected]

Abstract: This paper investigates the impact of fishing on the ecological significance of fish polymorphism, using the ballan wrasse Labrus bergylta as a model species. This is a mid-size (up to 66 cm TL), long-lived (up to 29 years) protogynous hermaphrodite fish inhabiting shallow rocky habitats of the temperate eastern Atlantic, from the Canary Islands to southern Norway. Most ballan wrasses are uniform greyish, greenish or reddish (plain morph), but a few are orange/reddish with white spots on the body and fins (spotted morph). Ballan wrasses are exploited by artisanal and recreational fishermen in Galicia (northwesern Spain) and hence populations are likely under carrying capacity in most areas. This hypothesis was confirmed by underwater visual census: the biomass of the ballan wrasse was three-fold in areas off Cíes Islands closed to recreational fishing compared to nearby control areas open to fishing. The stable isotope ratio of C revealed differences in the resource use pattern of both plain and spotted ballan wrasses in areas open and closed to fishing, although plain wrasses were always depleted in 13C compared to sympatric spotted ones. The stable isotope ratio of N showed that plain ballan wrasses foraged consistently at a higher trophic level than spotted ones in areas of high population density closed to recreational fishing, whereas differences did not exist or were reversed in areas open to fishing. These results demonstrate that the pattern of trophic resource partitioning between the two morphs of the ballan wrasse is density-dependent and that the two morphs likely had different ecological niches in pristine ecosystems. The corollary of those findings is that exploited populations of fishes are not good models to make inferences about the ecological significance and the evolutionary origin of trophic polymorphism, particularly in the case of long-lived species.

15

Key words: marine protected areas, fishing color polymorphism, wrasses, stable isotopes

Acknowledgments: This research was supported by grant 1588/2015, Organismo Autónomo de Parques Nacionales, Spain. Authors appreciate the help provided by the staff of Parque Nacional de las Islas Atlánticas de Galicia, Jorge Hernández (IEO) and Buceo Olasalada.

16



FISH FROM THE INFRALITTORAL ROCKY BOTTOMS OF

CABRERA ARCHIPELAGO. RESULTS OF 25 YEARS OF PROTECTION

J. Coll1, O. Reñones2, J. Moranta2, D. Álvarez-Berastegui3 and L. Cardona4*

1 Tragsatec, Palma, Spain

[email protected] 2 Centro Oceanográfico de Baleares, Instituto Español de Oceanografia, Palma, Spain

[email protected]; [email protected] 3 SOCIB, Palma, Spain [email protected]

4 IRBio and Department of Evolutionary Biology, Ecology and Environmental Science, University of Barcelona, Spain

[email protected]

Abstract: Changes in the fish communities inhabiting the infralittoral rocky bottoms of Cabrera have been monitored for 25 years by means of underwater censuses. The abundance and biomass of species vulnerable to fishing increased significantly both in shallow (15 m) rocky bottoms during the decade following the creation of the national park, both in the no-take areas as in areas open to the artisanal fishery. This resulted into inverted biomass pyramids, particularly in deep areas of the National Park. The dusky grouper (Epinephelus marginatus) contributed largely to the fish biomass in the protected areas. However, fish abundance and biomass in Cabrera declined markedly after 9 year of protection, mainly because of decreasing populations of dusky groupers and seabreams (Diplodus sargus and Diplodus vulgaris). The mass mortality of dusky groupers observed from 2011 to 2016 in the Balearic Islands due to a viral illness might have contributed to such decline. However, other species also declined since 2004 in control sites open to fishing in Mallorca, where fish density and biomass were always lower than in the protected areas of Cabrera. This suggests the existence of ecological processes operating at a regional scale and affecting recruitment through the Balearic Islands. In any case, fish abundance and biomass are still much higher in Cabrera than in Mallorca, although a broad variability across sampling sites exists in Cabrera. This variability is strongly correlated to the variability of the physical environment and the highest fish biomass is always recorded at exposed sites, likely because of planktonic subsidies resulting from strong currents. On the contrary, fish abundance and biomass are low everywhere in the Mallorca control sites, independently of habitat complexity, current exposure or other habitat determinants. This highlights the homogenization of fish communities resulting from intense fishing.

17

Key words: Balearic Islands, Fishing, Marine protected areas

Acknowledgments: This research has been financed by Instututo Español de Oceanografia, Organismo Autónomo de Parques Nacionales and the European Union .

18



SPATIAL ECOLOGY OF THE NORWAY LOBSTER IN DEEP

SEA MEDITERRANEAN HABITATS: USEFUL INFORMATION TO DESIGN MANAGEMENT PROTECTED AREAS

M. Vigo*1, J. Navarro1, I. Masmitja1,2, J. A. García1, N. Bahamón1, G. Rotllant1,

J. Aguzzi1 and J.B. Company1

1InstitutdeCiencieselMar–CSIC,Barcelona,SPAIN.

2 Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI), USA

[email protected], [email protected], [email protected] , [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]

Abstract: Marine protected areas are increasingly used as a research and a management tool for conservation of biodiversity and to achieve a sustainable fishery activity (4). The Norway lobster Nephrops norvegicus has a high commercial value in European waters, though their stocks have significantly diminished over the last decade. This burrowing species has strict endo-benthic life habit digging and inhabiting complex tunnel systems, that act a centre for strong territorial behaviour (1). In October 2017, a no-take marine area was stablished in the Northwestern Mediterranean at 350-400 m depth with the objective of recovering the stocks of this crustacean. However, it is unknown whether the protected area size matches the scale of movement of Norway lobsters, which is crucial to assess its effectiveness (2-3). In this study, for first time, we investigated the diel activity and home range of electronic-tagged Norway lobsters in the no-take areas to examine their spatiotemporal movement patterns in the deep-sea. In total, 33 individuals were collected with creels and, subsequently, they were tagged with miniaturized acoustic transmitters (0.7 g of weight in water). All tagged lobsters were released inside an area delimited by four acoustic hydrophones which collected tag detections from all individuals (i.e. emission detections occurred only during emergence from burrows) during five months. The recorded time series of detections were used to describe burrow emergence patterns and spatial movements (by signal triangulation). Behaviour interactions were examined by analysing the space overlap/segregation of the core foraging area. The results revealed the strong territoriality and the conduct of diel behaviour of the Norway lobster, and that the protected area size is adequate to recuperate their stocks as their home range fits inside the area.

Key words: Marine Protected Area, diel activity, home range, acoustic transmitters, stock.

19

Acknowledgments: Thanks to all the people involved in the R/V Sarmiento de Gamboa. M.V. was supported by a Phd-contract of the FPU program (FPU18/01775, Ministry of Science and Innovation of the Government of Spain). J.N. was supported by the Spanish National Program Ramon y Cajal (RYC-2015-17809). This study is a contribution to the project RESNEP (CTM2017-82991-C2-1-R, Ministry of Science and Innovation, Spain).

References:

(1) Aguzzi, J., Sbragaglia, V., Tecchio, S., Navarro, J., Company, J.B. (2015). Rhytmic behaviour of marine benthopelagic species and synchronous dynamics of benthic communities. Deep-Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers 95:1-11

(2) Davidson, E.R., Hussey, N.E. (2019). Movements of a potential fishery resource, porcupine crab (Neolithodes grimaldii) in Northern Davis Strait, Easterns Canadian Arctic. ELSEVIER: Deep-Sea Research Part I. 154 :1-9.

(3) Giacolone, V. M., Zenone, A., Badalamenti, F., Ciancio, J., Buffa, G., Gristina, M., Pipitone, C., Anna, G. (2019). Homing and home range of the European spiny lobster, Palinurus elephas (Decapoda, palinuridae) acoustically tracked. Crustaceana 92 (4): 463-476.

(4) Roberts, C. M., Bohnsack, J. A., Gell F., Hawkins, J. P., Goodridge, R. (2001). Effects of Marine Reserves on Adjacent Fisheries. Science, 294, 1920- 1923.

20



SPATIAL MISMATCH BETWEEN SEABIRD-FISHERY

INTERACTIONS AND MARINE PROTECTED AREAS: WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?

Virginia Morera-Pujol1, Leia Navarro-Herrero2, Raül Ramos3, José M. Reyes-González4, Salvador García-Barcelona5, José M. Arcos6, David Grémillet7, Tim

Guilford8, Carola Sanpera9, Juan Bécares10, Beneharo Rodríguez11, Maite Louzao12, David Garcia13, Ángel Sallent14, Jacob González-Solís15

1,2,3,4,9,15 Institut de Recerca de la Biodiversitat (IRBio) and Departament de Biologia

Evolutiva, Ecologia i Ciències Ambientals, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, SPAIN

[email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]

5 Instituto Español de Oceanografía, Fuengirola, SPAIN [email protected]

6,10,11 SEO/Birdlife, Programa Marino (Delegació de Catalunya), Barcelona, SPAIN [email protected]

7 Centre d’Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, UMR 7372 CNRS – Université La Rochelle, Villiers-en-Bois, France

[email protected] 8 Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UNITED KINGDOM

[email protected] 10 Cory's - Investigación y Conservación de la Biodiversidad, Barcelona, SPAIN

[email protected] 11 Canary Islands' Ornithology and Natural History Group (GOHNIC), Buenavista del

Norte, SPAIN [email protected]

12 AZTI Fundazioa, Herrera Kaia, Pasaia, SPAIN [email protected]

13 Islands Biodiversity Research Initiative (IRBI), Alaró, SPAIN [email protected]

14 Asociación de Naturalistas del Sureste (ANSE), Murcia, SPAIN [email protected]

Abstract: The effects of human activities on marine megafauna are diverse. For seabirds, overfishing, discard dependence, and by-catch can impact foraging strategies, abundance and survival of many species. Therefore, conservation actions, such as the definition and

21

management of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), should consider the location and intensity of the interactions between wildlife and human activities. To study the spatiotemporal dynamics of those interactions we studied the movements of seabirds and the Spanish fisheries fleet off the Levantine and Canary archipelago waters. First, we GPS-tracked seabirds of 5 different species, during the breeding periods between 2011 and 2019: Scopoli’s shearwaters, Cory’s shearwaters, Balearic shearwaters, Yelkouan shearwaters and Audouin’s gulls. Second, we gathered positions both from the Vessel Monitoring System (for vessels above 12m length) and smaller vessels (artisanal fisheries) by deploying GPS devices to the ships (only 2018-2019).

We found remarkably lower spatio-temporal overlap between birds and fisheries in the Canarian waters than in the Mediterranean, likely due to different fisheries and gears operating there. In the Mediterranean, all 5 species showed a high overlap with the trawler fleet (12-71%) suggesting an exploitation of discards which could cause impact on the population dynamics and survival of seabirds after the planned reform of the Common Fisheries Policy (EU) that proposes a drastic reduction of discards, and which may require further attention. In addition, our results highlight an intense association of Scopoli’s shearwaters with the longline fleet (12-48%), suggesting a severe by-catch risk for the species particularly off the coast of Catalonia and Balearic Islands, not currently covered by the protected areas network.

The evident seabird-fishery interactions, and their mismatch with the current MPA network highlight the need for forecasting tools to aid the dynamic management not only of MPAs but also of human activities within the current Marine Spatial Planning, enormously benefiting both fisheries and seabirds.

Key words: Fishery management, marine conservation, by-catch, Mediterranean Sea, Canary Islands, seabird tracking

Acknowledgments: projects 2017/2349 and 2019/1423of the Pleamar program funded by the Fundación Biodiversidad (Ministerio para la Transición Ecológica y el Reto Demográfico) and the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF).

22

oralcommunications

long-term series in marine reserves


REMAR 2020

Barcelona (Spain), 1st-3rd July 2020

POPULATION COLLAPSE OF HABITAT-FORMING

OCTOCORALS IN SCANDOLA MARINE PROTECTED AREA:

THE LONG-TERM STUDY OF GORGONIAN POPULATIONS

AFFECTED BY THE 2003 EXTREME WARM SUMMER.

Gómez-Gras D*1, Linares C2, López-Sanz A3, Amate R4, Ledoux JB5, Bensoussan

N6, Bianchimani O7, Marschal C8, Torrents O9, Zuberer F10, Cebrian E11, Teixidó

N12, Zabala M13, Kipson S14, Kersting DK15, Montero-Serra I16, Pagès-Escolà M17,

Medrano A18, Milani A19, Frleta-Valić M20, Dimarchopoulou D21, López-Sendino

P22, Garrabou J23.

1,3,4,6,19,22,23 Departament de Biologia Marina, Institut de Ciències del Mar (CSIC), Barcelona, SPAIN

[email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected],

[email protected], [email protected], [email protected]

2,13,15,16,17,18 Departament de Biologia Evolutiva, Ecologia i Ciències Ambientals, Institut de Recerca de la

Biodiversitat (IRBIO), Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, SPAIN.


[email protected]

5 Centro Interdisciplinar de Investigação Marinha e Ambiental (CIIMAR), Porto, PORTUGAL

[email protected]

7 Septentrion Environnement, Marseille, FRANCE

[email protected]

8 Institut Méditerranéen de Biodiversité et d’Écologie marine et continentale (IMBE). Marseille, FRANCE

[email protected]

9 CNRS UMR 6540 DIMAR, Centre d’Oce ́anologie de Marseille,Station Marine d’Endoume, AixMarseille

Universite ́,Marseille, FRANCE

10 Centre de Recherches Insulaires et Observatoire de l’Environnement (CRIOBE), Moorea, Papeete,

FRENCH POLYNESIA

[email protected]

11 GR MAR, Institut d’Ecologia Aquàtica, Facultat de Ciències, Universitat de Girona, Girona, SPAIN.

[email protected]

12 Sorbonne Université, CNRS, Laboratoire d’Océanographie de Villefranche, Villefranche-sur-Mer,

FRANCE

[email protected]

14 University of Zagreb, Zagreb, CROATIA

[email protected]

20 Blue World Institute of Marine Research and Conservation, Mali Lošinj, CROATIA

21 Laboratory of Ichthyology, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, GREECE

[email protected]

24

mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]

Abstract: Mediterranean gorgonians are foundation species that support the high diversity

associated with Mediterranean coralligenous assemblages. Through the formation of 3D

structures, they provide structural complexity and thereby habitat and refugia to numerous

associated species, among other ecological benefits. However, these organisms are

especially vulnerable to the increasingly frequent and intense marine heatwaves (MHWs).

In recent decades, MHWs deeply impacted octocoral species such as the red coral Corallium

rubrum and the red gorgonian Paramuricea clavata across large geographical scales, leading

to mass mortality events (MMEs). Although the MME immediate and mid-term (3-4 years)

effects on the population dynamics of these species are well documented, a long-term

evaluation of the impacted populations trajectories is still lacking. This hinders our

understanding of the recovery capacity of these key species, and thus of the potential delayed

effects that MMEs could have on their associated communities. In this study, we performed

a long-term status assessment of different populations of P. clavata and C. rubrum that were

affected by the MME occurred in the summer of 2003 in Scandola Marine Protected Area

(MPA), Corsica. Our results show that since 2003, impacted populations have followed

different trajectories in terms of density, size structure or tissue necrosis, but a general

progressive reduction in biomass. This indicates that the affected populations have no

recovered over almost two decades, despite the high protection regime existing in the MPA.

Furthermore, many populations followed collapse trajectories that have brought them to the

brink of ecological extinction, probably due to the MHW recurrence observed since 2003.

Since Mediterranean octocorals play a unique role on the functioning of coralligenous

assemblages, the long-term delayed effects of the MME observed in our study underpins the

relevant role that stochastic climatic events can play not only on their population dynamics,

but also for the future functioning of coralligenous assemblages.

Key words: Warming Long-term monitoring Vulnerability Temperate reefs

Acknowledgments: D.G-G. is supported by an FPU grant (FPU15/05457) from the Spanish

Ministry of Education. We acknowledge the funding support of the European Union’s

Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under grant agreement No 689518

(MERCES), the MPA-ENGAGE, Interreg Med Programme, Project co-financed by the

European Regional Development Fund and the HEATMED project (RTI2018-095346-

BI00) financed by the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities.

25


REMAR 2020


LONG-TERM MONITORING OF THE ECHINODERM

POPULATIONS OF THE PORT-CROS NATIONAL PARK

David Casals1, Julia Ortega1, Graciel·la Rovira1, Bernat Hereu1

1 Department of Evolutionary Biology, Ecology and Environmental Sciences, University of

Barcelona, Av. Diagonal 643, 08028 Barcelona, Spain

[email protected], [email protected], [email protected],

[email protected]

Abstract:

Echinoderms are considered «boom-bust» phylum (Uthicke et al., 2009) because of large

population fluctuations undergone by some of its species. The causes of these changes can

be natural or resulted from overfishing, pollution, or some other effect caused by humans.

The Port-Cros National Park (PCNP) was established in 1963 and it is one of the oldest

Mediterranean MPAs. There, the echinoderm populations began to be monitored in the early

1980s as indicator species to assess the ecosystem health and evaluate the management

measures adopted for its conservation. Almost 40 years later, this long-term monitoring

provides a valuable set of data with which we can analyse the temporal evolution of these

communities in the PCNP.

During this period, conspicuous changes have been observed. The main sea urchin,

Paracentrotus lividus, suffered a die-off in the 1980s, from which recovered in the decade

of 1990s. Then the species suffered a continuous decrease until 2019, reaching minimum

densities. Arbacia lixula did not decrease in the 1980s, but rather increased its population

during the 1990s, remaining stable nowadays. Other species of the family Echinoidea,

Asteroidea, Ophiuroidea and Holothuroidea showed a similar decreasing pattern from 1990s

until today.

Several causes are implied in these patterns, such as the P. lividus disease, effect of restoring

trophic cascades inside the MPA, sea urchin harvesting in the non-MPAs, larvae recruitment

limitation, introduction of invasive species such as Caulerpa cylindracea, climate change or

other indeterminate causes.

This long-term series showed us that echinoderm populations are sensible to changes at long

term and that natural populations are subject to multiple factors working at different

temporal scales.

In order to know the actual status of the ecosystems and possible changes in the near future

that we might face, it is crucial to keep this and other long-term monitoring programs.

26

mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]

Key words: Echinoderm, Sea urchin, Marine Protected Area, Long-term monitoring, Population

ecology, Mediterranean Sea.

References:

Azzolina JF (1983) Evolution de la maladie de l’oursin comestible Paracentrotus lividus (Lmck)

dans la vaie de Port‐Cros (Var, France). Rapp. P.‐v Réun. Int. Explor. scient. Mer Méditerr.

28: 263‐264.

Boudouresque CF, Nedelec H, Shepherd SA (1980) Decline of a population of the sea urchin

Paracentrotus lividus in the bay of Port‐Cros. Trav Scient Parc nat Port‐Cros 6: 243‐252.

Hereu B, Linares C, Diaz D, Dantart L, Garrabou J, Sala E, Ballesteros E, Harmelin JG, Zabala M,

(2005) Indicateurs de Biodiversité en milieu marin : les échinodermes. Fluctuations

temporelles des peuplements d’échinodermes à Port‐Cros 1982‐2003. Rapport technique

pour le parc national de Port‐Cros (France).

Hereu B, Aspillaga E, Boada J, Capdevila P, Medrano A, Pagès M, Pérez M, Romero J, Rovira G,

Sanmartí N, Linares C (2018) Seguiment del medi marí al Parc Natural de Cap de Creus i al

Parc Natural del Montgrí, les Illes Medes i el Baix Ter. Memòria 2018. Generalitat de

Catalunya. Departament de Territori i Sostenibilitat. Direcció General de Polítiques

Ambientals i Medi Natural. 232 pp.

Medrano A, Linares C, Aspillaga E, Capdevila P, Montero‐Serra I, Pagès‐Escolà M, Hereu B (2019)

No‐take marine reserves control the recovery of sea urchin populations after mass mortality

events. Marine environmental research, 145, 147‐154.

UTHICKE, S., SCHAFFELKE, B. and BYRNE, M. (2009) A boom-bust phylum? Ecological and

evolutionary consequences of density variations in echinoderms. Ecological Monographs,

79, 3–24.

27


REMAR 2020


LONG-TERM MONITORING PROGRAM OF CATALAN

NATURAL PARKS (NW MEDITERRANEAN)

Graciel·la Rovira1, Eneko Aspillaga2, Pol Capdevila3, David Casals1, Joaquim

Garrabou4, Cristina Linares1, Simone Mariani1,5, Alba Medrano1, Ignasi

Montero-Serra1, Júlia Ortega1, Marta Pagès-Escolà1, Mikel Zabala1, Bernat

Hereu1

1 Department of Evolutionary Biology, Ecology and Environmental Sciences, Institut de Recerca

de la Biodiversitat (IRBIO), University of Barcelona, Av. Diagonal 643, 08028 Barcelona, Spain



[email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected] 2 Department of Marine Ecology, Mediterranean Institute for Advanced Studies (IMEDEA, CSIC-

UIB), Esporles (Balearic Islands), Spain

[email protected] 3 Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, 11a Mansfield Rd. Oxford, OX1, 3SZ, UK

[email protected] 4 Institute of Marine Sciences, Passeig Marítim de la Barceloneta, 37, 08003 Barcelona, Spain

[email protected] 5 Centre d’Estudis Avançats de Blanes, Carrer Accés Cala Sant Francesc, 14, 17300 Blanes,

Girona, Spain

Abstract: Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are a fundamental tool to face the increasing impacts on

coastal ecosystems around the world. In the Mediterranean Sea, MPAs are a natural heritage

and is key to preserve the biodiversity along the coast (Linares et al., 2012). Long-term

monitoring programs, combined with experimental studies, allow us to design efficient tools

for the management of these areas, such as the regulation of human usages and the design

of restoration actions (Hereu and Quintana, 2012). In this study, we evaluate the

conservation status of marine communities in relation to protection regimes of two Natural

Parks, located in the northern coast of Catalonia: Cap de Creus Natural Park and Montgrí,

Illes Medes and Baix Ter Natural Park. To do so, we monitored several ecological and

economically relevant species and habitats. The species and habitats evaluated are the

emblematic red coral (Corallium rubrum), gorgonians, bryozoans, sea urchins, fish

vulnerable species, algal communities and dark caves habitats, among others. Each of them

are used to evaluate ecological responses to a wide range of impacts, such as overfishing,

climate change or the impact of diving in benthic species. We found high diversity of

responses to different stressors due to their biological attributes, such as life strategies,

28

mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]

population dynamics, life-history cycles and behaviors. This study highlights the relevance

of well-designed long-term monitoring to better understand the natural variability of the

species and provides useful insights into the management and conservation of the

ecosystems.

Key words: monitoring, temporal and spatial scales, Marine Protected Areas, conservation, impacts.

Acknowledgments: this work was supported by Generalitat de Catalunya and the

University of Barcelona.

References:

Hereu, B. and Quintana, X. (2012). El fons marí de les illes Medes i el Montgrí: quatre dècades de recerca per

a la conservació. Càtedra d’ecosistemes litorals mediterranis. Museu de la Mediterrània. ISBN: 2013-5939.

Linares, C., Garrabou, J., Hereu, B., Diaz, D., Marschal, C., Sala, E., Zabala, M. (2012). Assessing the

effectiveness of marine reserves on unsustainably harvested long‐lived sessile invertebrates. Conservation

Biology, 26(1), 88-96.

29


REMAR 2020


COMPARISON OF DIVER OPERATED STEREO-VIDEO AND

VISUAL CENSUS TO ASSESS TARGETED FISH SPECIES IN

MEDITERRANEAN MARINE PROTECTED AREAS

Xavier Grane-Feliu*1, Scott Bennett2, Bernat Hereu3, Eneko Aspillaga4 and Julia

Santana-Garcon5

1, 3, 4 Departament de Biologia Evolutiva, Ecologia i Ciències Ambientals, Universitat de

Barcelona, Barcelona, SPAIN.

[email protected], [email protected], [email protected] 2, 5 Department of Global Change Research, IMEDEA (CSIC-UIB), Esportles Illes Balears, SPAIN.

[email protected], [email protected]

Abstract: Underwater visual census (UVC) is currently the primary tool used to survey

shallow water fish assemblages in the Mediterranean Sea. However, the rapid development

of digital technologies, such as underwater video cameras and photogrammetric techniques,

are providing new sampling opportunities in marine ecosystems. In this study we compare

two non-destructive sampling methods, UVC and diver operated stereo-video systems

(stereo-DOVs), to characterize assemblages of targeted fish species. Surveys were

undertaken in three zones with different levels of protection from fishing (MR, marine

reserve; PP, partially protected reserve; NP, non-protected area) in the Montgrí, Medes

Islands and Baix Ter Natural Park (NW Mediterranean Sea). There were no statistically

significant differences between stereo-DOVs and UVC surveys in terms of species richness,

relative abundance and biomass of targeted fish species across the three protection levels.

Both methodologies found statistically significant differences between areas closed to

fishing (MR) and areas where fishing is regulated (PP) or allowed (NP), whereby higher fish

biomass, density, species richness and larger sizes were found in MR surveys. Length

estimates of fish were comparable between methods albeit with some species-specific

differences in the size-distribution, and a tendency for UVC to overestimate the size of larger

fishes. Our results suggest that stereo-DOVs provide an equivalent and complementary

technique to UVC to survey assemblages of targeted fish species. In addition to structural

data (e.g., biomass, abundance, and length) recorded by UVC, stereo-DOVs provide a

permanent visual record of a fish community and enable additional factors such as fish

behaviour, precise distance and length, and benthic composition to be quantified. Stereo-

DOVs may, therefore, facilitate the continuity and expansion of long-term monitoring

programs of fish assemblages in the Mediterranean Sea.

Key words: underwater visual census; method comparison; fish wariness; stereo-video;

marine protected area

30


Acknowledgments: This study was conducted with financial assistance from the Seguiment

del medi marí al Parc Natural del Cap de Creus i al Parc Natural del Montgrí, les Illes Medes

i el Baix Ter. JSG and SB received funding from Fundación BBVA (project Interbioclima).

References:

Goetze, J.S., Bond, T., McLean, D.L., Saunders, B.J., Langlois, T.J., Lindfield, S., Fullwood, L.A.F., Driessen,

D., Shedrawi, G., Harvey, E.S. (2019). A field and video analysis guide for diver operated stereo‐video.

Methods Ecol. Evol. 2041–210X.13189. https://doi.org/10.1111/2041-210X.13189

Goetze, J.S., Januchowski-Hartley, F.A., Claudet, J., Langlois, T.J., Wilson, S.K., Jupiter, S.D. (2017). Fish

wariness is a more sensitive indicator to changes in fishing pressure than abundance, length or biomass.

Ecol. Appl. 27, 1178–1189. https://doi.org/10.1002/eap.1511

Holmes, T.H., Wilson, S.K., Travers, M.J., Langlois, T.J., Evans, R.D., Moore, G.I., Douglas, R.A., Shedrawi,

G., Harvey, E.S., Hickey, K. (2013). A comparison of visual- and stereo-video based fish community

assessment methods in tropical and temperate marine waters of Western Australia. Limnol. Oceanogr.

Methods 11, 337–350. https://doi.org/10.4319/lom.2013.11.337

31

oralcommunications

marine protected areas: connectivity and networks population genetics and marine reserves



SPATIAL EVALUATION OF THE NATURA 2000 NETWORK FOR THE CONSERVATION OF SPECIES OF COMMUNITY INTEREST

IN THE SPANISH NORTH ATLANTIC MARINE SUBDIVISION

Maite Louzao1, Amaia Astarloa1, Isabel García-Barón1, Ainhize Uriarte1, Anna Rubio1, Guillermo Boyra1, Maria Santos1, Eider Andonegi2, Guillem Chust2, Javier

Franco1

1 AZTI, Pasaia, SPAIN. [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected],

[email protected], [email protected] 2 AZTI, Sukarrieta, SPAIN.


Abstract: Given the accelerated loss of global biodiversity, there is an urgent need to implement networks of ecologically coherent protected areas. In Europe, the Natura 2000 Network represents the implementation of the Habitat and Bird Directives for the conservation of habitats and species of community interest. This work is focused on species of birds and marine mammals from pelagic habitats that are included in the abovementioned Directives, in the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (Descriptor 1 referring to Biodiversity) and in national relevant legislation. The main objective of this project is (1) to raise awareness about the Natura 2000 network, and (2) to conduct a spatial evaluation of the network in relation to the conservation of species of community interest in the Spanish North Atlantic Marine Subdivision. For that, we (3) will integrate the information of different components of the marine ecosystem (predators, prey and oceanography), (4) to obtain spatial predictions of relative abundance of focal species, and (5) to assess global coherence and ecological connectivity of the network. The compilation of data from different ecosystem components can help to develop descriptors that allow spatial assessments to be made in the Spanish North Atlantic Subdivision within the Marine Strategy Framework Directive.

Key words: Natura 2000 network, seabirds, cetaceans, ecosystem-based monitoring, spatial assessments

Acknowledgments: Thiswork is fundedbyFundaciónBiodiversidad, fromtheMinistryofEcologicalTransitionandDemographicChallenge

33



SPATIAL PATTERNS OF GENETIC DIVERSITY IN HABITAT-FORMING MARINE SPECIES AND THEIR OVERLAP WITH

MARINE PROTECTED AREAS

Laura Figuerola*1, Ignasi Montero-Serra1, Marta Pagés-Escolà1, Joaquim Garrabou2, Cristina Linares1, Jean-Baptiste Ledoux3

1 Departament de Biologia Evolutiva, Ecologia i Ciéncies Ambientals, Universitat de Barcelona.

Av. Diagonal 643, 08028 Barcelona, Espanya. [email protected], [email protected], [email protected],

[email protected] 2 Institut de Ciències del Mar – Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (ICM-CSIC),

Passeig Marítim de la Barceloneta, 37, 08003, Barcelona, Espanya. [email protected]

3 Centro Interdisciplinar de Investigação Marinha e Ambiental - CIIMAR/CIMAR, Universidade do Porto. Terminal do Cruzeiros do Porto de Leixões, Av. General Norton de Matos, s/n, 4450-

208, Porto, Portugal. [email protected]

Genetic diversity is considered an essential level of biodiversity, supporting the responses

of natural populations to environmental changes. In spite of the recent call to monitor global genetic diversity to fully understand the impacts of global change, the pattern of genetic diversity is largely unknown, especially in the oceans.

In this study we conducted a meta-analysis to explore the global patterns of genetic diversity in habitat-forming marine species, which are key organisms providing structural complexity and increasing the biodiversity of benthic ecosystems. We mapped the expected heterozygosity (He) for more than 9.300 populations of 141 species - extracted from 269 papers – that belongs to seven taxa (bryozoans, hexacorals, hydrozoans, octocorals, seagrasses, seaweeds and sponges). We overlapped this data with the distribution of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) using Protected Planet database at global scale, and MAPAMED from MEDPAN databases at Mediterranean Sea. Differences in genetic diversity were analyzed: i) among taxa; and ii) between protected and non-protected areas for each taxa, using a Generalized Linear Models.

North-western Mediterranean and north-eastern Atlantic are the areas with the highest number of studies and populations, followed by the Gulf of Mexico, North-eastern Pacific and South-western Pacific. The expected heterozygosity is significantly different among the seven taxa, with Sponge and Seaweed showing the highest and lowest mean values, respectively. The number of studied populations is higher inside MPAs, but genetic diversity

34

was not different between protected and non-protected areas. This fact challenges the idea that a high genetic diversity inside MPAs can enhance the resilience of marine species to global warming. Our work represents the first approximation of the global patterns of genetic diversity in habitat-forming marine species. It opens an opportunity to investigate the biotic (e.g. longevity) and abiotic (e.g. temperature) drivers of genetic diversity in these species and to monitor the genetic consequences of global change.

Key words: Genetic diversity, MPAs, habitat-forming species, global patterns.

35

workshopon marine reserves

poster communications

postercommunications

climate change and marine reserves


REMAR 2020


UNTANGLING THE CONSERVATION STATUS OF RED CORAL

POPULATIONS IN THE CAP DE CREUS NATURAL PARK AND THE

MONTGRÍ, MEDES ISLANDS AND BAIX TER NATURAL PARK

Núria Margarit*1, Graciel·la Rovira1, David Casals1, Júlia Ortega1, Joaquim

Garrabou1 and Cristina Linares1

1 Department of Evolutionary Biology, Ecology and Environmental Sciences, University of

Barcelona (UB), Barcelona, Spain



Abstract:

Human-induced disturbances have dramatically increased during the last decades, causing strong

impacts on marine species. The octocoral Corallium rubrum is one of the most endangered species

in the Mediterranean. Climate change, with the critical increase in sea temperature and ocean

acidification, in combination with poaching or illegal fishing, are the main threats for this species.

One of the objectives of marine protected areas (MPAs) is to prevent poaching. However, there is a

doubt if these MPAs are enough to ensure the conservation of red coral populations. In this project,

red coral populations were monitored in 2019 inside the MPAs of Cap de Creus Natural Park and

Illes Medes, Montgrí and Baix Ter Natural Park, to assess their conservation status and to compare

them with the results obtained in 2017 in the same locations. We evaluated several demographic

parameters such as population density, mortality, and recruitment. We also explored new analytical

techniques and new sampling protocols to improve the efficiency and time consuming of these new

tools, concretely exploring: the direct measure of height from the photos in comparison with the

measures obtained from photogrammetric techniques and the cover of the colonies as a proxy of the

biomass and structural complexity. Comparing with 2017, we found a significant decrease in coral

size in the studied populations together with higher mortality rates in 2019. We believe that the

observed coral colonies decline may be due to the illegal fishing registered by rural guards at marine

protected area inside the Cap de Creus Natural Park.

Key words: red coral, marine reserve, monitoring

References:

Garrabou, J., Linares, C., Montero-Serra, I., Ledoux, J. B., López-Sanz, À., Olvera, A., Hereu, B., Rossi, S.,

Bramanti, L., Tsounis, G., Domínguez-Carrió, C., Grinyó, J., Zabala, M. and Gili, J. M. (2017). Informe

sobre l’estat de les poblacions de corall vermell (Corallium rubrum) a les aigües de Catalunya, 1–77.

Linares, C., Garrabou, J., López-sanz, À., López-sendino, P., Aspillaga, E., Capdevila, P., Rovira, G. and

Montero-serra, I. (2017). Seguiment de les poblacions de corall vermell a la costa catalana . Any 2017.

38

mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]

Informe encarregat per la Direcció General de Pesca i Afers Marítims del Departament d’Agricultura,

Ramaderia, Pesca i Alimentació.

Rossi, S., Tsounis, G., Orejas, C., Padrón, T., Gili, J. M., Bramanti, L., Teixidó, N., and Gutt, J. (2008). Survey

of deep-dwelling red coral (Corallium rubrum) populations at Cap de Creus (NW Mediterranean). Marine

Biology, 154(3), 533–545.

39


REMAR 2020


ASSESSING THE EFFECTS OF MARINE HEATWAVES IN THE

RED GORGONIAN POPULATIONS AT THE MONTGRÍ, ILLES

MEDES AND BAIX TER NATURAL PARK

Yanis Zentner1, Graciel.la Rovira1, Alba Medrano1, Marta Pagés-Escolà1, Júlia

Santana1, David Casals1, Pol Capdevila1, Eneko Aspillaga1, Ignasi Montero-Serra1

Bernat Hereu1, Joaquim Garrabou2 and Cristina Linares1.

1 Department of Evolutive Biology, Ecology and Environmental Sciences, Institut de Recerca de la

Biodiversitat (IRBio), University of Barcelona. Av. Diagonal 643, 08028 Barcelona, Spain. 2 Institut de Ciències del Mar, Passeig Marítim de la Barceloneta 36-38, 08003 Barcelona, Spain

During the last three decades different Marine Heatwaves have affected the Mediterranean Sea, causing catastrophic mass mortalities over broad spatial scales of several benthic invertebrates such

as gorgonians, corals and sponges. Among them, one of the most of affected species have been the

red gorgonian Paramuricea clavata. Until 2016, the red gorgonian populations in the Montgrí, les

Illes Medes i el Baix Ter MPA have resisted to the impacts of warming. However during the last

five years, the different populations at this MPA have been severely impacted by warming. Given

the ecological role of this species and vulnerability to local (diving) and global (warming)

stressors, this is one of the indicator species used in the biological monitoring which is performed

annually using random quadrats and permanent transects. The main objective of this study is to

analyze the data acquired during this monitoring in order to assess the impacts that climate change

and scuba diving cause on this species in the marine reserve between 2016 and 2019 at 8 locations

with this MPA. We obtained different demographic parameters at each location to search for

significant differences between locations depending on the degree of protection and number of

divers and years. The results show that currently all locations are affected by climate change.

Nonetheless, impacts due to scuba diving cannot be discarded as they could be camouflaged under

the effect of warming. To ensure the conservation of the red gorgonian Paramuricea clavata in

this MPA, a precautionary approach should be used, which could include the reduction of

frequency of divers in the marine reserve and a better control of the proper dive techniques to avoid

physical impacts.

Key words: Climate change, MPAs, habitat-forming species, monitoring, demography.

40


ecological and socio-economic benefits of marine reserves


REMAR 2020


HOW TEMPORAL VARIABILITY AT DIFFERENT SCALES

AFFECTS THE ASSESSMENT OF PROTECTION EFFECTS ON

THE FISH ASSEMBLAGE E. Arcas* A. Forcada and C. Valle

Unidad de Biología Marina, Departamento de Ciencias del Mar y Biología Aplicada, Universidad

de Alicante, P.O. Box 99, Edificio Ciencias V,

Campus de San Vicente del Raspeig, E-03080 Alicante, Spain


Abstract: The evaluation of the effectiveness of MPAs may be susceptible to the natural

fluctuations of the population in space and time, therefore, spatial and temporal variability

(at different scales) must be considered within the sampling design for the study of the

ichthyofauna. In this work we have explored the variations of fish assemblage variables ‒

number of species (N), total abundance (TA) and total biomass (TB), and abundance of 5

target species for the artisanal fishery in the area ‒ inside and outside Tabarca Marine

Reserve, considering temporal replication at small and medium scales (day, week, season

and year), and spatial replication, sampling at different localities and sites. Fish

assemblage was sampled by means of underwater visual census techniques. It was

observed that the N, TA and TB were significantly greater in Tabarca Marine Reserve than

in fished areas during all the seasons. Temporal variability was detected at season scale

inside the MPA, the N was higher in summer, and TA and TB in autumn. No differences

were detected at day scale between the MPA and the control area. None of the population

variables showed temporal variability at the week scale. Regarding the spatial variability,

only TA and TB showed differences between sites. The abundances of the target species

were greater within the MPA during all seasons, except for Dentex dentex that only in

winter. A higher abundance of Diplodus sargus and Epinephelus marginatus was detected

in summer, Sciaena umbra in summer and autumn, Dentex dentex in winter and Diplodus

vulgaris in autumn. Only the abundance of D. vulgaris showed differences between sites.

All these results suggest that for the assessment of protection effect in temperate fish

assemblage, using underwater visual census, temporal variability at lower scales (day and

week) are not important. However, seasonal variations should be considered.

Key words: temporal variability, MPA, abundance, biomass

Acknowledgments: We wish to acknowledge the friendly cooperation of Tabarca Marine

Reserve guards and the Secretaría General de Pesca. This research was financed by

Generalitat Valenciana and University of Alicante through the projects GV/2015/117 and

GRE13-11.

42


References:

García-Charton, J.A., Williams, I.D., Pérez-Ruzafa, A., Milazzo, M., Chemello, R., Marcos, C., Kitsos, M.S.,

Koukouras, A. y Riggio, S. 2000. Evaluating the ecological effects of Mediterranean marine protected

areas: habitat, scale and the natural variability of ecosystems. Environmental Conservation, 27 (2): 159-

178.

Benedetti-Cecchi, L., Bertocci, I., Micheli, F., Maggi, E., Fosella, T. y Vaselli, S. 2003. Implications of

spatial heterogeneity for management of marine protected areas (MPAs): examples from assemblages

of rocky coasts in the northwest Mediterranean. Marine Environmental Research, 55: 429-458.

Holbrook, S.J., Kingsford, M.J., Schmitt, R.J. y Stephens, J.J.S. 1994. Spatial patterns of marine reef fish

assemblages. American Zoologist, 34: 463-475.

Kingsford, M.J. 1998. Reef fishes. In Kingsford, M.J. & Battershill, Ch. Studying temperate marine

environment: a handbook for ecologists. Canterbury University Press, pp: 132-166.

Andrew, N.L. y Mapstone, B.D. 1987. Sampling and the description of spatial pattern in marine ecology.

Annual review of Oceanography and Marine Biology, 25: 39-90.

43


REMAR 2020


ABUNDANCE, SIZE AND BIOMASS OF THE STALKED

BARNACLE Pollicipes pollicipes AT BERLENGAS NATURE

RESERVE (PORTUGAL): ARE THERE ANY DIFFERENCES

BETWEEN NO-TAKE AND HARVEST ZONES?

F. Neves*1 , A. Sousa1,2, D. Mateus1 , S. Maia2 , S. M. Leandro3 , D. Jacinto1 and T. Cruz1,4

1 MARE – Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, Laboratório de Ciências do Mar,

Universidade de Évora, Sines, Portugal

[email protected]*, [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected] 2 MARE – Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, Polytechnic Institute of Leiria, Peniche,

Portugal

[email protected] 3 MARE – Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, ESTM, Polytechnic Institute of Leiria,

Peniche, Portugal

[email protected] 4 Departamento de Biologia, Escola de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade de Évora, Portugal

Abstract: The stalked barnacle, Pollicipes pollicipes, is intensively harvested on rocky

shores of Iberia, representing an important economic resource. At Berlengas Nature Reserve

(RNB), Portugal, a specific management regulation for professional barnacle harvesting was

implemented in 2000 (changed in 2011) defining size and bag limits, and temporal and

spatial closures (no-take zones). In a recent study (2018), inquiries performed to professional

harvesters of RNB revealed that a large majority of the fishers agreed with most of the

management measures in practice at RNB, with the exception of the existence of no-take

zones, considered the least accepted measure by the fishers.

The aim of the present study is to analyse how percentage cover, size, biomass and density

of stalked barnacles (mid and low tidal level) at RNB vary between no-take and harvest

zones. Several sites located within no-take zones and within zones where harvest is allowed

were sampled in 2018 and 2019. At each site, photo-quadrats (50 x 50cm) (minimum of

n=6) for estimating percentage cover of barnacles and destructive sampling of barnacles

(three quadrats of 15 x 15 cm at each tidal level) for estimating density, size and biomass

were carried out. In the laboratory, barnacles were counted, individualized, measured

(maximal rostro-carinal length) and weighted. Additionally, in 2019, percentage cover was

also estimated using a low-altitude (


REMAR 2020


MANAGEMENT ANALYSIS OF MARINE PROTECTED AREAS:

MARINE PARK OF THE AZORES (PORTUGAL)

María Maestro*1, Juan Adolfo Chica-Ruiz2 and María Luisa Pérez-Cayeiro3

1, 2,3 Faculty of Ocean and Environmental Sciences, University of Cádiz, SPAIN.


Abstract: For a significant number of declared marine protected areas (MPAs) lack

management plans or are not being applied appropriately, leading to poor management and,

in the worst case scenario, so-called "paper parks". Evaluating the management of an MPA

allows to detect strengths and weaknesses, make decisions and correct mistakes in the future.

Unfortunately, few evaluations have been done. In recent decades, management has gone

from a traditional governance system to a more inclusive and participatory one that seeks to

understand and integrate the interests and needs of all parties. Social actors are participating

more actively in decision-making, and their support is fundamental to the success of an

MPA. This paper analyses the management of the Marine Park of the Azores (Portugal), one

of the most emblematic areas of the EU. For that purpose, a methodology has been developed

to evaluate the management of MPAs. The evaluation is based on the analysis of four key

aspects: “managing body”, “planning”, “public participation” and “implementation”.

Specific indicators have been designed for each of them. This has given rise to the proposal

of 5 possible management scenarios, in which priority is given to one or other of the 4 factors

mentioned above. Each of the scenarios has different consequences on the biophysical and

socioeconomic systems of the marine protected area. These are: “proactive”, “consultative”,

“centralized”, “by learning” and “formal management”. The results demonstrate that the

Marine Park of the Azores is currently under centralized management, with a sound

management body, but yet should be consolidate the process of planning and public

participation.

Key words: Azores, Assessment, Management, Marine protected areas.

References:

Bockstael, E., Bahia, N., Seixas, C. and Berkes, F. (2016). Participation in protected area management planning

in coastal Brazil. Environmental Science & Policy, 60, 1-10.

Cvitanovic, C., van Putten, E.L., Hobday, A.J., Mackay, M., Kelly, R., McDonald, … and Barnes, P. (2018).

Building trust among marine protected área managers and community members through scientific

research: Insights from the Ningaloo Marine Park, Australia. Marine Policy 93: 195-206.

Maestro, M., Pérez-Cayeiro, M.L., Chica-Ruiz, J.A. and Reyes, H. (2019). Marine protected areas in the 21st

century: Current situation and trends. Ocean and Coastal Management 171: 28-36.

45

mailto:[email protected],%[email protected],%[email protected]

Van der Molen, F. (2018). How knowledge enables governance: The coproduction of environmental

governance capacity. Environmental Science and Policy 87: 18-25.

46


REMAR 2020


X-RAYING SKELETONS: RECONSTRUCTING ECOLOGICAL

AND ENVIRONMENTAL INFORMATION USING CLADOCORA

CAESPITOSA CORALLITES IN A MARINE PROTECTED AREA

M. Vergotti*1, C. Linares2, T. Brachert3, J. Ll. Pretus4, P. Spreter5 and D. K.

Kersting6

1, 2, 4, 6 Departament de Biologia Evolutiva, Ecologia i Ciències Ambientals, Facultat de Biologia,

Institut de Recerca de la Biodiversitat (IRBIO), Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, SPAIN.

[email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]

3, 5 Institut für Geophysik und Geologie, Universität Leipzig, Leipzig, GERMANY.


Abstract:

The study of growth bands (sclerochronology) in corals by analyzing X-ray images has been

widely used to obtain information on growth, skeletal density and calcification. Changes in

these variables have been also used to infer information on environmental conditions. Here

we present the use of sclerochronology to reconstruct environmental and ecological

information in the Columbretes Islands Marine Reserve (CIMR, NW Mediterranean) using

corallites of the only reef-builder coral in the Mediterranean Sea, Cladocora caespitosa. We

radiographed 216 C. caespitosa corallites belonging to 7 different colonies sampled in

CIMR, together with 39 fossil (Holocene) C. caespitosa corallites from Menorca (NW

Mediterranean). X-ray images were analyzed using Coral X-radiograph Densitometry

System to obtain information on annual growth, low/high density band ratios, skeletal

density and calcification rates. In addition, the images were searched in detail for bioerosion

and stress marks. We assessed potential correlations between the different variables obtained

from the skeletons and the temperature regime in the area, and calibrated growth and stress

bands using the unique long-term data series of temperature and coral monitoring of the

CIMR. The recent discovery of rejuvenescence as a survival strategy allowed as well to

specifically search for its characteristic scars in the skeletons, which allow to reconstruct

recoveries after stress events. The results of these analyses, together with the use of one of

the longest temperature and coral monitoring series in the Mediterranean, allowed to

reconstruct information back to the 1990’s (extant corallites) and within ~10 yr. spans in the

period between ~4500-5500 yr. BP (fossil corallites). Intra- and intercolony variability in

the studied variables were also assessed to estimate errors in the reconstructions. Our results

show the potential of this coral as an archive of past environmental and ecological changes

and highlight the role of MPAs as key sentinels of climate change.

Key words: sclerochronology, coral, paleoreconstruction, X-ray, climate change

47

mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]

Acknowledgments: We thank the Secretaría General de Pesca and the Columbretes Islands

Marine Reserve staff for their logistic support. This research was funded by the Deutsche

Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation, project no. 401447620).

References:

Highsmith, R.C. (1979). Coral growth rates and environmental control of density banding. Journal of

Experimental Biology and Ecology, 39,105-125.

Lough, J.M. and Cooper, C.F. (2011) New insights from coral growth bands studies in an era of rapid

environmental change. Earth-Science Reviews, 108,170-184.

Kersting, D.K. and Linares, C. (2019). Living evidence of a fossil survival strategy raises hope for warming-

affected corals. Science Advances, 5:eaax2950.

Kersting, D.K. and Linares, C. (2012). Cladocora caespitosa bioconstructions in the Columbretes Islands

Marine Reserve (Spain, NW Mediterranean): distribution, size structure and growth. Marine Ecology,

33,427-436.

Peirano, A., Morri C., Bianchi C.N. (1999). Skeleton growth and density pattern of the temperate,

zooxanthellate scleractinian Cladocora caespitosa from the Ligurian Sea (NW Mediterranean). Marine

Ecology Progress Series, 185,194-201.

48


long-term series in marine reserves


REMAR 2020


EVALUATING THE ROLE OF MARINE PROTECTION ON

MACROALGAL COMMUNITIES THROUGH LONG-TERM

STUDIES

Alba Medrano*1, Bernat Hereu1, Eneko Aspillaga1,2, Pol Capdevila1,3, Marta

Pagès-Escolà1, Graciel·la Rovira1, Mikel Zabala1 and Cristina Linares1

1 Department of Evolutionary Biology, Ecology and Environmental Sciences, Institut de Recerca

de la Biodiversitat (IRBIO), University of Barcelona (UB), Barcelona, Spain


[email protected], [email protected] 2 Department of Marine Ecology, Institut Mediterrani d'Estudis Avançats, IMEDEA (CSIC‐UIB),

C/Miquel Marquès 21, 07190, Esporles, Balearic Islands, Spain

[email protected] 3 Department of Zoology, Oxford University, Oxford, OX1 3PS, UK

[email protected]

Abstract:

Macroalgal beds dominate the shallow benthic Mediterranean habitats where they play a

pivotal role. Among them, the canopy-forming Cystoseira sensu lato species represent the

highest structural complexity level and provide unique habitats with ecological services

comparable to terrestrial forests. Canopy-forming algae are in decline in many coastal areas

where, among other impacts, overgrazing by herbivorous can lead to the loss of these diverse

habitats shifting towards degraded sea urchin barren grounds. Conservation tools such as

Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) have the potential to reduce some of the anthropogenic

threats and may restore benthic habitats through re-establishing trophic cascade effects

caused by the major abundance of predators. Nevertheless, there is an important lack of

continuous and long-term studies providing robust ecological data of the natural dynamic

and vulnerability of macroalgal assemblages while integrating the role of protection. Here,

we addressed the long-term (15 years) marine vegetation changes in the shallow rocky

shores of the Montgrí Illes Medes and Baix Ter Natural Park integrating the macroalgal and

sea urchin dynamics in front of natural and human-related impacts, and the role and

effectiveness of MPAs as conservation tools at lower trophic levels.

A negligible effect of protection was observed on the abundance of the main macroalgal

assemblages in the rocky-shallow infralittoral zone of the studied area. Nevertheless, we

observed a positive effect of the protection increasing the cover of some specific species,

such as the canopy-forming Treptacantha elegans. Our findings also suggest that predation

was one of the main factors controlling the establishment of depleted sea urchin populations

and emphasize top-down control in MPAs. These results confirm the important potential

50

mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]

role of effectively managed MPAs in the structure of benthic algal-dominated communities

and highlight the importance of obtaining long-term data in ecological studies to better

understand the natural variability of marine communities.

Key words: seaweeds, long-term monitoring, marine reserve

References:

Hereu, B., Linares, C., Sala, E., Garrabou, J., Garcia-Rubies, A., Diaz, D., and Zabala, M. (2012). Multiple

processes regulate long-term population dynamics of sea urchins on Mediterranean rocky reefs. PloS

one, 7(5), e36901.

Medrano, A., Linares, C., Aspillaga, E., Capdevila, P., Montero-Serra, I., Pagès-Escolà, M., and Hereu, B.

(2019). No-take marine reserves control the recovery of sea urchin populations after mass mortality

events. Marine environmental research, 145, 147-154.

Medrano, A., Linares, C., Aspillaga, E., Capdevila, P., Montero-Serra, I., Pagès-Escolà, M., Zabala, M., and

Hereu, B. (2020). Long-term monitoring of temperate macroalgal assemblages inside and outside a No

take marine reserve. Marine environmental research, 153, 104826.

Mineur, F., Arenas, F., Assis, J., Davies, A. J., Engelen, A. H., Fernandes, F., Malta, E-J., Thibaut, T., Nguyen,

T.V., Vaz-Pinto, F., Vranken, S., Serrão, E., and De Clerck,

workshop on marine reserves - ISMS 2020 · REMAR 2020 Barcelona (Spain), 1st-3rd July 2020 USE OF...

Documents

Transcript of workshop on marine reserves - ISMS 2020 · REMAR 2020 Barcelona (Spain), 1st-3rd July 2020 USE OF...