Anything can happen underwater, and even gardens are not necessarily composed of plants. In fact, one of the most beautiful habitats in the Mediterranean are coralligenous gardens, where trees are replaced by soft corals (gorgonians) and flowers give way to calcareous red algae and animals such as sponges and bryozoans. These wondrous places support a … Read more
Stately kelp forests and rainbow-colored coral reefs are known for the amazing amount of life that calls these habitats home. But don’t count out the muddy seafloor, especially if it harbors a tiny crustacean called a haploops. These animals, related to the sandhoppers often found on beaches, build small mud tunnel homes that litter the … Read more
Mediterranean Sea fish stocks are in a dramatic situation with 96% of European assessed stocks in the region reported as overexploited. The reformed Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) requires the EU to end overfishing by 2015 or at the latest by 2020 in order to ensure the recovery of fish stocks. To achieve this objective EU … Read more
Oceana is disappointed by the passive attitude shown by EU States that continues to postpone the EU’s duty to end overfishing by 2020. A high-level seminar on the state of fish stocks in the Mediterranean organized by the European Commission (DG MARE) and the Mediterranean Advisory Council (MEDAC) closed today in Catania, Sicily, with no … Read more
Overfishing in the Mediterranean Sea began around the ‘70s, when fishing effort increased considerably thanks to technological developments that allowed fleets to fish farther, deeper and find catches more easily. Latest assessments of the situation in the Mediterranean, revealed that 96% of stocks fished exclusively by EU countries are overexploited above what is considered sustainable … Read more
Oceana warns at high-level seminar that if overfishing is not stopped by 2020, closing fisheries or losing them will be the only options left Oceana urges the EU to announce this week in Catania concrete proposals to overcome the severe overfishing that is threatening the short-term future of Mediterranean fisheries. 96% of assessed stocks exploited … Read more
Oceana urges the Danish and Swedish governments to jointly manage and protect the Sound from damaging human activities that are causing the decline of key marine habitats such as horse mussel beds and Haploops communities. The exceptional value of this shared strait underscores the need for cooperative management, so that economic activities go hand in … Read more
The Sound is located between Sweden and Denmark, and forms, together with Little Belt and Great Belt, a connection between the brackish Baltic Sea and the saltier North Sea via Kattegat and Skagerrak. In 1932, a bottom trawling ban was established in the Sound because of heavy traffic in the narrow strait. The ban, which … Read more
Oceana acknowledges the Dutch Postcode Lottery for a generous grant of €1.1 million which will fund the first research expedition into the North Sea by the international ocean conservation organisation. The at-sea work will focus on offshore areas in The UK, Denmark, Norway and especially The Netherlands where few data are currently available. The imagery … Read more
One of the interesting facts that we came across when we pinned our expeditions on this story map was at what time of the day we usually dive. We found out that at least one sixth of the immersions took place between 9 p.m. and 10 a.m., both with divers or with an underwater robot … Read more
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We have already protected nearly 4 million square miles of ocean and innumerable sea life - but there is still more to be done.
Oceana in Europe gratefully acknowledges EU funding support.
