Habitat Protection Archives

Sponge grounds as key marine habitats: A synthetic review of types, structure, functional roles, and conservation concerns

Abstract This chapter reviews the major known monospecific and multispecific sponge aggregations in the world’s oceans. They are shown to occur from the intertidal to abyssal depths, in tropical, temperate, and high latitudes and sometimes to create spectacular formations, such as glass sponge reefs, lithistid reef-like fields, and carnivorous sponge grounds. Sponge aggregations are recognized … Read more

On the occurrence of Coronaster briareus (Echinodermata, Forcipulatida, Asteriidae) in the Mediterranean Sea

Abstract The sea star Coronaster briareus (Verrill Am J Sci (Ser III), 1882) is reported for the first time from the Mediterranean Sea. A total of 26 individuals were sighted in Maltese waters during ROV surveys made in July 2015 and June–July 2016. The identity of the species was confirmed through morphological examination of a … Read more

Biotope characterisation and compiled geographical distribution of the deep-water oyster Neopycnodonte zibrowii in the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea

Abstract We collected and compared 261 geographical Neopycnodonte zibrowii records, retrieved from cruises, non-shipbased submersible expeditions and terrestrial field trips, carried out between June 1882 and January 2016. Hosted in a database, records further contain valuable site-specific metadata, including standardised describers for the variety of observed deep-sea oyster biotopes.

Conservation and management of Vulnerable Marine Benthic Ecosystems

Abstract Apart from natural factors such as climatic variation, which can drive species and habitats to extinction over the long term, and devastating sporadic episodes, like volcanic eruptions, animal forests (e.g., coral reefs, gorgonian gardens, and sponge fields, among others) are mainly threatened by human activities. Coastal destruction, dredging, mining, offshore infrastructure, oil and gas … Read more

Isidella elongata(Cnidaria: Alcyonacea) facies in the western Mediterranean Sea: visual surveys and descriptions of its ecological role

Abstract Isidella elongata is a candelabrum-shaped alcyonacean forming important facies on the bathyal muddy bottoms of the Mediterranean Sea, currently considered a sensitive habitat and heavily impacted by deep-sea fisheries. Until a few decades ago, this facies was a widespread habitat of the deep Mediterranean seabed and I. elongata was a common species in the … Read more

Overview of the conservation status of Mediterranean anthozoa

Abstract This report presents the conservation status of the anthozoans occuring in the Mediterranean Sea, based on the assessment of 136 species using the IUCN Red List methodology. It identifies those species that are threatened with extinction at the regional level to guide appropriate conservation actions in order to improve their status.

Cold-water corals and large hydrozoans provide essential fish habitat for Lappanella fasciata and Benthocometes robustus

Abstract Many fish species are well-known obligatory inhabitants of shallow-water tropical coral reefs but such associations are difficult to study in deep-water environments. We address the association between two deep-sea fish with low mobility and large sessile invertebrates using a compilation of 20 years of unpublished in situ observations. Data were collected on Northeast Atlantic … Read more

What is a ‘Sandbank’: A commentary based on a Maltese case study

Abstract Habitat Type 1110 ‘Sandbanks which are slightly covered by sea water all the time’, listed in Annex I of the EU’s Habitats Directive, is defined in the EU ‘Habitat Interpretation Manual’ as “elevated, elongated, rounded or irregular topographic features, permanently submerged and predominantly surrounded by deeper water”, which “consist mainly of sandy sediments”, and … Read more

Sponge grounds of Artemisina (Porifera, Demospongiae) in the Iberian Peninsula, ecological characterization by ROV techniques

Abstract Artemisina Vosmaer, 1885 is a poecilosclerid microcionoid sponge genus with 20 valid species, seven of which have been recorded in the Atlantic Ocean. The present study describes Artemisina sponge grounds in Iberia Peninsula. A. transiens is a sponge described in 1890 by Topsent in Galicia (Spain); A. hispanica was also collected in the north … Read more

After Scilla and Cariddi, another uncommon animal recorded in Sicilian waters: the deep-sea carnivorous ascidian Dicopia antirrhinum C. Monniot, 1972

Nowadays the knowledge about the Mediterranean deep-sea fauna is still scarce, especially concerning Ascidiacea. Unlike their shallow counterparts, deep-sea ascidians are rather uncommon to find. Visual technologies, such as Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs), represent a unique opportunity to observe several rare or uncommon species in their natural habitat. This study reports the occurrence of a … Read more