Evaluating the distribution of priority benthic habitats through a remotely operated vehicle to support conservation measures off Linosa Island (Sicily Channel, Mediterranean Sea)

In the Sicily Channel, volcanic activity has been concentrated mainly on the Pantelleria and Linosa islands, while minor submarine volcanism took place in the Adventure, Graham and Nameless banks. The volcanic activity spanned mostly during Plio-Pleistocene, however, historical submarine eruptions occurred in 1831 on the Graham Bank and in 1891 offshore Pantelleria Island. On the Graham Bank, 25 miles SW of Sciacca, the 1831 eruption formed the short-lived Ferdinandea Island that represents the only Italian volcano active in historical times currently almost completely unknown and not yet monitored. Moreover, most of the Sicily Channel seismicity is concentrated along a broad NS belt extending from the Graham Bank to Lampedusa Island. In 2012, the Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV) carried out a multidisciplinary oceanographic cruise, named “Ferdinandea 2012”, the preliminary results of which represent the aim of this paper. The cruise goal was the mapping of the morpho-structural features of some submarine volcanic centres located in the northwestern side of the Sicily Channel and the temporary recording of their seismic and degassing activity. During the cruise, three OBS/Hs (ocean bottom seismometer with hydrophone) were deployed near the Graham, Nerita and Terribile submarine banks. During the following 9 months they have recorded several seismo-acoustic signals produced by both tectonic and volcanic sources. A high-resolution bathymetric survey was achieved on the Graham Bank and on the surrounding submarine volcanic centres. A widespread and voluminous gas bubbles emission was observed by both multibeam sonar echoes and a ROV (remotely operated vehicle) along the NW side of the Graham Bank, where gas and seafloor samples were also collected.

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Influence of chemosynthetic ecosystems on nematode community structure and biomass in the deep eastern Mediterranean Sea

Biogeosciences Discussions ◽

10.5194/bgd-9-18131-2012 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 9 (12) ◽

pp. 18131-18173

Author(s):

N. Lampadariou ◽

V. Kalogeropoulou ◽

K. Sevastou ◽

K. Keklikoglou ◽

J. Sarrazin

Keyword(s):

Species Richness ◽

Mediterranean Sea ◽

Eastern Mediterranean ◽

Nematode Community ◽

Cold Seep ◽

Mud Volcanoes ◽

Mussel Bed ◽

Remotely Operated Vehicle ◽

Eastern Mediterranean Sea ◽

Density And Biomass

Abstract. Mud volcanoes are a special type of cold seeps where life is based on chemoautotrophic processes. They are considered as extreme environments and are characterised by unique megafaunal and macrofaunal communities. However, very few studies on mud volcanoes taking into account the smaller meiobenthic communities have been carried out. Two mud volcanoes were explored during the MEDECO cruise (2007) with the Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) Victor-6000; Amsterdam, located south of Turkey between 1700 and 2000 m depth (Anaximander mud field) and Napoli, south of Crete, located along the Mediterranean Ridge at about 2000 m depth (Olimpi mud field). The major aim of this study was to describe distributional patterns of meiofaunal communities and nematode assemblages from different seep microhabitats. Meiofaunal taxa and nematode assemblages at both mud volcanoes differed significantly from other Mediterranean sites in terms of standing stocks, dominance and species diversity. Density and biomass values were significantly higher at the seep sites, particularly at Amsterdam. Nematodes, the dominant meiofaunal taxon, displayed deeper penetration vertically into the sediment at the seep areas, indicating that biological rather than physicochemical factors are responsible for their vertical distribution. Patterns of nematode diversity varied, displaying both very high or very low species richness and dominance, depending on the habitat studied. The Lamellibrachia periphery and mussel bed of Napoli exhibited the highest species richness while the reduced sediments of Amsterdam yielded a species-poor nematode community, dominated by two successful species; one belonging to the genus Aponema and the other to the genus Sabatieria. Analysis of β-diversity showed that habitat heterogeneity of mud volcanoes contributed substantially to the total nematode species richness in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. These observations indicate a strong influence of mud volcanoes and cold-seep ecosystems on the meiofaunal communities and nematode assemblages.

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An updated overview of the geographic and bathymetric distribution of Savalia savaglia

Mediterranean Marine Science ◽

10.12681/mms.890 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 16 (1) ◽

pp. 128 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Mi. GIUSTI ◽

C. CERRANO ◽

M. ANGIOLILLO ◽

L. TUNESI ◽

S. CANESE

Keyword(s):

Mediterranean Sea ◽

Depth Range ◽

Remotely Operated Vehicle ◽

Protection Measure ◽

The Past ◽

Scuba Divers ◽

Occurrence Data ◽

The Mediterranean ◽

Recent Occurrence ◽

Barcelona Convention

The distribution of gold coral Savalia savaglia is modified on the basis of bibliographic information and recent occurrence data, collected using a ROV (Remotely Operated Vehicle) and SCUBA divers. The species is long-lived, rare and has been exploited in the past by divers for collection purposes. S. savaglia is listed in Annex II of the SPA/BD Protocol of the Barcelona Convention and has a wider distribution than previously thought, including both the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. Our results highlighted that specimens mainly live at a depth range of 15-90 m, but may reach as deep as 900 m in the Mediterranean Sea. This species can form monospecific facies of hundreds of colonies, as observed in Montenegro (Adriatic Sea), between 10 and 20 m, and in the Canary Islands, at a depth range of 27-70 m. Recent data highlighted numerous cases of specimens that were endangered by lost fishing gear, which exposed this species to further threats. Considering its longevity and structural role, it is urgent to develop an effective protection measure for S. savaglia, thereby increasing research efforts and implementing protection areas for this species.

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The role of structural inheritance on Africa-Eurasia plate boundary evolution and neotectonics in the central Mediterranean sea

10.5194/egusphere-egu21-5574 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Alina Polonia ◽

Andrea Artoni ◽

Graziella Barberi ◽

Andrea Billi ◽

Luca Gasperini ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mediterranean Sea ◽

Plate Boundary ◽

Geophysical Data ◽

Fault System ◽

Central Mediterranean ◽

Plate Convergence ◽

Structural Inheritance ◽

Central Mediterranean Sea ◽

Sicily Channel ◽

Subduction System

Africa-Eurasia plate convergence and the retreat of the subducting slab led to the consumption of the Tethys ocean lithosphere, which has now mostly disappeared below or accreted/exhumed within the Alps/Apennines. Slab tearing plays a major role in plate boundary evolution, asthenospheric upwelling, dynamic topography and magmatism. However, the role played by structural inheritance on the Africa plate is not well constrained. Based on seismological, geodetic and marine geophysical data, we analyse the pattern of crustal deformation in the Calabrian Arc and Sicily Channel, two key regions to unravel the complex Africa/Eurasia plate interaction in the central Mediterranean Sea.The Calabrian Arc subduction-rollback system accommodates Africa/Eurasia plate convergence along thrust faults developing both in the frontal and inner domains of the accretionary wedge. However, the most intriguing and tectonically active features are represented by arc-orthogonal faults deforming the subduction system along a complex strike-slip/transtensional pattern that may have been the source of major earthquakes in the Calabrian Arc. Deformation along the lithospheric transtensional faults is punctuated by buried sub-circular magnetized bodies aligned with Mt. Etna, that were interpreted as serpentinite/mud diapirs intruding the subduction system from the lower plate mantle. These faults are part of the overall dextral shear deformation, resulting from differences in Africa-Eurasia motion between the western and eastern sectors of the Tyrrhenian margin of northern Sicily, and accommodating diverging motions in the adjacent compartments of the Calabrian Arc. To the West, the Sicily Channel is part of the Pelagian block and experienced a lithospheric-scale continental rifting starting from the late Miocene with the development of NW-SE-trending tectonic depressions, bordered by crustal normal faults with variable throws. Our geophysical data, however, show that the most active tectonic feature in the area is a N-S trending and ~220-km-long lithospheric fault system characterized by volcanism, high heat flow and seismic activity. The NW-SE elongated rifting pattern, considered the first order structure in this region, appears currently inactive and sealed by undeformed Pleistocene deposits suggesting a recent change in structural development.Seismological data show that the lithospheric boundaries present in the Calabrian Arc and Sicily Channel correlate well with spatial changes in the depth distribution of earthquakes and separate regions with different Moho depths and thickness of the seismogenic layer. We propose that these boundaries may represent long-lived inherited Mesozoic discontinuities controlling plate boundary evolution and neotectonics.

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The impact of marine litter from fish aggregation devices on vulnerable marine benthic habitats of the central Mediterranean Sea

Marine Pollution Bulletin ◽

10.1016/j.marpolbul.2020.110928 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 152 ◽

pp. 110928 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Pierpaolo Consoli ◽

Mauro Sinopoli ◽

Alan Deidun ◽

Simonepietro Canese ◽

Claudio Berti ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mediterranean Sea ◽

Central Mediterranean ◽

Benthic Habitats ◽

Marine Litter ◽

Central Mediterranean Sea ◽

Fish Aggregation ◽

The Impact

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Shallow seep-related seafloor features along the Malta plateau (Sicily channel – Mediterranean Sea): Morphologies and geo-environmental control of their distribution

Marine and Petroleum Geology ◽

10.1016/j.marpetgeo.2009.04.003 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 26 (9) ◽

pp. 1831-1848 ◽

Cited By ~ 31

Author(s):

A. Savini ◽

E. Malinverno ◽

G. Etiope ◽

C. Tessarolo ◽

C. Corselli

Keyword(s):

Mediterranean Sea ◽

Environmental Control ◽

Sicily Channel

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A Synergetic Approach for the Space-Based Sea Surface Currents Retrieval in the Mediterranean Sea

Remote Sensing ◽

10.3390/rs11111285 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 11 (11) ◽

pp. 1285 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Daniele Ciani ◽

Marie-Hélène Rio ◽

Milena Menna ◽

Rosalia Santoleri

Keyword(s):

Numerical Model ◽

Mediterranean Sea ◽

Mediterranean Area ◽

Hf Radar ◽

Sea Surface ◽

Reconstruction Method ◽

Surface Currents ◽

Basin Scale ◽

The Mediterranean ◽

Sicily Channel

We present a method for the remote retrieval of the sea surface currents in the Mediterranean Sea. Combining the altimeter-derived currents with sea-surface temperature information, we created daily, gap-free high resolution maps of sea surface currents for the period 2012–2016. The quality of the new multi-sensor currents has been assessed through comparisons to other surface-currents estimates, as the ones obtained from drifting buoys trajectories (at the basin scale), or HF-Radar platforms and ocean numerical model outputs in the Malta–Sicily Channel. The study yielded that our synergetic approach can improve the present-day derivation of the surface currents in the Mediterranean area up to 30% locally, with better performances for the the meridional component of the motion and in the western section of the basin. The proposed reconstruction method also showed satisfying performances in the retrieval of the ageostrophic circulation in the Sicily Channel. In this area, assuming the High Frequency Radar-derived currents as reference, the merged multi-sensor currents exhibited improvements with respect to the altimeter estimates and numerical model outputs, mainly due to their enhanced spatial and temporal resolution.

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