Sea pens in the Mediterranean Sea: habitat suitability and opportunities for ecosystem recovery

Abstract The aim of this study is to synthesize available information on sea pens in the Mediterranean Sea and fill existing knowledge gaps through modelling of suitable habitat, with the overarching goal of informing strategies for protecting sea pen habitats from trawling impacts and facilitating their recovery. A review spanning the last 30 years was conducted to map the distribution of Mediterranean sea pen species. In the Adriatic Sea, presence–absence data were modelled with generalized additive models (GAMs) to identify potentially suitable habitats for Funiculina quadrangularis, Virgularia mirabilis, and Pennatula spp. Results show that sea pen distribution in the Mediterranean is mainly limited to continental northern shelves. Six species have been recorded throughout the Adriatic basin, where habitat suitability models confirm that its soft bottoms yield favourable conditions for sea pen assemblages. This information can help guide strategies for diminishing and reversing the impacts of bottom trawling on these vulnerable habitats.

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Sea pens in the Mediterranean Sea: habitat suitability and opportunities for ecosystem recovery

ICES Journal of Marine Science ◽

10.1093/icesjms/fsy162 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 75 (6) ◽

pp. 2289-2291 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Azzurra Bastari ◽

Daniela Pica ◽

Francesco Ferretti ◽

Fiorenza Micheli ◽

Carlo Cerrano

Keyword(s):

Mediterranean Sea ◽

Habitat Suitability ◽

Ecosystem Recovery ◽

The Mediterranean

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Predicting Impacts of Climate Change on Northward Range Expansion of Invasive Weeds in South Korea

Plants ◽

10.3390/plants10081604 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (8) ◽

pp. 1604

Author(s):

Sun Hee Hong ◽

Yong Ho Lee ◽

Gaeun Lee ◽

Do-Hun Lee ◽

Pradeep Adhikari

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

South Korea ◽

Habitat Suitability ◽

Management Strategies ◽

Southern Region ◽

Suitable Habitat ◽

Invasive Weeds ◽

Northern Regions ◽

Suitable Habitats ◽

Control And Management

Predicting the distribution of invasive weeds under climate change is important for the early identification of areas that are susceptible to invasion and for the adoption of the best preventive measures. Here, we predicted the habitat suitability of 16 invasive weeds in response to climate change and land cover changes in South Korea using a maximum entropy modeling approach. Based on the predictions of the model, climate change is likely to increase habitat suitability. Currently, the area of moderately suitable and highly suitable habitats is estimated to be 8877.46 km2, and 990.29 km2, respectively, and these areas are expected to increase up to 496.52% by 2050 and 1439.65% by 2070 under the representative concentration pathways 4.5 scenario across the country. Although habitat suitability was estimated to be highest in the southern regions (<36° latitude), the central and northern regions are also predicted to have substantial increases in suitable habitat areas. Our study revealed that climate change would exacerbate the threat of northward weed invasions by shifting the climatic barriers of invasive weeds from the southern region. Thus, it is essential to initiate control and management strategies in the southern region to prevent further invasions into new areas.

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The Extent of Seasonally Suitable Habitats May Limit Forage Fish Production in a Temperate Estuary

Frontiers in Marine Science ◽

10.3389/fmars.2021.706666 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 8 ◽

Author(s):

Mary C. Fabrizio ◽

Troy D. Tuckey ◽

Aaron J. Bever ◽

Michael L. MacWilliams

Keyword(s):

Chesapeake Bay ◽

Habitat Suitability ◽

Reference Points ◽

Suitable Habitat ◽

Habitat Conditions ◽

Forage Production ◽

Forage Fishes ◽

Annual Variations ◽

Suitable Habitats ◽

Bay Anchovy

The sustained production of sufficient forage is critical to advancing ecosystem-based management, yet factors that affect local abundances and habitat conditions necessary to support aggregate forage production remain largely unexplored. We quantified suitable habitat in the Chesapeake Bay and its tidal tributaries for four key forage fishes: juvenile spotted hake Urophycis regia, juvenile spot Leiostomus xanthurus, juvenile weakfish Cynoscion regalis, and bay anchovy Anchoa mitchilli. We used information from monthly fisheries surveys from 2000 to 2016 coupled with hindcasts from a spatially interpolated model of dissolved oxygen and a 3-D hydrodynamic model of the Chesapeake Bay to identify influential covariates and construct habitat suitability models for each species. Suitable habitat conditions resulted from a complex interplay between water quality and geophysical properties of the environment and varied among species. Habitat suitability indices ranging between 0 (poor) and 1 (superior) were used to estimate seasonal and annual extents of suitable habitats. Seasonal variations in suitable habitat extents in Chesapeake Bay, which were more pronounced than annual variations during 2000–2016, reflected the phenology of estuarine use by these species. Areas near shorelines served as suitable habitats in spring for juvenile spot and in summer for juvenile weakfish, indicating the importance of these shallow areas for production. Tributaries were more suitable for bay anchovy in spring than during other seasons. The relative baywide abundances of juvenile spot and bay anchovy were significantly related to the extent of suitable habitats in summer and winter, respectively, indicating that Chesapeake Bay habitats may be limiting for these species. In contrast, the relative baywide abundances of juvenile weakfish and juvenile spotted hake varied independently of the spatial extent of suitable habitats. In an ecosystem-based approach, areas that persistently provide suitable conditions for forage species such as shoreline and tributary habitats may be targeted for protection or restoration, thereby promoting sufficient production of forage for predators. Further, quantitative habitat targets or spatial thresholds may be developed for habitat-limited species using estimates of the minimum habitat area required to produce a desired abundance or biomass; such targets or thresholds may serve as spatial reference points for management.

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Modeling Species Distribution

Land Use, Climate Change and Biodiversity Modeling ◽

10.4018/978-1-60960-619-0.ch009 ◽

2011 ◽

pp. 171-197 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Yongyut Trisurat ◽

Albertus G. Toxopeus

Keyword(s):

Logistic Regression ◽

Maximum Entropy ◽

Habitat Suitability ◽

Logistic Regression Model ◽

Entropy Method ◽

Regression Method ◽

Logistic Regression Method ◽

Suitable Habitats ◽

Suitable Area ◽

Available Information

The results show that among the three approaches, the potentially suitable habitats derived from cartographic overlay cover the largest area and are likely to overestimate existing occurrence areas. The logistic regression model predicts approximately 56% as suitable area, while maximum entropy results covers approximately 9% of the sanctuary. Although the results show large differences in the suitable areas, it should not be concluded that any one method always proves better than the others. Utilization of any method is dependent on the situation and available information. If species observations are limited, the cartographic overlay or habitat suitability is recommended. The logistic regression method is recommended when adequate presence and absence data are available. If presence-only data is available, a niche-based model or the maximum entropy method (MAXENT) is highly recommended.

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Modeling the growth of recruits of European hake (Merluccius merluccius) in the northwestern Mediterranean Sea with generalized additive models

Fishery Bulletin ◽

10.7755/fb.113.1.7 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 113 (1) ◽

pp. 69-81 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Alessandro Ligas ◽

Francesco Colloca ◽

Mathieu G. Lundy ◽

Alessandro Mannini ◽

Paolo Sartor ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mediterranean Sea ◽

Generalized Additive Models ◽

Additive Models ◽

Merluccius Merluccius ◽

Northwestern Mediterranean Sea ◽

Northwestern Mediterranean ◽

European Hake

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Habitat suitability modelling for sardine juveniles (Sardina pilchardus) in the Mediterranean Sea

Fisheries Oceanography ◽

10.1111/j.1365-2419.2011.00590.x ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 20 (5) ◽

pp. 367-382 ◽

Cited By ~ 32

Author(s):

MARIANNA GIANNOULAKI ◽

MARIA M. PYROUNAKI ◽

BERNARD LIORZOU ◽

IOLE LEONORI ◽

VASILIS D. VALAVANIS ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mediterranean Sea ◽

Habitat Suitability ◽

Sardina Pilchardus ◽

Habitat Suitability Modelling ◽

The Mediterranean

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A Comparison of Composite Habitat Suitability Indices and Generalized Additive Models of Invertebrate Abundance and Fish Presence–Habitat Availability

Transactions of the American Fisheries Society ◽

10.1577/t06-104.1 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 136 (2) ◽

pp. 428-444 ◽

Cited By ~ 54

Author(s):

Ian G. Jowett ◽

Andrew J. H. Davey

Keyword(s):

Habitat Suitability ◽

Generalized Additive Models ◽

Additive Models ◽

Habitat Availability ◽

Invertebrate Abundance

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Spatial variability of Chondrichthyes in the northern Mediterranean

Scientia Marina ◽

10.3989/scimar.04998.23a ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 83 (S1) ◽

pp. 81 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Maria C. Follesa ◽

Martina F. Marongiu ◽

Walter Zupa ◽

Andrea Bellodi ◽

Alessandro Cau ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Continental Shelf ◽

Generalized Additive Models ◽

Regional Scale ◽

Additive Models ◽

Environmental Drivers ◽

Shark Species ◽

Fishing Pressure ◽

The Mediterranean ◽

High Level ◽

Management And Conservation

Thanks to the availability of the MEDITS survey data, a standardized picture of the occurrence and abundance of demersal Chondrichthyes in the northern Mediterranean has been obtained. During the spring-summer period between 2012 and 2015, 41 Chondrichthyes, including 18 sharks (5 orders and 11 families), 22 batoids (3 orders and 4 families) and 1 chimaera, were detected from several geographical sub-areas (GSAs) established by the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean. Batoids had a preferential distribution on the continental shelf (10-200 m depth), while shark species were more frequent on the slope (200-800 m depth). Only three species, the Carcharhiniformes Galeus melastomus and Scyliorhinus canicula and the Torpediniformes Torpedo marmorata were caught in all GSAs studied. On the continental shelf, the Rajidae family was the most abundant, being represented in primis by Raja clavata and then by R. miraletus, R. polystigma and R. asterias. The slope was characterized by the prevalence of G. melastomus in all GSAs, followed by S. canicula, E. spinax and Squalus blainville. Areas under higher fishing pressure, such as the Adriatic Sea and the Spanish coast (with the exception of the Balearic Islands), show a low abundance of chondrichthyans, but other areas with a high level of fishing pressure, such as southwestern Sicily, show a high abundance, suggesting that other environmental drivers work together with fishing pressure to shape their distribution. Results of generalized additive models highlighted that depth is one of the most important environmental drivers influencing the distribution of both batoid and shark species, although temperature also showed a significant influence on their distribution. The approach explored in this work shows the possibility of producing maps modelling the distribution of demersal chondrichthyans in the Mediterranean that are useful for the management and conservation of these species at a regional scale. However, because of the vulnerability of these species to fishing exploitation, fishing pressure should be further incorporated in these models in addition to these environmental drivers.

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