Sabellaria spinulosa (Annelida, Polychaeta) reefs in the Mediterranean Sea: habitat mapping, dynamics and associated fauna for conservation management
Bio-constructions by Sabellaria worms play a key functional role in the coastal ecosystems being an engineer organism and for this reason are the object of protection. The most widespread reef building species along Atlantic and Mediterranean coasts is S. alveolata (L.), while the aggregations of S....
Published in: | Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science |
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Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/11586/203145 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecss.2017.11.017 |
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ftunivbari:oai:ricerca.uniba.it:11586/203145 2024-02-11T10:07:05+01:00 Sabellaria spinulosa (Annelida, Polychaeta) reefs in the Mediterranean Sea: habitat mapping, dynamics and associated fauna for conservation management Maria Flavia Gravina Frine Cardone Andrea Bonifazi Marta Simona Bertrandino Giovanni Chimienti Caterina Longo Carlotta Nonnis Marzano Massimo Moretti Stefania Lisco Vincenzo Moretti Giuseppe Corriero Adriana Giangrande Flavia Gravina, Maria Cardone, Frine Bonifazi, Andrea Bertrandino, MARTA SIMONA Chimienti, Giovanni Longo, Caterina NONNIS MARZANO, Carlotta Moretti, Massimo Lisco, STEFANIA NUNZIA Moretti, Vincenzo Corriero, Giuseppe Giangrande, Adriana 2018 http://hdl.handle.net/11586/203145 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecss.2017.11.017 eng eng info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/wos/WOS:000424308600022 volume:200 firstpage:248 lastpage:257 numberofpages:10 journal:ESTUARINE, COASTAL AND SHELF SCIENCE http://hdl.handle.net/11586/203145 doi:10.1016/j.ecss.2017.11.017 info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/scopus/2-s2.0-85034593571 info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess Benthic invertebrate community Mediterranean biodiversity Coastal Engineering specie Polychaete Littoral Reef info:eu-repo/semantics/article 2018 ftunivbari https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecss.2017.11.017 2024-01-24T17:35:04Z Bio-constructions by Sabellaria worms play a key functional role in the coastal ecosystems being an engineer organism and for this reason are the object of protection. The most widespread reef building species along Atlantic and Mediterranean coasts is S. alveolata (L.), while the aggregations of S. spinulosa are typically limited to the North Sea coasts. This paper constitutes the first detailed description of unusual large S. spinulosa reefs in the Mediterranean Sea. Defining current health status and evaluating the most important threats and impacts is essential to address conservation needs and design management plans for these large biogenic structures. Present knowledge on Mediterranean reefs of S. alveolata is fragmentary compared to Northeast Atlantic reefs, and concerning S. spinulosa, this paper represents a focal point in the knowledge on Mediterranean reefs of this species. A one-year study on temporal changes in reef structure and associated fauna is reported. The annual cycle of S. spinulosa reef shows a spawning event in winter-early spring, a period of growth and tubes aggregation from spring-early summer to autumn and a degeneration phase in winter. The variations exhibited in density of the worm aggregation and the changes in the reef elevation highlight a decline and regeneration of the structure over a year. The many ecological roles of the S. spinulosa reef were mainly in providing a diversity of microhabitats hosting hard and sandy bottom species, sheltering rare species, and producing biogenic structures able to provide coastal protection. The Mediterranean S. spinulosa reef does not shelter a distinctive associated fauna; however the richness in species composition underscores the importance of the reef as a biodiversity hot-spot. Finally, the roles of the biogenic formations and their important biotic and physical dynamics support the adoption of strategies for conservation of Mediterranean S.spinulosa reefs, according to the aims of the Habitat Directive. Article in Journal/Newspaper Northeast Atlantic Università degli Studi di Bari Aldo Moro: CINECA IRIS Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 200 248 257 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Università degli Studi di Bari Aldo Moro: CINECA IRIS |
op_collection_id |
ftunivbari |
language |
English |
topic |
Benthic invertebrate community Mediterranean biodiversity Coastal Engineering specie Polychaete Littoral Reef |
spellingShingle |
Benthic invertebrate community Mediterranean biodiversity Coastal Engineering specie Polychaete Littoral Reef Maria Flavia Gravina Frine Cardone Andrea Bonifazi Marta Simona Bertrandino Giovanni Chimienti Caterina Longo Carlotta Nonnis Marzano Massimo Moretti Stefania Lisco Vincenzo Moretti Giuseppe Corriero Adriana Giangrande Sabellaria spinulosa (Annelida, Polychaeta) reefs in the Mediterranean Sea: habitat mapping, dynamics and associated fauna for conservation management |
topic_facet |
Benthic invertebrate community Mediterranean biodiversity Coastal Engineering specie Polychaete Littoral Reef |
description |
Bio-constructions by Sabellaria worms play a key functional role in the coastal ecosystems being an engineer organism and for this reason are the object of protection. The most widespread reef building species along Atlantic and Mediterranean coasts is S. alveolata (L.), while the aggregations of S. spinulosa are typically limited to the North Sea coasts. This paper constitutes the first detailed description of unusual large S. spinulosa reefs in the Mediterranean Sea. Defining current health status and evaluating the most important threats and impacts is essential to address conservation needs and design management plans for these large biogenic structures. Present knowledge on Mediterranean reefs of S. alveolata is fragmentary compared to Northeast Atlantic reefs, and concerning S. spinulosa, this paper represents a focal point in the knowledge on Mediterranean reefs of this species. A one-year study on temporal changes in reef structure and associated fauna is reported. The annual cycle of S. spinulosa reef shows a spawning event in winter-early spring, a period of growth and tubes aggregation from spring-early summer to autumn and a degeneration phase in winter. The variations exhibited in density of the worm aggregation and the changes in the reef elevation highlight a decline and regeneration of the structure over a year. The many ecological roles of the S. spinulosa reef were mainly in providing a diversity of microhabitats hosting hard and sandy bottom species, sheltering rare species, and producing biogenic structures able to provide coastal protection. The Mediterranean S. spinulosa reef does not shelter a distinctive associated fauna; however the richness in species composition underscores the importance of the reef as a biodiversity hot-spot. Finally, the roles of the biogenic formations and their important biotic and physical dynamics support the adoption of strategies for conservation of Mediterranean S.spinulosa reefs, according to the aims of the Habitat Directive. |
author2 |
Flavia Gravina, Maria Cardone, Frine Bonifazi, Andrea Bertrandino, MARTA SIMONA Chimienti, Giovanni Longo, Caterina NONNIS MARZANO, Carlotta Moretti, Massimo Lisco, STEFANIA NUNZIA Moretti, Vincenzo Corriero, Giuseppe Giangrande, Adriana |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Maria Flavia Gravina Frine Cardone Andrea Bonifazi Marta Simona Bertrandino Giovanni Chimienti Caterina Longo Carlotta Nonnis Marzano Massimo Moretti Stefania Lisco Vincenzo Moretti Giuseppe Corriero Adriana Giangrande |
author_facet |
Maria Flavia Gravina Frine Cardone Andrea Bonifazi Marta Simona Bertrandino Giovanni Chimienti Caterina Longo Carlotta Nonnis Marzano Massimo Moretti Stefania Lisco Vincenzo Moretti Giuseppe Corriero Adriana Giangrande |
author_sort |
Maria Flavia Gravina |
title |
Sabellaria spinulosa (Annelida, Polychaeta) reefs in the Mediterranean Sea: habitat mapping, dynamics and associated fauna for conservation management |
title_short |
Sabellaria spinulosa (Annelida, Polychaeta) reefs in the Mediterranean Sea: habitat mapping, dynamics and associated fauna for conservation management |
title_full |
Sabellaria spinulosa (Annelida, Polychaeta) reefs in the Mediterranean Sea: habitat mapping, dynamics and associated fauna for conservation management |
title_fullStr |
Sabellaria spinulosa (Annelida, Polychaeta) reefs in the Mediterranean Sea: habitat mapping, dynamics and associated fauna for conservation management |
title_full_unstemmed |
Sabellaria spinulosa (Annelida, Polychaeta) reefs in the Mediterranean Sea: habitat mapping, dynamics and associated fauna for conservation management |
title_sort |
sabellaria spinulosa (annelida, polychaeta) reefs in the mediterranean sea: habitat mapping, dynamics and associated fauna for conservation management |
publishDate |
2018 |
url |
http://hdl.handle.net/11586/203145 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecss.2017.11.017 |
genre |
Northeast Atlantic |
genre_facet |
Northeast Atlantic |
op_relation |
info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/wos/WOS:000424308600022 volume:200 firstpage:248 lastpage:257 numberofpages:10 journal:ESTUARINE, COASTAL AND SHELF SCIENCE http://hdl.handle.net/11586/203145 doi:10.1016/j.ecss.2017.11.017 info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/scopus/2-s2.0-85034593571 |
op_rights |
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecss.2017.11.017 |
container_title |
Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science |
container_volume |
200 |
container_start_page |
248 |
op_container_end_page |
257 |
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1790605207355260928 |