Scientific watch

Increased concentrations of atmospheric greenhouse gases have led to a global mean surface temperature 1.0ºC higher that during the pre-industrial period. In this article the authors of the recent IPCC Special Report on global warming of 1.5ºC expand on it

Corals are subjected to climate change-related impacts worldwide, with overwhelming evidence of mass mortalities affecting vast geographical areas in tropical and temperate seas like the Mediterranean. Although several studies have indicated that repeated exposure to increased water temperature can influence

To safeguard biodiversity effectively, marine protected areas (MPAs) should be sited using the best available science. There are numerous ongoing United Nations and non-governmental initiatives to map globally important marine areas. The criteria used by those initiatives vary, resulting in

Tuna are globally distributed species of major commercial importance and some tuna species are a major source of protein in many countries. Tuna are characterized by dynamic distribution patterns that respond to climate variability and long-term change. This study investigated

In the current context of worldwide habitat loss and degradation, habitat mapping is crucially important for developing effective management and restoration plans. This study aimed to produce a census of available map resources at the European scale focusing on: a)

Ship strikes are on the main human-induced threats to whale survival. A variety of measures have been used or proposed to reduce collisions and subsequent mortality of whales. These include operational measures, such as mandatory speed reduction, or technical ones,

Ecosystems deprived of high-level predators due to overexploitation may be more vulnerable to invasive alien species as the latter are subject to reduced predation control. Marine protected areas (MPAs), and particularly no-take reserves were fishing is banned, can be effective

Pinna nobilis is the largest Mediterranean bivalve and a long-lived species, with a life span that can exceed 45 years. Since 2016 a mass mortality event (MME) is causing the death of many P. nobilis populations throughout the Mediterranean Sea.

Macroalgal communities have an essential role in the shallow benthic habitats of temperate seas, where changes in their composition can resonate through entire coastal ecosystems. As all mayor ecosystems on Earth, algal beds have already been affected by multiple disturbances.

The Ligurian Sea is one of the most studied Mediterranean basins. However, a large knowledge gap exists about the composition of benthic communities extending into the so-called mesophotic or twilight depth range, currently under intense pressure from commercial and recreational