Scientific watch – Page 2

A new tool to evaluate, improve and sustain marine protected area financing built on a comprehensive review of finance sources and instruments

Marine protected areas (MPAs) require sustained funding to provide sustained marine protection. Up until now government budgets, multi- and bi-lateral aid, and philanthropic grants have been commonly relied upon to finance the management and enforcement of MPAs. But new funding

Social-ecological dimensions of Marine Protected Areas and coastal fishing: How fishermen’s local ecological knowledge can inform fisheries management at the future “Taza” MPA (Algeria, NW Mediterranean)

To sustain fisheries and manage resources more effectively, international conventions such as the Convention on Biological Diversity acknowledge the importance of involving local knowledge and its holders in the management of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). This paper examines fishermen’s Local

Conflicting interests and the growing importance of non-indigenous species in commercial and recreational fisheries of the Mediterranean Sea

Non-indigenous species (NIS) are spreading and reshaping Mediterranean Sea biological communities and fishery resources. This study used fisheries data and structured interviews to assess the impacts of NIS on recreational and commercial fishers in Cyprus. The authors show that NIS

Assessing fish communities in a multiple-use marine protected area using an underwater drone (Aegean Sea, Greece)

In coastal areas, where human activities are concentrated and more intense, marine protected areas (MPAs) have increasingly become utilized as a management tool to secure the conservation of fish stocks, habitats and endangered species. In this study, the effectiveness of

Quantifying transboundary plastic pollution in marine protected areas across the Mediterranean Sea

Micro- and macro-plastics pollution is a growing threat to marine biodiversity, ecosystem functioning, and consequently human wellbeing. Numerical models that consider the main sources of plastics and simulate their dispersal characteristics are unique tools for exploring plastic pollution in Marine

Synergistic use of Facebook, online questionnaires and local ecological knowledge to detect and reconstruct the bioinvasion of the Iberian Peninsula by Callinectes sapidus Rathbun, 1896

The widespread use of social network sites and smartphones has enhanced the potential of Citizen Science (CS), i.e., to enlist the general public in gathering scientific information across large spatial-temporal scales. This research describes a CS application to reconstruct the

Marine biofouling organisms on beached, buoyant and benthic plastic debris in the Catalan Sea

Plastic debris provides long-lasting substrates for benthic organisms, thus acting as a potential vector for their dispersion. Its interaction with these colonizers is, however, still poorly known. This study examines fouling communities on beached, buoyant and benthic plastic debris in

Towards a local mass mortality of the Mediterranean orange coral Astroides calycularis (Pallas, 1766) in the Pelagie Islands Marine Protected Area (Italy)

In the last 30 years, the risk of climate anomalies has significantly increased in the Mediterranean Sea, where intense warming has been identified as one of the main stressors in coastal regions. This study reports on a mortality event that

Detection of Haplosporidium pinnae from Pinna nobilis faeces

Pinna nobilis, the largest bivalve endemic to the Mediterranean Sea, has recently become a critically endangered species most probably due to the pathogen Haplosporidium pinnae. In this study P. nobilis from the Mar Menor (SE Spain), a site where individuals

Sub-regional marine heat waves in the Mediterranean Sea from observations: long-term surface changes, sub-surface and coastal responses

Society is facing climate-related challenges and impacts, such as marine heat wave (MHW) events that adversely affect ecosystems, threaten economies and strengthen storms by warming ocean waters. MHWs are substantially increasing in intensity, duration, and frequency worldwide, particularly in the