Habitat features and their influence on the restoration potential of marine habitats in Europe

To understand the restoration potential of degraded habitats, it is important to know the key processes and habitat features that allow for recovery after disturbance. As part of the EU (Horizon 2020) funded MERCES project, a group of European experts compiled and assessed current knowledge, from both past and ongoing restoration efforts, within the Mediterranean Sea, the Baltic Sea, and the North-East Atlantic Ocean. The aim was to provide an expert judgment of how different habitat features could impact restoration success and enhance the recovery of marine habitats. A set of biological and ecological features (i.e., life-history traits, population connectivity, spatial distribution, structural complexity, and the potential for regime shifts) were identified and scored according to their contribution to the successful accomplishment of habitat restoration for five habitats: seagrass meadows, kelp forests, Cystoseira macroalgal beds, coralligenous assemblages and cold-water coral habitats. The expert group concluded that most of the kelp forests features facilitate successful restoration, while the features for the coralligenous assemblages and the cold-water coral habitat did not promote successful restoration. For the other habitats the conclusions were much more variable. The lack of knowledge on the relationship between acting pressures and resulting changes in the ecological state of habitats is a major challenge for implementing restoration actions. This paper provides an overview of essential features that can affect restoration success in marine habitats of key importance for valuable ecosystem services

Identification complexity of critically endangered Squatina squatina (Linnaeus, 1758) and Squatina aculeata Cuvier, 1829 in the Mediterranean Sea (Turkey)

Sharks and rays, besides their economic importance, are ecologically important organisms with a diverse group. After a pregnant Squatina sp. was captured as by-catch, Akyol et al. (2015) published this species as Squatina squatina while the COI and 16S rDNA analysis demonstrated that the species is S. aculeata. This complexity revealed that utilizing morphologic identification solely might not be enough to distinguish these two Squatina species accurately. We aim to compare morphologic and molecular techniques during species identification of critically endangered S. squatina and S. aculeata. Two different gene regions were used for molecular identification of 3 Squatina specimens obtained from the Aegean coasts of Turkey. Sequence analysis of two gene regions was conducted after PCR analysis. An aligned data set was used for creating phylogenetic trees. The results demonstrated that the previously identified S. squatina specimen was revealed as S. aculeata after molecular analysis. Two other specimens which were morphologically identified as S. squatina demonstrated the same results both with molecular and morphological analysis. Our results suggest that adopting morphological identification as the only tool is not enough to accurately determine the Squatina species; both morphological and molecular tools should be used for taxonomical identification of shark species, especially the endangered ones, to assure their conservation status

Biology of Shortfin Mako Shark (Isurus oxyrinchus Rafinesque, 1810) from the Eastern Mediterranean

Shortfin mako, Isurus oxyrinchus Rafinesque, 1810, is one of the commercially and recreationally important shark species in the world. Still knowledge on its biology and status is limited in the eastern Mediterranean. Three individuals were caught from Turkish waters. Two individuals (one female and one male) stomach contents, morphological measurements and female’ gonad histology were studied. According to the results from macroscopic examination and gonad histology, the female was a Stage 1-immature, and smallest female ever recorded from Turkish waters. in addition, phylogenetic network of mitochondrial haplotypes was constructed for all three individuals. the phylogenetic network analysis supported that the species having a metapopulation as mentioned in previous studies. Since every information is critical for development of conservation actions aiming endangered species, we believe that our study will contribute to the limited knowledge on I. oxyrinchus biology and reproduction habits in Eastern MediterraneanKısa yüzgeçli mako köpekbalığı, Isurus oxyrinchus Rafinesque, 1810, dünyadaki ticari ve sportif açıdan önemli olan köpekbalığı türlerinden biridir. Türün, Doğu Akdeniz'deki biyolojisi ve durumu konusundaki bilgiler hala sınırlıdır. Çalışmada, Türkiye kıyılarından üç birey yakalanmıştır. Yakalanan iki bireyin (bir dişi ve bir erkek) morfolojik ölçümleri yapılmış, mide içeriği ve dişi gonad histolojisi incelenmiştir. Makroskopik inceleme ve gonad histolojisi sonuçlarına göre; dişi birey, aşama-1 (olgunlaşmamış) safhasında ve şimdiye kadar Türk sularından kaydedilen en küçük dişi bireydir. Ayrıca, her üç birey için filogenetik mitokondriyal haplotip ağ oluşturulmuştur. Yapılan bu filogenetik ağ analizi, önceki çalışmalarda belirtildiği gibi bir metapopülasyona sahip türlerin desteklendiğini göstermektedir. Her bilgi, nesli tükenmekte olan türlere yönelik koruma eylemlerinin geliştirilmesi için kritik öneme sahiptir. Çalışmamızın, Doğu Akdeniz'deki I. oxyrinchus biyolojisi ve üreme alışkanlıkları hakkındaki sınırlı bilgiye katkı yapacağına inanmaktayız

Habitat mapping in the European Seas - is it fit for purpose in the marine restoration agenda?

Este artículo contiene 10 páginas, 10 figuras.As habitat mapping is crucially important for developing effective management and restoration plans, the aim of this work was to produce a census of available map resources at the European scale focusing on: a) key marine habitats; b) degraded habitats; c) human activities and pressures acting on degraded habitats, and d) the restoration potential of degraded habitats. Almost half of the 580 map records were derived from grey literature and web resources but contained no georeferenced files for download, thus limiting further use of the data. Biogeographical heterogeneity was observed and varied between the type and quality of information provided. This variability was mainly related to differences in research efforts and stakeholder focus. Habitat degradation was assessed in only 28% of the map records and was mostly carried out in a qualitative manner. Less than half of the map records included assessments on the recovery/restoration potential of the degraded habitats, with passive restoration by removal of human activities being the most commonly recommended measure. The current work has identified several gaps and challenges both in the thematic and geographic coverage of the available map resources, as well as in the approaches implemented for the harmonized assessment of habitat degradation. These should guide future mapping initiatives in order to more comprehensively support and advise the marine habitat restoration agenda for better meeting the objectives set in relevant policy documents and legislative acts in Europe.This research has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020, research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 689518 (MERCES: Marine Ecosystem Restoration in Changing European Seas). TM was supported by Program Investigador FCT, Portugal (IF/01194/2013).Peer reviewe