Search results for " coastal key habitat"

CONSERVATION NEEDS FOR THE VERMETID REEFS IN THE MEDITERRANEAN SEA

2015

Vermetid reefs are intertidal bioconstructions typical of many subtropical and temperate coastal areas worldwide. Distributed in the warmest waters of the Mediterranean Sea, the reefs are built by the vermetid gastropod Dendropoma petraeum and the coralline alga Neogoniolithon brassica-florida, two species included in the annexes of the Berna Convention. Vermetid reefs provide a wide set of ecosystem services, such as coastal protection from erosion, regulation of sediment transport and accumulation, serving as carbon deposit and increasing biodiversity at the intertidal level. Despite its vulnerability to several threats, such as pollution, spread of invasive species, ocean acidification a…