Posidonia oceanica lower depth limits along a latitudinal gradient in the eastern Adriatic Sea
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Ivana Zubak
Ivana Zubak is a final year PhD candidate working at the Department of Ecology, Agronomy and Aquaculture of the University of Zadar, Croatia. Her research interests focus on faunal communities associated with seagrasses and on ocean literacy. She has participated in various projects dealing with flora and fauna species inventory and habitat mapping of Croatia’s seascapes.
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Hrvoje Cizmek
Hrvoje Cizmek is a marine biologist and an expert in ecology of Mediterranean benthic communities. His scientific research interest is in the ecology of marine caves, coralligeneous and seagrass communities and also in marine seafloor habitat mapping. He is founder and manager of Marine Explorers Society – 20000 Leagues NGO where he is involved in marine biology research mostly in marine protected areas in the Adriatic Sea.
Melita Mokos is a marine biologist with a PhD in interdisciplinary marine science. She is currently employed as a postdoc at the Department of Ecology, Agronomy, and Aquaculture at the University of Zadar, Croatia. She is working on several research topics such as seagrasses, marine litter as well as ocean literacy. She is the vice president of the European Marine Science Educators Association (EMSEA).
Abstract
Although extensive studies have been made on Posidonia oceanica ecosystems, in terms of their phenological characteristics, shoot density, biomass, and associated faunal assemblages, little attention has been given to the depth distribution of this species in the Adriatic Sea. The depth limits of the Mediterranean endemic seagrass P. oceanica growing along the eastern coast of the Croatian Adriatic Sea were examined by the use of SCUBA diving. Fifty-two independent measurements show that the lower depth limit of P. oceanica in the Croatian Adriatic Sea ranges from 24 m in the north to 36 m in the south, with a strong latitudinal gradient. The information on maximum depth distribution is an important asset when the increased human pressure and rapid environmental changes pose a threat to the survival of this slow-growing marine species.
About the authors
Ivana Zubak is a final year PhD candidate working at the Department of Ecology, Agronomy and Aquaculture of the University of Zadar, Croatia. Her research interests focus on faunal communities associated with seagrasses and on ocean literacy. She has participated in various projects dealing with flora and fauna species inventory and habitat mapping of Croatia’s seascapes.
Hrvoje Cizmek is a marine biologist and an expert in ecology of Mediterranean benthic communities. His scientific research interest is in the ecology of marine caves, coralligeneous and seagrass communities and also in marine seafloor habitat mapping. He is founder and manager of Marine Explorers Society – 20000 Leagues NGO where he is involved in marine biology research mostly in marine protected areas in the Adriatic Sea.
Melita Mokos is a marine biologist with a PhD in interdisciplinary marine science. She is currently employed as a postdoc at the Department of Ecology, Agronomy, and Aquaculture at the University of Zadar, Croatia. She is working on several research topics such as seagrasses, marine litter as well as ocean literacy. She is the vice president of the European Marine Science Educators Association (EMSEA).
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Supplementary Material
The online version of this article offers supplementary material (https://doi.org/10.1515/bot-2019-0097).
©2020 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- In this issue
- Physiology and ecology
- Posidonia oceanica lower depth limits along a latitudinal gradient in the eastern Adriatic Sea
- Temporal variations of Halodule wrightii meadows and associated fauna near their southern distribution limit in the southwestern Atlantic
- Taxonomy/phylogeny and biogeography
- A profound view and discourse on the typification and status of three confused taxa: Ruppia maritima, R. spiralis and R. cirrhosa
- First record of Acanthosiphonia echinata (Rhodomelaceae, Rhodophyta) in the Mediterranean Sea, molecular and morphological characterization
- Abnormal asexual reproduction of thalli of Ecklonia stolonifera (Laminariales, Phaeophyceae) off the coast of Nakanoshima in the Oki Islands, Japan
- Genomics
- The current state of DNA barcoding of macroalgae in the Mediterranean Sea: presently lacking but urgently required
- Chemistry and applications
- Relationship between iodine and carbohydrate contents in the seagrass Zostera marina on the northwestern Pacific coast of central Japan
- Biochemical study of attached macroalgae from the Madeira Archipelago and beach-cast macroalgae from the Canary Islands: multivariate analysis to determine bioresource potential
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- In this issue
- Physiology and ecology
- Posidonia oceanica lower depth limits along a latitudinal gradient in the eastern Adriatic Sea
- Temporal variations of Halodule wrightii meadows and associated fauna near their southern distribution limit in the southwestern Atlantic
- Taxonomy/phylogeny and biogeography
- A profound view and discourse on the typification and status of three confused taxa: Ruppia maritima, R. spiralis and R. cirrhosa
- First record of Acanthosiphonia echinata (Rhodomelaceae, Rhodophyta) in the Mediterranean Sea, molecular and morphological characterization
- Abnormal asexual reproduction of thalli of Ecklonia stolonifera (Laminariales, Phaeophyceae) off the coast of Nakanoshima in the Oki Islands, Japan
- Genomics
- The current state of DNA barcoding of macroalgae in the Mediterranean Sea: presently lacking but urgently required
- Chemistry and applications
- Relationship between iodine and carbohydrate contents in the seagrass Zostera marina on the northwestern Pacific coast of central Japan
- Biochemical study of attached macroalgae from the Madeira Archipelago and beach-cast macroalgae from the Canary Islands: multivariate analysis to determine bioresource potential
