Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
4550778 | Marine Environmental Research | 2014 | 18 Pages |
Abstract
The Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) requires the assessment of the environmental status in relation to human pressures. In this study the biodiversity of the cetacean community is proposed as MSFD descriptor of the environmental status and its link with anthropogenic pressures is investigated. Functional groups are generally favoured over indicator species since they are thought to better reflect to anthropogenic stressors. Cetaceans are in many situations the most well known component of pelagic ecosystems. Their habitat requirements are known and can be used to evaluate the theoretical biodiversity that should be expected in a certain area. The deviations between the theoretical biodiversity and the actual biodiversity may be used to detect the impacts of human activities. Based on this analysis fishery resulted to be by far the most significant of the existing pressures. Among all the species, bottlenose dolphin was found the most correlated with the fishery sector dynamics.
Related Topics
Physical Sciences and Engineering
Earth and Planetary Sciences
Oceanography
Authors
Arianna Azzellino, Maria Cristina Fossi, Stefania Gaspari, Caterina Lanfredi, Giancarlo Lauriano, Letizia Marsili, Simone Panigada, Michela Podestà ,