A study shows that the extreme heatwave of 2022 caused an 'unprecedented' increase in mortality of the red gorgonian Paramuricea clavata, affecting 70% of the colonies located in the Montgr Natural Park, the Medes Islands and the Baix Ter. According to the researchers, these results are 'alarming and threaten the viability' of this species of great value for the biodiversity of benthic ecosystems, since it is considered to be an inhabitant-forming species.
The UB researcher Graciel·la Rovira is the first author of this publication, which has been coordinated by Professor Cristina Linares, ICREA Academy Professor at the Faculty of Biology and the Biodiversity Research Institute of the UB . Researchers from the Mediterranean Institute for Advanced Studies , the Institute of Marine Sciences and the University of Toulon have also participated. Four years with temperatures above 24.
In these four years, temperatures were higher than 24.3°C, with 2022 being the year with the highest mortality."In 2022, the total proportion of colonies affected by the 50 days of heat wave was about 70%, with a percentage of surface area affected of almost 40%, reaching values never observed in this area as soon as the monitoring of these populations is to be initiated," the authors note.
This critical situation means that, even with the application of measures to reduce"as much impact as possible" in the protected area, the researchers are pessimistic about the possibility of the species' recovery."The unprecedentedly high mortality, together with the predicted climate change scenarios, means that these populations are probably at a point of no return," concludes Graciel·la Rovira.
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