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ICTA-UAB is recognized as a María de Maeztu Unit of Excellence ‘MARÍA DE MAEZTU’ PhD RESEARCH PROJECT Project 3: Mediterranean coastal marine biodiversity under climate change: Local knowledge, perceptions and value Theme: Tapping into local climate change knowledge to provide more relevant insights into regional and local climate dynamics Supervisors: Sergio Rossi, Patrizia Ziveri, Victoria Reyes-Garcia RESEARCH PROJECT PROPOSAL: 1. Project statement and research questions Despite its relevance in biological, cultural and economic terms, loss in Mediterranean marine biodiversity, decrease in population structure and health status has received only a fraction of the attention accorded to its terrestrial counterpart. We know that in the Mediterranean marine coastal ecosystem biodiversity has deeply declined due to both local (eutrophication, urbanization, fishing, harvesting, etc.) and global phenomena related to climate change (e.g. sea warming, heat waves and acidification). Yet, we still lack knowledge regarding the rate and scale of decline of Mediterranean marine biodiversity and its current and future effects on humans. Both the pelagic and benthic realms have been deeply transformed, but and accurate quantification of how their role and structure has changed during the last century is far to be clear. It seems that during the last decades, the overall impression of the “end-users” of the sea (i.e. fishermen, tourists, divers, harvesters, etc.) has not been considered, and may be essential to understand the now days general panorama of deep change suffered by different habitats. We do know that seascape for example has deeply changed, but there is no quantification on the perception of such change due to direct and indirect stressors. The goal of this project is two-fold. First, it aims a. How is biodiversity decline/change in different areas of the Mediterranean Sea? Making an “in depth” study of changes in the habitat composition (both pelagic and benthic) is feasible but rarely structured in a quantitative way. b. What are the main drivers of Mediterranean biodiversity change? c. What is the people perception of marine biodiversity decline and the current and future effects on their livelihoods? Understanding the relation between quantified biodiversity decline and people’s 1 ICTA-UAB is recognized as a María de Maeztu Unit of Excellence perceptions on such phenomenon might help in the design of more effective management and strategic plans. 2. Scientific approach (A) Determine the state-of-the-art of the Mediterranean marine biodiversity under climate change and anthropogenic pressure based on an in depth meta-analysis of the literature. This will be made not only through the already published scientific papers, but also digging in the documents, papers, photographs, films, grey literature, etc. that will give a general panorama of the change in the seascape, fishing yields, coastal urbanization and demographic structure of the study area. (B) Compare previous biogeographic distribution and health status of target keystone species and systems (e.g. marine forests, calcifying plankton), using societal observations (e.g. fisherman, divers) in target case studies (e.g. red coral presence and population structure, gorgonian gardens transformations, Pinna nobilis presence or Posidonia oceanica distribution). Several water column and benthic ecosystems will be approached as case studies, and their complexity, trophic structure and C fluxes will be compared using an adequate model. Water column temporal series and different seascapes will be compared with already published material performing in already accepted protocols of sampling (i.e. CTD, plankton analyses, Remotely Operated Vehicle video-transects). The information will be compiled, structured to be quantitative but, at the same time, affordable for different coastal human populations. (C) Assess people’s perceptions of the value of the seascape in general and marine biodiversity in particular. We will compare perceptions and values given by seausers, but including autochthonous (i.e., fishers) and alloctonous (i.e., divers) people. To do that, the information gathered and compared through the time will be showed, but also a structured questionaries’ will be made with different groups (by age, job, interaction with the sea, sex, etc.). 3. Feasibility and expertise. This project is at the interface between natural and social sciences. On one hand, the water column and the benthos biodiversity quantification follow already standardized methods that have been used by the supervisors. On the other hand, the people questionnaires and perception has been the center of the work of the third supervisor. The field work needs an approach to the water column and benthic quantification that may be easily resolved with the already existent material and networking of the supervisors. The social part is affordable, especially because a core part of the work will be made in 2 ICTA-UAB is recognized as a María de Maeztu Unit of Excellence the Catalan coast. The three supervisors have a verifiable experience in plankton, benthos and social perception studies, being the study of biodiversity an essential part of their professional profile. 4. Significance of the research. Biodiversity is one of the key points in the actual programs of the FAO and national ecosystem based management programs, the UN-IOC and marine strategic framework of the EC as well as an essential point in the IPCC 2014 perspectives. Where biodiversity has been altered, the resilience of ecosystems to other impacts, including climate change, is often reduced. On one hand, the biodiversity knowledge in Mediterranean coastal areas is limited. On the other hand, the perception and the understanding by the people using coastal ecosystem services of such loss of biodiversity is almost null. There is an urgent need of both gathering information on biodiversity dynamics ad societal interaction since alteration of biodiversity decrease the resilience of ecosystems to other impacts, including climate change, is often reduced. Is thus essential to understand and act in preserving ecosystem biodiversity and their supported services. 3