Thierry Thibaut

Conservation and restoration of marine forests in the Mediterranean Sea and the potential role of Marine Protected Areas

Cystoseira species are some of the most important marine ecosystem-engineers, forming extended canopies comparable to land forests. Such forests are sensitive to human disturbances, like the decrease in water quality, the coastal development and the outbreak of herbivores. Conspicuous historical declines have been reported in many regions and several Cystoseira species are presently protected by European Union (EU) environmental policies. The aim of this work was to synthesize the conservation perspectives of Cystoseira forests in the Mediterranean Sea, focusing on the opportunities offered by artificial restoration and highlighting the potential role of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). MPAs give a better protection to healthy forests than non-managed sites and may be a source of propagules for natural recovery and/or for non-destructive artificial restoration of nearby damaged forests. MPAs lacking Cystoseira forests may also represent preferential sites for reforestation. We proposed a flow-chart for the conservation and a reasoned restoration of Cystoseira in the Mediterranean Sea. The successful conservation of Cystoseira forests is still possible, via raising public awareness on the role of Cystoseira and reducing human impacts on coastal ecosystems. Such actions have to be coupled with more specific large-scale management plans, encompassing restoration actions and enforcement of protection within MPAs.

An ecosystem-based approach to assess the status of a Mediterranean ecosystem, the Posidonia oceanica seagrass meadow.

Biotic indices, which reflect the quality of the environment, are widely used in the marine realm. Sometimes, key species or ecosystem engineers are selected for this purpose. This is the case of the Mediterranean seagrass Posidonia oceanica, widely used as a biological quality element in the context of the European Union Water Framework Directive (WFD). The good quality of a water body and the apparent health of a species, whether or not an ecosystem engineer such as P. oceanica, is not always indicative of the good structure and functioning of the whole ecosystem. A key point of the recent Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) is the ecosystem-based approach. Here, on the basis of a simplified conceptual model of the P. oceanica ecosystem, we have proposed an ecosystem-based index of the quality of its functioning, compliant with the MSFD requirements. This index (EBQI) is based upon a set of representative functional compartments, the weighting of these compartments and the assessment of the quality of each compartment by comparison of a supposed baseline. The index well discriminated 17 sites in the north-western Mediterranean (French Riviera, Provence, Corsica, Catalonia and Balearic Islands) covering a wide range of human pressure levels. The strong points of the EBQI are that it is easy to implement, non-destructive, relatively robust, according to the selection of the compartments and to their weighting, and associated with confidence indices that indicate possible weakness and biases and therefore the need for further field data acquisition.

Unexpected abundance and long-term relative stability of the brown alga Cystoseira amentacea, hitherto regarded as a threatened species, in the north-western Mediterranean Sea.

Cystoseira amentacea is a Mediterranean endemic alga thriving on very shallow rocky substrates. It has been considered as a threatened species, having experienced a steady decline and is therefore protected by international conventions. The historical distribution of the species has been assessed along the French Mediterranean coast, on the basis of 467 articles and herbarium vouchers. We have produced an accurate map of its current distribution and abundance along 1832 km of coastline, through in situ surveys. C. amentacea was observed along 1125 km of shoreline, including 33% of almost continuous or continuous belt. In most of its range, there is no evidence of loss, except in 4 areas of Provence, French Riviera and Corsica. A significant relation was found between the absence or low abundance of C. amentacea and the vicinity of ports and large sewage outfalls. The status of conservation of the species should therefore be reassessed.

Interactions between scientists, managers and policy makers in the framework of the French MediOs project on Ostreopsis (2008-2010)

Abstract n The main goal of the multidisciplinary MediOs project was to acquire and analyze pertinent scientific knowledge in fields as diverse as ecology, biology, chemistry, epidemiology or socio-economics concerning the occurrence of species belonging to genus Ostreopsis (toxic benthic dinoflagellates) in the Mediterranean. The economic impact of Ostreopsis was estimated, based on the intensity and frequency of blooms. Results obtained allowed science-based recommendations concerning the management of risk, with suggestions to optimize environmental surveys, to initiate a food risk survey, and to structure actions at the national level.

Unexpected Temporal Stability of Cystoseira and Sargassum Forests in Port-Cros, one of the Oldest Mediterranean Marine National Parks

Abstract n Fucales (Phaeophyceae, kingdom Stramenopiles) are ecosystem engineers and canopy forming seaweeds that are dramatically declining worldwide. In the Mediterranean Sea, Cystoseira spp. and Sargassum spp. have been shown to be locally extinct or locally functionally extinct, i.e. no longer forest forming, even in some Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). The patterns of change in the diversity and abundance of Fucales taxa within the Port-Cros Archipelago (Port-Cros National Park; PCNP) was studied by comparison of recent data (2005 to 2007) with previous data in order to measure the effects of protection since the creation of the park in 1963. Three taxa were reported before 1963, 10 between 1963 and 2005 and 17 between 2005 and 2007. Considering the biology of the species listed and the distance from the coast of the Port-Cros Archipelago, it is unlikely that this increase in species richness has resulted from colonisation events through the implementation and enforcement of effective protection of the area but is rather due to an increase in sampling effort. In contrast to other Mediterranean areas, the populations of Fucales are still highly diversified and stable. Only one species, C. brachycarpa var. brachycarpa, has declined in the 1-10-m depth zone in relation to the proliferation of herbivorous species, possibly enhanced by the PNPC conservation strategy. The overall good conservation of Fucales populations of the PCNP is probably the result of the absence of habitat destruction, high seawater quality and the regulation of human activities (fishing, tourism, diving).

Response of rocky shore communities to anthropogenic pressures in Albania (Mediterranean Sea): Ecological status assessment through the CARLIT method.

The lower mid-littoral and shallow subtidal communities were studied in the district of Vlora (Albania), three years after the establishment of a Marine Protected Area, with particular attention to the long-lived species. The bioconstructions built in the mid-littoral zone by the calcified rhodobiont Lithophyllum byssoides were in poor condition and sometimes even dead. In contrast, the brown alga Cystoseira amentacea constituted lush stands. For assessing the ecological status of the studied area, the CARLIT method, based upon macroalgal communities, was applied. The observed range of ecological status was wide (high through bad) and was overall among the lowest assessed to date in the Mediterranean Sea. The occurrence of extensive sea-urchin barren-grounds, though not taken into consideration by the CARLIT index, confirmed the poor condition of large sectors of the study area. Overall, the CARLIT index is well correlated with anthropogenic pressures, as assessed by the LUSI index.

The Sargassum conundrum: very rare, threatened or locally extinct in the NW Mediterranean and still lacking protection

Species of the genus Sargassum are large canopy-forming marine brown algae (engineer species) found worldwide from tropical to cold-temperate latitudes. Among this very diversified genus (335 taxa accepted taxonomically), only 9 species (including the invasive S. muticum) have been reported from the Mediterranean Sea. We have analysed the changes over more than two centuries in the Sargassum’s pattern of distribution along ~2,970xa0km of north-western Mediterranean coasts, using all available historical sources (literature and herbarium vouchers) and 2003–2014 field surveys. Though common in the past, all the long-lived native Mediterranean species (except S.vulgare) have become extremely rare or locally extinct, while the invasive S. muticum has developed large populations in some coastal lagoons. The increase in water turbidity, trawling and fishing nets is possibly responsible for the regression of the deep populations of S. hornschuchii, S. acinarium, whereas overgrazing by sea urchins and habitat destruction (coastal development) are probably responsible for the decline of shallow populations. In contrast with the terrestrial realm, where thousands of species are protected, even some relatively common species, Mediterranean species of Sargassum that seem to have become extinct in extensive areas, such as S. acinarium and S. hornschuchii, are, surprisingly, still lacking proper protection status and inclusion on the IUCN Red List.

Connectivity of populations of the seaweed Cystoseira amentacea within the Bay of Marseille (Mediterranean Sea): genetic structure and hydrodynamic connections

Abstract n The brown alga Cystoseira amentacea (Phaeophyceae, kingdom Stramenopiles) constitutes an extensive belt in the shallowest horizon of the infralittoral (the infralittoral fringe), in the Mediterranean Sea. Hydrodynamic modelling was used to infer connectivity between populations of C. amentacea of the Bay of Marseille (Provence, France, NW Mediterranean) and to test the correlation between genetic and hydrodynamic connectivity. We genotyped 183 individuals from six populations at six microsatellite loci. Current fields were computed at a fine resolution by a 3D numerical model simultaneously utilizing the local winds, the Rhone River inputs and offshore circulation. The Lagrangian trajectories of the propagules (zygotes, or rafts) were computed with the ICHTHYOP software, for both NW and SE strong wind forcing (11–12 m·s-1). Cystoseira amentacea displayed a strong and significant genetic structure, not correlated with the geographic distance, i.e. a lack of isolation by distance (IBD). The pairs of sites with the lowest FST were those connected by the current patterns. The time needed for a zygote or a raft to travel from one location to another ranged from 4 to 18 h (i.e. within the survival time of a zygote) and for distances of up to 23 km. Despite the very low dispersal capability of the zygotes, long-distance dispersal is therefore possible. Several non-exclusive processes can account for the genetic structure of C. amentacea populations, such as step-by-step local dispersal, long-distance dispersal of zygotes and rafts by currents, during storms, and the “priority effect”, i.e. the importance of the timing of arrival of the propagules.

Distribution and abundance of Ostreopsis spp. and associated species (Dinophyceae) in the northwestern Mediterranean: the region and the macroalgal substrate matter

The range of Ostreopsis (Dinophyceae), a taxon harmful to both human health and ecosystems, has spread from a tropical and subtropical range of distribution to temperate areas, such as the Mediterranean Sea. This study has evidenced widespread summer occurrence in the northwestern Mediterranean, from French Catalonia to the French Riviera and Corsica. Ostreopsis spp. are usually associated with two other dinophycean taxa, Prorocentrum lima and Coolia spp. No obvious correlation (indicative of competition and/or facilitation) between the abundance of the three taxa was evidenced. In addition to local variability, we observed regional variability, with low abundance and local absence in French Catalonia and Languedoc, which contrasted with overall abundance and blooms in Provence, the French Riviera and Corsica, especially in late summer. Possible causes for this regional variability are discussed. Furthermore, the three taxa can grow on a variety of macroalgal substrates: 34 taxa belonging to the fleshy, bushy, flat and erect morpho-functional groups. Some macroalgal species were correlated with either high or low abundance of the studied dinophycean taxa and could therefore enhance or hinder their blooming.

An ecosystem-based approach to assess the status of Mediterranean algae-dominated shallow rocky reefs

A conceptual model was constructed for the functioning the algae-dominated rocky reef ecosystem of the Mediterranean Sea. The Ecosystem-Based Quality Index (reef-EBQI) is based upon this model. This index meets the objectives of the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive. It is based upon (i) the weighting of each compartment, according to its importance in the functioning of the ecosystem; (ii) biological parameters assessing the state of each compartment; (iii) the aggregation of these parameters, assessing the quality of the ecosystem functioning, for each site; (iv) and a Confidence Index measuring the reliability of the index, for each site. The reef-EBQI was used at 40 sites in the northwestern Mediterranean. It constitutes an efficient tool, because it is based upon a wide set of functional compartments, rather than upon just a few species; it is easy and inexpensive to implement, robust and not redundant with regard to already existing indices.