Articolo in rivista, 2016, ENG, 10.1016/j.marenvres.2016.06.011

Contrasting habitat selection amongst cephalopods in the Mediterranean Sea: When the environment makes the difference

Lauria, V.; Garofalo, G.; Gristina, M.; Fiorentino, F.

IAMC-CNR, Istituto per l'Ambiente Marino Costiero - Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche

Conservation of fish habitat requires a deeper knowledge of how species distribution patterns are related to environmental factors. Habitat suitability modelling is an essential tool to quantify species' realised niches and understand species-environment relationships. Cephalopods are important players in the marine food web and a significant resource for fisheries; they are also very sensitive to environmental changes. Here a time series of fishery-independent data (1998-2011) was used to construct habitat suitability models and investigate the influence of environmental variables on four commercial cephalopods: Todaropsis eblanae, Illex coindetii, Eledone moschata and Eledone cirrhosa, in the central Mediterranean Sea. The main environmental predictors of cephalopod habitat suitability were depth, seafloor morphology, chlorophyll-a concentration, sea surface temperature and surface salinity. Predictive maps highlighted contrasting habitat selection amongst species. This study identifies areas where the important commercial species of cephalopods are concentrated and provides significant information for a future spatial based approach to fisheries management in the Mediterranean Sea. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Marine environmental research 119 , pp. 252–266

Keywords

Habitat, Realised ecological niche, Generalised additive models, Cephalopods, Spatial based approach to fishery management

CNR authors

Lauria Valentina, Garofalo Germana, Gristina Michele, Fiorentino Fabio

CNR institutes

IAMC – Istituto per l'ambiente marino costiero

ID: 366619

Year: 2016

Type: Articolo in rivista

Creation: 2017-02-07 17:15:50.000

Last update: 2021-07-08 15:19:26.000

External IDs

CNR OAI-PMH: oai:it.cnr:prodotti:366619

DOI: 10.1016/j.marenvres.2016.06.011

ISI Web of Science (WOS): 000381168000026