The BIOCON group at the University Institute of the ULPGC is organising this workshop in collaboration with the University of Pisa (Italy) as part of the European Marine Sabres project, with the aim of exchanging scientific knowledge and experience regarding one of the richest and most complex marine ecosystems on the planet: seagrass beds, which are currently vulnerable to both direct and indirect threats
The Biodiversity and Conservation Group (BIOCON) at the ECOAQUA University Institute of the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC) has organised, in conjunction with the University of Pisa (Italy), a scientific workshop entitled ‘Conservation and restoration of seagrass meadows: challenges, approaches and outcomes’ as part of the European Marine Sabres project.
The event, aimed primarily at those involved in research, management and conservation of the marine and coastal environment, took the form of a one-day session held on the morning of 26 May in a hybrid format: in person at the ULPGC Marine Science and Technology Park (Taliarte) and online via the Teams application.
The workshop focused on the status, conservation and restoration of seagrass meadows, addressing, among other issues, the challenges, methodological approaches and results associated with various experiences of study.
Ricardo Haroun, director of ECOAQUA and principal investigator for Marine Sabres, during the event.
The event provided an opportunity to share case studies from different geographical areas, including the Canary Islands, Madeira, the Tuscan Archipelago (Mediterranean Sea) and Sweden. To this end, it featured the participation of research staff and representatives from the regional governments of Madeira and the Canary Islands, as well as from the University of Pisa, University College Cork (Ireland) and the ULPGC.
The programme for the scientific workshop consisted of an opening session of scientific presentations, followed by a technical discussion between speakers and participants, aimed at exchanging knowledge, scientific experiences and approaches applied to the conservation and restoration of these marine ecosystems.
Representing ECOAQUA, the workshop was attended by Ricardo Haroun Tabraue, principal investigator of Marine SABRES and director of the university institute; Fernando Tuya Cortés, director of BIOCON and an expert on the workshop’s subject matter, who delivered the scientific talks ‘Conservation of Cymodocea nodosa in the Canary Islands’ and ‘Cymodocea nodosa restoration: from success to failures with a personal view’ ; Eduardo Infantes, a member of BIOCON and an expert on the workshop’s subject matter, who gave a talk entitled ‘Restoration of seagrasses: from ten years of Zostera to the CYMOBAR application’; as well as Candy Cecilia Ruano and Jesús Padrón García, members of BIOCON and researchers of Marine Sabres.
The director of the BIOCON group, Fernando Tuya, and Eimear Fitzgerald, from the MarEI Centre at University College Cork.
In addition, the following speakers also gave scientific presentations: Fernando Espino Rodríguez, a marine biologist and technical officer with the Government of the Canary Islands; Iacopo Bertocci and Caterina Mintrone, from the University of Pisa (Italy); Eimear Fitzgerald, from the MaREI Centre at University College Cork (Ireland), and Cláudia Ribeiro, from the Funchal Marine Biology Station of the Regional Government of Madeira (Portugal).
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Marine biologist Fernando Espino Rodríguez also gave a talk during the workshop in his capacity as a technical expert for the Canary Islands Government.
The Spanish Government’s Ministry for Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge factsheet on seagrass meadows in Spain states that these “are formed by a group of species widely distributed throughout our waters and which, in turn, cover varying depths depending on their ecological requirements, from the shore to depths of around 40 metres. They are found on various substrates of sand, gravel, or even rock. These species are Posidonia oceanica, Cymodocea nodosa, Zostera noltii (= Nanozostera noltii), Zostera marina, Halophila decipiens and Ruppia spp. (mainly two species: R. cirrhosa and R. maritima)”.
Great ecological importance
It states that seagrass meadows (or marine angiosperms) “are among the most complex and rich marine ecosystems on the planet. The ecological importance of these meadows is very high; they perform functions of great importance for fisheries, serving as refuge and breeding grounds for many commercial species, and are biodiversity hotspots.
Furthermore, he adds, their role “is essential in stabilising the coastal sediments on which they grow, both due to the presence of the seagrass beds themselves and because of the deposits of leaf, root and stem debris that wash up on the shore (driftwood), which are vital for preventing coastal erosion.
Vulnerability
According to this fact sheet, these species of flowering plants “are currently in decline in our waters, both due to their fragility and the various threats affecting them both directly (pollution, mechanical damage from anchoring, etc.) and indirectly (habitat loss and destruction, climate change, invasive species, etc.)”.
Ricardo Haroun speaks during the workshop.
All species of marine seagrasses found in Spain are included in the List of Wild Species under Special Protection, and two of them (the populations of Cymodocea nodosa and Zostera noltii found in the Canary Islands) have been classified as “Vulnerable” in the Spanish Catalogue of Threatened Species (CEEA).
Marine SABRES is an EU-funded research project bringing together 21 research partners, including the ECOAQUA University Institute, with the aim of restoring marine biodiversity and supporting a sustainable blue economy by promoting ecosystem-based management in Europe.