Galaxea, Journal of Coral Reef Studies 19: 15-16（2017）

Photogallery

First in situ documentation of a population of the coral Dendrophyllia ramea off (Levantine ) and evidence of human impacts

Covadonga OREJAS1*, Andrea GORI2, Carlos JIMÉNEZ3, 4, Jesús RIVERA5, Claudio LO IACONO6, Louis HADJIOANNOU4, Vasilis ANDREOU4, and Antonis PETROU4

1 Instituto Español de Oceanografía. Centro Oceanográfico de Baleares. Moll de Ponent s/n, 07015 Palma, Mallorca, 2 Universitat de Barcelona, Departament de Biologia Evolutiva, Ecologia i Ciències Ambientals, Av. Diagonal 643, 08028 Barcelona, Spain 3 The Cyprus Institute, Athalassa Campus, P.O. Box 27456, 1645, Nicosia, Cyprus 4 Enalia Physis Environmental Research Centre, Acropoleos 2, 2101 Aglantzia, Nicosia 5 Instituto Español de Oceanografía, Corazón de María 8, 28002 Madrid, Spain 6 National Oceanography Centre, University of Southampton Waterfront Campus, European Way, Southampton SO14 3ZH, UK

* Corresponding author: C. Orejas E-mail: [email protected]

Communicated by Frederic Sinniger (Editorial board member)

Keywords Temperate coral, Levantine Sea, Mediterranean, population density, anthropogenic impact

In June 2015, the deepest population of the coral Dendrophyllia ramea (Linnaeus, 1758) observed until the present day in the , was discovered on soft bottom areas off Protaras, eastern Cyprus (35º02′N, 34º05′E). During the CYCLAMEN research expedition on board the RV AEGAEO, video data (ROV Max ROVER) showed a healthy, well-developed and dense population of D. ramea at 125-170 m depth. Video surveys revealed numerous and dense patches (up to 4 colonies m－2) of candelabra-shaped D. ramea colonies (Fig. 1A) of different lengths and heights, some larger than 50 cm (Fig. 1B). In contrast to the more robust growth form of this species found on shallower hard substrates (e.g. Portugal, Spain), the Cypriot colonies are particularly elongated. However, preliminary molecular analyses indicate that the slender D. ramea from Cyprus is indeed the same species as the stout Portuguese form (D. Aurelle, pers. com.). In the Mediterranean Sea, its distribution has been mainly described across the Western . The presence of the species is con­ firmed in the SW Mediterranean Basin, (e.g. Zibrowius 1980, Ocaña et al. 2000), North African coasts, Sicily Channel and Sicily up to the Gulf of Naples (Zibrowius 1980). Colonies have also been observed in the Catalan Coasts (NW Mediterranean), (Sánchez et al. 2004), and Gulf of Lions (Zibrowius 1980). In Atlantic waters, the species is also present in the Azores, Cabo Verde, Nigeria, the and Ghana (Zibrowius 1980). When collecting colonies, the ROV manipulator sank deep in the soft substrate suggesting that no hard substrate exists immediately below the surface. Until now, D. ramea in the Mediterranean was considered to be associated to rocky sub­ strates usually between 40 to 60 m depth, 100 m being­ the maximum recorded depth (Zibrowius 1980). In contrast, the dense communities of D. ramea of the Atlantic Ca­nary Islands are found deeper (80-150 m), usually on hard substrates 16 Orejas et al.: First in situ documentation of Dendrophyllia in Cyprus of biogenic origin, such as skeletons­ of corals and shell hash (Brito and Ocaña 2004). In the (Gulf of Corinth), an isolated D. ramea colony was observed on a sedimentary­ slope at 39-40 m depth, probably attached to an un­derlying hard substratum (Salomidi et al. 2010). Therefore, the colonies in Cyprus are the first observations of D. ramea populations in deep waters of the Levantine Mediterranean, thriving on soft sub­strates. Protective actions need to be implemented ur­gent­ly in the recently discovered deep-coral site off Cyprus.­ The area shows footprints of anthropogenic acti­ ­vities, including derelict fishing gears, which can contribute to “ghost fishing” in the area, but also litter­ in high abundance­ in all explored sites. As recently­ as May 2016, this unique coral habitat is being damaged by fishermen using bottom set nets extracting­ accidentally large colonies as bycatch. Attempts were also made to sell some of the colonies as orna­ ­mental curios. Deep-water coral dominated commu­nities are part of the so-called Vulnerable Marine Eco­ Fig. 1 (A) Dendrophyllia ramea colonies established­ on systems (VME) after the FAO (2009) definition. In many coun­ soft sediment bottom (~147 m depth). (B) Large and healthy D. ramea colony (~143 m depth). Space between the red tries, VMEs are protected ecosystems. Efforts are being made laser pointers: 10 cm. from different stakeholders to stop further destruction of this singular deep-water coral ecosystem.

Acknowledgements Thanks are due to the scientific team of CYCLAMEN, the crew and ROV team of the RV AEGAEO, and the Department of Fisheries and Marine Research in Cyprus. The manuscript was improved after incorporating the constructive suggestions of Dr. H. Zibrowius, Dr. M. Fine, and the editorial board member, Dr. Sinniger who reviewed the submitted version. Our warmest thanks to Dr. H. Zibrowius for encouraging this research. The CYCLAMEN project was funded by the TOTAL foundation (BIO_2014_091_Juin_CS-8).

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Received: 14 December 2016/Accepted: 3 March 2017 Ⓒ Japanese Coral Reef Society