Bathymetric distribution and growth rates of Eunicella verrucosa (Cnidaria: Gorgoniidae) populations along the Marseilles coast (France)

Type Article
Date 2012-06
Language English
Author(s) Sartoretto StephaneORCID1, Francour Patrice2
Affiliation(s) 1 : IFREMER, La Seyne Sur Mer, France.
2 : Univ Nice Sophia Antipolis, EA ECOMERS 4228, Fac Sci, F-06108 Nice 2, France.
Source Scientia Marina (0214-8358) (Inst Ciencias Mar Barcelona), 2012-06 , Vol. 76 , N. 2 , P. 349-355
DOI 10.3989/scimar.03262.16B
WOS© Times Cited 14
Keyword(s) Eunicella verrucosa, Mediterranean Sea, growth rate, population structure
Abstract Gorgonians are important organisms in the Mediterranean Sea, where they form rocky benthic communities. Four main species (3 Holaxonia and 1 Scleraxonia) are predominant in infra- and circalittoral communities of the northwestern Mediterranean basin. Other species, such as Eunicella verrucosa (Pallas, 1766), are more rarely encountered. The expansion to unusually shallow bathymetric levels has been noted in the region of Marseilles (France) (between 20 and 40 m depth). A ten-year monitoring of colonies was used to assess the growth rate according to age (size): from 3.33 cm year(-1) (height <15 cm) to 0.62 cm year(-1) (height >40 cm).
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