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Since several scientific research institutions are work- present systems and allow them to be used in the field
ing on these issues, it is advisable to check whether with automated reading systems that do not require fre-
monitoring programmes and/or protocols already exist quent maintenance and calibration.
in or near the MPA waters and whether they have data
available. A suite of other physical parameters, such as For other biochemical variables, water samples should
air temperature, wind speed, etc., collected by various be taken at the same time as the in situ sampling for
different government agencies and institutions could monitoring marine species and other parameters. The
also be useful for interpreting the results. measurements should be taken regularly at different
sampling locations inside the MPA according to estab-
PROPOSED MONITORING PROCEDURE lished protocols, or new protocols should none yet exist
MPA sampling is crucial for comparing local variability (see Water quality indicators for Mediterranean MPAs,
with the regional observations made by research insti- Tempesta and Otero, 2013).
tution monitoring stations. While there are many pro-
grammes designed to detect overall regional tempera- Water transparency can easily be monitored from boats
ture variations, few time series exist to detect changes with a Secchi disc, and total organic materials can be
in many other parameters. Physical variables such as measured using benthic sediment traps. Information on
salinity can be monitored by means of autonomous water column chlorophyll (either from direct measure-
devices such as salinity sensors or refractometers de- ments or from satellite data) and other parameters could
ployed in MPAs. The advances currently being made in require more complicated laboratory procedures and/
the field of pH sensors will overcome the limitations of or the services of an expert and a specialist laboratory.

MPA CASE STUDY 2

Monitoring at sentinel sites: rising seawater

temperatures and gorgonian populations

The gorgonian mass-mortality events observed in 1999 highlighted the need to develop a strategy to acquire
high-resolution (hourly) temperature records with autonomous temperature loggers so as to provide indirect
observations of warming in coastal waters. Nowadays, these high-resolution temperature series are collected
by different teams at 21 sites across the north-western Mediterranean. Most of these sites are MPAs and some
of their managers are actively involved in collecting temperature data (namely the Cerbère-Banyuls Marine
Nature Reserve, Cap d’Agde, Côte Bleue Marine Park, Port Cros National Park and Scandola Nature Reserve).
The managers learnt to set up the logging stations, calibrate the sensors and upload the data files for their sites
through training sessions and contact with scientists.

These data series have been crucial for the detection and
characterization of positive temperature anomalies related to
recent mass-mortality events and for providing accurate in-
formation on the thermal conditions of species in the MPAs
(Bensoussan et al., 2010). In addition, simple protocols have
been developed to assess the conservation status of gorgo-
nian populations by quantifying the percentage of affected
colonies (those with more than 10% necrosis) at specific
depths; these protocols can be implemented by managers
on an annual basis.

These applications can significantly expand current research
efforts, to provide a more global picture of the status of gorgo-
nian populations. Such concerted initiatives by scientists and
managers to acquire data series on temperatures and gorgo-
nian populations and to share their knowledge will increase
their ability to detect, understand and forecast the impact of
climate change on Mediterranean coastal ecosystems.
Placing temperature loggers. Photo: J. Garrabou

MEDITERRANEAN MARINE PROTECTED AREAS AND CLIMATE CHANGE: A GUIDE TO REGIONAL MONITORING AND ADAPTATION OPPORTUNITIES 31