title: The detrimental consequences for seagrass of ineffective marine park management related to boat anchoring.
abstract: Posidonia oceanica (L.) Delile meadows are recognized as priority habitat for conservation by the EU Habitats Directive. The La Maddalena Archipelago National Park (Mediterranean Sea) P. oceanica meadow, the dominant coastal habitat of the area, is mostly threatened by boat anchoring. 12 years after the establishment of mooring fields and anchoring restrictions, a study was conducted to measure their effectiveness on the conservation of seagrass and the mitigation of anchoring damage. We found that: (i) the condition of P. oceanica was disturbed, both in the mooring fields and in control locations; (ii) mooring fields and anchoring restrictions did not show to be an efficient system for the protection of seagrass, in fact anchor scars increased after the tourist season; (iii) the mooring systems had an impact on the surrounding area of the meadow, probably due to their misuse. On the basis of these results, management recommendations for marine parks are proposed.
authors.affiliation: Parco Nazionale Arcipelago di La Maddalena, La Maddalena, OT, Italy; MareTerra Onlus, Alghero, SS, Italy. Electronic address: gabriella.lamanna@gmail.com.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: La Manna
authors.affiliation: Parco Nazionale Arcipelago di La Maddalena, La Maddalena, OT, Italy.
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Donno
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra e del Mare, Università degli studi di Palermo, Palermo, Italy.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sarà
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Scienze della Natura e del Territorio, Università degli Studi di Sassari, Sassari, Italy.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ceccherelli
mesh_terms: D035961:Alismatales / Q000502:physiology*; D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources / Q000379:methods*; D017753:Ecosystem; D008522:Mediterranean Sea; D012767:Ships
keywords: Boat anchoring; Management; Mediterranean Sea; Mooring system; Seagrass