Molecular Phylogeny, Morphology, Growth and Toxicity of Three Benthic Dinoflagellates Ostreopsis sp. 9, Prorocentrum lima and Coolia monotis Developing in Strait of Gibraltar, Southwestern Mediterranean.

Few works have been carried out on benthic harmful algal blooms (BHAB) species in the southern Mediterranean and no data are available for the highly dynamic Strait of Gibraltar (western Mediterranean waters). For the first time, Ostreopsis sp. 9, Prorocentrum lima and Coolia monotis were isolated in this key region in terms of exchanges between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean and subject to intense maritime traffic. Ribotyping confirmed the morphological identification of these three dinoflagellates species. Monoclonal cultures were established and the maximum growth rate and cell yield were measured at a temperature of 24 °C and an irradiance of 90 µmol photons m-2 s-1, for each species: 0.26 ± 0.02 d-1 (8.75 × 103 cell mL-1 after 28 days) for Ostreopsis sp. 9, 0.21 ± 0.01 d-1 (49 × 103 cell mL-1 after 145 days) for P. lima and 0.21 ± 0.01 d-1 (10.02 × 103 cell mL-1 after 28 days) for C. monotis. Only P. lima was toxic with concentrations of okadaic acid and dinophysistoxin-1 measured in optimal growth conditions ranging from 6.4 pg cell-1 to 26.97 pg cell-1 and from 5.19 to 25.27 pg cell-1, respectively. The toxin content of this species varied in function of the growth phase. Temperature influenced the growth and toxin content of P. lima. Results suggest that future warming of Mediterranean coastal waters may lead to higher growth rates and to increases in cellular toxin levels in P. lima. Nitrate and ammonia affected the toxin content of P. lima but no clear trend was noted. In further studies, we have to isolate other BHAB species and strains from Strait of Gibraltar waters to obtain more insight into their diversity and toxicity.

Historical navigation routes in European waters leave their footprint on the contemporary seascape genetics of a colonial urochordate.

Humans have intensively sailed the Mediterranean and European Atlantic waters throughout history, from the upper Paleolithic until today and centuries of human seafaring have established complex coastal and cross-seas navigation networks. Historical literature revealed three major long-lasting maritime routes (eastern, western, northern) with four commencing locations (Alexandria, Venice, Genoa, Gibraltar) and a fourth route (circum-Italian) that connected between them. Due to oceangoing and technological constraints, most voyages were coastal, lasted weeks to months, with extended resting periods, allowing the development of fouling organisms on ship hulls. One of the abiding travellers in maritime routes is the colonial ascidian Botryllus schlosseri already known since the eighteenth century in European and Mediterranean ports. This species, was almost certainly one of the common hull fouling travellers in all trade routes for centuries. Employing COI haplotypes (1008 samples) and microsatellite alleles (995 samples) on colonies sampled from 64 pan-European sites, present-day Botryllus populations in the Mediterranean Sea/European Atlantic revealed significant segregation between all four maritime routes with a conspicuous partition of the northern route. These results reveal that past anthropogenic transports of sedentary marine species throughout millennia long seafaring have left their footprint on contemporary seascape genetics of marine organisms.

Towards the declaration of the strait of Gibraltar as an environmental controlled area.

The emissions from maritime transportation, both greenhouse gases and traditional pollutants, are harmful to the ecosystem and human health. The large quantities of these pollutants emitted by shipping in the Strait of Gibraltar could be reduced if the Strait was declared an Emission Control Area (ECA). Using the SENEM1 emissions model, this study aims to compare the current situation and a possible future situation as an ECA. Unlike other models, SENEM1 includes all the variables - both ship and external conditions - that influence the calculation of emissions. Comparing only the 2017 emissions from ships sailing in the Strait of Gibraltar with the designated ECA simulation, reductions of up to 75.8 % in NOx, 73.4 % in PM2.5 and 94 % in SOx were collected. It would be a wakeup call for the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and the governments responsible to recommend that the Strait of Gibraltar be designated an ECA zone.

Temporal and spatial variability in population traits of an intertidal fucoid reveals local-scale climatic refugia.

Global change is imposing significant losses in the functional traits of marine organisms. Although areas of climatic refugia ameliorate local conditions and help them to persist, the extent to which mesoscale effects contribute for intraregional variability on population traits and conservation is uncertain. Here we assess patterns of conservation status of Fucus guiryi, the main intertidal habitat-forming seaweed in the Strait of Gibraltar (southern Spain and northern Morocco). We investigated the demography, reproductive phenology, and morphology at northern and southern side populations. Population traits were compared seasonally within populations from each side, and at spatial scale in early summer 2019. In the last decade three populations became extinct; two marginal populations had dispersed individuals with a narrower fertility season and miniaturized individuals below 3 cm; and five populations showed variable density and cover with more than 20% of reproductive individuals over the seasons. Highest density, cover, morphology, and reproductive potential was detected at one population from each side, suggesting local-scale climatic refugia in upwelling areas located inside marine protected areas. Southern recruits were more warm-tolerant but grew less at colder conditions than northern ones, revealing a mesoscale heterogeneity in thermal affinities. This study evidenced functional losses and distinct reproductive strategies experienced by F. guiryi at peripheral locations and urges to prioritize its conservation and restoration at contemporary climatic refugia.

Could secondary flows have made possible the cross-strait transport and explosive invasion of Rugulopteryx okamurae algae in the Strait of Gibraltar?

Presently, the Strait of Gibraltar is undergoing an unprecedented invasion of the alien alga Rugulopteryx okamurae of North Pacific origin. According to the scarce literature, the algae first settled in the south shore, probably following commercial exchanges with French ports where it was accidentally introduced together with Japanese oysters imported for mariculture. There is no certainty, however, that the algae first colonized the south shore of the Strait and, from there, spread to the north. It could well have been the opposite. Whatever the case, it spread all over the Strait and surrounding areas with amazing rapidity. Human-mediated vectors (algae attached to ship hulls or fishing nets, for example) can be behind the spread from the shore initially settled to the algae-free shore on the opposite side. But it could also have happened by means of hydrodynamic processes without direct human intervention. This possibility is assessed in this paper by revisiting historical current meter profiles collected in the Strait of Gibraltar searching for secondary cross-strait flows. All the stations present an intermediate layer of northward cross-strait velocity near the interface of the mean baroclinic exchange along with a surface layer above of southward velocity, whose lower part also overlaps the interface zone. The first one would back the south-to-north transport of algal fragments, the second one, the north-to south. In both cases, algae must reach the depth of the interface. The vertical velocity field in the area, which far exceeds the small sedimentation velocity of the algae, allows their vertical displacements throughout the water column. Its endurance to survive under the weak or no light conditions that will prevail during the cross-strait transport and its capability of reactivating the metabolism after this unfavorable period, offers chances for colonizing the opposite shore. Therefore, the propagation of the algae by hydrodynamic processes, without human intervention, cannot be ruled out.

Can occipital lobe bending, Gibraltar sign of superior sagittal sinus groove and jugular foramen dimensions predict transverse sinus dominance?

BACKGROUND: Asymmetry between the transverse sinuses (TS) is quite common. We sought to test the possible hypothesis that certain anatomical features - namely, occipital lobe bending, Gibraltar sign of superior sagittal sinus groove (SSS) and jugular foramen (JF) dimensions - can predict dominance of the transverse sinuses on routine axial T1- and T2-weighted images. MATERIALS AND METHODS: One hundred consecutively acquired combined MRI-MRV studies of brain were reviewed. On non-contrast axial T1WI, each reviewer assessed the occipital lobe bending, and Gibraltar sign of SSS groove; on axial T2-weighted images, JF dimensions were measured. TS cross-sectional area was measured on non-contrast sagittal 2-dimensional phase contrast MRV images and served as the reference standard. RESULTS: Of the 51 subjects with right-dominant TS, 37 had occipital bending to the right side and 35 showed sloping of the Gibraltar sign to right side. Of the 18 subjects with left dominant TS, 10 had occipital bending to left side and 13 showed left-sided sloping of the Gibraltar sign. Of the 31 subjects with co-dominant TS, 15 had no occipital bending and 20 showed no sloping of the Gibraltar sign. Mean right and left JF dimensions were higher in the right and left dominant TS respectively with no significant differences in patients with co-dominant sinus (p < 0.02). CONCLUSION: Right occipital bending had a good association with right TS dominance. The other two parameters- Gibraltar sign of superior sagittal sinus groove and jugular foramen dimensions - did not have a very good association with respect to TS dominance.

Epidemiological investigation of a case of malaria in a non-endemic area, Campo de Gibraltar, Cadiz, Spain, January 2022.

We describe a non-imported malaria case reported in January 2022 in Campo de Gibraltar and the investigations by local public health authorities to identify the transmission mechanism and subsequent measures to prevent local transmission. Vector transmission, parenteral transmission, airport malaria, and imported malaria were ruled out. No clear mechanism of transmission was identified. The most probable cause was a hospital-acquired infection since the case was admitted to hospital at the same time as a case of imported Plasmodium falciparum malaria.

Occurrence of three dominant epibenthic dinoflagellates (Ostreopsis spp., Coolia monotis and Prorocentrum lima) in relation to biotic substrates and environmental factors in a highly dynamic ecosystem, the Strait of Gibraltar (Southwestern Mediterranean).

No studies have been carried out on the benthic harmful algal blooms (BHABs) along the Strait of Gibraltar in the Mediterranean, and little is known about the diversity of blooming species. Here, epibenthic dinoflagellates were monitored at least biweekly over 18 months (May 2019-November 2020) in Oued Lihoud, Cap Malabata and Dalia on the thalli of five dominant macrophytes and in the water column. This is the first report on the seasonal distribution of BHAB species hosted by natural biotic substrates in the Strait of Gibraltar, which is known for high hydrodynamics, major entry of Atlantic waters and important maritime traffic. Three BHAB dinoflagellates were observed in the surveyed areas: Ostreopsis spp., Coolia monotis and Prorocentrum lima. The analysis of all data at the three sites showed that Dictyota dichotoma was the most favourable macroalgae host for these benthic dinoflagellates. The highest cell densities were observed in Cap Malabata for Ostreopsis spp. (2.7 × 105 cells/g fresh weight in September 2020), P. lima (4.57 × 104 cells/g FW in September 2020) and C. monotis (4.07 × 104 cells/g FW in June 2019). Phosphate and temperature were positively correlated to the abundances of the studied thermophilic BHAB species. In contrast, negative correlations were recorded with salinity, ammonium, nitrite, nitrate, DIN, nitrogen/phosphate ratio and suspended material, attesting of the complex relationships between environmental factors and BHAB species dynamic in each marine ecosystem. Toxin analyses of the natural phytoplankton assemblage during BHABs showed the presence of only lipophilic toxins, namely okadaic acid and dinophysistoxins produced by P. lima. These BHABs species have to be isolated to establish monoclonal cultures for ribotyping and ecophysiological investigations.

Prevalence, epidemiology and associated healthcare burden of Rome IV irritable bowel syndrome and functional dyspepsia in the adult population of Gibraltar.

OBJECTIVE: Gibraltar is a unique densely populated multicultural British Overseas Territory for which no population data on disorders of gut-brain interaction have existed.We aimed to provide the first-ever assessment of prevalence of irritable bowel syndrome and functional dyspepsia in Gibraltar in relation to their diagnostic recognition and healthcare burden. DESIGN: An internet survey was carried out in Gibraltar in 2019-2020. The study survey included demographic questions, the Rome IV diagnostic questions for functional dyspepsia and irritable bowel syndrome, relevant medical history, previous surgeries, medication use, healthcare visit frequency and a quality-of-life questionnaire. RESULTS: 888 individuals (3.5% of all Gibraltar adults) completed the survey anonymously. Irritable bowel syndrome prevalence was 5.2% (95% CI 3.7% to 6.6%). Functional dyspepsia prevalence was 9.9% (95% CI 7.9% to 11.9%). The two conditions overlapped substantially. Women had higher mean prevalence than men of both disorders. People meeting criteria for either or both disorders were prone to surgeries, had more frequent healthcare visits, higher medication use and lower quality-of-life scores compared with people without these disorders. Diagnostic recognition by healthcare providers was low, leaving 58.3% of irritable bowel syndrome and 96.9% of functional dyspepsia individuals undiagnosed. CONCLUSION: This first-ever population-based study of Rome IV defined irritable bowel syndrome and functional dyspepsia in Gibraltar indicates that the prevalence rates of these disorders are similar to the recently reported data for the UK and Spain, but they remain poorly recognised despite substantially affecting the quality of life of individuals who have them in the Gibraltar community.

Underappreciated pioneers.

This contribution focuses on a 1928 multiauthor paper reporting the discovery of a child's skull at Devil's Tower cave on the Rock of Gibraltar. It was ground-breaking. Two of the lead authors, Dorothy Garrod and Dorothea Bate, were women, and it was one of the earliest reports of a fossil hominin to incorporate and integrate detailed information about its stratigraphic and environmental context.

The Campo de Dalias GNSS Network Unveils the Interaction between Roll-Back and Indentation Tectonics in the Gibraltar Arc.

The Gibraltar Arc includes the Betic and Rif Cordilleras surrounding the Alboran Sea; it is formed at the northwest-southeast Eurasia-Nubia convergent plate boundary in the westernmost Mediterranean. Since 2006, the Campo de Dalias GNSS network has monitored active tectonic deformation of the most seismically active area on the north coast of the Alboran Sea. Our results show that the residual deformation rates with respect to Eurasia range from 1.7 to 3.0 mm/year; roughly homogenous west-southwestward displacements of the northern sites occur, while the southern sites evidence irregular displacements towards the west and northwest. This deformation pattern supports simultaneous east-northeast-west-southwest extension, accommodated by normal and oblique faults, and north-northwest-south-southeast shortening that develops east-northeast-west-southwest folds. Moreover, the GNSS results point to dextral creep of the main northwest-southeast Balanegra Fault. These GNNS results thus reveal, for the first time, present-day interaction of the roll-back tectonics of the Rif-Gibraltar-Betic slab in the western part of the Gibraltar Arc with the indentation tectonics affecting the eastern and southern areas, providing new insights for improving tectonic models of arcuate orogens.

Introducing nurse prescribing in Gibraltar: the impact on palliative care.

This article critically explores the impact of the introduction of nurse prescribing on palliative care in Gibraltar. A preliminary audit review of the prescriptions issued by the two palliative independent nurse prescribers over their first full calendar year of prescribing (2020) revealed two primary areas of impact: facilitating end-of-life care at home and improving anticipatory prescribing for end-of-life symptom management. These initial findings will be discussed in the context of the challenges and facilitators encountered during the first year of prescribing practice. Challenges were primarily related to the introduction of an advanced nursing role into an existing medical paradigm. Identified facilitators included comprehensive record keeping, collaborative working and the development of local guidelines, as well as the support of management and peers. The article concludes with a recommendation for further audits of prescribing data as a way to measure the impact of the new role and to inform future palliative service development.

Assessing a syndemic: Gibraltar in the time of cholera.

More than a decade ago Singer (2009) described Gibraltar's experience with cholera and smallpox in 1865 as a syndemic. In this study, we provide a reassessment of that event and, consequently, propose a methodology to identify a syndemic at the population level. We propose that the concept of the harvesting effect from demographic studies on crisis mortality provides a useful framework for evaluating the presence of a syndemic. Our research begins by establishing a normative baseline mortality (BM) through life table analysis, where changes in life expectancy (LE) around BM can be used to show a distinctive pattern of significant decline and increase. Such was the case with the presence of both cholera and smallpox in the fall of 1865, when LE fell significantly to 19.64 years from the background LE of 32.88 years. A year later, this decline was followed by a significant increase in LE to 41.34 years. Excessive mortality followed by a fallow (healthy) period represents a signature feature of a syndemic driven by a short-term infectious disease epidemic. The presence of both cholera and smallpox in 1860 did not produce similar results, evidence which suggests that the presence of two infectious epidemics in an impoverished population was not sufficient to produce a syndemic. The presence of a protracted state of quarantine, with its concomitant social and economic consequences, was a driving force responsible for amplifying the disease burden in 1865, and elevating to a syndemic status. Multivariate Poisson regression revealed patio level limiting factors (such as, presence of a cistern, a well, a live-in servant, and a Jewish co-resident), as well as risk factors (such as, a smallpox death in the building; the presence of a foreign-born individual). From the two-phase assessment of the syndemic in Gibraltar, we developed a conceptual framework for identifying, contributing, driving, and limiting factors.

Biogeographic and demographic history of the Mediterranean snakes Malpolon monspessulanus and Hemorrhois hippocrepis across the Strait of Gibraltar.

BACKGROUND: The contribution of North Africa to the assembly of biodiversity within the Western Palaearctic is still poorly documented. Since the Miocene, multiple biotic exchanges occurred across the Strait of Gibraltar, underlying the high biogeographic affinity between the western European and African sides of the Mediterranean basin. We investigated the biogeographic and demographic dynamics of two large Mediterranean-adapted snakes across the Strait and assess their relevance to the origin and diversity patterns of current European and North African populations. RESULTS: We inferred phylogeographic patterns and demographic history of M. monspessulanus and H. hippocrepis, based on range-wide multilocus data, combined with fossil data and species distribution modelling, under present and past bioclimatic envelopes. For both species we identified endemic lineages in the High Atlas Mountains (Morocco) and in eastern Iberia, suggesting their persistence in Europe during the Pleistocene. One lineage is shared between North Africa and southern Iberia and likely spread from the former to the latter during the sea-level low stand of the last glacial stage. During this period M. monspessulanus shows a sudden demographic expansion, associated with increased habitat suitability in North Africa. Lower habitat suitability is predicted for both species during interglacial stages, with suitable areas restricted to coastal and mountain ranges of Iberia and Morocco. Compiled fossil data for M. monspessulanus show a continuous fossil record in Iberia at least since the Pliocene and throughout the Pleistocene. CONCLUSIONS: The previously proposed hypothesis of Pleistocene glacial extinction of both species in Europe is not supported based on genetic data, bioclimatic envelopes models, and the available fossil record. A model of range retraction to mountain refugia during arid periods and of glacial expansion (demographic and spatial) associated to an increase of Mediterranean habitats during glacial epochs emerges as a general pattern for mesic vertebrates in North Africa. Moreover, the phylogeographic pattern of H. hippocrepis conforms to a well-established biogeographic partition between western and eastern Maghreb.

Lived Experiences of African Migrants Crossing the Strait of Gibraltar to Europe: A Cross-Cultural Approach to Healthcare from a Qualitative Methodology.

BACKGROUND: The migratory flow from the African continent to Europe is intense and the European countries should apply a humanitarian, health and social response to this emerging problem. Migrants coming from Africa to Europe are a very vulnerable population. Healthcare professionals should be prepared for answering their needs from a transcultural approach, which requires a better understanding of this phenomenon. Thus, the aim of this study was to improve nursing and healthcare professionals' awareness and better understanding of migrant life experiences during the migration journey. An exploratory descriptive qualitative research was conducted. In-depth interviews were conducted involving four key informants and content analysis were performed with the transcriptions. RESULTS: Three themes merged: life situations in their countries of origin; motivations that led them to undertake the migratory journey; and experiences they lived during the migratory journey. The results described the dramatic experience and motivations for crossing the strait of Gibraltar from Africa to Europe, including feelings, fears, hopes and lived experiences. The determination of immigrants to fight for a better life opportunity and the physical damage and psychological consequences they suffer were revealed. CONCLUSIONS: This study would help healthcare professionals to better understand this complex reality and deliver culturally adapted care. Knowledge of the starting reality of these populations can help health professionals to incorporate a cross-cultural approach that improves the relational, ethical and affective competences to provide quality care to the migrant population, as well as the development of health measures to fight against inequalities suffered by these population groups.

The fate of Guadalquivir River discharges in the coastal strip of the Gulf of Cádiz. A study based on the linking of watershed catchment and hydrodynamic models.

A catchment model for river basins and a hydrodynamic model were combined in order to simulate the spreading of the turbidity plume produced by sediment discharges from the Guadalquivir River basin within the Gulf of Cádiz under different meteorological conditions. The current fields provided by the hydrodynamic model and a transport-diffusion scheme based on tracking virtual particles tracking released at the river mouth have enabled us to simulate turbidity plumes that show great similarity with the plumes observed in satellite images. The most relevant results of the study show that in the absence of winds, the plume tends to spread very slowly, gradually progressing northwards; this is because of the symmetry between the filling and draining flows at the mouth of the Guadalquivir and low intensity of the tidal currents beyond the mouth. In addition, the transport of the plume towards the Strait of Gibraltar requires wind conditions with a northerly, north-westerly or westerly component. Westwards transport, however, requires winds with an easterly, southerly, or south-easterly component. The periods of heaviest rainfall in the Guadalquivir River basin coincide with winds mainly from the west; therefore, the times of maximum discharge at the mouth of the river occur when there are wind conditions that favour the transport of the matter suspended in the plume, southwards along the coast, towards the Strait of Gibraltar and the Alboran Sea. Linking the watershed catchment and hydrodynamic models has proved its suitability to predict the evolution and reaching of the sediment plumes from the Guadalquivir River discharges and the experience encourages the use of that methodology to be applied in a future prediction system for the creation and evolution of those sediment plumes.

The influence of natural vs anthropogenic factors on trace metal(loid) levels in the Mussel Watch programme: Two decades of monitoring in the Spanish Mediterranean sea.

The spatial distribution and temporal trends of trace metals (i.e. Cd, Cu, Hg, Pb and Zn) and a metalloid (i.e. As) along the Spanish Mediterranean coast from 1993 to 2013 are presented with a new estimation of their background levels monitored using wild mussels. Over a 20 years period, yearly mussel monitoring was undertaken with a rigorous field sampling protocol using 3 pooled samples strategy (3 x n = 80, with 8 mussels in the 3.0 to 3.9 size categories at each site), obtained in the pre-spawning period (May-June) to minimize biological factors and seasonal variability, which is a fundamental element of the international programme. Spatial distribution was characterized every 5 years and temporal trends were determined in 11 locations. The main aims of the present long term study are to evaluate the environmental status of different coastal locations regarding trace metal levels and follow the evolution of these levels over time after the implementation of regulatory measures. Regarding spatial distribution, the highest values for Cd, Cu, Hg and Pb were found close to known highly anthopogenic cities or shipyard areas. However, As and Zn did not strictly follow this pattern, showing natural increased concentrations in the Levantine Balearic and Strait of Gibraltar-Alboran Sea demarcations respectively. These distributions are associated with the conjunction of two geological formation inputs (Massif Central in France and Iberian Pyritic Belt in Spain) and the oceanographic conditions in the adjacent coastal area. In the case of temporal trends, metal concentrations decreased significantly over time in most stations, confirming the effectiveness of the regulatory measures and prohibitions established under European legislation. Concentrations of Pb were above the established thresholds for human consumption in only 12-14% of the sampling areas. With the information obtained for this study, we estimate background concentrations and propose new Background Assesment Criteria (BAC) for the Spanish Mediterranean coast as a threshold criterion: 1.62 mg/kg d.w. for Cd, 8.75 mg/kg d.w. for Cu, 0.202 mg/kg d.w. for Hg and 2.83 mg/kg d.w. for Pb. Exceptions should exist for As and Zn, for which there should be different levels in each demarcation, due to the geological, hydrological and oceanographic peculiarities of the Spanish coast. For the Levantine-Balearic demarcation, the proposed background concentrations are 117 mg/kg d.w. for As and 200 mg/kg d.w. for Zn., whereas in the Strait of Gibraltar-Alboran Sea demarcation, they are 27.5 mg/kg d.w. for As, and 471 mg/kg d.w. for Zn. This work demonstrates the vital importance of defining the background levels of metal(loid)s at a regional or subregional level because, for areas not affected by anthropogenic causes which have high values as the result of natural processes, this would avoid the risk of constantly surpassing the levels proposed in directives.

Spatial heterogeneity of Pelagia noctiluca ephyrae linked to water masses in the Western Mediterranean.

Pelagia noctiluca is the most common jellyfish in the Western Mediterranean Sea, living in oceanic waters with a holoplanktonic lifecycle. Frequent outbreaks have been well documented in coastal areas, yet little is known about their offshore distribution. In this study we address the relationship between oceanographic structures and the distribution of P. noctiluca ephyrae along the central continental slope of the Western Mediterranean, covering a wide latitudinal gradient, during July-August 2016. The region is characterized by a rich and complex mesoscale surface circulation driven by the inflow of Atlantic Water into the Western Mediterranean through the Strait of Gibraltar. The results revealed a high variability in the ephyrae spatial paterns related with different water masses and the resulting mesoscale hydrographic features. Their horizontal distribution showed a clear latitudinal gradient with high abundances in the south, associated with recent Atlantic Water, and low abundances or absence in the north, in coincidence with the old Atlantic Water transported by the Northern Current. Ephyrae showed diel vertical migrations of short-extent in the first 50 m, with a wide distribution above the thermocline and the Deep Chlorophyll Maximum during daytime, being more concentrated towards the surface at night. The results suggest the population connectivity of P. noctiluca between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. In that case, the abundance variability of the species in the Mediterranean could be modulated by its entrance associated with the inflow of Atlantic Water through the Strait of Gibraltar.

Expanding protected areas to encompass the conservation of the endangered common dolphin (Delphinus delphis) in the Alboran Sea.

The Natura 2000 network is the centerpiece of the European Union conservation strategy to safeguard priority species and habitats. The question of whether other co-occurring species of conservation concern may also benefit from this network, however, remains largely unknown. Here, we used a systematic approach (MARXAN) for i) evaluating if the current Natura 2000 network in the Alboran Sea (western Mediterranean Sea), initially proposed to protect the common bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) and priority habitats, is also spatially protecting the endangered common dolphin (Delphinus delphis), and ii) identifying additional marine areas that should be protected to reach adequate conservation targets for the common dolphin. While the current Natura 2000 network encompass ca. 22% of predicted abundances for common dolphins, this percentage might be enhanced by protecting coastal areas nearby the Strait of Gibraltar. However, dolphins and fisheries largely overlap spatially nearby the coastline, and only segregate in offshore areas that represent the marginal distribution of the species. Thus, conservation decision-makers must achieve a trade-off between cetacean conservation and fisheries by combining an area-based approach (i.e., new protected areas close to the Strait of Gibraltar) together with a basin-wide threat-based approach (e.g., regulation of fisheries).