HopeWaves · The impact of internal waves on mesophotic cold-water coral mounds in the Central Mediterranean. Past, present and hope for the future
Horizon Europe — Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
- Duration
- 2023-09-01 → 2025-08-31
- EU contribution
- €161,412
- Participants
- 3
- Scheme
- HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF
Lines connect the coordinator with its partners.
Results in brief
The impact of internal waves on mesophotic cold-water coral mounds in the Central Mediterranean. Past, present and hope for the future
Marine biodiversity in the Mediterranean Sea faces rapid decline due to climate-driven stressors, particularly the increasing frequency and intensity of marine heatwaves. While shallow ecosystems have been widely studied, mesophotic and deep-water habitats (30–150 m and >200 m) remain poorly characterised and largely unprotected, despite hosting vulnerable benthic communities such as coralline algae and corals. These ecosystems play a crucial role in carbonate production, biodiversity maintenance, and potentially as climate refugia. The HopeWaves project addresses these knowledge gaps by linking oceanographic processes, particularly internal waves, with the development and resilience of mesophotic carbonate systems. Research activities focused on two submarine banks located between Malta and Sicily in Sicilian channel, the central Mediterranean, selected as natural laboratories to study contrasting geomorphologies and hydrodynamic regimes. The overall objective is to understand how internal-wave activity influences habitat distribution, carbonate production, and the preservation of both recent and ancient bioconstructions. By integrating seafloor mapping, sedimentological and biological analyses, and long-term oceanographic datasets, the project contributes to a more complete understanding of how physical drivers sustain vulnerable benthic ecosystems. The expected pathway to impact involves producing open-access data and models to inform marine spatial planning, biodiversity protection, and EU policy frameworks such as the Marine Strategy Framework Directive, the EU Biodiversity Strategy 2030, and the Mission Restore Our Ocean and Waters.
Data: CORDIS, © European Union
Project objective
Cold-water-coral (CWC) habitats are sensitive biodiversity hotspots under severe threat from human activities, such as bottom trawling. This is particularly true for the CWC mounds that are recently discovered in mesophotic depths (30-150 m) of Maltese waters in the central Mediterranean. The origin of these CWC mounds is still unknown, and due to the lack of scientific data, these habitats are still not protected. HopeWaves aims to provide an in-depth analysis of the mesophotic CWC mounds in SE Maltese waters, which is essential for planning and enforcing new Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) networks. HopeWaves proposes an interdisciplinary approach (geology, oceanography, and paleoecology) to investigate the factors controlling the development of these structures in recent and past climates, including the role of internal waves and tides (IWs). The specific objectives of this project are: 1) to assess the distribution pattern of recent mesophotic mounds and their associated communities; 2) to determine the characteristics of water masses around the mesophotic mounds to define the possible depth of IWs; and (3) to develop a paleoenvironmental model for fossil mesophotic communities that were formed under a warmer-than-present climate during the Oligocene and the role of IWs in their formation. Specific planned dissemination and communication activities are in line with public and policy-makers engagement. HopeWaves will be carried out at the Department of Geosciences, the University of Malta, which, together with two secondments, will ensure high-level training on seafloor mapping, oceanographic data analysis, grant writing and project management. The fellow will also transfer her knowledge in the field of carbonate sedimentology to the host by contributing to teaching and mentoring activities. This project will increase the fellow chance of having a permanent position in EU universities, marine and oceanic institutes, and centres dealing with coral reef research.
Original text from CORDIS.
Participants
Links
- View on CORDIS
- DOI: 10.3030/101106265
- https://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/documents/downloadPublic?documentIds=080166e50917b1a8&appId=PPGMS
- https://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/documents/downloadPublic?documentIds=080166e520269a11&appId=PPGMS
Data: CORDIS, © European Union