Rapido trawling in the northern Adriatic Sea: effects on benthic communities in an experimental area
Pranovi, F.; Raicevich, S.; Franceschini, G.; Farrace, M.G.; Giovanardi, O. (2000). Rapido trawling in the northern Adriatic Sea: effects on benthic communities in an experimental area. ICES J. Mar. Sci./J. Cons. int. Explor. Mer 57: 517-524 In: ICES Journal of Marine Science. Academic Press: London. ISSN 1054-3139; e-ISSN 1095-9289, more |  |
| Authors | | Top | - Pranovi, F., more
- Raicevich, S.
- Franceschini, G.
| - Farrace, M.G.
- Giovanardi, O.
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| Abstract | The rapido is a towed gear used only in the Adriatic Sea for fishing scallops in sandy offshore areas and flatfish in muddy inshore areas. The gear is expected to have a high impact on the entire benthic community, mainly on epifauna and organisms living in the upper sediment layers. To obtain information on likely medium- to long-term effects of trawl fishing in the northern Adriatic Sea, an experiment on immediate short- term effects was carried out in an undisturbed sandy area near a wreck. The rapido produced flat tracks on the bottom that were still clearly visible after a week by means of sidescan sonar. The trawl did not change the sediment grain size, although it did disturb the upper 6 cm of sediment. Experimental trawling induced a modification in the macrobenthic community that was most evident immediately after the haul. Changes to the meiobenthic community were probably due to sediment disturbance and were recorded after 1 week. Comparison between an undisturbed control area and a neighbouring commercially exploited area allowed some evaluation of long-term changes in the benthic community. |
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