Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) hold immense significance in restoration and conservation of marine ecosystems. Monitoring changes in body size within the community may help to assess the effectiveness of MPAs on community restoration. This thesis aimed at investigating the effects of the MPA ‘Cigala de Roses’ on the size spectra and species composition of deep-sea community assemblages in a highly exploited Norway lobster (Nephrops norvegicus) fishery in the Northwestern Mediterranean Sea. The MPA was monitored after two and four years of closure to any fishing activity. Experimental bottom trawl surveys were conducted for demersal sampling collection. The organisms were identified, measured, and analysed using size spectra, diversity indices, species abundance, and assemblage similarity analyses. The results showed a size spectra b-exponent approaching -2 after four years of closure, suggesting an improvement of the demersal ecological status even within a relative short period after closure. Considering community composition analyses alongside the size spectra analysis helped to better understand the time variations in species abundance contribution within assemblages. These insights provide valuable information for conservation and management efforts of deep-sea resources and highlight the need for continued monitoring and implementing no-take management strategies within highly impacted demersal communities.
promotor/supervisor feedback
nothing yet
