Pre-assessment of zoobenthos diversity from the only hard coral Marine Reserve in the Turkish Seas (Çanakkale Strait, Turkey)

Abstract

Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and their management have become more significant than ever due to the growing impacts of pollution, overfishing and illegal hunting activities in marine environments. Corals, as habitat forming species that create biodiversity hotspots, provide structural support, shelter and a nursery ground for associated biota. The present paper deals with the pre-assessment of invertebrate assemblages living in hard coral (Cladocora caespitosa) reef in the marine protected area (Dardanos Cladocora Reefs) of the Çanakkale Strait. In the study (DarINVERTA7) conducted between 2017 and 2021, 62 benthic invertebrate species, belonging to eight taxonomic groups were reported for the first time from the region of which five species (Clathria (Clathria) compressa, Rynchozoon neapolitanum, Hornera frondiculata, Polycitor adriaticus and Aplidium nordmanni) were new for the Turkish coasts.