The role of seagrass meadows (Posidonia oceanica) as microplastics sink and vector to benthic food webs.

Plastic pollution in marine environments is of global concern, yet its distribution within seagrasses remains poorly understood. We explore the efficiency of Posidonia oceanica in trapping microplastics (MPs) across various components (leaves, rhizomes, sediment), examine their potential transfer through the food web and assess their dispersal using advanced modelling techniques. Field surveys confirm that P.

Pore-water nutrient concentrations variability under different oxygen regimes: A case study in Elefsis Bay, Greece.

Anthropogenic pressures considerably affect coastal areas, increasing nitrogen and phosphorous loads that lead to eutrophication. Eutrophication sometimes results in hypoxic and/or anoxic conditions near the bottom water. Dissolved oxygen (DO) concentrations influence redox-sensitive nutrients, which can alter the benthic flux of nutrients.

Microplastic ingestion and its effects οn sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus: A field study in a coastal East Mediterranean environment.

Microplastics (MPs) are recognized as an increasing threat to the marine environment, but little is known about their effects on benthic organisms, including sea urchins, when ingested. For this purpose, wild sea urchins (P. lividus) and seafloor sediment samples were investigated across three coastal areas of Zakynthos Island (Ionian Sea), each exposed to different anthropogenic pressures, revealing a consistent pattern in MP abundance, shape, and color.

Drivers of litter ingestion by sea turtles: Three decades of empirical data collected in Atlantic Europe and the Mediterranean.

Sea turtles are considered as bio-indicators for monitoring the efficiency of restoration measures to reduce marine litter impacts on health. However, the lack of extended and standardised empirical data has prevented the accurate analysis of the factors influencing litter ingestion and the relationships with individual health. Historic data collected from 1988 and standard data collected from 2016 were harmonised to enable such analyses on necropsied loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta) in eight Mediterranean and North-East Atlantic countries.

COVID-19-related litter pollution on Greek beaches and nearshore shallow water environments.

COVID-19 pandemic has led to an increase in certain types of litter, many of which are expected to end up in the marine environment. The present study aimed to monitor the pandemic-related litter pollution along the Greek coastal environment. Overall, 59 beach and 83 underwater clean-ups were conducted.

Trace element contamination status of surface marine sediments of Greece: an assessment based on two decades (2001-2021) of data.

This study is a first attempt to assess the trace element contamination status in the surface sediments of the Hellenic Seas since the first environmental studies in the country commenced in the mid-1970s. All available trace element data from the last 20 years have been collected and assessed using sediment quality guidelines and application of single- and multielement pollution indices. Although Hellenic marine sediments initially appear as anthropogenically enriched in Cr and As, this enrichment is attributed to the natural background.

Spatiotemporal assessment of the environmental quality of bottom waters through the study of benthic foraminifera in a semi-enclosed gulf.

The evolution of the bottom water in Amvrakikos Gulf in Ionian Sea at western Greece for a 50-year timespan was assessed by benthic foraminifera assemblages. The degradation of the bottom water of Amvrakikos has been a catalyst for the surface water degradation. The east basin has shown permanent low environmental quality in bottom waters since 1980, while the west basin has been under seasonal hypoxic regime since 2000.

Using Boops boops (osteichthyes) to assess microplastic ingestion in the Mediterranean Sea.

This study assesses microplastic ingestion in Boops boops at different geographical areas in the Mediterranean Sea. A total of 884 fish were caught at 20 coastal sites in Spain, France, Italy and Greece and analyzed using a common methodological protocol. Microplastics were found in 46.

Evidence of ingested plastics in stranded loggerhead sea turtles along the Greek coastline, East Mediterranean Sea.

Plastic debris has become a major threat to the marine environment and wildlife. Sea turtles are particularly vulnerable, and are known to ingest plastic debris globally; however, information from Greek waters is still absent. In this study, 36 stranded dead loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta) were collected from the Greek coastline area, and their gastrointestinal content was analysed for ingested plastic debris.

Assessment of organophosphate flame retardants in Mediterranean Boops boops and their relationship to anthropization levels and microplastic ingestion.

Plastic litter pollution is increasing in the seas and oceans worldwide, raising concern on the potential effects of plasticizer additives on marine fauna. In this study, muscle samples of 30 bogues (Boops boops; Linneaus, 1758) from the North Western Mediterranean Sea were analysed to assess the concentrations of 19 organophosphate flame retardant (OPFR) compounds and to inspect any relationship with microplastic ingestion and relative levels of anthropization. Out of the 19 OPFRs analysed, 6 compounds were detected, being tri-n-butyl phosphate (TNBP), 2-ethylhexyldiphenyl phosphate (EHDPP) and triphenylphosphine oxide (TPPO) the most abundant.

Dataset on the major and trace elements contents and contamination in the sediments of Saronikos Gulf and Elefsis Bay, Greece.

Coastal marine sediments receive intensive stress from urbanization and industrialization, which is manifested by increased contents of heavy metals and organic pollutants. Saronikos Gulf and the small embayment of Elefsis, stretch along the coast of the greater Athens and Pireaus port, the most urbanized and industrialized areas in Greece. Here we present the data of a 20-year geochemical record on grain-size, organic carbon, and major and trace elements contents of the Saronikos Gulf sediments.

Exotic Halophila stipulacea is an introduced carbon sink for the Eastern Mediterranean Sea.

Carbon and nitrogen storage in exotic Halophila stipulacea were compared to that in native Posidonia oceanica and Cymodocea nodosa meadows and adjacent unvegetated sediments of the Eastern Mediterranean Sea and to that in native H. stipulacea of the Red Sea at sites with different biogeochemical conditions and level of human pressure. Exotic H.

Data Collection on Marine Litter Ingestion in Sea Turtles and Thresholds for Good Environmental Status.

The following protocol is intended to respond to the requirements set by the European Union's Marine Strategy Framework Directives (MSFD) for the D10C3 Criteria reported in the Commission Decision (EU), related to the amount of litter ingested by marine animals. Standardized methodologies for extracting litter items ingested from dead sea turtles along with guidelines on data analysis are provided. The protocol starts with the collection of dead sea turtles and classification of samples according to the decomposition status.

Determining suitable fish to monitor plastic ingestion trends in the Mediterranean Sea.

The presence of marine litter is a complex, yet persistent, threat to the health and biodiversity of the marine environment, and plastic is the most abundant, and ubiquitous type of marine litter. To monitor the level of plastic waste in an area, and the prospect of it entering the food chain, bioindicator species are used extensively throughout Northern European Seas, however due to their distribution ranges many are not applicable to the Mediterranean Sea. Guidance published for the Marine Strategy Framework Directive suggests that the contents of fish stomachs may be analyzed to determine trends of marine plastic ingestion.

Marine litter on the beaches of the Adriatic and Ionian Seas: An assessment of their abundance, composition and sources.

The abundance, composition and sources of marine litter were determined on beaches located in the seven countries of the Adriatic-Ionian macroregion, namely Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Greece, Italy, Montenegro and Slovenia. A total of 70,581 marine litter items were classified and recorded through one-year long surveys carried out in 31 sites. The average litter density of 0.

Cumulative impacts from multiple human activities on seagrass meadows in eastern Mediterranean waters: the case of Saronikos Gulf (Aegean Sea, Greece).

Ecosystem-based management (EBM) addresses the fundamental need to account for cumulative impacts of human activities with the aim of sustainably delivering ecosystem services. The Saronikos Gulf, a large embayment of the Aegean Sea, provides a wide range of ecosystem services that are impacted by multiple human activities, deriving from the metropolitan area of Athens (situated at the northeast part of the Gulf). The anthropogenic impacts affect the status of several marine ecosystem components, e.

Metal levels in sediments and transplanted mussels in Pagassitikos Gulf (Aegean Sea, Eastern Mediterranean).

Metal concentrations were determined in surface sediments and transplanted mussels in a shallow semi-enclosed bay, Pagassitikos Gulf, Aegean Sea. Cu, Zn, Pb, Hg, and As levels in sediments were enriched close to point sources of pollution, i.e.