The hidden treasures of Ieranto, the rich underwater life of the Bay
Magical and wild place, the Bay di Ieranto offers an extraordinary sea and landscape, between beauty, history and nature. But not only that. The seabed conceals a world rich in life and colors. Wonders hidden on the surface but fundamental for the balance of the ecosystem of the Bay, zone B of the Punta Campanella Marine Protected Area. It is precisely the Marine Park that has been monitoring Ieranto for years, both on the surface, preventing access to motor boats, and underwater, through the collection of data on the species present, both endemic and invasive. The numbers are surprising: 260 species recorded, among the sedentary ones, the majority (about 90%), those that visit the area periodically (6%) and those that occasionally appear in the bay, the most spectacular, such as turtles, tuna, dolphins. A rich biodiversity favored by the so-called upwelling phenomenon. An upwelling of water from the deeper layers that brings about a significant variety of marine flora and fauna thanks to a continuous supply of nutrients to the surface layers that trigger a rich biological cycle.
The meticulous monitoring work was presented at the European conference on scientific diving, an international gathering now in its sixth edition. It is the result of many years of activity, carried out by the Marine Park with the precious collaboration of foreign volunteers from Project mare. Dives up to 5 meters deep in search of the marine creatures that populate the Bay. Many have been found, especially among the smallest, thanks also to the contribution of Citizen Science with reports from diving and scuba divers.
The two most representative taxonomic groups are fish and algae, with more than 50 species each. Molluscs are present with about 40 species, including some species of Opisthobranchs (small marine snails that have a reduced or missing shell), all with dimensions between 1 and 3 cm. Among these are Elysia timida and Elysia viridis, Thuridilla hopei, Tylodina perversa, Cratena peregrina and Felimare tricolor.
Sponges and madrepores are also well present, especially in ravines and caves, which characterize the bay even at a few meters of depth. In the checklist there are also about 30 species to pay attention to. 12 are endemic, such as the disk anemone and the Agelass sponge.
16 are protected, such as the Petrosia, the madrepora Cladocora caespitosa or the Gattopardo, a small shark that often frequents the Posidonia meadows that cover large stretches of the seabed in the bay. Six species are invasive: including the two caulerpa, cylindracea and Taxifolia, the concave oyster Magallana gigas and the Atlantic runner crab Percnon gibbesi.
The monitoring was coordinated by Domenico Sgambati, oceanographer of the Punta Campanella MPA, with the valuable contribution of the marine biologist Erica Moura, former volunteer of the Project Mare and of the researcher Grech of the International Marine Center based in Sardinia.
“We have adopted a circular model in the Bay: monitor, conserve, communicate.
Ieranto is a jewel for the Marine Protected Area, for Massa Lubrense but also for the entire coast and Campania - observes Lucio Lucio Cacace, President of the Punta Campanella MPA - A place to experience the conservation of the natural environment with the use by man. Monitoring of boats, stop to anchoring and illegal fishing, continuous cleaning of the sea and beaches, information for tourists and boats, and promotion of eco-friendly tourism, namely hiking, kayaking, snorkeling. Activities carried out with the precious collaboration of the Fai.”
Article published on 27 April 2021 - 13:51
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