Macroalgal composition of rhodolith beds in a pilot area of the Tuscan Aarchipelago (Tyrrhenian Sea): primary elements to evaluate the degree of conservation of this habitat

Multi-Beam Echo-Sound data, Remotely Operated Vehicle video-images and grab samples were collected, within the framework of the research project funded by the Italian Ministry in charge of fisheries management - MiPAAF, in order to improve the knowledge on the Italian Rhodolith Beds Habitat (RBs). The aim of this paper is to assess the composition of RBs and of their associate macroalgal epiphytes in the North Western Mediterranean Sea. The study sites are located in the Tuscan Archipelago (Tyrrhenian Sea), where RBs occur between 50 and 70 meter depth. The most frequent calcareous taxa were: Phymatolithon calcareum, Lithothamnion minervae, Lithothamnion philippii, Lithophyllum racemus and Titanoderma pustulatum. In all the sampled sites both the taxa of Annex V of the Habitat Directive, P. calcareum and/or Lithothamnion corallioides, were collected.