Map of the study area showing transect H2 and its stations located in Heraklion Bay (Crete, Greece)
The Gulf of Heraklion is one of the most well-studied coastal marine ecosystems in the eastern Mediterranean. It is an oligotrophic area, exposed to wave action where muddy sediments prevail, and its coastal zone is relatively unaffected by major riverine inputs. However, it faces pressures deriving from urbanization, tourism, small-scale fisheries and climate change. Amongst its biological components, macrobenthos is an important component of soft-bottom habitats of the continental shelf and considered to be an indicator of environmental and human-induced disturbance. Nevertheless, long-term data are limited, thus restricting our understanding of their temporal trends. This is of particular importance for the Mediterranean Sea which is characterized as a hot spot of biodiversity and climate change impacts on its biota.
The present study focuses on the bathymetric distribution of macrobenthic communities of the continental shelf of Heraklion Bay along with its temporal trends and changes, particularly adjacent to the wastewater treatment plant of Heraklion City. By updating existing datasets and providing new insights into bathymetric and long-term ecological shifts in macrobenthic faunal communities, this research supports both the conservation and protection of marine biodiversity and contributes to the development of effective management strategies for the marine environment of Heraklion Bay.
Samples were collected, covering depths from 10 m to 200 m, during the period 2010–2024. A Smith McIntyre grab (SMI, sampling surface: 0.1 m²) has been used, operated by the research vessel “PHILIA” of the Hellenic Centre for Marine Research. Macrobenthic taxa were sorted in the lab from the sediment and then counted and identified to the lowest possible taxonomic level, where possible, using a stereoscope and a microscope. All data were standardized following the FAIR principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Reusable), ensuring that both metadata and data are machine-actionable and properly linked via persistent identifiers and community standards.
Data management process was supported by MedOBIS team and MedOBIS was also selected as the open and FAIR repository to host the relevant dataset.
You can find the dataset here.
You can find the publication here.