Ecological status of seagrass ecosystems: An uncertainty analysis of the meadow classification based on the Posidonia oceanica multivariate index (POMI) |
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| Authors: | Bennett Scott Roca Guillem Romero Javier Alcoverro Teresa |
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| Institution: | a Centro de Estudios Avanzados de Blanes, CSIC, C/ Acceso a la Cala St. Francesc 14, 17300 Blanes, Girona, Spain
b Departamento de Ecología, Facultad de Biología, Universidad de Barcelona, Av. Diagonal 645, 08028 Barcelona, Spain |
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| Abstract: | Quantifying the uncertainty associated with monitoring protocols is essential to prevent the misclassification of ecological status and to improve sampling design. We assessed the Posidonia oceanica multivariate index (POMI) bio-monitoring program for its robustness in classifying the ecological status of coastal waters within the Water Framework Directive. We used a 7-year data set covering 30 sites along 500 km of the Catalonian coastline to examine which version of POMI (14 or 9 metrics) maximises precision in classifying the ecological status of meadows. Five factors (zones within a site, sites within a water body, depth, years and surveyors) that potentially generate classification uncertainty were examined in detail. Of these, depth was a major source of uncertainty, while all the remaining spatial and temporal factors displayed low variability. POMI 9 matched POMI 14 in all factors, and could effectively replace it in future monitoring programs. |
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| Keywords: | Posidonia oceanica Seagrass Biological indicators Coastal waters Uncertainty analysis Water Framework Directive |
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