Biodiversity protection is now recognized as a planetary challenge. In a context of increasing human pressures, this requires monitoring the species composition of communities. Mediterranean hard bottoms harbor endemic and patrimonial habitats that display the highest levels of biodiversity and provide important ecosystem services, from tourism to the provisioning of highly valuable species. Molecular methods, such as metabarcoding, have the potential to rapidly expand our knowledge of biodiversity, supporting assessment, management, and conservation. Moreover, in recent years several Standardized Sampling Systems (SSS; e.g. Autonomous reef monitoring system - ARMS) were developed to sample benthic communities and to monitoring their change in species composition through time and space. In May 2018 two different types of SSS (ARMS and ASUs - Artificial Substrate Units - nylon pan scourers) were deployed at 15-20 meters (infralittoral zone) in three sites of Central Mediterranean Sea to understand what SSS and which method of community composition assessment i) best discriminates the different sites and (ii) best mimics communities established on natural substrates. In May 2019 the SSS will be collected and the diversity and community compositions of benthic invertebrates within and between sites will be analyzed using a traditional approach based on morphological characters and by metabarcoding of the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase I (COI) gene. The proposed project will allow the IMBRsea student to participate in the collection of the SSS and in the processing of samples for DNA analysis, including next-generation sequencing and subsequent bioinformatics analyses. Moreover, will allow building taxonomic competences on Mediterranean marine benthic invertebrates.
