Climate change is increasing the frequency and intensity of transient extreme climate events that can be catastrophic for ecological communities. We studied the 2014–2022 period along the northern coasts of Sicily (Western Mediterranean Sea), evaluating the ecological impacts on three macroalgae (Ericaria amentacea, Jania rubens, and Padina pavonica) and one complex of species (Laurencia complex) inhabiting the vermetid bioconstructions. All climatological metrics indicate that desiccation conditions occurred in the intertidal zones for many consecutive days during 2022, compared to previous years. These extreme conditions have led to a drastic algal biomass reduction, especially for E. amentacea, P. pavonica, and Laurencia complex species. Consistently, the analysis of mollusc communities associated with macroalgae highlighted a sharp collapse, with a general inverse relationship between community composition and structure versus air temperature values. This worrying evidence indicates that anomalous desiccation conditions could have serious short-term impacts on the fragile and neglected vermetid ecosystem.

中文翻译：

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损失的信号，第二部分：地中海蚯蚓礁上在极端气候条件下崩溃的植物群落


气候变化正在增加瞬时极端气候事件的频率和强度，这些事件可能对生态群落造成灾难性的影响。我们研究了 2014-2022 年期间西西里岛北部海岸（西地中海），评估了对三种大型藻类（Ericaria amentacea、Jania rubens 和 Padina pavonica）和一种物种复合体（Laurencia 复合体）的生态影响栖息在蚯蚓生物结构中。所有气候指标都表明，与往年相比，2022 年潮间带连续多天出现干燥条件。这些极端条件导致藻类生物量急剧减少，尤其是 E. amentacea、P. pavonica 和 Laurencia 复合物种。一致地，对与大型藻类相关的软体动物群落的分析突出了急剧崩溃，群落组成和结构与空气温度值之间通常呈负关系。这一令人担忧的证据表明，异常的干燥条件可能会对脆弱和被忽视的蚯蚓生态系统产生严重的短期影响。