Savalia savaglia is an ecosystem engineer listed as Near-Threatened by the IUCN, even though effective management and proper monitoring efforts to assess its distribution is still lacking. The record of large, long-established colonies can indicate the occurrence of areas with limited human local pressure. These areas may be considered as proxies for the creation of baselines of reference useful to design restoration strategies. The aim of this work was to update the distribution of S. savaglia Mediterranean populations to develop an Ecological Niche Model, highlighting potential areas for future monitoring programs. Occurrence data were collected and harmonized into a single dataset using the scientific literature and validated observations to feed a presence-only MaxEnt model, obtaining a basin-level potential distribution of the species. The results of our study can support decision-makers in marine spatial planning measures including the preservation of mesophotic environments and prioritizing areas for conservation.

Depth range
0- 900 m

Mesophotic “mentions”
3 x (total of 6643 words)

Classification
* Focused on 'mesophotic' depth range
* Focused on 'temperate mesophotic ecosystem'

Fields
Ecology
Management and Conservation

Focusgroups
Zoantharia (Zoanthids)

Locations
Italy - Mediterranean
Croatia
France - Mediterranean Sea
Greece
Italy - Ligurian-Tyrrhenian
Spain - Mediterranean Sea

Platforms
Land-based