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Nowadays harmful algal blooms (HABs) represent a serious problem for the conservation of the biodiversity in the Mediterranean Sea. Nevertheless the knowledge on the presence of potentially toxic benthic microalgae in particular habitats, such as tide pools, is still scarce. In order to detect HAB-producing benthic microalgae in tide pools of the rocky intertidal zone, a pilot study was conducted in Tavolara Punta Coda Cavallo Marine Protected Area (MPA) during the late spring of 2016. Three different pools were sampled in two study sites (six pools were sampled in total) and the cell density of toxic species was estimated in each. In all the collected samples, the two potentially toxic dinoflagellates,Prorocentrum lima(Ehrenberg) F. Stein andCoolia monotisMeunier, were recorded and significant differences in their density were observed, in relation to both sites and pools. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Gammarids are one of the most successful invaders in freshwater ecosystems due to both their diet plasticity and high reproductive capability. The Balkanic amphipod,Gammarus roeseliiGervais, 1835, has colonised a small canal in the southern part of the sub-lacustrine Ticino River basin (Northern Italy), where it lives in sympatry and shares the same habitat with the native speciesEchinogammarus stammeri(Karaman, 1931). We surveyed the populations of the two species over 12 months (from July 2014 to June 2015) to investigate their structure and dynamics. The overall densities of the two populations were similar in the study area, but we observed marked differences in the population structure:G. roeseliiwas in fact more successful than the native gammarid in achieving the adult stage, andE. stammeriexhibited a rather limited reproductive period, which does not justify the stable occurrence of juvenile individuals. We hypothesise that the population of the native gammarid in this small habitat is supported by a continuous upstream immigration of individuals from the Ticino River, whileG. roeseliiexhibits a well-structured and self-reproducing population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]