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The time series of elasmobranch catch rates off the Tuscany coasts (NW Mediterranean) were investigated by means of min/max auto-correlation factor analysis in order to estimate variations in population abundance and evaluate the influence of environmental and anthropogenic factors. The analyses highlighted a general decreasing trend in the catch rates of sharks and skates from 1961 to the mid-1990s, mainly influenced by the increase in fishing effort. Since the 1990s, the EU Common Fishery Policy for the Mediterranean has promoted the reduction of fishing fleets through incentives to vessel demolition. The Porto S. Stefano trawl fleet has decreased by about 50%, leading to a decrease in fishing effort which seemed to be the most relevant factor affecting the increasing trend shown by the catch rates of Galeus melastomus, Scyliorhinus canicula and skates from 1991 to 2009. The elasmobranch assemblage did not undergo major shifts but the weighted frequency of occurrence shows that elasmobranchs were more frequent in the past. Particular caution should be paid in interpreting the recent rebound of some species as an early sign of recovery: trawl survey data and landing data show that over the last 50 years elasmobranch fauna have undergone a drastic decline and that recent rebounds are still far from a recovery to historical levels., Se investigaron las series históricas de datos de captura de algunas especies de Elasmobranquios en los mares de Toscana (Mediterráneo noroccidental), por medio del análisis de auto-correlación factorial MAFA, con el fin de evaluar las variaciones en la abundancia de poblaciones y la influencia de factores ambientales y antropogénicos. Los análisis permitieron poner en relieve una tendencia a la disminución, a partir de 1961 hasta la mitad de los años 1990, de las tasas de captura de las especies de tiburones y rayas demersales. Esta disminución parece ser debida principalmente al aumento del esfuerzo pesquero. Sin embargo, desde 1990 capacidad y actividad pesquera mostraron una tendencia a la disminución, como resultado de la Política Pesquera Común de la UE para el Mediterráneo. La flota de arrastre de Porto Santo Stefano disminuyó en un 50%; esta reducción parece ser el factor más importante que produjo un aumento en los indices de abundancia relativa de Galeus melastomus, Scyliorhinus canicula y de las rayas, desde 1991 a 2009. Sin embargo la composición en especies de los Elasmobranquios no ha mostrado evidentes cambios en el tiempo, a pesar de muchas especies que han sufrido una disminución en la frecuencia de occurrencia. Por lo tanto, la interpretación de estos resultados como señal de recuperación de las poblaciones de elasmobranquios, necesita de una precaución especial. De hecho durante los últimos 50 años la fauna de elasmobranquios en el Mediterráneo ha sufrido una drástica reducción y todavía no se está observando ninguna considerable señal de recuperación.

Most ecosystems are subject to both natural and human disturbances that can combine to influence populations and assemblages in complex ways. Assessing the relative influences and combined impacts of natural and human disturbance is crucial for managing human uses of ecosystems against the backdrop of their natural variability. We evaluated the separate and combined influences of disturbance from storm waves and disturbance associated with human trampling of rocky shores by conducting an experiment mimicking controlled levels of trampling at sites with different wave exposures, and before and after a major storm event in central California, USA. Results show that trampling and storm waves affected the same taxa and have comparable and additive effects on rocky shore assemblages. Both disturbance types caused significant reduction in percent cover of mussels and erect macroalgae, and resulted in significant re-organization of assemblages associated with these habitat-forming taxa. A single extreme storm event caused similar percent cover losses of mussels and erect macroalgae as did 6–12 months of trampling. Contrary to a predicted synergistic effect of trampling and storm damage, we found that impacts from each disturbance combined additively. Mussel beds in wave-exposed sites are more vulnerable to trampling impacts than algal beds at protected sites. Mussels and erect macroalgae recovered within five years after trampling stopped. These results suggest that impacts from local human use can be reversed in relatively short time frames, and that cumulative impacts can be reduced by setting recreational carrying capacities more conservatively when ecosystems are already exposed to frequent and/or intense natural disturbances.