Transitional Ecosystems Along the Aegean Sea Coastline of Greece
Transitional ecosystems along the Aegean coastline are formed at the interface between land and sea, connecting the terrestrial and marine environment. They are grouped in four major types: coastal marshes, coastal lagoons, river mouths/estuaries, and riv
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Contents 1 Introduction 2 Distribution of Transitional Ecosystems Along the Aegean Sea Coastline of Continental Greece 3 Description per Transitional Ecosystem Type 3.1 Coastal Marshes 3.2 Coastal Lagoons 3.3 River Mouths-Estuaries 3.4 River Deltas 4 Conclusions References
Abstract Transitional ecosystems along the Aegean coastline are formed at the interface between land and sea, connecting the terrestrial and marine environment. They are grouped in four major types: coastal marshes, coastal lagoons, river mouths/estuaries, and river deltas. Along the Aegean coastline, in continental Greece, we identified and mapped 254 large and small coastal wetlands; they cover approximately 60,000 ha. Around half of all coastal wetlands (138 out of 254) are smaller than 8 ha. In terms of surface area, river deltas and lagoons dominate. In terms of numbers, estuaries and coastal marshes prevail. Coastal wetlands are of high importance to biodiversity and offer a variety of ecosystem services. The most significant ones are designated as Ramsar sites, and their vast majority are included in the Natura 2000 network (90% of their surface area). In terms of numbers of sites, a high proportion is found outside the Natura 2000 network (68%, 173 out of 254). This study has offered increased knowledge on coastal wetlands in order to guide their conservation and to foster further research, information, and awareness.
V. Tsiaoussi (*), E. Fitoka, and M. Tompoulidou The Goulandris Natural History Museum, Greek Biotope Wetland Centre, Thermi, Greece e-mail: [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected] Christos L. Anagnostou, Andrey G. Kostianoy, Ilias D. Mariolakos, Panayotis Panayotidis, Marina Soilemezidou, and Grigoris Tsaltas (eds.), The Aegean Sea Environment: The Natural System, Hdb Env Chem, DOI 10.1007/698_2020_668, © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
V. Tsiaoussi et al.
Keywords Coastal lagoons, Coastal marshes, Deltas, Greece, River estuaries, The Aegean Sea, Transitional ecosystems
1 Introduction Wetlands are biodiversity hotspots and provide a range of valuable ecosystem services, such as water supply and purification, disaster risk reduction, climate change adaptation, and carbon sequestration [1]. However, they are threatened worldwide and are also one of the most rapidly declining ecosystems [1]. The significance of wetlands does not depend only on their surface area, but also on their biological wealth and their scarcity; how rare wetlands are in a particular area. Wetlands are not evenly scattered throughout Greece. Their distribution is influenced by physical relief and rainfall and by the technical and financial ease of drainage in the past as well [2]. Coastal wetlands are transitional ecosystems that occur at the interface between land and sea, connecting the terrestrial and marine environment. According to the European Water Framework Directive (WFD, 2000/60/EC), transitional waters are partly saline in character as a result of their proximity to coastal waters but are substantially influenced by freshwater flows. The
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