Line of action:

Knowledge generation and management

Status:

En ejecución

Location:

Andalusia. Natural Park of the Strait of Gibraltar (Cádiz); Acantilados de Maro-Cerro Gordo Natural Area (between Malaga and Granada); SAC Cliffs and Seabed of Punta de la Mona (Granada), SAC Cliffs and Seabed of Calahonda-Castell de Ferro (Granada), Cabo de Gata-Níjar Natural Park (Almeria).

Geographic scope:

España

Line of research:

Development of green infrastructure, connectivity and ecological restoration

Execution date:

2025

Duration:

01/10/2025 - 30/09/2028

Total budget:

€257,962.87

Amount of aid from the Biodiversity Foundation:

€219,268.44 (85%)

Coordinating entity:

Man and Territory Association

Coral restoration in the Mediterranean is strategic to halt the accelerated loss of marine biodiversity caused by climate change, the massive mortality of organisms and the expansion of invasive species such as Rugulopteryx okamurae. The creation of a coral corridor, within the framework of the National Green Infrastructure Strategy and the future National Marine Restoration Plan, will allow maintaining genetic connectivity between fragmented populations and strengthening the resilience of threatened species such as Cladocora caespitosa and Astroides calycularis. The project contributes directly to the European Restoration Regulation and international marine conservation commitments.

Establish Europe’s first Coral Corridor in the northern Alboran Sea, connecting 600 km of coral populations, promoting their conservation and resilience to climate change and invasive species by 2028. This corridor will contribute to the National Green Infrastructure Strategy and ensure the provision of key ecosystem services.

The initiative contemplates evaluating the conservation status of coral populations and generating key information for their restoration, applying techniques such as rescue and recovery and the planting of recruits, with monitoring and maintenance of the reefs created. It also identifies and characterises suitable areas to declare Marine Coral Micro-Reserves, drawing up specific management and monitoring plans. At the same time, it analyzes the genetic structure and microbiome of Astroides calycularis in the south of the Iberian Peninsula and its genetic connectivity, culminating in a scientific-technical document that promotes conservation through the coral corridor as Marine Green Infrastructure.