Tropicalization and biodiversity restructuring of calcifying plankton in a rapidly warming Mediterranean Sea

Climate-driven shifts in species diversity, community composition and phenology can disrupt ecosystem functioning and compromise marine ecosystem stability. The Mediterranean Sea, a global biodiversity hotspot, is particularly vulnerable to anthropogenic climate change and is experiencing a growing...

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Autores: Lucas, Arturo|||0000-0002-3946-7105, Pallacks, Sven|||0000-0002-8215-0007, Incarbona, Alessandro|||0000-0003-3563-7143, Mortyn, P. Graham|||0000-0002-9473-4309, Ziveri, Patrizia|||0000-0002-5576-0301
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Fecha de publicación:2026
País:España
Institución:Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
Repositorio:Dipòsit Digital de Documents de la UAB
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:ddd.uab.cat:325655
Acceso en línea:https://ddd.uab.cat/record/325655
https://dx.doi.org/urn:doi:10.1016/j.gloplacha.2026.105314
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Anthropogenic warming
Biodiversity change
Calcifying plankton
Coccolithophores
Mediterranean Sea
Planktonic foraminifera
Tropicalization
SDG 13 - Climate Action
SDG 14 - Life Below Water
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network_name_str España
repository_id_str
dc.title.none.fl_str_mv Tropicalization and biodiversity restructuring of calcifying plankton in a rapidly warming Mediterranean Sea
title Tropicalization and biodiversity restructuring of calcifying plankton in a rapidly warming Mediterranean Sea
spellingShingle Tropicalization and biodiversity restructuring of calcifying plankton in a rapidly warming Mediterranean Sea
Lucas, Arturo|||0000-0002-3946-7105
Anthropogenic warming
Biodiversity change
Calcifying plankton
Coccolithophores
Mediterranean Sea
Planktonic foraminifera
Tropicalization
SDG 13 - Climate Action
SDG 14 - Life Below Water
title_short Tropicalization and biodiversity restructuring of calcifying plankton in a rapidly warming Mediterranean Sea
title_full Tropicalization and biodiversity restructuring of calcifying plankton in a rapidly warming Mediterranean Sea
title_fullStr Tropicalization and biodiversity restructuring of calcifying plankton in a rapidly warming Mediterranean Sea
title_full_unstemmed Tropicalization and biodiversity restructuring of calcifying plankton in a rapidly warming Mediterranean Sea
title_sort Tropicalization and biodiversity restructuring of calcifying plankton in a rapidly warming Mediterranean Sea
dc.creator.none.fl_str_mv Lucas, Arturo|||0000-0002-3946-7105
Pallacks, Sven|||0000-0002-8215-0007
Incarbona, Alessandro|||0000-0003-3563-7143
Mortyn, P. Graham|||0000-0002-9473-4309
Ziveri, Patrizia|||0000-0002-5576-0301
author Lucas, Arturo|||0000-0002-3946-7105
author_facet Lucas, Arturo|||0000-0002-3946-7105
Pallacks, Sven|||0000-0002-8215-0007
Incarbona, Alessandro|||0000-0003-3563-7143
Mortyn, P. Graham|||0000-0002-9473-4309
Ziveri, Patrizia|||0000-0002-5576-0301
author_role author
author2 Pallacks, Sven|||0000-0002-8215-0007
Incarbona, Alessandro|||0000-0003-3563-7143
Mortyn, P. Graham|||0000-0002-9473-4309
Ziveri, Patrizia|||0000-0002-5576-0301
author2_role author
author
author
author
dc.subject.none.fl_str_mv Anthropogenic warming
Biodiversity change
Calcifying plankton
Coccolithophores
Mediterranean Sea
Planktonic foraminifera
Tropicalization
SDG 13 - Climate Action
SDG 14 - Life Below Water
topic Anthropogenic warming
Biodiversity change
Calcifying plankton
Coccolithophores
Mediterranean Sea
Planktonic foraminifera
Tropicalization
SDG 13 - Climate Action
SDG 14 - Life Below Water
description Climate-driven shifts in species diversity, community composition and phenology can disrupt ecosystem functioning and compromise marine ecosystem stability. The Mediterranean Sea, a global biodiversity hotspot, is particularly vulnerable to anthropogenic climate change and is experiencing a growing biodiversity crisis especially driven by warming, habitat degradation, pollution and the introduction of new species. Yet, current knowledge of biodiversity changes in this region is largely limited to shallow shelf benthic communities and macroorganisms. Calcifying phytoplankton and zooplankton, however, offer a unique lens into pelagic ecosystem dynamics, as their fossil record preserves signals of biodiversity change in deep-sea sediments spanning the Industrial Era and the current phase of rapid warming. This study focuses on the reconstruction of diversity change of two dominant calcifying plankton groups: coccolithophores and foraminifera (primary and secondary producers). We examine two selected sedimentary records of the western and central Mediterranean-Alboran Sea and the Strait of Sicily-spanning the last ∼1700 and 200 years of modern climate, respectively. By quantifying abundance, diversity and turnover of species composition we evaluate the potential response of calcifying plankton assemblages to oceanographic changes under anthropogenic climate change. The results revealed contrasting changes in the diversity of the two dominant calcifying plankton groups, with a rapid increase in coccolithophore diversity alongside a decrease in planktonic foraminiferal diversity during the Industrial Era. We attribute these group-specific responses to ecological and physiological differences, particularly in relation to life cycles and water column distribution, under increasingly stratified, nutrient-depleted surface waters driven by rising sea surface temperatures. In addition, this study provides first indication of tropicalization of the western Mediterranean plankton derived from the increasing intrusion and eastward expansion of the coccolithophore Gephyrocapsa oceanica from the Strait of Gibraltar into the Mediterranean Sea. The highest abundances of this species are restricted to the Equatorial Atlantic Divergence Zone and only found in higher proportions in the Mediterranean during past warm periods. Although the temperate-productivity foraminiferal species of Globigerina bulloides and Globorotalia inflata remain the dominant foraminiferal species, previous minor dominant species are being replaced by warm-oligotrophic species, such as Trilobatus sacculifer and Globigerinella spp. These align with model projections of tropical species migrating into the area, previously documented among benthic organisms and point to a broader restructuring of planktonic life.
publishDate 2026
dc.date.none.fl_str_mv 2
2026-01-01
2026
2026-01-01
dc.type.none.fl_str_mv Article
http://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501
VoR
http://purl.org/coar/version/c_970fb48d4fbd8a85
dc.type.openaire.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/article
format article
dc.identifier.none.fl_str_mv https://ddd.uab.cat/record/325655
https://dx.doi.org/urn:doi:10.1016/j.gloplacha.2026.105314
url https://ddd.uab.cat/record/325655
https://dx.doi.org/urn:doi:10.1016/j.gloplacha.2026.105314
dc.language.none.fl_str_mv Inglés
eng
language_invalid_str_mv Inglés
language eng
dc.relation.none.fl_str_mv European Commission https://doi.org/10.13039/501100000780 101158830
Agencia Estatal de Investigación https://doi.org/10.13039/501100011033 PCI2025-163190
Agencia Estatal de Investigación https://doi.org/10.13039/501100011033 CEX2024-001506-M
Agencia Estatal de Investigación https://doi.org/10.13039/501100011033 PID2020-113526RB-I00
Generalitat de Catalunya https://doi.org/10.13039/501100002809 2021/SGR-00640
dc.rights.none.fl_str_mv open access
http://purl.org/coar/access_right/c_abf2
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
dc.rights.openaire.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
rights_invalid_str_mv open access
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eu_rights_str_mv openAccess
dc.format.none.fl_str_mv application/pdf
dc.source.none.fl_str_mv reponame:Dipòsit Digital de Documents de la UAB
instname:Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
instname_str Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
reponame_str Dipòsit Digital de Documents de la UAB
collection Dipòsit Digital de Documents de la UAB
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spelling Tropicalization and biodiversity restructuring of calcifying plankton in a rapidly warming Mediterranean SeaLucas, Arturo|||0000-0002-3946-7105Pallacks, Sven|||0000-0002-8215-0007Incarbona, Alessandro|||0000-0003-3563-7143Mortyn, P. Graham|||0000-0002-9473-4309Ziveri, Patrizia|||0000-0002-5576-0301Anthropogenic warmingBiodiversity changeCalcifying planktonCoccolithophoresMediterranean SeaPlanktonic foraminiferaTropicalizationSDG 13 - Climate ActionSDG 14 - Life Below WaterClimate-driven shifts in species diversity, community composition and phenology can disrupt ecosystem functioning and compromise marine ecosystem stability. The Mediterranean Sea, a global biodiversity hotspot, is particularly vulnerable to anthropogenic climate change and is experiencing a growing biodiversity crisis especially driven by warming, habitat degradation, pollution and the introduction of new species. Yet, current knowledge of biodiversity changes in this region is largely limited to shallow shelf benthic communities and macroorganisms. Calcifying phytoplankton and zooplankton, however, offer a unique lens into pelagic ecosystem dynamics, as their fossil record preserves signals of biodiversity change in deep-sea sediments spanning the Industrial Era and the current phase of rapid warming. This study focuses on the reconstruction of diversity change of two dominant calcifying plankton groups: coccolithophores and foraminifera (primary and secondary producers). We examine two selected sedimentary records of the western and central Mediterranean-Alboran Sea and the Strait of Sicily-spanning the last ∼1700 and 200 years of modern climate, respectively. By quantifying abundance, diversity and turnover of species composition we evaluate the potential response of calcifying plankton assemblages to oceanographic changes under anthropogenic climate change. The results revealed contrasting changes in the diversity of the two dominant calcifying plankton groups, with a rapid increase in coccolithophore diversity alongside a decrease in planktonic foraminiferal diversity during the Industrial Era. We attribute these group-specific responses to ecological and physiological differences, particularly in relation to life cycles and water column distribution, under increasingly stratified, nutrient-depleted surface waters driven by rising sea surface temperatures. In addition, this study provides first indication of tropicalization of the western Mediterranean plankton derived from the increasing intrusion and eastward expansion of the coccolithophore Gephyrocapsa oceanica from the Strait of Gibraltar into the Mediterranean Sea. The highest abundances of this species are restricted to the Equatorial Atlantic Divergence Zone and only found in higher proportions in the Mediterranean during past warm periods. Although the temperate-productivity foraminiferal species of Globigerina bulloides and Globorotalia inflata remain the dominant foraminiferal species, previous minor dominant species are being replaced by warm-oligotrophic species, such as Trilobatus sacculifer and Globigerinella spp. These align with model projections of tropical species migrating into the area, previously documented among benthic organisms and point to a broader restructuring of planktonic life. 22026-01-0120262026-01-01Articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501VoRhttp://purl.org/coar/version/c_970fb48d4fbd8a85info:eu-repo/semantics/articleapplication/pdfhttps://ddd.uab.cat/record/325655https://dx.doi.org/urn:doi:10.1016/j.gloplacha.2026.105314reponame:Dipòsit Digital de Documents de la UABinstname:Universitat Autònoma de BarcelonaInglésengEuropean Commission https://doi.org/10.13039/501100000780 101158830Agencia Estatal de Investigación https://doi.org/10.13039/501100011033 PCI2025-163190Agencia Estatal de Investigación https://doi.org/10.13039/501100011033 CEX2024-001506-MAgencia Estatal de Investigación https://doi.org/10.13039/501100011033 PID2020-113526RB-I00Generalitat de Catalunya https://doi.org/10.13039/501100002809 2021/SGR-00640open accesshttp://purl.org/coar/access_right/c_abf2Aquest document està subjecte a una llicència d'ús Creative Commons. Es permet la reproducció total o parcial, la distribució, la comunicació pública de l'obra i la creació d'obres derivades, fins i tot amb finalitats comercials, sempre i quan es reconegui l'autoria de l'obra original.https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccessoai:ddd.uab.cat:3256552026-06-06T12:50:31Z
score 15,252335

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