The Gulf of Naples has an extension of ca 870 kmq and an average depth of 170 m. The coastal area, which is inhabited since pre-Roman age, is densely populated and small factories are actively growing. In the Gulf, polluted areas (Sarno river mouth, harbours) coexist with pristine areas, including some Protected Marine Areas. Research on marine organisms has started before since the beginning of 1800, but first ecological studies date back to the 70ies of the last century. The long-term monitoring station (LTER-MC, 40°49’N, 14°15’E) is located 2 nm off Naples city (depth ca 80 m) at the boundary between eutrophied coastal waters and oligotrophic Tyrrhenian waters. Larger areas of the Gulf have been sampled occasionally in several cruises. The MC data set represents one of the few plankton time series available in the Mediterranean Sea, and it is certainly one of the longest.

Download Metadata:

Download

General Characteristics, Purpose, History

Site Status:

existing

Year Site Established:

1984

Size :

0.00ha

Purpose of Site :

The site has so far been a research site aiming at the study of plankton variability in response to environmental forcing. Plankton samples are collected along with environmental data at a weekly scale, and species identification is performed with traditional methods coupled with Electron microscopy and molecular tools. Phytoplankton species are often grown in the lab for experimental work or taxonomic analyses, which have led to the discovery of about 15 new microalgal species. Special investigations have addressed, among other topics, the role of viruses in the demise of algal blooms, the rate of dinoflagellate cyst production over the seasons, the rhythm of sexual reproduction in diatoms and grazing of meso- and microzooplankton.

Parameters:

Photos

Geographic

Coordinates:

Latitude: 40.816000000000
Longitude: 14.250000000000

Download boundaries [.shp]

Site Details

Ecosystem and Environmental Characteristics

Elevation Range FROM:

-70.00msl

Elevation Range TO:

0.00msl

Elevation - Average:

-35.00msl

Air Temperature Range (Monthly Minimum) FROM:

13.00°C

Air Temperature Range (Monthly Maximum) TO :

28.00°C

Air Temperature: Average Annual:

15.50°C

Precipitation Minimum Monthly :

0.00mm

Precipitation Annual :

0.00mm

Precipitation Maximum Monthly :

0.00mm

Biome :

Marine

GEO-BON Biome:

Marine

Ecosystem and Land Use:

Marine

Biogeographic Region:

Mediterranean

eLTER Parameters

eLTER Parameters:

- Surface water
  - Still waters (Lakes, Sea)
- Biodiversity (following the Essential Biodiversity Variables approach)
  - Marine

Network Affiliation and Network Specific Information

Networks/Projects:

LTER
European Network of Marine Research Institutes and Stations (MARS)
Genomic Observatories (GO)

LTER related

LTER Site Code:

LTER_EU_IT_061

LTER Site Classification/Category:

Regular

Accreditation Status by LTER Member Network:

Accredited formal LTER facility

Protection Status and Resource Management

0 - 25%

Management of Resources :

Yes

Management of Resources - Percent of Site:

0 - 25%

Design and Scale of Site

Site Type (Spatial Design):

Simple Site

Scale of Observation:

plot without link to explicit catchment

Design of Observation:

mainly observation

Scale of Experiments:

micro sites

Design of Experiments:

partly experimentation

Infrastructure

Value of the Infrastructure :

More than 5000 k

Accessible All Year :

Yes

All parts of Site Accessible:

Yes

Access Type:

boat

Permanent Power Supply:

Infrastructure:

Supporting infrastructure › Transportation › Boat

Operation

Operation Notes:

maintenance tasks are approximate and refer to CTD and other instrumentation used onboard

Permanent Operation:

Site Visit Interval:

Every 7 days

Maintenance Interval:

Every 365 days

Data Management

General Data Policy:

Co-authorship on publications resulting from use of the dataset

Data Storage Location :

Central

Data Storage Format :

Structured file or spreadsheet

Data services :

Other data service

Data Request Format :

Offline (Mail or Telephone)

Associated Data

You are here

Site Name:

Short name :

Web Address:

Country (Site Location):

LTER Member Network:

Parent Site Name:

Contact: Site Manager:

Free Keywords:

General Site Description:

Download Metadata:

Site Status:

Year Site Established:

Size :

Purpose of Site :

Research Topics:

Parameters:

Coordinates:

Elevation Range FROM:

Elevation Range TO:

Elevation - Average:

Air Temperature Range (Monthly Minimum) FROM:

Air Temperature Range (Monthly Maximum) TO :

Air Temperature: Average Annual:

Precipitation Minimum Monthly :

Precipitation Annual :

Precipitation Maximum Monthly :

Biome :

GEO-BON Biome:

Ecosystem and Land Use:

Biogeographic Region:

eLTER Parameters:

Networks/Projects:

LTER Site Code:

LTER Site Classification/Category:

Accreditation Status by LTER Member Network:

Management of Resources :

Management of Resources - Percent of Site:

Site Type (Spatial Design):

Scale of Observation:

Design of Observation:

Scale of Experiments:

Design of Experiments:

Value of the Infrastructure :

Accessible All Year :

All parts of Site Accessible:

Access Type:

Permanent Power Supply:

Infrastructure:

Operation Notes:

Permanent Operation:

Site Visit Interval:

Maintenance Interval:

General Data Policy:

Data Storage Location :

Data Storage Format :

Data services :

Data Request Format :

Pages