Welcome to Mass Mortality Event 2018
Aim
During 2018, Sea Surface Temperature in the Mediterranean registered the highest values ever recorded in many areas. Divers are reporting several areas affected by the mortality of macroinvertebrate species such as gorgonians, sponges and bivalves, which are continuously increasing.
During the last years similar mass mortality events were reported affecting large areas and numbers of species and were linked, as this year, to thermal stress.
The aims of this website are: 1) to inform on the effects of the ongoing 2018 mass mortality event (species, degree of impacts and geographic areas) and 2) to engage divers, diving clubs and scientists in the observation of the effects of climate change over all the Mediterranean Sea.
To do so, in this website we will inform on the last observations, provide protocols to report the impacts (or their absence) and different resources (photos, vídeos, documents) to suport the observations.
Preliminary Mass Mortality Map 2018
Non affected
Moderate affected 
Severe affected
Last activities
Get involved
- Have you observed the mortality of gorgonians during your dives?
- Curious to know on what it looks like a mass mortality event?
- Are concerned by the conservation of the Mediterranean biodiversity?
If you answered affirmatively to any of these questions... then you should go to Get involved... check how.