Red coral (Corallium rubrum) in Sardinian sea: main regulations, status and biological features.

The regulation of the red coral harvesting in Sardinia has a long history. Since 1979, to enable a sustainable exploitation of coral resource, harvesting has been ruled by the introduction of several restrictions (Regional Law n. 59 - 5 July 1979 “Coral Fishing Regulation”, partly modified by the Regional Law n. 23 of 30th May 1989). Taking into account that these regulations could have affected the status of the red coral banks, the spatial distribution of the deep red coral resource in the Northern and Western coasts of Sardinian has been studied and, at present, the status of banks 5 is continuously monitored. Three zones with different demography and density have been identified from data on size structure obtained both by ROV video transects and colony sampling by professional divers. The specific ecological causes affecting the different observed red coral morphological structures are the object of an ongoing study. Moreover, data on growth pattern and reproductive biology are presented. Two different growth rates were found for the deep colonies collected in the Northern and North western coast of Sardinia. Furthermore, the reproductive features of deep and shallow colonies of C. rubrum, collected between late May and June, are illustrated and compared. The analyses included the reproductive status of both polyps and colonies. Important reproductive parameters as fecundity and fertility of both female and male colonies for different size classes are also described