The Adriatic island of Silba has some of the clearest waters of any of Croatia’s many islands, and is well-known for its extensive beds of Posidonia oceanica seagrasses. Posidonia is endemic to the Mediterranean and performs a range of vital ecosystem services, including carbon sequestration, coastline stabilization, and providing habitats for a wide range of marine species. However, despite their importance, seagrass beds are declining throughout much of the Adriatic due to water pollution, damage from anchorages, and the impacts of climate change. This has led to marine conservations adopting novel measures to conserve and restore degraded Posidonia beds. One new approach is placing artificial substrates made from repurposed fishing trap frames into areas of degraded seagrass beds around Silba, and planting them by hand with Posidonia rhizomes. The goal of this project is to provide strong foundations for the subsequent ecological restoration of these degrading habitats, although their effectiveness remains as-of-yet scientifically untested. Students taking this topic will employ a novel experimental design to examine how well these artificial substrates are at encouraging survival and growth in Posidonia, using diving skills to examine the condition of grasses growing on the frames at different depths and in areas of differential habitat degradation. At the end of the project, students should be able to conclude how successful artificial Posidonia frames are overall, what are the optimal conditions in which they can be employed, and how can the methodology be adapted to improve the effectiveness of this ecological restoration tool.

If you would like to do a dissertation or thesis with us but your university hasn’t started dissertation planning or the project selection process, that’s no problem. You can cancel your expedition with zero cancellation charges up until the 15th of April of if you provide documentation from your university saying that they won’t support completing a dissertation project with us.