Monitoring underwater noise in Madeira MPAs: a first approach to expand the coverage of the CoastNet research infrastructure in this archipelago

The first campaign of the MARE mini grants project - Monitoring underwater noise in Madeira MPAs: the first approach to expanding the coverage of the CoastNet research infrastructure in this archipelago – started in early June 2021. Under this initiative, which brought together researchers from three MARE poles (Madeira, Évora and ISPA) and a CE3C researcher, Passive Acoustic Monitoring (PAM) loggers were deployed to monitor the underwater sound in two marine protected areas (AMP) of the Madeira Archipelago. The MPAs selected were the Garajau reserve, with the goal of recording the presence of the dusky grouper Epinephelus marginatus and other fish species that produce sound, and the ‘Ilhas Desertas’ reserve. In the latter, the main target species is the Mediterranean monk seal (Monachus monachus). This work also benefit from the colaboration with the Institute of Forests and Nature Conservation (IFCN). With this initiative, the extension of the CoastNet infrastructure (https://coastnet.pt/) to the Madeira Archipelago begins.