A total of thirty red gorgonians (Paramuricea clavata) have entered the Animal Recovery and Conservation Area (ARCA) of the Oceanogràfic Sea in Valencia after being accidentally trapped in the fishing nets of a boat in Castelló.
The collaboration of the fishermen’s brotherhood San Pedro de Castelló has been fundamental in this rescue operation, the largest recorded in the Oceanogràfic in a week.
The notice is essential for the Oceanogràfic Foundation team to travel to the port and be able to transport the corals to the Valencia aquarium facilities where they are examined, maintained in the appropriate conditions and treated according to the problems they present.
The participation of the fishing sector is proving exemplary and fundamental for the success of the program and the sustainability of a group that depends on the health of the ecosystem.
Since the launch of the project, more than 200 specimens of different species of gorgonians have been successfully reintroduced throughout the Valencian Community.
The red gorgonian is classified as “vulnerable” by the Red List of Threatened Species of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), so its protection is necessary to conserve the species.
Among the animals that entered, there was a particularly striking one that was more than a meter long. A size that had never been included in the Oceanogràfic of the Ciutat de les Arts i les Ciències, since most do not exceed 50 centimeters.
The corals are in one of the recovery tanks of the Oceanogràfic Foundation, under the supervision, care and monitoring of biologists, and are expected to return to the sea in the coming weeks.
The gorgonian recovery program is co-financed by the General Directorate of Fisheries of the Department of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries of the Generalitat Valenciana, thus highlighting the joint commitment to marine conservation.
