Mustafa Remzi Gül
The Mediterranean ghost crab, Ocypode cursor, is an ecologically important member of Mediterranean sandy beaches. Similar to other ghost crab species worldwide, they are susceptible to human disturbances, making them important bioindicator species for the level of human disturbances on sandy shores. Simply, the species show lower abundance and body sizes at sites where human disturbance is present.
Cast of a V-shape burrow created by O. cursor on a sandy beach in Antalya. ©MRG.
O. cursor has been the subject of the Barcelona Convention in 1995 and 2018 as an “Endangered or Threatened Species” and of the Bern Convention in 1996-1998 as a “Strictly Protected Fauna Species”. This is due to declining abundance and distribution on Mediterranean beaches as a result of their sensitivity to human disturbances, suggesting an urgent need for a conservation plan. However, the knowledge required for a promising conservation plan is insufficient.
The study will be conducted in Antalya, Türkiye, as this region has both highly disturbed and pristine sites, allowing us to understand the mechanistic reasons why O. cursor shows such severe responses to human disturbances. The project will have three main objectives, including:
1) Determination of the variations in the population dynamics of the ghost crabs at sites that differ in the level of human disturbances by utilizing a non-destructive technique of examining their burrows.
2) Understanding whether human disturbances disrupt connectivity between populations by determining haplotype number, haplotype diversity, and nucleotide diversity of the partial gene region.
3) Contributing to awareness of the public community and local and national authorities by sharing project results and general information collected by other studies to reduce the pressure on this species.
We consider this work as an initial stage for gathering all the scientific information required to trigger a complete conservation effort by the authorities.