Chapter 18
The Seascape as an Indicator of Environmental
Interest and Quality of the Mediterranean
Benthos: The in Situ Development
of a Description Index: The LIMA
Sylvie Gobert, Aurélia Chéry, Alexandre Volpon, Corinne Pelaprat
and Pierre Lejeune
Abstract The LIMA index conveys the environmental interest and quality of the
landscape formed by the Mediterranean benthos, ranging from 0 to − 40 m, in numerical format. The LIMA index allows a comparison spatially and temporarily
between sites. It is a comprehensive index which is easy to implement and is composed of two factors: a topographical description (classification of 15 typologies) and
a biological description (the presence or absence of some thirty species or groups of
structuring, remarkable and invasive species). The LIMA index has been validated in
the Bay of Calvi (Corsica-France) where it varies between 0.31 and 0.79 on a scale
of 0.00–1.00.
Keywords Remarkable species · Invasive species · Benthos · Seagrass · Interest and
quality index · Corsica
S. Gobert ()
Oceanology-MARE, University of Liege, B6C Sart Tilman, B4000 Liege, Belgium
e-mail: Sylvie.Gobert@ulg.ac.be
A. Chéry · A. Volpon · C. Pelaprat · P. Lejeune
STARESO sas, Pointe de La Revellata BP 33, 20260 Calvi, Corsica
e-mail: a.chery@stareso.com
A. Volpon
e-mail: alexandre.volpon@stareso.com
C. Pelaprat
e-mail: corinne.pelaprat@stareso.com
P. Lejeune
e-mail: pierre.lejeune@stareso.com
O. Musard et al. (eds.), Underwater Seascapes, DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-03440-9_18,
277
© Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2014
The Seascape as an Indicator of Environmental
Interest and Quality of the Mediterranean
Benthos: The in Situ Development
of a Description Index: The LIMA
Sylvie Gobert, Aurélia Chéry, Alexandre Volpon, Corinne Pelaprat
and Pierre Lejeune
Abstract The LIMA index conveys the environmental interest and quality of the
landscape formed by the Mediterranean benthos, ranging from 0 to − 40 m, in numerical format. The LIMA index allows a comparison spatially and temporarily
between sites. It is a comprehensive index which is easy to implement and is composed of two factors: a topographical description (classification of 15 typologies) and
a biological description (the presence or absence of some thirty species or groups of
structuring, remarkable and invasive species). The LIMA index has been validated in
the Bay of Calvi (Corsica-France) where it varies between 0.31 and 0.79 on a scale
of 0.00–1.00.
Keywords Remarkable species · Invasive species · Benthos · Seagrass · Interest and
quality index · Corsica
S. Gobert ()
Oceanology-MARE, University of Liege, B6C Sart Tilman, B4000 Liege, Belgium
e-mail: Sylvie.Gobert@ulg.ac.be
A. Chéry · A. Volpon · C. Pelaprat · P. Lejeune
STARESO sas, Pointe de La Revellata BP 33, 20260 Calvi, Corsica
e-mail: a.chery@stareso.com
A. Volpon
e-mail: alexandre.volpon@stareso.com
C. Pelaprat
e-mail: corinne.pelaprat@stareso.com
P. Lejeune
e-mail: pierre.lejeune@stareso.com
O. Musard et al. (eds.), Underwater Seascapes, DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-03440-9_18,
277
© Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2014