Relative habitat suitability and stability of the Mediterranean gorgonian coral Eunicella cavolini (Coelenterata: Octocorallia)

Habitat suitability and stability of the Mediterranean gorgonian Eunicella cavolini were investigated at three study sites in the Bay of Calvi (Corsica, France): a channel (25 m), a wall (16-28 m) and a boulder field (10-15 m). Relative differences between habitats were analysed by using the age structure at the three study sites. Population density and recruitment rates were highest in the channel, intermediate at the wall, and lowest at the boulders. The study sites could be ranked in terms of both habitat suitability and stability (from highest to lowest) as follows: channel, wall and boulders. The channel was about 1.9 times more stable than the wail and about 2.5 times more stable than the boulders. The observed differences between habitats were related to light intensity, overgrowth of colonies, substratum occupation, and the intensity of water movement.