LIFE PINNARCA

A European project focusing on the recovery of the fan mussel Pinna nobilis in the Mediterranean Sea

About us

An unprecedented mass mortality event has affected the fan mussels since September 2016. The pandemics has killed 99% of the populations. Only a few relict populations remain in sanctuary areas (deltas and marine coastal lagoons).

The aim of LIFE PINNARCA is avoiding the extinction of the species, involve citizen science in its protection and improve the environmental quality of the sanctuaries.

The results of this project can be applied to other marine species affected by pandemic diseases and the actions improve the environmental quality and monitoring of other relevant marine areas and species.

"The happiness of the bee and the dolphin is to exist. The human's happiness is to discover this and marvel at it."

Jacques Cousteau

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The Mussels

Project partners

The project is coordinated by Professors José Rafael Garcia-March and José Tena Medialdea, Scientific Coordinator and Director of the Research Institute IMEDMAR-UCV of the Universidad Católica de Valencia

The project partners are:

Agencia Estatal Centro Superior de Investigaciones Científicas,
Instituto Español de Oceanografía, Centre Oceanogràfic de Balears, Spain
Instituto Mediterráneo de Estudios Avanzados, Univesitat de les Illes Balears, Spain
Ecologistas en Acción Región de Murcia, Spain
Institut Océanographique Paul Ricard, France

Institut de Recerca i Tecnologia Agroalimentaries, la Ràpita, Spain

Panepistimio Aigaiou, University of The Aegean – Research Unit, Greece
Universidad de Alicante, Spain
Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II – Dipartimento di Biologia, Italy