News   •   July 2026

Photos by Cara and Bob

The Posidonia oceanica meadow at the experimental site

Researchers working at the Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn began a project that will examine nutrient cycling by sponges and seagrass near Bacoli, Naples. They will examine the production of a powerful greenhouse gas, nitrous oxide, from this habitat and determine if that production will change in response to global change.

Through funding provided by the EU AQUASERV Transnational Access Program, researchers from Appalachian State University (North Carolina, USA), Cara Fiore and Bob Swarthout, are collaborating with Ulisse Cardini and Elena Quintanilla to test the potential of the common Mediterranean Chicken Liver Sponge (Chondrilla nucula), to produce the greenhouse gas nitrous oxide.

Snapshots of the sampling activities

Working at the Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, we collected air, water, and sponge samples from sponge-seagrass habitats near Bacoli to measure nitrous oxide production genes in the sponges and emissions from the water to the air.

By examining how these habitats respond to changing environmental conditions, including higher temperatures and nutrient levels, in other planned experiments we hope to better understand how coastal ecosystems will respond to global change.

The sampling team: Cara, Bob and Elena