All over the world, coastlines are threatened by erosion and specifically so sandy beaches. In the face of coastline urbanization and climate change, it is necessary to assess the effects of erosion protection and beach armouring on the sandy shores. The macro- and meiofauna of the benthic habitat play crucial roles in the functioning of the ecosystem and are simultaneously good indicators for anthropogenic impact. This study compares three beaches at the Adriatic coast with different levels of protection (none, artificial dunes, artificial dunes + hard structures) to investigate the differences in the benthic communities and thus the effects of the protection measures. It turns out that the hard structures changes the environmental characteristics towards a very dissipative beach type, triggering a community shift from meio to macrobenthos, while the effect of the winter dunes cannot be identified without uncertainty. |
