Researcher
Integrative Marine Ecology Department
Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn
Calabria Marine Centre
C.da Torre Spaccata, località Torre Spaccata
87071, Amendolara (CS), Italy
Tel.: +39 081 5833271
E-mail: chiara.romano(at)szn.it
Contatto Skype: chiara_romano
Web: https://orcid.org/my-orcid?orcid=0000-0001-5078-0082
Twitter: @DeepFall_Proj
Research Interests
The focus of my scientific career is the study of macrobenthic fauna - in particular Mollusca Bivalvia and Annelida Polychaeta - and how perturbations (either natural or anthropogenic) affect the species distribution and biodiversity.
I acquired strong skills in:
- integrative taxonomy using both morphological and molecular methods for species delimitation, assessing biodiversity, phylogenetic reconstruction and studying connectivity among different populations.
- experimenatl ecology both in the field and mesocosm to study the responses and benthic species and communities to a perturbation (e.g. predatory pressure or trawling).
I recently focused on the study of the benthic biodiversity in hotspot deep-sea habitats (e.g. submarine canyons and seamounts), the phylogeography and population genetics of deep-sea organisms by the use of Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) methods. My favourite test systems are deep-fall wood-fall communities, macrofauna associated with sunken wood, including wood borer bivalves of the family Xylophagaidae.
Selected Publications
D. Martin, C. Romano. (2021). Morphology and sexual dimorphism of living mature adults of Amphiduros fuscescens (Marenzeller, 1875) (Annelida, Hesionidae, Amphidurine), first reported for the Iberian Peninsula. Biodiversity Data Journal 9 https://doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.9.e66020
Romano C., A Nunes-Jorge, N Le Bris, GW Rouse, D Martin, C Borowski. (2020). Wooden Stepping Stones: Diversity and Biogeography of Deep-Sea Wood Boring Xylophagaidae (Mollusca: Bivalvia) in the North-East Atlantic Ocean, with the description of a New Genus. Front. Mar. Sci. https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2020.579959/full .
Román S. L. Lins, J. Ingels, C. Romano, D. Martin and A. Vanreusel. (2019). Role of spatial scales and environmental drivers in shaping nematode communities in the Blanes Canyon and its adjacent slope (NW Mediterranean). Deep Sea Research Part I 146:62–78. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr.2019.03.002
Martin D., F. Pititto, J. Gil, P. Mura, N. Bahamon, C. Romano, S. Thorin, T. Schvartz, É. Dutrieux, Y. Bocquenet. (2019). Long-distance influence of the Rhône River plume on the marine benthic ecosystem: Descriptive ecology vs. Predictive modelling. Science of the total Environment 673:790–809. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.04.010
Romano C., M.M. Flexas, M. Segura, N. Bahamon, J.M. Gili, D. Martin. (2017). Canyon effect and seasonal variability of deep-sea organisms in the NW Mediterranean: synchronous, year-long captures of "swimmers" from near-bottom sediment traps in a submarine canyon and its adjacent open slope. Deep-Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers. 129: 99-115 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr.2017.10.002.
Romano C., Fanelli E., D’Anna G., Pipitone C., Vizzini S., Mazzola A., Badalamenti F. (2016). Spatial variability of soft-bottom macrobenthic communities in northern Sicily (Western Mediterranean): contrasting trawled vs. untrawled areas. Marine Environmental Research. 122:113-125. Time cited:3 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.marenvres.2016.10.002
Romano C., Voight JR, Pérez-Portela R and Martin D. (2014). Morphological and Genetic Diversity of the Wood-Boring Xylophaga (Mollusca, Bivalvia): New Species and Records from Deep-Sea Iberian Canyons. PLoS ONE 9 (7): e102887.
Romano, C., Voight, J., Plyuscheva M., Martin, D. (2013). Submarine canyons as the preferred habitat for wood-boring species of Xylophaga (Mollusca, Bivalvia) Progress in Oceanography. 118: 175-187. doi:10.1016/j.pocean.2013.07.028
Romano C., Coenjaerts J., Flexas M. M., Zúñiga D., Vanreusel A., Company J. B., Martin D. (2013). Spatial and temporal variability of meiobenthic density in the Blanes submarine canyon (NW Mediterranean). Progress in Oceanography. 118: 144-158. doi: 10.1016/j.pocean.2013.07.026.
Romano C., G. Sarà, G. Salvo, J. Bishop , A. Mazzola, and J. Widdows. (2011). The effect of the presence of the shore crab, Carcinus maenas (L., 1758), on the burrowing behaviour and clereance rate of the common cockle, Cerastoderma edule (L., 1758). Marine Biology. 158: 2685-2694
Websites
Former Marie Curie project DEEPFALL “Macrobenthic communities associated with deep wood falls lying in submarine canyons”. http://www.deepfall-project.eu/
