Expanding protected areas to encompass the conservation of the endangered common dolphin (Delphinus delphis) in the Alboran Sea

The Natura 2000 network is the centerpiece of European Union conservation strategy to safeguard priority species and habitats. question whether other co-occurring concern may also benefit from this network, however, remains largely unknown. Here, we used a systematic approach (MARXAN) for i) evaluating if current in Alboran Sea (western Mediterranean Sea), initially proposed protect common bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) habitats, spatially protecting endangered (Delphinus delphis), ii) identifying additional marine areas that should be protected reach adequate targets dolphin. While encompass ca. 22% predicted abundances dolphins, percentage might enhanced by coastal nearby Strait Gibraltar. However, dolphins fisheries overlap coastline, only segregate offshore represent marginal distribution species. Thus, decision-makers must achieve trade-off between cetacean combining an area-based (i.e., new close Gibraltar) together with basin-wide threat-based (e.g., regulation fisheries).