1. Dendrophyllia ramea is a poorly known arborescent scleractinian coral, whose worldwide distribution is limited to the southern part of the Mediterranean basin, and to the Atlantic Ocean between Macaronesia and Gulf of Cadiz. The geographical distribution and abundance of D. ramea were herein updated, considering a total of 19 records, seven of which have never previously been reported in scientific papers.
2. Between 2010 and 2017, five Remotely Operative Vehicle surveys carried out along the Sicilian coast recorded 89 colonies. No exhaustive data on density and ecology of this species have been published to date. Data for two areas off the north-eastern Sicilian waters (Aeolian Island and Gulf of Patti) are reported, including the species’ bathymetric distribution, abundance, population density, colony morphometry, population size structure and surrounding habitat description.
3. Size structure and density of D. ramea populations were compared with lost fishing gear density. Around the Aeolian Islands, where little lost fishing gear was observed, the D. ramea population was denser compared with the populations at two sites within the Gulf of Patti, where a greater amount of lost fishing gear was observed. The analysis of D. ramea size classes (single corallite, 2–5 polyps, >5 polyps) at different sites showed that impact varied with fishing gear typology: while lines damage the branches of larger colonies, nets can completely remove them.
4. The limited distribution of D. ramea in some areas also makes this species very vulnerable to impacts such as changes in the chemical–physical characteristics and circulation of sea water. Dendrophyllia ramea is classified as ‘Vulnerable’ according to the Mediterranean IUCN Red List, and it is listed in the Barcelona Convention (Annex B). Data on the distribution of D. ramea allows us to review the species’ classification and propose that its status be changed to ‘Endangered’.

中文翻译：

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Dendrophyllia ramea (Linnaeus, 1758) 的分布和生态学的新贡献：西西里岛东北部水域的丰度热点

1. Dendrophyllia ramea是一种鲜为人知的树状石珊瑚，其全球分布仅限于地中海盆地的南部以及马卡罗尼西亚和加的斯湾之间的大西洋。此处更新了D. ramea的地理分布和丰度，考虑到总共 19 条记录，其中 7 条以前从未在科学论文中报道过。
2. 2010 年至 2017 年间，沿西西里海岸进行的五次远程操作车辆调查记录了 89 个殖民地。迄今为止，尚未公布有关该物种密度和生态的详尽数据。报告了西西里岛东北部水域（风神岛和帕蒂湾）的两个区域的数据，包括该物种的水深分布、丰度、种群密度、群体形态、种群规模结构和周围栖息地描述。
3. 将D. ramea种群的大小结构和密度与丢失的渔具密度进行比较。在几乎没有观察到丢失渔具的伊奥利亚群岛周围，与在帕蒂湾内的两个地点观察到的丢失渔具数量更多的地方相比，D. ramea种群密度更高。对不同地点的D. ramea大小等级（单个珊瑚石、2-5 个息肉、>5 个息肉）的分析表明，影响因渔具类型而异：虽然线会损害较大群体的分支，但网可以完全清除它们。
4. D. ramea在某些地区的有限分布也使该物种非常容易受到化学物理特性变化和海水循环等影响。Dendrophyllia ramea根据地中海世界自然保护联盟红色名录被列为“易危”，并被列入巴塞罗那公约（附件 B）。D. ramea分布的数据使我们能够审查该物种的分类并建议将其状态更改为“濒危”。