The Mediterranean is characterized by a great specific diversity, with a high rate of endemism. Amongst the emblematic species are the Posidonia, the red coral, the brown grouper, the bottlenose dolphin, the fin whale, the monk seal, the loggerhead turtle, the Lithophyllum rims ... 

But the Mediterranean is ecologically vulnerable. For centuries, it has been subjected to growing human pressure: demography, waste, increased exploitation of resources, tourism and maritime transport, provoking various types of damage to the marine environment and exercising a direct negative impact on species and on their habitats. 

It is therefore important to protect sites of great natural value, particularly the representative ecosystems of the Mediterranean and the habitats important for threatened or endangered species. 

The creation of marine protected areas is an effective tool for providing lasting protection, enabling restoration and the careful use of this natural heritage. 

Marine protected areas should not be considered as pieces of nature placed under a bell jar but as tools in the service of the sustainable management of oceans and littoral spaces. If they protect sensitive environments and threatened species, they also contribute to increasing the productivity of fishing areas, to regulating the different uses of the sea, to fostering sustainable tourism and to creating new job-generating activities.