Major climate-driven heatwaves reshape the composition of microbiomes in shallow and mesophotic coral gardens

Global warming is determining an increase in marine heatwaves intensity, duration and frequency with negative effects on a wide range of organisms and habitats. In this scenario, shallow and mesophotic coral gardens and other sessile organisms are increasingly subjected to mass mortality events related to episodic thermal stress. In the present study, we investigated the response of microbiomes of the gorgonians Paramuricea clavata, Eunicella cavolinii, and the red coral Corallium rubrum to anomalous temperatures detected in Ligurian Sea (Western Mediterranean Sea) in August 2011.