The main objective is to improve knowledge on potentially toxic benthic dinoflagellate communities on the south coast of the Spanish Levante to support maritime spatial planning, and to incorporate data characterising these ecosystems into the European Marine Observation and Data Network.

The specific objectives are as follows:

• To characterise the habitat and determine the abundance and spatio-temporal distribution of potentially toxic benthic dinoflagellate species at points along the coast of the Region of Murcia and Almeria of fishing, recreational and conservation interest.
• Isolate, acclimatise and culture strains of potentially toxic benthic dinoflagellates found in the sampling area for subsequent scaling.
• Identify potentially toxic benthic dinoflagellate species that can be isolated and cultured using molecular biology techniques.
• Characterise the marine toxin production of the identified dinoflagellate species using instrumental analysis techniques.
• Develop and implement a system of access to geo-referenced information accessible to all actors and standardised according to the guidelines of the European Marine Observation and Data Network.
• Ensure that the knowledge obtained is freely accessible to the fishing community and the general public, and that it promotes stakeholder awareness of the importance of addressing maritime spatial planning taking into account sustainability and gender equality criteria.

The presence of potentially toxic benthic dinoflagellates may pose a threat to the fisheries sector, the marine ecosystem and its biodiversity due to a possible bioaccumulation of toxins in the food chain. This community of microorganisms has not been studied before on the Levantine coast, so the LEVABENTOX project aims to provide knowledge on the state of these communities to support maritime spatial planning.

For this reason, their spatio-temporal dynamics will be studied along the coast of Murcia and Almeria, with the participation of the fishing sector in the collection of samples. Likewise, spice cultures will be carried out for their morphological, molecular and toxin characterisation in order to assess the risk to food safety of their presence in the Levant. The results obtained will be disseminated to the fishing community, the administration and the general public.