Editorial: Risks, threats, and conservation status of cetaceans in the Mediterranean and Black Seas

Conservation of cetaceans in these basins is a critical issue, as these top-order animals structure ecosystems through trophic cascades, and aid the maintenance of marine food web stability (Schwarzmüller et al., 2015). [...]Arcangeli et al. tested four potential indicators (the Observed Distributional Range: ODR, the Ecological Potential Range: EPR, the Range Pattern and the proportion of ODR over the EPR) to assess the range and short-term changes in habitat of three species of deep diving cetaceans that occur at low densities in trans-border fixed-transects. [...]Carlucci et al. applied a multi-species bio-economic approach to estimate the characteristics of the Otter Trawl Bottom fishery in potential cetacean conservation areas (CCAs) and fishing grounds in the northern Ionian Sea, adopting the quantitative model SMART (Spatial Management of demersal Resources for Trawl fisheries). [...]three manuscripts in the Research Topic addressed the widespread threat contaminants (Van Bressem et al., 2009) and their connection with diseases.