P[S[Z[N[] Marine Ecology\ 19 "1#] 84 "0888#Þ 0888 Blackwell Wissenschafts!Verlag\ BerlinISSN 9062!8454

In Memory of Lucia Mazella (1947–1999)

Lucia Mazzella "$#

On June 14 Lucia Mazzella passed away in Ischia after a long _ght against theillness that\ despite her strong will for living\ in the end prevailed[ The void herdeath leaves in all the people who knew her is both human and scienti_c\ since herhuman interests and scienti_c expertise were wide and profound[ The relationshipof Lucia with the Stazione Zoologica di Napoli dates back to 0869 during hergraduation at the University of Naples[ In 0862 she took on the position ofresearcher at the Stazione Zoologica\ in particular at the Laboratory of BenthicEcology\ located on the island of Ischia where she was born[ She developed studieson benthic micro"diatoms# and macroalgae both from a taxonomical and ecologicalpoint of view[ In particular\ she characterised species composition\ communitystructure and zonation of these algae along hydrodynamic and light gradients onhard bottoms[ The next area of interest\ in which she was to become a leadinginternational authority\ was the study of Mediterranean seagrass ecosystems^ overthe years she contributed to promoting an innovative multidisciplinary approachto these complex coastal systems[ In this _eld she gained international recognition\which resulted in her participation in the main research projects at a Europeanlevel\ along with the Laboratory she was called upon to head since 0875[ Amongthe most relevant achievements of her inspired scienti_c contributions were thede_nition of the structure and dynamics of the epiphytic community of Posidoniaoceanica\ and the ecophysiology of photosynthesis\ production and carbon balances

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of seagrasses[ These studies\ conducted on a long time scale\ led to the identi_cationof more appropriate biological tracers for long!term monitoring of the evolutionof seagrass systems[ The professional activity of Lucia was not only devoted toscienti_c progress and exchanges\ but also to improving education and trainingboth at a national and international level[ This resulted in a number of internationalscienti_c collaborations\ in the training of many undergraduate and Ph[D[ students\in the organisation of international workshops\ and in 0881 in the organisation ofthe _rst international course {Biology of Seagrasses] from the molecule to theecosystem| devoted to the advanced training of young scientists in seagrassresearch[ Lucia was also very concerned about the social role of the ecologicalscienti_c community\ and she was the promoter for the establishment of marinenatural reserves both in the Gulf of Naples and in Antarctica\ where she had theopportunity to work at the Italian base in the austral summer 0882Ð83[

Lucia recognised\ earlier than many other ecologists\ the importance of molec!ular biology techniques to address ecological issues\ and in her last years sheendorsed a new research line at the Stazione Zoologica focusing on populationgenetics and molecular phylogeny of seagrasses and other key marine species[ Dueto her wide expertise on biodiversity at di}erent hierarchical levels\ Lucia wasdesignated as the Italian representative of the European network of marine biodiv!esity "MARS#[ As a senior scientist\ she participated actively in the life of theStazione Zoologica by ful_lling various tasks\ such as that of sta} representativewithin the Scienti_c Advisory Board[ Last but not least\ Lucia was Editor!in!Chiefof P[S[Z[N[] Marine Ecology\ a role in which she was deeply involved since herappointment as Assistant Editor in 0878\ and that she was willing and able topursue up to her last days[

Lucia was a reserved\ humble and sincere person\ with a lively and activepersonality[ She overcame with positive perspective all the di.cult moments of herlife\ including illness\ with uncommon courage and determination\ conveying suchfeelings to all people in contact with her[ Her intellectual interests were broad andfar beyond the scienti_c aspects^ she loved to travel and was very touched by theart of painting and by music[ Our hearts are saddened but we are happy to havebeen Lucia|s friends[ The heritage of her charismatic personality\ inspiring visionand activity will keep her memory alive[

The President and the Sta} of the Stazione Zoologica di Napoli