Seabed and habitat mapping in the Irish sector of the northeast Atlantic

• Main Author: Dorschel, Boris
• Format: Conference Object
• Language: unknown
• Published: 2014
• Subjects: Northeast Atlantic
• Online Access: https://epic.awi.de/id/eprint/36631/; https://hdl.handle.net/10013/epic.44446

Bathymetry and bathymetry derived products provide important information for the characterisation of habitats and for the study of environmental factors affecting habitats. Within the frame of the Irish National Seabed Survey (INSS), the extended Irish continental shelf below 200 m water depths was mapped. This data set has been extensively used for habitat mapping studies including cold- water coral carbonate mounds and canyon projects. On the Irish seabed, cold- water coral carbonate mounds occur in distinct provinces between 1200 and 600 m water depth where these mounds. In addition, numerous canyons are incised in the continental margin. Both geo-morphological features represent biological hotspots characterised by unique faunal distributions and complex hydrological, biological and geological interactions.