Long-term monitoring of coastal benthic habitats in the Kerguelen Islands: a legacy of decades of marine biology research

• Main Authors: Féral, Jean-Pierre, Poulin, Elie, González-Wevar, Claudio A., Améziane, Nadia, Guillaumot, Charlène, Develay, E, Saucède, Thomas
• Other Authors: Institut méditerranéen de biodiversité et d'écologie marine et continentale (IMBE), Avignon Université (AU)-Aix Marseille Université (AMU)-Institut de recherche pour le développement IRD : UMR237-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Universidad de Chile, Universidad Austral de Chile, Institut de Systématique, Evolution, Biodiversité (ISYEB ), Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN)-École pratique des hautes études (EPHE), Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Sorbonne Université (SU)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université des Antilles (UA), Biogéosciences UMR 6282 Dijon (BGS), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université de Bourgogne (UB)-AgroSup Dijon - Institut National Supérieur des Sciences Agronomiques, de l'Alimentation et de l'Environnement, Research supported by IPEV (program No. 1044) and by Chilean Fondecyt Regular 1151336 and PIA CONICYT ACT172065., Australian Antarctic Division, D. Westford, J. Dell., G. Duhamel
• Format: Conference Object
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2017
• Subjects: sub-Antarctic islands; climate change; frontal shifts; marine reserve; benthos monitoring; thermo recorders; settlement plots; artificial reefs; habitat mapping; scientific diving; [SDE.BE]Environmental Sciences/Biodiversity and Ecology; [SDU.STU.OC]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Earth Sciences/Oceanography; [SDV.EE.ECO]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Ecology; environment/Ecosystems; Antarctic; Îles Kerguelen; Kerguelen; Kerguelen Islands; Antarc*
• Online Access: https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02162628; https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02162628/document; https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02162628/file/2019_F%C3%A9ral_The%20Kerguelen%20Plateau-Marine%20ecosystem%20and%20fisheries_Lo,g-term%20monitoring%20of%20coastal%20benthic%20habitats%20in%20the%20Kerguelen%20Islands-a%20legacy%20of%20decades%20of%20marine%20biology%20research.pdf; https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3249143

20 pages International audience In the current context of climate change, sea-surface temperature variation, sea level rise and latitudinal shifts of currents and hydrological fronts are expected to affect marine biodiversity of the sub-Antarctic Islands, particularly in coastal waters. Characterising the impacts of climate change on marine communities requires recording environmental modifications through the establishment of long-term monitoring. PROTEKER aims at the establishment of a submarine observatory consisting of multi-disciplinary research: oceanography, habitat mapping and species inventories, genetic, eco-physiological and trophic analyses. It also aims to provide scientific standards for the management of the Kerguelen Marine Reserve. Eighteen sampling sites of previous programs were revisited by scuba diving among which eight were selected for monitoring and were progressively equipped. ROV observations and beam trawling have also been conducted for contextualisation. These sites (Morbihan Bay (4), North (2) and South (2) coast) are monitored using photo/video surveys, temperature and salinity sensors, and settlement plots. Sessile communities collected on settlement plots will be characterised yearly through morphological and DNA techniques. Phylogeographical studies of target taxa are being conducted to improve our knowledge of endemicity and connectivity levels among sub-Antarctic islands. Dans le contexte actuel du changement climatique, le réchauffement des eaux marines de surface, l’élévation du niveau de la mer ainsi que les déplacements latitudinaux des courants et des fronts hydrologiques risquent d’affecter la biodiversité marine des îles subantarctiques, en particulier en zone côtière. Pour caractériser l’impact des changements climatiques sur les communautés marines il est nécessaire d’enregistrer en continu les modifications environnementales à travers un suivi sur le long terme. Dans ce but, le programme de recherche pluridisciplinaire PROTEKER a été mis en place pour ...