Are Non-reef Habitats as Important to Benthic Diversity and Composition as Coral Reef and Rubble Habitats in Submarine Canyons? Analysis of Controls on Benthic Megafauna Distribution in the Porcupine Bank Canyon, NE Atlantic

• Published in: Frontiers in Marine Science
• Main Authors: J. K. M. Appah, A. Lim, K. Harris, R. O’Riordan, L. O’Reilly, A. J. Wheeler
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2020
• Subjects: biodiversity; Porcupine Bank Canyon; POM; cold-water coral; non-reef habitat; species distribution; Science; Q; General. Including nature conservation; geographical distribution; QH1-199.5; Porcupine Bank; Anthomastus grandiflorus
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2020.571820; https://doaj.org/article/3736256744bd483ca309b8078525014a

Submarine canyons support high biomass communities as they act as conduits where sediments, nutrients, and organic matter from continental shelves, or those that are carried along by slope currents, are transported into the abyssal zone. The Porcupine Bank Canyon (PBC), located on the Irish continen...