Benthic assemblage composition of South Atlantic seamounts
Seamounts and oceanic islands rise from the seafloor and provide suitable habitat for a diverse range of biological assemblages including Vulnerable Marine Ecosystems (VMEs). Whilst they have been the focus of some work globally, there has been little description of the biological and physical envir...
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Online Access: | https://hdl.handle.net/11250/2828293 https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.660648 |
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ftimr:oai:imr.brage.unit.no:11250/2828293 2023-05-15T17:34:48+02:00 Benthic assemblage composition of South Atlantic seamounts Bridges, Amelia Barnes, David K. Bell, James B. Ross, Rebecca Howell, Kerry L. 2021 application/pdf https://hdl.handle.net/11250/2828293 https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.660648 eng eng urn:issn:2296-7745 https://hdl.handle.net/11250/2828293 https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.660648 cristin:1943453 Frontiers in Marine Science Peer reviewed Journal article 2021 ftimr https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.660648 2021-11-10T23:36:42Z Seamounts and oceanic islands rise from the seafloor and provide suitable habitat for a diverse range of biological assemblages including Vulnerable Marine Ecosystems (VMEs). Whilst they have been the focus of some work globally, there has been little description of the biological and physical environments of seamounts in the South Atlantic Ocean. In this study, we characterized benthic assemblage composition from 13 seamounts and oceanic islands spanning 8–40°S within the exclusive economic zones (EEZs) of Ascension Island, Saint Helena and Tristan da Cunha. Drop camera imagery was collected between 170 and 1000 m. All fauna present in images were identified and quantified, and multivariate statistics were used to describe biological assemblages and identify their environmental drivers. Benthic communities of temperate regions (Tristan da Cunha archipelago) were shown to be distinct from those found in the tropics, with latitude and depth identified as key environmental drivers of assemblage composition. Our results are consistent with the current understanding of the biogeography of the South Atlantic, both in terms of the distinction between tropical and temperate regions, and the influence of depth and water mass structure on assemblage distribution. Faunal assemblages are similar to those observed in the North Atlantic in terms of functional groups. VMEs are present within the EEZs of all three territories and are potentially protected from some threats by large marine protected areas (MPAs). Our imagery, data and analyses provide a baseline for south Atlantic seamounts so that future monitoring can establish whether existing protected status is sufficient to conserve both unique biodiversity and considerable potential for vital ecosystem services. publishedVersion Article in Journal/Newspaper North Atlantic South Atlantic Ocean Institute for Marine Research: Brage IMR Tristan ENVELOPE(140.900,140.900,-66.735,-66.735) Frontiers in Marine Science 8 |
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Open Polar |
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Institute for Marine Research: Brage IMR |
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language |
English |
description |
Seamounts and oceanic islands rise from the seafloor and provide suitable habitat for a diverse range of biological assemblages including Vulnerable Marine Ecosystems (VMEs). Whilst they have been the focus of some work globally, there has been little description of the biological and physical environments of seamounts in the South Atlantic Ocean. In this study, we characterized benthic assemblage composition from 13 seamounts and oceanic islands spanning 8–40°S within the exclusive economic zones (EEZs) of Ascension Island, Saint Helena and Tristan da Cunha. Drop camera imagery was collected between 170 and 1000 m. All fauna present in images were identified and quantified, and multivariate statistics were used to describe biological assemblages and identify their environmental drivers. Benthic communities of temperate regions (Tristan da Cunha archipelago) were shown to be distinct from those found in the tropics, with latitude and depth identified as key environmental drivers of assemblage composition. Our results are consistent with the current understanding of the biogeography of the South Atlantic, both in terms of the distinction between tropical and temperate regions, and the influence of depth and water mass structure on assemblage distribution. Faunal assemblages are similar to those observed in the North Atlantic in terms of functional groups. VMEs are present within the EEZs of all three territories and are potentially protected from some threats by large marine protected areas (MPAs). Our imagery, data and analyses provide a baseline for south Atlantic seamounts so that future monitoring can establish whether existing protected status is sufficient to conserve both unique biodiversity and considerable potential for vital ecosystem services. publishedVersion |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Bridges, Amelia Barnes, David K. Bell, James B. Ross, Rebecca Howell, Kerry L. |
spellingShingle |
Bridges, Amelia Barnes, David K. Bell, James B. Ross, Rebecca Howell, Kerry L. Benthic assemblage composition of South Atlantic seamounts |
author_facet |
Bridges, Amelia Barnes, David K. Bell, James B. Ross, Rebecca Howell, Kerry L. |
author_sort |
Bridges, Amelia |
title |
Benthic assemblage composition of South Atlantic seamounts |
title_short |
Benthic assemblage composition of South Atlantic seamounts |
title_full |
Benthic assemblage composition of South Atlantic seamounts |
title_fullStr |
Benthic assemblage composition of South Atlantic seamounts |
title_full_unstemmed |
Benthic assemblage composition of South Atlantic seamounts |
title_sort |
benthic assemblage composition of south atlantic seamounts |
publishDate |
2021 |
url |
https://hdl.handle.net/11250/2828293 https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.660648 |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(140.900,140.900,-66.735,-66.735) |
geographic |
Tristan |
geographic_facet |
Tristan |
genre |
North Atlantic South Atlantic Ocean |
genre_facet |
North Atlantic South Atlantic Ocean |
op_source |
Frontiers in Marine Science |
op_relation |
urn:issn:2296-7745 https://hdl.handle.net/11250/2828293 https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.660648 cristin:1943453 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.660648 |
container_title |
Frontiers in Marine Science |
container_volume |
8 |
_version_ |
1766133757340811264 |