WS-VME-09

Dense coral-sponge communities on the upper continental slope off George V Land have been identified as a Vulnerable Marine Ecosystem in the Antarctic. The challenge is now to understand their likely distribution. The CEAMARC survey of 2007/2008 found these communities at sites on the upper slope in depths of 570 – 950 m. Based on these results we propose some working hypotheses to explain Read More
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Analysis of VME data collected in 2008/09 by UK vessels and national and international observers onboard was carried out to explore evidence of VMEs in the Ross Sea. 2008/09 data corroborated areas in 88.1I, E and F identified in our previous analysis of data collected by observers on UK vessels between 2005 and 2007 on benthic taxa recovered from longlines. A new area was identified within 88 Read More
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This paper reviews, reanalyzes and contributes new data pertinent to understanding genetic connectivity in benthic invertebrates at differing spatial scales in Antarctica. This information is valuable for understanding the potential resilience of benthic communities under threat from bottom fishing. Genetic connectivity allows insight into the realized dispersal of organisms, i.e. the Read More
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Protecting vulnerable marine ecosystems (VMEs) from significant adverse impacts caused by fishing activities requires knowledge of the distribution of those communities relative to the fishing footprint. If high fish catch rates are associated with habitats where VMEs are found, impacts from fishing are more likely to occur than if VMEs are distributed randomly with respect to fishing Read More
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Implementing measures to avoid significant adverse impacts to vulnerable marine ecosystems (VMEs) requires a specific list of the taxa that are considered vulnerable. New Zealand identified an interim list of taxa to monitor in fishery bycatch in the Ross Sea as part of its 2008 benthic fisheries impact assessment. The rationale for including or excluding each taxonomic group is described Read More
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Cold seeps and hydrothermal vents can be detected by a number of oceanographic and geophysical techniques as well as the recovery of characteristic organisms. While the definitive identification of a seep or vent and its accompanying fauna is seldom unequivocal without significant effort. We suggest an approach to identifying associated VMEs in the CCAMLR region that uses the results of Read More
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Publicly available bathymetry and geophysical data can be used to map geomorphic features of the Antarctic continental margin and adjoining ocean basins at scales of 1:1-5 million. These data can also be used to map likely locations for some Vulnerable Marine Ecosystems. Seamounts over a certain size are readily identified and submarine canyons and mid ocean ridge central valleys which harbour Read More
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A global database of life-history characteristics, including growth rate, age, maximum size and reproductive parameters, was established for benthic, habitat-forming taxa and associated physical and chemical variables, including depth, temperature, oxygen concentration, salinity and nutrients. The metadata fields are described. At present more than 850 records representing more than 650 taxa Read More
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Following on from earlier analyses presented to WG-EMM, meta-analyses of life-history characteristics and their relationships with physical and chemical variables were undertaken for habitat-forming invertebrates other than cnidarians. Particular focus was placed on bryozoans and sponges which are known to form important biogenic habitat in the Southern Ocean. Data were extracted from a global Read More
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Australia has developed the “Field identification guide to Heard Island and McDonald Island (HIMI) benthic invertebrates: a guide for scientific observers aboard fishing vessels”. This Fisheries Research and Development Corporation (FRDC), Australian Fisheries Management Authority (AFMA) and industry funded production is first of its kind for the region, and is intended to be used as both a Read More
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Predictionofspecies’distributionsiscentraltodiverseapplicationsinecology,evolutionandconservationscience.Thereisincreasingelectronicaccesstovastsetsofoccurrencerecordsinmuseumsandherbaria,yetlittleeffectiveguidanceonhowbesttousethisinformationinthecontextofnumerousapproachesformodellingdistributions.Tomeetthisneed,wecompared16modellingmethodsover226speciesfrom6regionsoftheworld, Read More
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Current circumstances — that the majority of species distribution records exist as presence-only data (e.g. from museums and herbaria), and that there is an established need for predictions of species distributions — mean that scientists and conservation managers seek to develop robust methods for using these data. Such methods must, in particular, accommodate the difficulties caused by lack Read More
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Generalized dissimilarity modelling (GDM) is a statistical technique for analysing and predicting spatial patterns of turnover in community composition (beta diversity) across large regions. The approach is an extension of matrix regression, designed specifically to accommodate two types of nonlinearity commonly encountered in large-scaled ecological data sets: (1) the curvilinear relationship Read More
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We analysed relationships between demersal fish species richness, environment and trawl characteristics using an extensive collection of trawl data from the oceans around New Zealand. Analyses were carried out using both generalised additive models and boosted regression trees (sometimes referred to as ‘stochastic gradient boosting’). Depth was the single most important environmental predictor Read More
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The long-term benthic disturbance experiment (BENDEX) was started on the eastern Weddell Sea shelf off Austasen (Antarctica) during ‘Polarstern’ cruise ANT XXI/2 in December 2003 to simulate the impact of grounding icebergs on the seabed and follow the steps and timescales of recovery of disturbed benthos and demersal fish communities. Here, we report the basic approach and first results for Read More
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