MOLLUSCAN ASSEMBLAGES OF COLD-WATER CORAL MOUNDS: A NEW PERSPECTIVE ON QUATERNARY DEEP-SEA ECOSYSTEM AND ENVIRONMENTAL DYNAMICS IN THE WESTERN MEDITERRANEAN

Here we describe two new species of deep-sea sponges collected during the exploration of Cold-Water Coral (CWC) banks discovered in the Nora and Coda Cavallo canyons (north-eastern and south coast of Sardinia respectively). Poecillastra tavianii n. sp. differs from the other congeneric species mainly for the dicho- and mesodichotriaenes, never observed in the genus, and the abundance and variety of spirasters. Hymedesmia (Hymedesmia) quadridentata n. sp. is characterized by the presence of two types of chelae. In particular, the unguiferate chelae (round shaft and four teeth at both extremities) represent a peculiar character of the species. Our contribution increases the number of sponge fauna associated to the best known Central Mediterranean CWC habitats to 98 improving the still scant knowledge on the biodiversity of the Mediterranean CWC habitats.

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Living benthic foraminifera from cold-water coral ecosystems in the eastern Alboran Sea, Western Mediterranean

Heliyon ◽

10.1016/j.heliyon.2021.e07880 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. e07880

Author(s):

Claudio Stalder ◽

Akram El Kateb ◽

Jorge E. Spangenberg ◽

Loubna Terhzaz ◽

Agostina Vertino ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Benthic Foraminifera ◽

Cold Water ◽

Western Mediterranean ◽

Alboran Sea ◽

Alborán Sea ◽

Water Coral

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Seabed mapping for selecting cold-water coral protection areas on Hatton Bank, Northeast Atlantic

ICES Journal of Marine Science ◽

10.1093/icesjms/fsp170 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 66 (9) ◽

pp. 2013-2025 ◽

Cited By ~ 20

Author(s):

P. Durán Muñoz ◽

M. Sayago-Gil ◽

J. Cristobo ◽

S. Parra ◽

A. Serrano ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Deep Sea ◽

Ad Hoc ◽

Cold Water ◽

Interdisciplinary Approach ◽

Western Slope ◽

Northeast Atlantic ◽

Fisheries Science ◽

Seabed Mapping ◽

Del Rio ◽

Water Coral

Abstract Durán Muñoz, P., Sayago-Gil, M., Cristobo, J., Parra, S., Serrano, A., Díaz del Rio, V., Patrocinio, T., Sacau, M., Murillo, F. J., Palomino, D., and Fernández-Salas, L. M. 2009. Seabed mapping for selecting cold-water coral protection areas on Hatton Bank, Northeast Atlantic. – ICES Journal of Marine Science, 66: 2013–2025. Research into vulnerable marine ecosystems (VMEs) on the high seas and the impacts of bottom fishing and ad hoc management measures are high priority today thanks to UN General Assembly Resolution 61/105. An interdisciplinary methodology (specifically designed for selecting cold-water coral protection areas) and a case study focused on the Hatton Bank (NE Atlantic) are presented. This interdisciplinary approach, developed under the ECOVUL/ARPA project, was based on conventional fisheries science, geomorphology, benthic ecology, and sedimentology. It contributes to defining practical criteria for identifying VMEs, to improving knowledge of their distribution off Europe's continental shelf, and to providing advice on negative fishing impacts and habitat protection. The approach was used to identify the bottom-trawl deep-sea fishery footprint on the western slope of Hatton Bank, to map the main fishing grounds and related deep-sea habitats (1000–1500 m deep), and to study the interactions between fisheries and cold-water corals. The results lead to a proposal to close the outcrop area (4645 km2) located on the western slope of Hatton Bank as a conservation measure for cold-water corals.

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Ecological characterisation of a Mediterranean cold-water coral reef: Cabliers Coral Mound Province (Alboran Sea, western Mediterranean)

Progress In Oceanography ◽

10.1016/j.pocean.2019.04.010 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 175 ◽

pp. 245-262 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Guillem Corbera ◽

Claudio Lo Iacono ◽

Eulàlia Gràcia ◽

Jordi Grinyó ◽

Martina Pierdomenico ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Coral Reef ◽

Cold Water ◽

Western Mediterranean ◽

Alboran Sea ◽

Alborán Sea ◽

Water Coral

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Large-scale paleoceanographic variations in the western Mediterranean Sea during the last 34,000 years: From enhanced cold-water coral growth to declining mounds

Marine Micropaleontology ◽

10.1016/j.marmicro.2018.07.007 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 143 ◽

pp. 46-62 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Claudio Stalder ◽

Akram El Kateb ◽

Agostina Vertino ◽

Andres Rüggeberg ◽

Osvaldo Camozzi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mediterranean Sea ◽

Large Scale ◽

Cold Water ◽

Western Mediterranean ◽

Coral Growth ◽

Western Mediterranean Sea ◽

Water Coral

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Dense cold‐water coral garden of Paragorgia johnsoni suggests the importance of the Mid‐Atlantic Ridge for deep‐sea biodiversity

Ecology and Evolution ◽

10.1002/ece3.8319 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Telmo Morato ◽

Carlos Dominguez‐Carrió ◽

Christian Mohn ◽

Oscar Ocaña Vicente ◽

Manuela Ramos ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Deep Sea ◽

Cold Water ◽

Mid Atlantic Ridge ◽

Water Coral

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Reef communities associated with ‘dead’ cold-water coral framework drive resource retention and recycling in the deep sea

Deep Sea Research Part I Oceanographic Research Papers ◽

10.1016/j.dsr.2021.103574 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 103574

Author(s):

Sandra R. Maier ◽

Furu Mienis ◽

Evert de Froe ◽

Karline Soetaert ◽

Marc Lavaleye ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Deep Sea ◽

Cold Water ◽

Reef Communities ◽

Water Coral

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Distribution and behaviour of deep-sea benthopelagic fauna observed using towed cameras in the Santa Maria di Leuca cold-water coral province

Marine Ecology Progress Series ◽

10.3354/meps09432 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 443 ◽

pp. 95-110 ◽

Cited By ~ 39

Author(s):

G D’Onghia ◽

A Indennidate ◽

A Giove ◽

A Savini ◽

F Capezzuto ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Deep Sea ◽

Cold Water ◽

Santa Maria ◽

Water Coral

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Fine-Scale Heterogeneity of a Cold-Water Coral Reef and Its Influence on the Distribution of Associated Taxa

Frontiers in Marine Science ◽

10.3389/fmars.2021.556313 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 8 ◽

Author(s):

David M. Price ◽

Aaron Lim ◽

Alexander Callaway ◽

Markus P. Eichhorn ◽

Andrew J. Wheeler ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Spatial Patterns ◽

Deep Sea ◽

Cold Water ◽

Biological Effects ◽

Pair Correlation ◽

Growth Patterns ◽

Environmental Drivers ◽

Point Pattern ◽

Fine Scale ◽

Water Coral

Benthic fauna form spatial patterns which are the result of both biotic and abiotic processes, which can be quantified with a range of landscape ecology descriptors. Fine- to medium-scale spatial patterns (<1–10 m) have seldom been quantified in deep-sea habitats, but can provide fundamental ecological insights into species’ niches and interactions. Cold-water coral reefs formed by Desmophyllum pertusum (syn. Lophelia pertusa) and Madrepora oculata are traditionally mapped and surveyed with multibeam echosounders and video transects, which limit the ability to achieve the resolution and/or coverage to undertake fine-scale, centimetric quantification of spatial patterns. However, photomosaics constructed from imagery collected with remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) are becoming a prevalent research tool and can reveal novel information at the scale of individual coral colonies. A survey using a downward facing camera mounted on a ROV traversed the Piddington Mound (Belgica Mound Province, NE Atlantic) in a lawnmower pattern in order to create 3D reconstructions of the reef with Structure-from-Motion techniques. Three high resolution orthorectified photomosaics and digital elevation models (DEM) >200 m2 were created and all organisms were geotagged in order to illustrate their point pattern. The pair correlation function was used to establish whether organisms demonstrated a clustered pattern (CP) at various scales. We further applied a point pattern modelling approach to identify four potential point patterns: complete spatial randomness (CSR), an inhomogeneous pattern influenced by environmental drivers, random clustered point pattern indicating biologically driven clustering and an inhomogeneous clustered point pattern driven by a combination of environmental drivers and biological effects. Reef framework presence and structural complexity determined inhabitant distribution with most organisms showing a departure from CSR. These CPs are likely caused by an affinity to local environmental drivers, growth patterns and restricted dispersion reproductive strategies within the habitat across a range of fine to medium scales. These data provide novel and detailed insights into fine-scale habitat heterogeneity, showing that non-random distributions are apparent and detectable at these fine scales in deep-sea habitats.

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