Fine-Scale Mapping of Mega-Epibenthic Communities and Their Patch Characteristics on Two New Zealand Seamounts

Seamounts are common features of the deep seafloor that are often associated with aggregations of mega-epibenthic fauna, including deep-sea corals and sponges. Globally, many seamounts also host abundant fish stocks, supporting commercial bottom trawl fisheries that impact non-target benthic species...

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Autores principales:	Savannah L. Goode, Ashley A. Rowden, David A. Bowden, Malcolm R. Clark, Fabrice Stephenson
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	Frontiers Media S.A. 2021
Materias:	seamount deep sea benthic communities distribution model beta diversity Chatham Rise Science Q General. Including nature conservation, geographical distribution QH1-199.5
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/101565d4de2b4e92b898a38a69a02fa5
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:101565d4de2b4e92b898a38a69a02fa52021-12-02T00:28:27ZFine-Scale Mapping of Mega-Epibenthic Communities and Their Patch Characteristics on Two New Zealand Seamounts2296-774510.3389/fmars.2021.765407https://doaj.org/article/101565d4de2b4e92b898a38a69a02fa52021-12-01T00:00:00Zhttps://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2021.765407/fullhttps://doaj.org/toc/2296-7745Seamounts are common features of the deep seafloor that are often associated with aggregations of mega-epibenthic fauna, including deep-sea corals and sponges. Globally, many seamounts also host abundant fish stocks, supporting commercial bottom trawl fisheries that impact non-target benthic species through damage and/or removal of these non-target species. However, the effects of bottom trawling on seamount benthic communities, as well as their recovery potential, will vary over the total seamount area because of differences in within seamount habitat and community structure. It is therefore important to understand fine-scale community dynamics, community patch characteristics, and the environmental drivers contributing to these patterns to improve habitat mapping efforts on seamounts and to determine the potential for benthic communities on seamounts to recover from fishing disturbances. Here we analysed the structure and distribution of mega-epibenthic communities on two New Zealand seamounts with different physical environments to determine which environmental variables best correlated with variation in community structure within each seamount. We used the identified environmental variables to predict the distribution of communities beyond the sampled areas, then described the spatial patterns and patch characteristics of the predicted community distributions. We found the environmental variables that best explained variations in community structure differed between the seamounts and at different spatial scales. These differences were reflected in the distribution models: communities on one seamount were predicted to form bands with depth, while on the other seamount communities varied mostly with broadscale aspect and the presence of small pinnacles. The number and size of community patches, inter-patch distances, and patch connectedness were found to differ both within and between seamounts. These types of analyses and results can be used to inform the spatial management of seamount ecosystems.Savannah L. GoodeSavannah L. GoodeAshley A. RowdenAshley A. RowdenDavid A. BowdenMalcolm R. ClarkFabrice StephensonFrontiers Media S.A.articleseamountdeep seabenthic communitiesdistribution modelbeta diversityChatham RiseScienceQGeneral. Including nature conservation, geographical distributionQH1-199.5ENFrontiers in Marine Science, Vol 8 (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	seamount deep sea benthic communities distribution model beta diversity Chatham Rise Science Q General. Including nature conservation, geographical distribution QH1-199.5
spellingShingle	seamount deep sea benthic communities distribution model beta diversity Chatham Rise Science Q General. Including nature conservation, geographical distribution QH1-199.5 Savannah L. Goode Savannah L. Goode Ashley A. Rowden Ashley A. Rowden David A. Bowden Malcolm R. Clark Fabrice Stephenson Fine-Scale Mapping of Mega-Epibenthic Communities and Their Patch Characteristics on Two New Zealand Seamounts
description	Seamounts are common features of the deep seafloor that are often associated with aggregations of mega-epibenthic fauna, including deep-sea corals and sponges. Globally, many seamounts also host abundant fish stocks, supporting commercial bottom trawl fisheries that impact non-target benthic species through damage and/or removal of these non-target species. However, the effects of bottom trawling on seamount benthic communities, as well as their recovery potential, will vary over the total seamount area because of differences in within seamount habitat and community structure. It is therefore important to understand fine-scale community dynamics, community patch characteristics, and the environmental drivers contributing to these patterns to improve habitat mapping efforts on seamounts and to determine the potential for benthic communities on seamounts to recover from fishing disturbances. Here we analysed the structure and distribution of mega-epibenthic communities on two New Zealand seamounts with different physical environments to determine which environmental variables best correlated with variation in community structure within each seamount. We used the identified environmental variables to predict the distribution of communities beyond the sampled areas, then described the spatial patterns and patch characteristics of the predicted community distributions. We found the environmental variables that best explained variations in community structure differed between the seamounts and at different spatial scales. These differences were reflected in the distribution models: communities on one seamount were predicted to form bands with depth, while on the other seamount communities varied mostly with broadscale aspect and the presence of small pinnacles. The number and size of community patches, inter-patch distances, and patch connectedness were found to differ both within and between seamounts. These types of analyses and results can be used to inform the spatial management of seamount ecosystems.
format	article
author	Savannah L. Goode Savannah L. Goode Ashley A. Rowden Ashley A. Rowden David A. Bowden Malcolm R. Clark Fabrice Stephenson
author_facet	Savannah L. Goode Savannah L. Goode Ashley A. Rowden Ashley A. Rowden David A. Bowden Malcolm R. Clark Fabrice Stephenson
author_sort	Savannah L. Goode
title	Fine-Scale Mapping of Mega-Epibenthic Communities and Their Patch Characteristics on Two New Zealand Seamounts
title_short	Fine-Scale Mapping of Mega-Epibenthic Communities and Their Patch Characteristics on Two New Zealand Seamounts
title_full	Fine-Scale Mapping of Mega-Epibenthic Communities and Their Patch Characteristics on Two New Zealand Seamounts
title_fullStr	Fine-Scale Mapping of Mega-Epibenthic Communities and Their Patch Characteristics on Two New Zealand Seamounts
title_full_unstemmed	Fine-Scale Mapping of Mega-Epibenthic Communities and Their Patch Characteristics on Two New Zealand Seamounts
title_sort	fine-scale mapping of mega-epibenthic communities and their patch characteristics on two new zealand seamounts
publisher	Frontiers Media S.A.
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/101565d4de2b4e92b898a38a69a02fa5
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Fine-Scale Mapping of Mega-Epibenthic Communities and Their Patch Characteristics on Two New Zealand Seamounts

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