• Publicationsclose
• Research dataclose
• Other research productsclose
• Open Access close
• European Commission close
• EC|H2020 close
• ATLAS close
• English close
• European Marine Science close

Poster presentation at ATLAS 3rd General Assembly. Distribution of vulnerable marine ecosystems (VME´s) in arctic and sub-arctic waters is poorly known. The NovasArc (2016-2018) project, funded by the Nordic Council of Ministers, represents a continuation of a decade-long research collaboration between Iceland and Norway, and Faroe Islands in recent years. The first objective of the NovasArc project is to map the distribution of VME habitats and indicator species in the area between Greenland Sea and the Norwegian Sea, and between 62°N and the Svalbard archipelago. The data for analysis derives from habitat mapping surveys (including MAREANO), bycatch data from bottom fish surveys, and records published in reports and peer reviewed publications. Oceanographical data is obtained from data collated by the NISE (Norwegian Iceland Seas Experiment) project. Species distribution models using a maximum entropy approach (MaxEnt) were used to predict the distribution of VMEs and their indicator species. The second objective is to evaluate the risk of fishing activities and other human activities on VMEs. Data from electronic logbooks, vessel monitoring systems and automatic identification systems were used to produce high resolution fishing effort estimates. Areas with VMEs at risk will be identified by examining the overlap in the fishing effort and the predicted distribution of VMEs or VME indicator species. This project has significantly increased the knowledge on distribution VMEs in arctic and sub-arctic waters, and their results will provide an important input for future management decision making.

ATLAS work package 5 presentation at ATLAS 3rd General Assembly In order to assess risks of human drivers in the ocean to ecosystem services supplied by the Atlantic deep sea, we carried out an expert risk assessment amongst the ATLAS project members, using a Delphi approach with two rounds. Central human drivers and ecosystem services were elicited, vetted and developed into a survey. The survey was presented at the ATLAS project general assembly in Mallorca in 2017, where the scientists were given an introduction to the concepts of ecosystem services. They were asked to assess the effects and likelihood of human drivers on ecosystem services provided by Atlantic waters. A total of 30 responses were received, analysed, organized and then presented in a new survey which was developed in SurveyMonkey, and distributed to the project members. In this way the experts could in the second round assess the judgement of their peers, and decide whether to adjust their responses. From the second round, a total of 20 responses were received, identifying human drivers posing the most risk to ecosystem services to be pollution, temperature change, ocean acidification, fisheries and cumulative effects. The services most impacted are the provisioning services of fish and shellfish, biodiversity, both as supporting and cultural services, as well as, as the supporting service of habitats. Tourism and blue biotechnology were not seen to provide serious risk to any ecosystem services, as was the case for oil/gas and mining, though the former two provided greater positive effects in relation to ecosystem services than the latter two.

The extent of marine litter and microplastic occurrence across ocean biomes and species remains poorly characterised, particularly in remote deep-water ecosystems. The present study in the East Mingulay Special Area of Conservation (a Marine Protected Area in the Sea of the Hebrides, western Scotland) used historic surveys and benthic samples to obtain baseline levels of anthropogenic debris and microparticle ingestion. Most debris identified in the MPA was fisheries-related. A total of 11% of benthic macrofauna from Mingulay Reef Area 1 and Banana Reef had ingested microplastics, with no statistically significant effect of feeding guild, station, or reef, on ingestion rates. However, the ingestion rate was highest at a station located in a topographic hollow along a gentle sloping area with strong variable ocean currents where fine-scale interactions between bathymetry and hydrography may have helped trap and focus microparticles. Raman spectroscopy of microparticles revealed several types of polymers being ingested, tentatively identified as polypropylene (PP), polyurethane (PU), polystyrene (PS), and polyethylene terephthalate (PET). Besides establishing a baseline assessment of marine litter and microparticles in a deep-water setting, the approach demonstrates the utility of using historic data and specimens collected for other purposes to expand the geographic and ecosystem coverage for larger more regional-scale and even basin-wide assessments such as those needed to inform Good Environmental Status in European waters, as called for by the Marine Strategy Framework Directive.

Water masses have been identified as potential important drivers of cold-water corals (CWC) distribution. It has been hypothesized that Mediterranean Outflow Water (MOW) driven the CWC colonization of North-East Atlantic after the last glacial period, promoting transport of coral larvae and fenerating suitable environmental conditions enhancing croal growth. Several seamounts inhabited by the CWC Lophelia pertusa and Madrepora oculata are directly influenced by the MOW along its way west to Azores Islands. To advance in the exploration of the possible influence of MOW on the past and current distribution of Atlantic CWC, this study experimentally assessed the respiration rates of L. pertusa and M. oculata, under the influence of Mediterranean and Atlantic waters.

Here we are providing a dataset of 8 sediment cores collected in the North Atlantic and the Mediterranean Sea. We reconstruct the temperature (benthic foraminifera Mg/Ca), salinity (d18Oseawater), benthic foraminifera accumulating rates (BFAR), grain size, relative oxygenation (benthic foraminifera Mn/Ca) of intermediate-depth over the last 20kyr, using 8 sediment cores. We are also providing Cold-Water Coral ages derived from AMS 14C and U/Th methods. Many of this dataset has already been published elsewhere.

We report the results of an aquaria-based experiment testing the effects of suspended particles generated during potential mining activities, on a common habitat-building coral species in the Azores, Dentomuricea aff. meteor. Coral fragments were maintained in 10-L aquaria and exposed to three experimental treatments for a period of four weeks at the DeepSeaLab aquaria facilities (Okeanos-University of the Azores): (1) control conditions (no added sediments); (2) suspended polymetallic sulphide (PMS) particles; (3) suspended quartz particles. Seawater physical-chemical parameters were measured daily in each aquarium. Seawater salinity was measured with a S30 SevenEasy™ conductivity meter, pH and temperature with a glass electrode (Crison pH 25+), and oxygen with a Fibox4 (PreSens) with a Oxygen Dipping Probe DP-PSt3. Seawater samples for inorganic nutrient analyses were collected on times 0 (immediately before the start of the experiment), and once a week on days 6, 13, 20 and 27 of the experiment and determined using a colorimetric autoanalyzer Sanplus with segmented flow. Monitoring of aquaria: Monitoring of physical-chemical conditions in each experimental aquaria (2 replicate aquaria per treatment)