Cruise Report Open access July 2019

Cruise report - 64PE456 onboard of R/V Pelagia Terceira Island 2019 - Hopper tow-cam video footage

Zenodo

10.5281/zenodo.6592500

Open DOI

Total authors

2

Involved team members

2

Citations

0

References

0

Related to this work

Terceira 2019

Abstract

Objectives: to explore deep-sea areas of the Azores EEZ to better understand the distribution patterns of large VME species and commercial fishes. Specifically, OKEANOS/IMAR/ATLAS/MapGES/iAtlantic objectives in the cruise were to (i) characterize benthic communities inhabiting seamounts in the Azores, such as the São Jorge de Fora seamount, (ii) identify new areas that fit the FAO vulnerable marine ecosystems criteria; and (iii) to contribute with additional data to address patterns and drivers of the distribution of deep-sea benthic biodiversity in the Azores region. It will also provide valuable information in the context of Good Environmental Status (GES) and Marine Spatial Planning (MSP) and provide new insights on how to sustainably manage deep-sea ecosystems. The information gathered in this cruise was obtained by means of the Hopper tow-cam system, an HD video platform specially designed to be operated onboard the R/V Pelagia. Vessel: NIOZ R/V Pelagia Summary: During the 64PE456 cruise, we performed 8 hopper dives in total, 4 in deep sandy bottom areas known to be important foraging grounds for marine mammals and 4 in the São Jorge de Fora seamount, a poorly known seamount south of Terceira Island. In total we collected 7:40 hours of video covering 4.5km of mostly sandy bottom in the abyssal plain and about 5:20 hours, covering 3.6km of the seamount seafloor.

Authors

2 involved team members

Morato, Telmo Team member

0000-0003-2393-4773

IMAR Instituto do Mar, University of the Azores, 9901-862 Horta, Portugal

Taranto, Gerald H. Team member

0000-0002-7968-1982

IMAR Instituto do Mar, University of the Azores, 9901-862 Horta, Portugal

Record details

Type

report

Language

EN

Keywords

Seamount Oceanography Context (archaeology) Cruise Benthic zone Bathymetry Exclusive economic zone Geography Biodiversity Geology Ecosystem Benthic habitat Fishery Sustainability Marine protected area Submarine pipeline Marine ecosystem Environmental science Marine habitats Abyssal plain Commercial fishing Marine spatial planning Abyssal zone Environmental resource management Continental shelf