Marine biological survey to establish the distribution and status of ...

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Circalittoral sandy mud (SS.SMu.CSaMu) biotopes included one dominated by bivalves and burrowing brittlestars (SS.SMu.CSaMu.AfilMysAnit), assigned to 12 grab sampling stations on the basis of infaunal and sediment particle size analyses, and the tentative northern feather star aggregations biotope SS.SMu.CSaMu.Lcelt. Whilst assigned to sandy muds, this biotope was also associated with more mixed circalittoral sediments. The deep water video sampling extended the known distribution of the fan mussel Atrina fragilis aggregation (SS.SBR.SMus.Afrag) across the deep central portion of the sound and northwards to beyond the 2010 survey boundary. The core area of this biotope was situated to the north-east of Sanday, straddling the 200 m depth contour. The poorly sorted mixed muddy seabed substrates present were representative of both SS.SMu.CSaMu and SS.SMx.CMx biotope complexes but the biological community was assigned to the sublittoral mussel beds (on sublittoral sediment) (SS.SBR.SMus) biotope complex. The mud and sandy mud biotopes and all biotopes recorded under the sublittoral macrophyte-dominated communities on sediments (SS.SMp) biotope complex are discussed in more detail in Section 3.2. 3.2 MPA search features recorded in the Sound of Canna The MPA search features recorded during the 2010 survey are listed in Table 3. Two additional PMFs were also noted. Aggregations of one of these, the burrowing sea anemone Aracnanthus sarsi, are considered an MPA search feature but only a single specimen was observed during the current study. Table 3 The 10 MPA search features (of which all but shelf deeps are also PMFs) and 2 other non-search feature PMFs (cells greyed and marked *) recorded during the 2010 Sound of Canna survey MPA search features and PMFs Seabed habitats Low or limited mobility species Mobile species Large-scale features Burrowed mud Kelp and seaweed communities on sublittoral sediment Maerl beds Northern sea fan and sponge communities Seagrass beds Burrowing sea anemone, Arachnanthus sarsi* White cluster anemone, Parazoanthus anguicomus* Northern feather star agg s. on mixed substrata, Leptometra celtica Fan mussel aggregations, Atrina fragilis European spiny lobster, Palinurus elephas Basking shark, Cetorhinus maximus Shelf deeps The associations between the MPA search features and the biotopes listed in Table 2 are outlined in the remainder of this section. Shelf deeps are a large-scale search feature of functional significance in Scottish waters. The predicted distribution of this feature within the Sound of Canna is illustrated in Figure 13. The current mapping of the shelf deeps is quite crude and the available bathymetric charting of the area was also found to be poor, but the presence of the feature was certainly confirmed in 2010 with multiple video and grab samples taken in water depths of up to 275 m. 23
The shelf deeps are not considered in any further detail within this report but will be described under separate cover once the new MCA multibeam data for the sound have been processed. The seabed habitats recorded in 2010, including the MPA search features, will be used to aid interpretation of this acoustic data, to generate a refined broadscale habitat distribution map that more accurately reflects the shape of the deeps feature and clarifies the relationship between this and the other MPA search features present. Figure 13 Distribution of the large-scale shelf deeps MPA search feature within the Sound of Canna © Crown Copyright and database right [2012]. All rights reserved. Ordnance survey License number 100017908. This product has been derived in part from material obtained from the UK Hydrographic Office with the permission of the Controller of Her Majesty's Stationery Office and UK Hydrographic Office (www.ukho.gov.uk). NOT TO BE USED FOR NAVIGATION 3.2.1 Burrowed mud The following component biotopes and species of the burrowed mud MPA search feature were recorded in 2010: Burrowing megafauna and Maxmuelleria lankesteri in circalittoral mud SS.SMu.CFiMu.MegMax Seapens, including Funiculina quadrangularis, and burrowing megafauna in undisturbed circalittoral fine mud SS.SMu.CFiMu.SpnMeg.Fun Tall seapen Funiculina quadrangularis Distribution Depth range: MegMax 29 - 208 m; SpnMeg.Fun 70 - 140 m Total area: 1,292 ha 24
Page 1 and 2: Scottish Natural Heritage Commissio
Page 4 and 5: COMMISSIONED REPORT Summary Marine
Page 6 and 7: Contents Page no. 1 Introduction ..
Page 8 and 9: Page no. Figure 28 Basking shark ho
Page 10 and 11: 1 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background The S
Page 12 and 13: Rum has a far more complex structur
Page 14 and 15: In 1993 an SNH team conducted remot
Page 16 and 17: Richardson et al. (2004) showed tha
Page 18 and 19: 2 METHODS 2.1 Sampling strategy The
Page 20 and 21: Figure 6 Shallow water video statio
Page 22 and 23: Figure 8 Video stations surveyed in
Page 24 and 25: Each discrete grab sample was empti
Page 26 and 27: Following the survey, the infauna w
Page 28 and 29: Table 2 Biotopes identified in the
Page 30 and 31: Figure 11 2010 survey coverage off
Page 34 and 35: Description The distribution of the
Page 36 and 37: Figure 16 Division of the megafauna
Page 38 and 39: Some L. saccharina forest (IR.LIR.K
Page 40 and 41: Rhodophyllis werneri and Scinaia in
Page 42 and 43: Plate 8 A northern sea fan Swiftia
Page 44 and 45: Zostera marina/angustifolia beds on
Page 46 and 47: This is consistent with infaunal co
Page 48 and 49: the fan mussels ranged from an esti
Page 50 and 51: Plate 13 A small basking shark in C
Page 52 and 53: Distribution Depth range: 72 - 21
Page 54 and 55: Figure 31 Other species of interest
Page 56 and 57: coverage predictive biotope distrib
Page 58 and 59: 4 DISCUSSION This section presents
Page 60 and 61: Table 4 Summary of the assessment o
Page 62 and 63: The burrowed mud supported langoust
Page 64 and 65: in areas where it is protected from
Page 66 and 67: Table 6 Summary of a preliminary as
Page 68 and 69: 5.2 Future data review and biologic
Page 70 and 71: Ingle, R.W. (1996). Shallow-water c
Page 72 and 73: Appendix 1 Drop-down video and dive
Page 74 and 75: Date Station Time Latitude Longitud
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Date Station Time Latitude Longitud
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Table A1.2 Summary notes (biologica
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Tow Id no Tow Data point Date Tape
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Tow Id no Tow Data point Date A123
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Table A1.3 Summary of sampling unde
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Site No. Date Habitat Id (Site No:H
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Species MCS Code D D 1 _ 2 D D 1 _
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Species MCS Code Suberites ficus C2
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Species MCS Code Cryptopleura ramos
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Species MCS Code Scrupocellaria Y83
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Table A1.6 Species recorded (matrix
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Species MCS Code A 1 2 _ 1 A 1 2 _
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Table A1.7 Species recorded (matrix
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Species MCS Code Dive 1.1 Dive 2.1
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Table A2.1 Positional and depth inf
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Table A2.3 List of taxa identified
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Taxa MCS Code G 01 G 02 G 03 G 04 G
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Taxa MCS Code G 01 G 02 G 03 Diasty
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Taxa MCS Code G 01 Ascidiella sp. Z
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Figure A2.1 Bray-Curtis similarity
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Appendix 3 Macrofaunal and sediment
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Table A3.3 Results of univariate an
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Appendix 4 Photo and video logs - 2
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File Name Subject Site Name Island
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Table A4.2 Drop-down video log, 201
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