Marine Institute
SeaRover Dive Video

D466 Transect 21 Cup corals, then carbonate with stalked crinoids and chrysogorgiids, then Acanella/sea pens on rippled sediment. Features of Interest: canyon, escarpments Water Depth: 2105-1864 m

Highlights: Bolocera sea anemone Sea pens & bamboo coral Anemone Brisingids & cup corals Bamboo coral & cup corals Compass anemone Sea pens

The substrate of the canyon floor appears very fine, soft sediment continues up the canyon flank before transitioning to exposed bedrock with small terraces and overhangs. This slope is very steep on occasion. From 2000 m depth the slope incline shallows, from here the substrate is soft to the top of the canyon. Heavy marine snow is an aspect of this canyon. Asteroids, echinoids, sea pens, black corals including Bathypathes sp. are common throughout the canyon. Brisingids, mobile and stalked crinoids, hydrozoans and cup corals and hormathiid anemones are present here sporadically. Some of the less conspicuous fauna include shrimp, hermit crabs, glass sponges and encrusting sponges.

START VIDEO [00:00:00]/20:01 [1] The transect starts on mud with solitary cup corals an Ophiomusa lymani [00:03:00] [2] a brief patch of cobbles and boulders is mainly dominated by O. lymani [00:04:00] [3] mud mainly hosting again O. lymani, but patchy white echinoids (OTU559) are also present. [00:12:00] [4] the first area of escarpment, sloping carbonate is mainly colonised by stalked crinoids, but also sponges and corals along with other scattered fauna. Some ledges are heavily sand veneered with cobbles and boulders providing the main substrate. Extended flatter carbonate shelves are mud veneered with O. lymani but corals often still present (e. g. Stauropathes arctica) attached to the underlying carbonate. [00:25:00]-[00:26:00] stop for imagery (Actinernus sp.). [00:27:00]-[00:29:00] stopped/moving slow for imagery. [00:33:00] [5] rippled mud with rare pebbles, scattered fauna, mainly cf. Anthoptilum sp . (OTU1107) sea pens. [00:37:00] [6] horizontal carbonate with mud veneer, mixed corals attach to the underlying carbonate, especially Chrysogorgiidae sp . (OTU1008). Paramuricea sp . and Acanella arbuscula are also present along with cup corals, and O. lymani. [00:39:00]-[00:40:00] Stopped for imagery. [00:42:00] [7] The mud again deepens with cf. Anthoptilum sp . sea pens dominating, along with A. arbuscula and solitary cup corals. [00:57:00]-[01:05:00] Stopped for two pushcore samples. [01:17:00]-[01:19:00] stopped for imagery. END VIDEO [01:34:00]/21:36.

Progression Start Duration Code Name
1[00:00:00]00:02:58M.AtLB.Mu.SolSclSolitary scleractinian field on Atlantic lower bathyal mud
2[00:02:59]00:00:53M.AtLB.Mx.SurOph.OphCerOphiomusa lymani and cerianthid anemone assemblage on Atlantic lower bathyal mixed sediment
3[00:03:53]00:08:20M.AtLB.Mx.SurOph.OphCerOphiomusa lymani and cerianthid anemone assemblage on Atlantic lower bathyal mixed sediment
4[00:12:14]00:21:18M.AtLB.Ro.MixCorMixed cold water coral community on Atlantic lower bathyal coarse sediment
5[00:33:33]00:03:26M.AtMB.Mu.SpnMegSea pens and burrowing megafauna on Atlantic mid bathyal mud
6[00:37:00]00:05:02M.AtLB.Ro.MixCorMixed cold water coral community on Atlantic lower bathyal coarse sediment
7[00:42:03]00:52:30M.AtMB.Mu.SpnMegSea pens and burrowing megafauna on Atlantic mid bathyal mud

Foraminifera
Syringammina fragilissima : 261 : R
Porifera
cf. Polymastia boletiformis : 1030 : R
cf. Geodia baretti (Porifera massive globose sp. 11) : 601 : R
Porifera encrusting sp. 1 (white) : 1 : R
Porifera encrusting sp. 10 (yellow) : 30 : R
Porifera lamellate (Hexactinosida) : 1151 : R
Blue Porifera encrusting : 800 : R
Cnidaria
Cerianthidae sp. 1 : 2 : R
Actiniaria sp. 18 : 582 : R
Actiniaria sp. 20 : 605 : R
cf. Halcampoididae sp. : 984 : R
Actinernus michaelsarsi : 554 : O
Actinostolidae sp. 1 : 132 : R
Adamsia sp. : 1066 : R
Phelliactis sp. 1 : 255 : O
Bathypathes sp. 1 : 328 : R
Parantipathes sp. : 1042 : R
Parantipathes sp. (branched) : 1161 : R
Stauropathes arctica : 547 : O
Caryophyllidae/Fabellidae (indet.) : 1058 : O
Caryophyllia sp. 2 : 6 : R

Flabellum sp. : 1056 : R
Anthomastus grandiflorus : 278 : R
Chrysogorgidae sp. 1 : 1008 : F
Acanella arbuscula : 585 : F
Paramuricea sp. : 1050 : O
Anthoptilum sp. : 1107 : F
Pennatula aculeata : 1046 : R
Distichoptilum gracile : 1108 : O
Umbellula sp. : 581 : O
Arthropoda
Paguridae sp. : 205 : R
Caridea (indet.) : 1077 : R
Munnopsidae sp. : 1102 : R
Colossendeis sp. 1 : 1059 : R
Echinodermata
Bathycrinidae sp. 1 : 1041 : O
Bathycrinidae sp. 2 cf. Porphyrocrinus thalassae : 1045 : O
Anachalypsicrinus nefertiti : 1031 : O
Crinoidea sp. 1 : 131 : R
Asteronyx loveni : 471 : R
Ophiomusa lymani : 551 : F
Ophiuroidea (indet.) : 1076 : R
Brisingidae sp. : 274 : O
Pseudarchaster sp. 1 : 433 : R

Henricia sanguinolenta : 208 : R
Solaster endeca : 573 : R
Hymenaster cf. pellucidus : 1110 : R
cf. Hymenaster (yellow) : 1174 : R
Asteroidea sp. (pink deep sediment) : 1171 : R
Echinus sp. (deep, white/pink) : 1052 : R
Echinidae sp. (white) : 559 : O
Phormosoma placenta : 555 : R
Echinoidea sp. 5 : 572 : R
Benthogone sp. : 432 : O
Mesothuria intestinalis : 536 : R
Chordata
Rajiformes sp. 1 (Neoraja caerulea?) : 652 : R
Synaphobranchus kaupii : 440 : R
Coelorinchus caelorhincus : 303 : R
Coryphaenoides guentheri : 577 : O
Macrouridae sp. (cf. Coelorhynchus) : 1172 : R
Polyacanthonotus rissoanus : 552 : R
Zoarcidae sp. 2 : 291 : R

Number of species = 61

© Marine Institute, MERC Consultants, Bernard Picton 2022