US AMLR data sets - Finfishes and Benthic Invertebrates

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US AMLR data sets - Finfishes and Benthic
Invertebrates
Periodic surveys of finfish and benthic
invertebrates 6 AMLR demersal surveys from
1998-2009
Data from two CCAMLR Subareas 48.1 48.2
South Shetland Islands (Subarea 48.1) 1998, 2001,
2003 Antarctic Peninsula (Subarea 48.1)
2006 South Orkney Islands (Subarea 48.2) 1999,
2009
AMLR finfish survey databases reside here and at
the CCAMLR Secretariat
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South Shetland Islands Demersal/Benthic Surveys
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Antarctic Peninsula Demersal/Benthic Survey
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South Orkney Islands Demersal/Benthic Surveys
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Data Collection Finfish

• Species identification 60 species of finfish
• Length, weight, sex maturity
• Stomach content analysis (composition, filling
  degree, degree of digestion)
• Physiological measurements

• Environmental variables

• Material retained
• Whole specimens (835 specimens of 70 species)
• Otoliths hard parts (2583, of 21 species)
• Tissue biopsies and DNA (gt2000)
• - Gonads (265 of 12 species)

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Data Collection Invertebrate and Other

• Benthic invertebrate characterization
• 61 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) at sea
• 18 taxa provisionally recognized by CCAMLR to
  indicate the presence of a Vulnerable Marine
  Ecosystem (VME) number may increase

• Invertebrate specimens retained (over 2500
  specimens of at least 500 species)

• High resolution video and photo transects

• Krill density (acoustic net sampling)

• CTD

• Seabed classification

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Uses of AMLR Demersal/Benthic Survey Data

• Characterize Antarctic demersal finfish in the
  Southern Scotia Arc region
• - abundance - biology
• - composition - ecology
• - spatial distribution - evolutionary
  phylogeny
• - physiology - taxonomy

• Characterize epibenthic invertebrate megafauna
• - abundance - composition
• - spatial distribution - detection of
  vulnerable
• - new species marine ecosystems (VMEs)
• - bioregionalization - evolutionary phylogeny
• - taxonomy - reproduction

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Uniqueness of AMLR Demersal/Benthic Data

• Most comprehensive dataset for demersal fishes in
  the Southern Scotia Arc (Subarea 48.1 48.2),
  only scientific survey conducted along the
  Antarctic Peninsula

• Most comprehensive datasets of dietary components
  of demersal finfish in the Southern Scotia Arc

• Only comprehensive dataset of composition and
  spatial distribution of benthic invertebrate
  megafauna in the Southern Scotia Arc

• Only datasets available that capture properties
  of abundance and distribution of demersal
  finfish, their prey, and habitat characteristics