Megafaunal community structure of Andaman seamounts including the Back-arc Basin--a quantitative exploration from the Indian Ocean.

ABSTRACT: Species rich benthic communities have been reported from some seamounts, predominantly from the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, but the fauna and habitats on Indian Ocean seamounts are still poorly known. This study focuses on two seamounts, a submarine volcano (cratered seamount--CSM) and a non-volcano (SM2) in the Andaman Back-arc Basin (ABB), and the basin itself. The main purpose was to explore and generate regional biodiversity data from summit and flank (upper slope) of the Andaman seamounts for comparison with other seamounts worldwide. We also investigated how substratum types affect the megafaunal community structure along the ABB. Underwater video recordings from TeleVision guided Gripper (TVG) lowerings were used to describe the benthic community structure along the ABB and both se

SUBMITTER: Sautya S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3031525 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature