Modeling demersal fish and benthic invertebrate assemblages in support of marine conservation planning.

ABSTRACT: Marine classification schemes based on abiotic surrogates often inform regional marine conservation planning in lieu of detailed biological data. However, these schemes may poorly represent ecologically relevant biological patterns required for effective design and management strategies. We used a community-level modeling approach to characterize and delineate representative mesoscale (tens to thousands of kilometers) assemblages of demersal fish and benthic invertebrates in the Northwest Atlantic. Hierarchical clustering of species occurrence data from four regional annual multispecies trawl surveys revealed three to six groupings (predominant assemblage types) in each survey region, broadly associated with geomorphic and oceanographic features. Indicator analyses identified 3-34 emblemat

SUBMITTER: O'Brien JM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9286868 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature