Vertical stratification in the distribution of demersal fishes along the walls of the La Jolla and Scripps submarine canyons, California, USA

Megafauna distribution along active submarine canyons of the central Mediterranean: Relationships with environmental variables

“…However, it is noteworthy that the best solution of DistLM model selected the canyon system as the main factor driving the distribution of megafauna in the study areas, while excluding the seafloor type. The model also suggest that the depth has a lower but significant influence, that could explain local variability in assemblages composition within the same canyon (Smith and Lindholm, 2016), as for instance observed in Gioia and Sant'Agata canyons (Fig. 4).…”

“…However, understanding how these factors influence species distribution and assemblages composition in highly dynamic environments such as submarine canyons can be very challenging, especially considering that physical processes interact and operate over a range of scales. Indeed, previous studies showed that faunal distribution and biodiversity within canyons are regulated by a complex interplay of multiple factors, including depth, habitat heterogeneity, seafloor disturbance and food supply (Okey, 2003;McClain and Barry, 2010;van Oevelen et al, 2011;Baker et al, 2012;Miller et al, 2012;Quattrini et al, 2015;Ross et al, 2015;Smith and Lindholm, 2016), which in turn depends on a large number of physical factors such as shelf and canyon morphology, proximity to river systems, substrate lithology, prevailing oceanographic conditions, sediment transport processes, sedimentation rates, nutrient input and depth (Harris and Whiteway, 2011;Puig et al, 2014).…”

Insights on the fish assemblages of seamounts and banks in the southern Tyrrhenian Sea (western Mediterranean Sea): implications for the conservation of deep-sea environments

“…Height of relief and the presence of holes and crevices are the most evident topographic characteristics enhancing the complexity of rocky reefs. Several investigations pointed out the influence of some habitat features, such as substrate type, height of relief and complexity in shaping the structure of demersal fish assemblages in the north-eastern Pacific (Grove & Shull, 2008; Pacunski et al ., 2013; Smith & Lindholm, 2016; Tolimieri et al ., 2019), north-western Atlantic (Porteiro et al ., 2013) and central Mediterranean Sea (Consoli et al ., 2016). The role of bottom slope as an explanatory factor of demersal fish distribution patterns, though poorly investigated, has been documented in the rockfish assemblages of different north-eastern Pacific localities (Grove & Shull, 2008; Pacunski et al ., 2013; Smith & Lindholm, 2016).…”

A Systematic Review of Remotely Operated Vehicle Surveys for Visually Assessing Fish Assemblages

“…Even though the distribution of many species (e.g., Sebastes spp) are influenced by the time of day (Hart et al, 2010), few studies (∼2%) used nocturnal sampling. Timed metrics, such as time at first sighting-the time when a species was first seen (Norcross and Mueter, 1999;Ajemian et al, 2015b;Smith and Lindholm, 2016), and the duration of encounter (Laurenson et al, 2004;Luck and Pietsch, 2008;Trenkel and Lorance, 2011;Mundy et al, 2018), were infrequently used for ROV studies of fish (Figures 8A,B; n = 8 studies), but are likely a reflection of species-specific behaviors. Timed metrics have been used primarily in exploratory surveys for obtaining baseline information on species (Luck and Pietsch, 2008;Mundy et al, 2018) and in studies evaluating ROVs ( Figure 8A), where the distance traveled on deployment before first sighting may indicate the sampling power required to survey different species (Cappo et al, 2007).…”