SOMBASE BIOCONSTRUCTORS

Huw Griffiths

doi:10.15468/y8psoy

SOMBASE BIOCONSTRUCTORS

Citation

British Antarctic Survey. SOMBASE BIOCONSTRUCTORS. Occurrence dataset https://doi.org/10.15468/y8psoy accessed via GBIF.org on 2024-07-31. accessed via GBIF.org on 2024-12-12.

Description

Large sessile habitat-forming organisms such as sponges, corals, bryozoans and hydroids play a crucial role in the structure of Antarctic marine communities and enhance the local biodiversity. Not only are there many species of these groups found in the Antarctic (387 sponges, 141 corals, 320 bryozoans and 337 hydroids) but they also form vital habitats for countless other organisms. The habitats formed by these megafaunal organisms are increasingly being recognized as both vulnerable and important ecosystems. The Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) adopted a proposal to declare two areas of the Southern Ocean as Vulnerable Marine Ecosystems (VMEs). Both areas proposed are highly biodiverse, particularly with respect to habitat-forming hydrocorals, sponges and associated fauna.

Sampling Description

Method steps

Taxonomic Coverages

N/A

Actinostolidae
rank: family
Hydrozoa
rank: class
Primnoidae
rank: family
Lafoeidae
rank: family
Anthozoa
rank: class
Alcyoniidae
rank: family
Acanthogorgiidae
rank: family
Octocorallia
rank: class
Hexacorallia
rank: class
Cheilostomata
rank: class
Adeonidae
rank: family
Animalia
rank: kingdom
Bryozoa
rank: phylum
Cnidaria
rank: phylum

Geographic Coverages

most of the records are within the Southern Ocean

Bibliographic Citations

GRIFFITHS, H.J., LINSE, K. & CRAME, J.A. 2003. SOMBASE – Southern Ocean Mollusc Database: A tool for biogeographic analysis in diversity and ecology. Organisms Diversity and Evolution. 3, 207–213. -

Contacts

Huw Griffiths
originator
British Antarctic Survey
GB
email: hjg@bas.ac.uk
userId: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1764-223X

Huw Griffiths
metadata author
British Antarctic Survey
GB
email: hjg@bas.ac.uk
userId: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1764-223X

Huw Griffiths
administrative point of contact
British Antarctic Survey
GB
email: hjg@bas.ac.uk
userId: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1764-223X

Yi-Ming Gan
administrative point of contact
Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences
BE
userId: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7087-2646