Bioregionalization of the George V Shelf, East Antarctica

The East Antarctic continental shelf has had very few studies examining the macrobenthos structure or relating biological communities to the abiotic environment. In this study, we apply a hierarchical method of benthic habitat mapping to Geomorphic Unit and Biotope levels at the local (10s of kilometers) scale across the George V Shelf between longitudes 1421E and 1461E. We conducted a multi-disciplinary analysis of seismic profiles, multibeam sonar, oceanographic data and the results of sediment sampling to define geomorphology, surficial sediment and near-seabed water mass boundaries.南极东部大陆架领域内，针对大型底栖生物（macrobenthos）群落结构，以及生物群落与非生物环境关联的研究仍十分匮乏。本研究针对东经142°至146°区间内的乔治五世大陆架，以数十公里的局地尺度，针对地貌单元（Geomorphic Unit）与生物群落生境（Biotope）两个层级，应用底栖生境分级制图方法开展研究。研究团队通过整合地震剖面、多波束声呐、海洋水文数据及沉积物采样结果开展多学科分析，以此明确研究区的地貌特征、表层沉积物分布与近海底水团边界。