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Demonstration Site

NW Portuguese Margin

Why this site?

The northern Portuguese continental margin is incised by several submarine canyons that have been identified as suitable and potentially important habitats for vulnerable deep-sea species. Whereas the Nazare canyon, partially because of its large size, has been the focus of previous research projects, minor canyons, such as the Porto and Aveiro canyon systems, remain mostly unexplored, which hampers the development and implementation of management and conservation frameworks. There is a need to link deep-sea research with fisheries to map biodiversity and design Area-Based Management Tools (ABMTs), and it is crucial to understand the impact of ABMTs on the fishing activity. Recognizing the views of fishers and other stakeholders is essential for designing ecologically sound, just, and equitable solutions to reduce pressures from human activities.

Geographical Area

Northern Portuguese continental margin​:

  • Two submarine canyon systems that cut the shelf-break away from the littoral processes​
  • Natura 2000 sites and coastal MPAs adjacent to demonstration site (fishing has traditionally operated beyond these areas, into the oceanic realm). ​

Demo Site Activities

  • Stakeholder engagement​
  • Biodiversity mapping (LEK, low-cost technology, e-DNA) ​and modelling
  • Evaluation of socio-economic impacts​

Challenges

The distribution and composition of deep-sea faunal communities is largely unknown. The development of cost-effective tools to map biodiversity may help to fill these knowledge gaps but there is a need to co-create deep-sea research with fisheries to use the full potential of these tools. Additionally, it is crucial to understand the impact of ABMTs on the fishing activity and develop sustainable business models.

What will be Demonstrated

  • How LEK from fishers’ and cost-effective imagery systems can be used to map historical and current spatial occurrence of VMEs.
  • How cost-efficient autonomous eDNA biosampler will efficiently detect VMEs.
  • Methods to assess stakeholders’ perception on deep-sea ecosystems functions and services and on habitat environmental status.
  • How models can help map deep-sea biodiversity under different scenarios, including climate change, conservation/exploitation strategies and decision-making about pressures from human activities.

Ecosystem Characteristics

Whereas the Porto canyon system has a well-defined canyon head, with a clear axial channel breaching the shelf edge, the Aveiro canyon system has a large and wide amphitheatre-shaped morphology. The continental shelf in this region is flat and wide, being locally interrupted by rocky outcrops and has been identified has having a high biological value. Local fishers hold diverse Local Ecological Knowledge on benthic habitats, suggesting the canyons play a key role maintaining Vulnerable Marine Ecosystems (VME) habitats along the shelf-edge and upper continental slope. However, the canyons remain largely unexplored.