Habitat Mapping Of A Cold-Water Coral Mound On Pen Duick Escarpment (Gulf Of Cadiz)

On top of Pen Duick Escarpment on the Moroccan continental margin (southern Gulf of Cadiz), several mound structures were discovered in 2002. Within this case study, habitat mapping of one of these cold-water coral mounds, Beta Mound, was performed using a multibeam echosounder, ROV observations, and boxcore sampling. This habitat mapping revealed the presence of four different habitats: (1) soft (bioturbated) sediment, (2) soft sediment with patchy coral rubble, (3) dense cold-water coral rubble fields, and (4) rock slabs. All cold-water corals are dead except for one living Dendrophyllia cornigera. The coral rubble consists mainly of dead Dendrophyllia. Lophelia pertusa, and Madrepora oculata. On top of the coral rubble, numerous crinoids were observed, while the soft sediment is mostly colonized by several species of soft corals. Sponges, squat lobsters, echinoids, and holothurians were also observed. The fish Helicolenus dactylopterus was found in all the four habitats.