Ecosystem characterisation of Australia's North West Shelf

Habitats serve a variety of functions on the North West Shelf (NWS). They support the life history stages of a diverse suite of tropical species including commercially harvested ones. In addition to natural disturbance regimes, habitats are altered in response to the sectoral uses, which in turn affects the distribution and life histories of species. Habitats thus serve as the nexus linking species with uses and natural disturbance, and different habitats serve different purposes at various stages of the life history of a species. A detailed understanding of habitats, at least at the structural level, is thus a prerequisite for a more comprehensive understanding of ecological structure and functions on the North West Shelf.This component of the North West Shelf Joint Environmental Management Study (NWSJEMS) aimed to collate and integrate data on habitats for the region of the North West Shelf extending from North West Cape to Port Hedland and from the coast to the 200 m isobath. The three main activities of the study were: Development of an integrated collection of information on habitats of the North West Shelf, including expert information; Application of the CSIRO Habitat Classification Framework to the data to determine the spatial nesting and structuring of habitat units on the North West Shelf; and Provision of the habitat structure classification for input into other models developed within NWSJEMS.This record describes data of key benthic marine ecosystems and habitats. These maps and descriptions of their component attributes were designed to assist the process modelling of the ecosystem and impacts of uses, as well as directly supporting planning and management by Western Australian agencies and industries.

西北大陆架（North West Shelf, NWS）的栖息地具有多种功能。它们支撑着包括商业捕捞物种在内的各类热带物种的生活史阶段。除自然干扰机制外，栖息地还因部门用途而发生改变，这反过来又影响物种的分布和生活史。因此，栖息地是连接物种、人类用途与自然干扰的纽带，且不同栖息地在物种生活史的不同阶段发挥着不同作用。因此，至少在结构层面上深入理解栖息地，是更全面认识西北大陆架生态结构与功能的前提条件。

西北大陆架联合环境管理研究（North West Shelf Joint Environmental Management Study, NWSJEMS）的这一部分旨在整理和整合西北大陆架区域（从西北海角至黑德兰港，从海岸至200米等深线）的栖息地数据。该研究的三项主要活动包括：构建西北大陆架栖息地综合信息集（含专家信息）；将CSIRO栖息地分类框架应用于数据，以确定西北大陆架栖息地单元的空间嵌套与结构；以及提供栖息地结构分类，作为输入数据用于NWSJEMS内开发的其他模型。

本记录描述了关键底栖海洋生态系统及栖息地的数据。这些关于其组成属性的地图与描述，旨在辅助生态系统过程建模及用途影响分析，同时直接支持西澳大利亚州机构与行业的规划和管理工作。