High-resolution species distribution modelling of two coastal biogenic habitat-forming species in an Ecologically and Biologically Significant Area of the Bay of Fundy, Canada

High-resolution species distribution models (SDMs) were developed for two benthic invertebrate species of marine conservation significance across a 113 km2 Ecologically and Biologically Significant Area (EBSA) of the Bay of Fundy, Canada. The stalked tunicate, Boltenia ovifera, and horse mussel, Modiolus modiolus, can form coastal biogenic habitat and are vulnerable to disturbance. A near-seabed imaging survey (depths ranging from 8 to 79 m) provided presence, absence, and abundance data for both species. Boosted Regression Tree SDMs combined these data with 11 environmental variables. Presence-probability distributions were generated; however, abundance patterns could not be adequately modelled. Oblique geographic coordinates, which incorporate location of samples as information, proved useful for predicting species presence, along with seabed rugosity, maximum current speed and bathymetry for B. ovifera, and maximum and minimum current speed along with seabed rugosity for M. modiolus...., , # High-resolution species distribution modelling of two coastal biogenic habitat-forming species in an Ecologically and Biologically Significant Area of the Bay of Fundy, Canada

Dataset DOI: [10.5061/dryad.sf7m0cgjc](10.5061/dryad.sf7m0cgjc)

## Description of the data and file structure

There are two data files, one for each of two benthic invertebrates that were censused using a near-seafloor optical imaging system. The species are *Boltenia ovifera* (file: model_data_boltenia.csv) and *Modiolus modiolus* (file: model_data_modiolus.csv). Within each data file, the numerical count and presence/absence of the species is listed for each photographic image analyzed from the survey data set. For each station, values are provided for eleven different environmental variables extracted from a set of raster data layers that cover the survey area domain. Twenty-two raster layers were used in initial analyses narrowed down to 11 variables from multicollinearity tests. In addition to the 11 env...,