Marine Futures Project - Abrolhos Islands - biota

The Marine Futures Project was designed to benchmark the current status of key Western Australian marine ecosystems, based on an improved understanding of the relationship between marine habitats, biodiversity and our use of these values. Approximately 1,500 km2 of seafloor were mapped using hydroacoustics (Reson 8101 Multibeam), and expected benthic habitats "ground-truthed" using towed video transects and baited remote underwater video systems. Both sources of information were then combined in a spatial predictive modelling framework to produce fine-scale habitat maps showing the extent of substrate types, biotic formations, etc.Surveys took place across 9 study areas, including the Abrolhos Islands, a group of 122 limestone outcrops surrounded by fringing reed ca. 60km west from the city of Geraldton. The Abrolhos research location is the most northerly of the Marine Futures sampling sites, selected due to the unique mixture of tropical coral reef habitats, and temperate reef and seagrass communities.The hydroacoustics data were processed to construct full coverage maps of bathymetry and textural information.

海洋未来项目（Marine Futures Project）旨在基于对海洋生境、生物多样性及其资源利用价值之间关联的深化认知，对西澳大利亚州重点海洋生态系统的当前状况开展基准评估。研究团队采用水声测绘技术（hydroacoustics，使用Reson 8101多波束测深系统）完成了约1500平方千米海底的制图工作，并通过拖曳式视频样带与诱饵式远程水下视频系统对预期底栖生境进行了实地验证。随后将两类数据源整合至空间预测建模框架中，生成可展示底质类型、生物群落分布范围等信息的高精度生境地图。本次调查覆盖9个研究区域，其中包括阿布洛霍斯群岛（Abrolhos Islands）——该群岛由122座石灰岩露头组成，地处杰拉尔顿市以西约60千米处，周边环绕岸礁。阿布洛霍斯群岛是海洋未来项目采样点中位置最靠北的区域，其入选缘由在于该区域兼具热带珊瑚礁生境、温带礁体与海草群落的独特组合。水声测绘数据经处理后，可生成覆盖全区域的水深地形（bathymetry）与纹理信息地图。