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Into the Unknown: Exploring Marine Biodiversity in Frontier Areas 1. The Challenge 3. Who We Are Canada is an ocean nation; it has 16% of the world’s coastlines and the largest territorial sea in the world. Many stressors (climate change, habitat modification, natural resource exploitation) affect ocean health. Studying kelp beds on the coast of Nova Scotia We have rather little information on Canada’s oceans and the things that live in it and a relatively small scientific community. CHONe is a university – government research partnership that addresses questions on conservation and sustainable ocean use. The team includes about 140 researchers from across Canada Taking samples of biodiversity and and focuses on 3 interrelated abundance of ice algae research themes: Who/where: How many and what type of plants and animals live in our oceans and where do we find them? How: How are groups of animals connected? Rockfish take shelter in deep water corals on Learmonth Bank, British Columbia So what: How do plants, animals and stressors influence how the marine environment works? Feather stars form part of the high biodiversity on Canada’s Pacific Coast Oceans … Provide 95% of the livable environment on earth Host the greatest breadth of species diversity on our planet - between 500,000 and 10 million species Provide significant food resources (e.g. fish, shellfish, kelp) North Pacific rockfish grow slowly and mature at a late age. Vulnerable to fishing, many species have declined to the point of being listed Rockfish as of special concern in In response, the federal Canada. government has established Rockfish Conservation Areas (RCAs) along the British Columbia coast. Research Vessel CCGS Amundsen Findings: Many new and previously unknown animals discovered The number and type of animals on the seafloor influence the nutrients in the water Getting ready for a scuba diving survey Discovery of a new marine worm (polychaete) species Processing seafloor samples aboard Canada’s research vessel Hudson 4. Exploring the Ocean Floor The number and types of bottom-dwelling animals that live in any one place can depend on how rough the seafloor is. A rougher seafloor provides more living and feeding spaces and can support more species. Exploring marine biodiversity along the Arctic corridor Help regulate climate change Deep ocean floor community off the coast of Nova Scotia Rockfish habitat Isabelle Côté, Ryan Cloutier 8. Healthy Oceans The dispersal of larval lobsters is necessary to connect adult populations. Larvae are carried by ocean currents, but may alter their dispersal direction, distance and speed by swimming. CHONe’s research helps to: Understand the vulnerability and the resilience of the living sea Larval lobsters from St. George's Bay, Nova Scotia Protect highly productive areas to maintain species diversity Deployment of a mooring in the Beaufort Sea Predict how marine systems and populations can adapt to change Suggest strategies for life in a changing ocean only sparse animals. Using an underwater robot with a video camera and attaching a novel laser tool, we are able to explore the ocean floor, count and measure animals, and measure the roughness of the seafloor. This project is helping to recover inshore rockfish 6. Tracing Lobster Movements Findings: • Identification of factors influencing larval lobster swimming • Improved ability to predict larval settlement Video-laser scan of rough seafloor: a deep-sea Farrea occa sponge covered in rockfish and seastars. Our research shows that RCAs can be effective in protecting rockfish, sheltering comparatively higher populations. Heike Link, Virginie Roy, Philippe Archambault, Video-laser scan of flat seafloor: deep-sea sand with Support diverse industries (e.g. fisheries, energy, transport) Sea snail in estuary of Magdalen Islands, Québec Collection net for larval lobster samples Retrieving net with lobster sample This work can help fisheries managers develop strategies to protect valuable species such as lobsters. Ryan Stanley, Eric Pederson, Remi Daigle, Paul Snelgrove, Anna Metaxas, Fred Guichard Remotely operated vehicle ROPOS with camera and laser attached to the top front This tool helps locate priority areas for species that need protection. Cherisse Du Preez, Verena Tunnicliffe Sea pig on the continental slope off the west coast of Canada The Canadian Arctic Ocean rivals other Canadian oceans in the number and types of plants and animals that live in it. Many stressors will affect this last nearpristine ocean habitat. We urgently need to know more about what organisms live there and what they do. This work has helped identify many ecologically important areas. Shallow seafloor community in coastal waters of New Brunswick Produce half the oxygen we breathe 7. Protecting Rockfish Life on the ocean floor of the NorthWest Passage Study of biodiversity changes due to mussel farming 2. Why Should We Care about the Ocean? 5. Exploring the Arctic Ocean Photo Credits: P. Archambault, I. Côté, R. Daigle, C. Du Preez, M. Gautier, P. Lawton, H. Link, A. Metaxas, F. Olivier, E. Pedersen, A. Piot, ROPOS, R. Scheibling, P. Snelgrove, R. Stanley, M.Strong and M.-I. Buzeta, V. Tunnicliffe Contact Canadian Healthy Oceans Network Memorial University of Newfoundland St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada, A1C 5S7 Tel: 709-864-6797 Fax: 709-864-6983 web: www.chone.ca Ensure sustainability for all life on Earth Biodiversity at Endeavour Hydrothermal Vents Marine Protected Area, BC Major Funding Partners