Resumen de Benthic macrofauna associated to the contourite depositional system of the Gulf of Cádiz: preliminary results from the MVSEIS08 cruise
Patricia Esquete Garrote, Maria del Carmen Falagan Rodriguez, Luis Somoza, Jesús Souza Troncoso
During the MVSEIS08 cruise, many bathymetric features were sampled in the Gulf of Cádiz by means of dredging and coring. Macrofaunal specimens were colected from sampling devices for the caracterization of the benthic communities. The black coral Leiopathes glaberrima was present in all the sites studied. Serpulid sand poriferans were abundant over the crusts. Other frequent groups were Cidaridae echinids, Plexauridaealcionaceans, and hidrozoans. The geological characteristics of the seabed, the substrata provided by anaerobic oxidation of methane and the surrounding mediterranean bottom current are determinant for the macrofaunal assamblages.
