Results of the 2012 and 2014 underwater camera surveys of the Aleutian Islands
Abstract
The 2012 and 2014 Underwater Camera Surveys of the Aleutian Islands conducted by NOAA Fisheries were the first comprehensive underwater camera surveys of corals and sponges in the Aleutian Islands. Two-hundred sixteen transects were successfully completed in an area which extended west from Akutan Island to Near Pass and north from Amchitka Island to the top of Bowers Bank. Each randomly selected transect was assigned to one of six geographical regions. Demersal populations of corals, sponges, hydrocorals, sea pens, sea whips, fishes, and crabs were sampled by drifting a stereo drop camera for 15 minutes at each transect. Survey results presented in this report include fish and crab composition and density, coral, sponge, sea pens, and sea whip density and height, and substrate composition for each transect. The Appendix lists survey region, start position, distance towed, swath, mean depth, and mean temperature for each transect completed.
