HERMIONE news

Abstract

Since the start of the HERMES and the HERMIONE projects, the margin of the Bay of Biscay has received special attention with respect to benthic ecosystems and sedimentary processes. The area is also known to be the historical cradle of cold-water coral studies by Joubin (1922) and Le Danois (1948). Already at that time the relationship between cold-water corals and fisheries were being discussed (with corals being a nuisance for fisheries!). Having performed previous work in the Whittard canyon (R/V Belgica 2006) and the Guilvinec canyon (R/V Belgica 2008), a joint marine geology and biology cruise was organized by the Renard Centre of Marine Geology and the Section of Marine Biology from Ghent University from 7 to 28 June 2010. The first leg (7-16 June, Zeebrugge-La Rochelle) focused on the Guilvinec canyon, while the second leg (19-28 June, La Rochelle-Zeebrugge) revisited several sites in the central Whittard canyon. The main objectives of this cruise were to (a) map and observe cold-water coral ecosystems on the canyon flanks with ROV Genesis, (b) obtain hydrographic data from CTD casts and water samples and (c) perform seabed multicoring for biology (descriptive and experimental research), biogeochemistry and sedimentology. In total, 23 scientists participated in this cruise, representing 10 institutes, among which were IFREMER, University College Cork and IFM-GeoMAR.