Ullapool Spoil Ground Benthic Video Survey, October 2009

Scottish Natural Heritage commissioned biological analyses of underwater video from a 2009 survey off Ullapool Harbour. Marine Scotland Science conducted the survey on October 2nd, 2009, using the vessel FRV Alba na Mara to collect data from three sites. The purpose was to improve knowledge of species and habitats, particularly priority marine features, within a dredge spoil ground area.

Use Cases

• Classifying seabed physical structure and species assemblages based on the underwater video imagery.
• Monitoring changes in priority marine features (PMFs) within a potential Marine Protected Area (pMPA).
• Assessing the ecological impact of a designated dredge spoil ground on local benthic communities.
• Training habitat classification models using annotated video frames from a known geographic and temporal context.

Strengths

• Survey conducted by a government science agency (Marine Scotland Science) on a specific date (October 2, 2009).
• Focus on a specific, managed site of interest: a dredge spoil ground within a potential Marine Protected Area.
• Analyses commissioned by Scottish Natural Heritage to describe both physical structure and biological assemblages.

Limitations

• Row count and column-level documentation are absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Last update date is unknown; freshness unverified.
• Data scale is limited to three survey sites from a single day.

Provenance

Source

Marine Scotland Science (MSS), with analyses commissioned by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH).

Collection Method

Drop-down video drift tows conducted from the vessel FRV Alba na Mara.

Time Range

October 2, 2009.

Freshness

Data is from a single survey in 2009; update frequency is not applicable.

Geography

Off Ullapool Harbour, Scotland, within a dredge spoil ground site.