Luce Bay Benthic Habitat Survey with Drop-Down Video and Grab Sampling, 2012-2013

A 2012-2013 targeted survey by Seastar Survey Ltd for Scottish Natural Heritage investigated benthic habitats in the Luce Bay and Sands SAC. The work included a drop-down video survey at 138 locations and a benthic grab survey at 16 stations to determine habitat extent, distribution, and quality. Specific investigations focused on Sabellaria alveolata reefs, Modiolus, and maerl communities.

Use Cases

• Mapping the extent and distribution of Sabellaria alveolata reefs based on the intertidal survey.
• Classifying benthic biotopes in soft sediment areas based on the grab survey results.
• Analyzing habitat quality and community composition for Modiolus and maerl based on targeted investigations.
• Enhancing seabed knowledge in previously unsurveyed areas of the SAC mentioned in the description.

Strengths

• Survey targeted 138 specific locations for video data collection between July and September 2012.
• Includes complementary data from a 16-station grab survey conducted in June 2013.
• Work was conducted under contract for a statutory nature conservation body (Scottish Natural Heritage).

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Last update date is unknown; freshness unverified.

Provenance

Source

Seastar Survey Ltd, contracted by Scottish Natural Heritage.

Collection Method

Drop-down video survey and foot-based intertidal mapping, followed by a benthic grab survey.

Time Range

Primary survey July-September 2012, with grab survey June 2013.

Freshness

Data collection concluded in 2013; update frequency is unknown.

Geography

Luce Bay and Sands Special Area of Conservation (SAC), Scotland.