Benthic Environments of the Lord Howe Rise Plateau from 2003 and 2007 Surveys

Australian Ocean Data Network presents results from two marine surveys on the Lord Howe Rise submarine plateau in 2003 and 2007. The dataset includes benthic biological and geological samples, underwater photographs, video, and multibeam sonar bathymetry data. It focuses on hard/rocky substrates covering volcanic peaks and seamounts, which support rich epifaunal assemblages.

Use Cases

• Map benthic habitat distribution based on multibeam sonar bathymetry and underwater imagery.
• Analyze epifaunal assemblages on hard/rocky substrates and volcanic seamounts.
• Assess ecological significance of habitats under UN CBD scientific criteria like uniqueness and vulnerability.
• Study the geology of submarine plateaus using collected geological samples.

Strengths

• Data originates from two major marine surveys conducted in 2003 and 2007, providing a temporal snapshot.
• Includes multiple data modalities: biological samples, geological samples, photographs, video, and bathymetry.
• Focuses on a specific, significant geographic area: the Lord Howe Rise plateau within Australia's EEZ, which contains 1.6 million km² of submarine plateaus.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data freshness should be verified; the last metadata update is 2026-06-05, but the underlying surveys are from 2003 and 2007.

Provenance

Source

Australian Ocean Data Network

Collection Method

Collected during two major marine surveys involving sampling, photography, video, and sonar.

Time Range

2003, 2007

Freshness

Last metadata update 2026-06-05; underlying survey data from 2003 and 2007.

Geography

Lord Howe Rise submarine plateau within the Australian exclusive economic zone (EEZ).