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

1.6 million km² of submarine plateaus exist within the Australian exclusive economic zone, representing about 13.8% of the world's known inventory. This special volume presents results from marine surveys on the Lord Howe Rise plateau in 2003 and 2007, collecting biological samples, underwater imagery, and bathymetry data. The research was contributed by the Australian Ocean Data Network.

Use Cases

• Classifying benthic habitat types based on described hard/rocky substrates and volcanic peaks.
• Assessing ecological significance for conservation based on UN CBD criteria mentioned in the description.
• Mapping seamount features and epifaunal assemblages using collected multibeam sonar and photographic data.
• Analyzing the distribution and vulnerability of suspension-feeding invertebrate communities.

Strengths

• Covers a significant area, with the Australian EEZ containing 1.6 million km² of submarine plateaus.
• Integrates multiple data modalities from two major surveys, including biological samples, photographs, video, and bathymetry.
• Focuses on a specific, ecologically significant region, the Lord Howe Rise plateau.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count and dataset size are unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• The primary format listed is HTML, which may not be directly machine-readable for analysis.

Provenance

Source

Australian Ocean Data Network

Collection Method

Results from two major marine surveys involving collection of benthic biological and geological samples, underwater photographs, video, and multibeam sonar bathymetry data.

Time Range

Surveys conducted during 2003 and 2007.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-04-28 13:49:42.592593; freshness should be verified.

Geography

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