UKSeaMap Predictive Habitats Map 2025 (version 1) is a broad-scale prediction of physical seabed habitats for the entire UK extended Continental Shelf. The map uses models of depth, light, sediment, and energy to predict habitats, providing outputs in both the EUNIS 2007-11 and Marine Habitat Classification for Britain and Ireland v22.04 systems. It is produced by the Joint Nature Conservation Committee as part of the UK Atlas of Seabed Habitats (UKASH).
Use Cases
- Predicting seabed habitat types based on physical models of substrate, energy, and biological zone.
- Comparing habitat classifications between the EUNIS system and the Marine Habitat Classification for Britain and Ireland.
- Analyzing the spatial distribution of habitats using the four categorical 'habitat descriptor' input layers.
- Filling gaps in ground-truthed habitat maps for a seamless UK-wide seabed characterization.
Strengths
- Covers the UK extended Continental Shelf as defined by the Continental Shelf (Designation of Areas) Order 2013.
- Provides habitat predictions using two established classification systems (EUNIS and MHC) with columns for multiple hierarchical levels.
- Integrates four categorical input layers (substrate, biological zone, kinetic energy, salinity) as the basis for predictions.
Limitations
- Description metadata is limited; actual data quality requires manual inspection after download.
- Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
- Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
Provenance
- Source
- Joint Nature Conservation Committee
- Collection Method
- Predictive modeling using physical layers for depth, light, sediment, and energy, combined with categorical habitat descriptors.
- Freshness
- Last updated 2026-04-14 09:48:15.778729; freshness should be verified.
- Geography
- UK extended Continental Shelf, excluding the intertidal zone, Dee Estuary, and Morecambe Bay.