2005 Strategic Environmental Assessment SEA7 seabird and marine mammal observations onboard the RSS Charles Darwin during British Geological Survey cruise CD174 in the Rockall Trough
As part of the Department of Trade and Industry's (now Department of Energy and Climate Change) Strategic Environmental Assessment SEA7, a seabird and cetacean survey was undertaken. The track passed through the Firth of Clyde, the North Channel and the adjacent continental shelf before covering the Rockall Trough as far as the eastern margin of the Rockall Bank and the southern margins of Anton Dohrn Seamount. For much of the survey the weather was unseasonably poor and data was frequently collected in marginal conditions. At total of 7578 birds of 37 species were recorded. Of these 26 species were seabirds and the remainder were migrant passerines, hirundines and geese. Fulmars were the most abundant birds seen during the survey, followed by gannets and great shearwaters, which were recorded in unusually high numbers. The latter species may have been more abundant because of atypically strong westerly winds. Five species of cetacean were seen, with short-beaked common dolphins being the most abundant, followed by long-finned pilot whales and sperm whales. Other sightings included one blue shark and one sunfish. Seabird and cetacean densities were low in much of the study area but were elevated on the continental shelf, especially near the Stanton Bank, at the southern margins of the Anton Dohrn seamount and along the eastern margin of the Rockall Bank.
dataset
http://www.bgs.ac.uk/data/sea/home.html
name: Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) data portal
description: The Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) data portal provides free access to available data and reports which have been produced through the UK Department of Energy and Climate Change SEA process. The site is run and managed by BGS on behalf of the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC). Many files can be downloaded directly from this website. Those that are too large to download can be ordered via the website for postal delivery from BGS.
function: download
BGS_SEA_166
British Geological Survey
eng
OGP
urn:ogc:def:crs:EPSG::4326
http://www.offshore-sea.org.uk/site/index.php
biota
environment
oceans
revision
2011-03-25
Species distribution
publication
2008-06-01
publication
2008-06-01
-24
-5
60.2
55.2
revision
2006-01-01
2005-08-11
2005-09-08
publication
2005-01-01
notPlanned
This report was prepared by E Wakefield, British Antarctic Survey as part of the UK Department of Energy and Climate Change's Offshore Energy Strategic Environmental Assessment programme. Observations took place during August - September 2005 on board Charles Darwin. The standard line transect methodology for counting seabirds at sea was used (Webb and Durinck, 1992; Tasker et al. 1984). Observations were made by a single observer from the bridge wings (eye height 14 m above sea level), scanning from directly ahead to either the port or starboard beam. Throughout the cruise a 300 m transect was used for birds on the water. Birds were recorded in five minute blocks and snapshot counts of birds in flight in a 300 x 300 m box were taken at regular intervals. The interval between snapshots was set according to the ship's speed such that counts were made every 300 m along the track (i.e. Counts made every minute when travelling at 10 knots, etc.). An audio alarm was set to sound at the appropriate interval to ensure that snapshots were not missed. Where time and weather conditions allowed behavioural observations were made following Camphuysen and Garthe (2004). Cetaceans were recorded following standard seabirds at sea methods, in the same 90 degree arc as seabirds. In addition however, ranges and bearings to cetaceans were estimated at time of first sighting using an angle board and measuring stick and behavioural observations was recorded following Macleod (2005).
The SEAs data were produced as part of the UK Department of Energy and Climate Change's Offshore Energy Strategic Environmental Assessment programme; Crown Copyright, all rights reserved. The DECC SEA must be acknowledged in any maps or publications that make use of the data. All the data files are freely available to the public. The Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) data portal provides free access to available data and reports which have been produced through the SEA process. The site is run and managed by BGS on behalf of the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC). Many files can be downloaded directly from this website. Those that are too large to download can be ordered via the website for postal delivery from BGS. BGS (NERC) has been contracted by DECC to publish SEA datasets on its behalf. All intellectual property rights (including , without limitation, copyrights, database rights and all other rights which subsist or may at any time in the future subsist in the Dataset(s)) in the Dataset(s) ('Intellectual Property Rights') are owned by DECC (formerly the Department of Trade and Industry, and the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform). BGS has been authorised by DECC to use SEA datasets for all purposes but on a 'not-for-profit basis'. BGS has been authorised by DECC to pass on SEA datasets to third parties so that they can use them for all purposes but on a 'not-for-profit' basis.
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British Geological Survey (BGS)
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pointOfContact
2011-08-30