Biodiversity of Biogenic Habitats
  • Acronym: WG 32
  • Parent Committee: BIO
  • Term: Jan. 2015 - Dec. 2018
  • Extended: at PICES-2019 until PICES-2020
  • Co-Chairs:
    Janelle Curtis (Canada) (janelle.curtis@dfo-mpo.gc.ca)
    Masashi Kiyota (Japan) (m.kiyota@nagasaki-u.ac.jp)
Terms of Reference

Year 1:

  • Compile data on the distribution of coral and sponge taxa, and associated fish and invertebrate assemblages in the North Pacific within National Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) and facilitate their submission to appropriate biodiversity databases (e.g., Ocean Biogeographic Information System (OBIS));
  • Compile data on key variables (temperature, velocity, ocean acidification, slope, aspect) hypothesized to influence coral and sponge distribution and diversity and catalogue sources of multibeam/swathe bathymetry data for distribution modeling within National EEZs;
  • Hold a WG meeting, in conjunction with PICES Annual Meeting.

Year 2:

  • Review modeling approaches to predict the potential distributions of species and habitat suitability for corals and sponges (e.g., MaxEnt, Boosted Regression Trees, or high resolution bathymetry-based models) within National EEZs;
  • Identify environmental and ecological predictors of patterns in the distribution and biodiversity of coral, sponge and associated taxa within National EEZs;
  • Convene a session on biogenic habitat distribution and diversity at PICES Annual Meeting;
  • Hold a WG meeting, in conjunction with PICES Annual Meeting.

Year 3:

  • Review and propose potential indicators for assessing and monitoring diversity of biogenic habitats;
  • Review and document associations between commercially important fish and invertebrate species and biogenic habitats;
  • Prepare scientific reports for dissemination of results;
  • Hold a WG meeting, in association with PICES Annual Meeting.
Products
Annual Meetings

Reports

2017, 2016, 2015

Session and Workshop Summaries

PICES-2018:
S4, Indicators for assessing and monitoring biodiversity of biogenic habitats

PICES-2016:
W3, Distributions of habitat-forming coral and sponge assemblages in the North Pacific Ocean and factors influencing their distributions

PICES Scientific Report
PICES Sci. Rep. No. 57, 2020
Report of Working Group 32 on Biodiversity of Biogenic Habitats
Related Materials
PICES Sci. Rep. No. 49, 2015
Report of the Study Group on Biodiversity Conservation
Other Publications
ICES. 2020. ICES/NAFO Joint Working Group on Deep-water Ecology (WGDEC). ICES Scientific Reports. 2:62. 171 pp.
PICES Members as of August 2020