Seabed survey of shrimp fields in Northern Iceland

Faroese research vessel Magnus Heinason conducting a seabed survey in northern Iceland led by ZSL scientists Chris Yesson & Kirsty Kemp.Deployment of the benthic drop camera. The camera is dropped of the side of the ship with a winch. When it hits the seabed a photo is automatically taken.An example image from our drop camera. This includes corals, a sponge and anemone.A lonely shrimp is caught by our drop camera. This is the target of the trawl fishery operating in Northern Iceland. Our images are helping to assess the impact of the fishery on benthic habitats in the region.Kirsty Kemp, Chris Turner, Steinunn Olafdottir and Ingibjorg Jonsdottir discuss plans for the next part of the survey in the science lab of the Magnus Heinason.A seapen caught by our benthic drop camera. Seapens are types of coral that are specialised to live in soft sediment habitats. They can form important 'seapen field' habitats.