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Reviewed by: Dr. Emma Sheehan
Last Update: August 7th, 2020
At the 17th Ronald C. Baird Sea Grant Science Symposium on offshore renewable energy, Emma Sheehan (Associate Professor of Marine Ecology, University of Plymouth, UK) explained the importance behind the benthos and associated fish communities when constructing offshore wind farms.
Animals that live on the seafloor are called benthos. Typical benthic invertebrates include sea anemones, sponges, corals, sea stars, sea urchins, worms, bivalves, crabs, and many more1.
Sheehan explains that the seabed is the foundation for the entire marine ecosystem. It provides a habitat for the feeding and breeding of species that are of both commercial and conservation importance. Additionally, it is responsible for other ecosystem services i.e. water filtration, sediment stabilization and carbon sequestration.
Sources
[1] https://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/explorations/02arctic/background/benthos/benthos.html