Report of the Working Group on Ecosystem Assessment of Western European Shelf Seas (WGEAWESS)
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ICES WGEAWESS REPORT 2011 SCICOM STEERING GROUP ON REGIONAL SEA PROGRAMMES ICES CM 2011/SSGRSP:05 REF. SCICOM Report of the Working Group on Ecosystem Assessment of Western European Shelf Seas (WGEAWESS) 3–6 May 2011 Nantes, France International Council for the Exploration of the Sea Conseil International pour l’Exploration de la Mer H. C. Andersens Boulevard 44–46 DK-1553 Copenhagen V Denmark Telephone (+45) 33 38 67 00 Telefax (+45) 33 93 42 15 www.ices.dk [email protected] Recommended format for purposes of citation: ICES. 2011. Report of the Working Group on Ecosystem Assessment of Western European Shelf Seas (WGEAWESS), 3–6 May 2011, Nantes, France. ICES CM 2011/SSGRSP:05. 175 pp. For permission to reproduce material from this publication, please apply to the Gen- eral Secretary. The document is a report of an Expert Group under the auspices of the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea and does not necessarily represent the views of the Council. © 2011 International Council for the Exploration of the Sea ICES WGEAWESS REPORT 2011 | i Contents Executive summary ................................................................................................................ 1 1 Opening of the meeting ................................................................................................ 2 2 WGEAWESS Terms of Reference 2011 ...................................................................... 2 3 Adoption of agenda ....................................................................................................... 2 4 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 2 4.1 General context ..................................................................................................... 2 4.2 Definition of the region covered by WGEAWESS ........................................... 3 4.3 WGEAWESS specificities ..................................................................................... 4 4.4 About integrated Ecosystem Assessments ........................................................ 7 4.5 Linkage with others ICES groups, review and sources of information ............................................................................................................ 9 4.6 Participant to the WGEAWESS group and/or the report ................................ 9 5 Components relevance as compared to “some” Management Objectives / IEA / MSFD / .......................................................................................... 11 6 WGEAWESS Ecosystem(s) description ................................................................... 12 6.1 Natural Components .......................................................................................... 12 6.2 Main Anthropogenic pressures ........................................................................ 14 7 Ecosystem description by subregion ........................................................................ 14 7.1 Gulf of Cadiz (GC, Region A) ........................................................................... 14 7.1.1 Definition/validation of subregions frontiers (Frontier A/B) ........... 14 7.1.2 Geography and Climate ........................................................................ 14 7.1.3 Bathymetry and substrates ................................................................... 18 7.1.4 Hydrography and circulation .............................................................. 21 7.1.5 Biological ecosystem components ....................................................... 22 7.1.6 References ............................................................................................... 35 7.1.7 Anthropogenic relative data: pressures and economics ................... 50 7.2 Process and models ............................................................................................ 51 7.3 South Western Iberia (SWI, Region B) ............................................................. 51 7.3.1 Subregion boundaries ........................................................................... 51 7.3.2 Geology ................................................................................................... 51 7.3.3 Circulation .............................................................................................. 53 7.3.4 Zooplankton ........................................................................................... 54 7.3.5 Fish community...................................................................................... 55 7.3.6 References ............................................................................................... 57 7.4 North Western Iberia (NWI, Region C) ........................................................... 63 7.4.1 Geography, bottom topography and climate ..................................... 63 7.4.2 Hydrography and circulation .............................................................. 64 7.4.3 Biological ecosystem components ....................................................... 65 ii | ICES WGEAWESS REPORT 2011 7.4.4 References ............................................................................................... 71 7.5 South Bay of Biscay (SBoB, Region D) ............................................................. 79 7.5.1 Geography and climate ......................................................................... 79 7.5.2 Hydrography and circulation .............................................................. 79 7.5.3 Biological Ecosystem components ....................................................... 80 7.5.4 References ............................................................................................... 87 7.6 Inner Bay of Biscay (IBoB, Region E) ............................................................. 103 7.6.1 Geography and climate ....................................................................... 103 7.6.2 Hydrography and circulation ............................................................ 105 7.6.3 Ecosystem components ....................................................................... 108 7.6.4 References ............................................................................................. 115 7.7 Western Bay of Biscay (WBoB, Region F) ...................................................... 120 7.7.1 Geography and bottom topography ................................................. 120 7.7.2 Hydrography, circulation and climate .............................................. 121 7.7.3 Biological Ecosystem components ..................................................... 124 7.8 Celtic Sea (CS, Region G) ................................................................................. 138 7.8.1 Celtic Sea boundaries .......................................................................... 138 7.8.2 Geography and climate ....................................................................... 138 7.8.3 Bathymetry ........................................................................................... 139 7.8.4 Substrates .............................................................................................. 140 7.8.5 Climate .................................................................................................. 140 7.8.6 Hydrography and circulation ............................................................ 141 7.8.7 Biological Ecosystem components ..................................................... 145 7.8.8 Pressures on the ecosystem ................................................................ 162 7.8.9 References ............................................................................................. 163 7.9 English Channel (EC, Region H) .................................................................... 165 7.9.1 The English Channel ecosystem ........................................................ 165 7.9.2 Bathymetry ........................................................................................... 166 7.9.3 Bedrock geology ................................................................................... 166 7.9.4 Sedimentology ...................................................................................... 166 7.9.5 Hydrography ........................................................................................ 167 7.9.6 Habitats ................................................................................................. 167 7.9.7 Biological Ecosystem Components .................................................... 168 8 Recommendations to WGEAWESS ........................................................................ 171 Annex 1: List of participants ............................................................................................. 172 Annex 2: WGEAWESS resolution for the next meeting .............................................. 174 ICES WGEAWESS REPORT 2011 | 1 Executive summary This first meeting of WGEAWESS was planned to initiate the first stages of the de- velopment of an integrated ecosystem assessment (IEA) of the Western European Shelf Seas. To take onboard the approaches being followed the group reviewed the reports of other existing SSGRSP regional groups: Working Group ICES/HELCOM Working Group on Integrated Assessmentss of the Baltic Sea (WGIAB), Working Group on Integrated Assessments of the North Sea (WGINOSE) and the Working Group on the Northwest Atlantic Regional Sea (WGNARS). From this review it was understood that the