Asteroidea of the southern tip of South America, including Namuncurá Marine Protected Area at Burdwood Bank and Tierra del Fuego Province, Argentina

FRAYSSE, CINTIA; CALCAGNO, JAVIER; PÉREZ, ANALÍA F.

POLAR BIOLOGY

SPRINGER

Año: 2018 vol. 41 p. 2423 - 2433

0722-4060

In benthic communities, echinoderms are dominant in terms of abundance and diversity, and Asteroidea play an importantrole in the structure of communities. In the present study, Asteroidea were sampled in the recently created Namuncurá MarineProtected Area (N MPA) at Burdwood Bank (which has an average of 50?200 m depth and is delimited by abrupt slopes),the surrounding shelf break and Tierra del Fuego Province, Argentina, at 24 stations at diferent depths and seabeds onboard the oceanographic vessel ARA ?Puerto Deseado.? A total of 32 Asteroidea species were identifed. The bathymetricranges were extended for two of them, and the geographic distribution was updated for seven of them, this being their frstrecord in the N MPA. The N MPA showed higher asteroid richness than Tierra del Fuego Province and the surrounding shelfbreak. Moreover, this area presented species shared with Antarctica, which enhances the importance of the Malvinas Current(formed mainly by the contribution of Antarctic waters) in the larval dispersal of some species. On the other hand, a highpercentage of the species found at the N MPA presented direct development with brooding females. The N MPA representsan important biodiversity hotspot. Thus, to contribute to the formulation of precise conservation strategies and enhance itsprotection, it is crucial to promote and continue the eforts to know more about the ecosystems at these latitudes.