Benthic Science, Benthic Photo Surveys

GIS tools allow us to address complex spatio-temporal patterns related to natural and anthropogenic changes among soft-sediment communities. GIS also offers powerful methods of presenting complex marine environmental data to your developers, investors, clients, stakeholders, and environmental courts. We understand the value of benthic imagery for developing and communicating your data. Benthic imagery is often an important part of this process, and that's why Benthic Science Limited provides benthic photography survey services. We maintain shallow water equipment typically deployed to <50 m water depths, but which can be reconfigured to <100 m. We have the experience and supply chains to custom design, build and deliver units for automated or attended deeper deployments.

Our Triops unit uses a digital camera mounted in a stainless steel frame with mission-specific variable-weight runners (drop, skid, etc.). The camera is connected to a shipboard computer via 50 m tether. One or two shipboard line handlers can watch the oblique deployment view on either of two live video images. This ensures that the camera is landed appropriately. A computer operator watches a live colour video (low resolution) image of the plan view to trigger the photo on demand. Two lights are mounted obliquely to ensure good light distribution with a minimum of marine snow illumination. The entire system can be run off internal battery or can be connected to a vessel's 12 VDC system. If desired, the B&W images can be captured with additional equipment to produce anaglyphic (3D) benthic images. Our modular arrangement and forward-thinking specifications allow cameras, lights, and tethers to be upgraded according to project needs. When combined with sediment profile imagery (see SPI-Scan) your project can benefit from flexible reconnaisance options above and below the sediment-water interface and make the most of your physical and biological data.

Our workhorse Benthic Photo System: Triops

(other systems made to order)

On a recent deployment in Otago Harbour New Zealand over 700 photos were captured in a 2.5 day period at over 130 sites in turbid waters 4-20 m deep. Image analysis was used to inform the most extensive habitat mapping and macrofaunal community analyses ever conducted in the harbour. Reduced-resolution sample images are available below.

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Hundreds of images like those above are examined according to objective or heuristic protocols in order to produce GIS thematic representations of benthic characteristics. Interpolation is objectively tested. This example map was created from c. 900 images collected in only four field days.