Refining deep-sea habitat classification schemes based on recent surveys in Maltese waters

ROV imagery is leading to the discovery of diverse deep-sea habitat types in the Malta Fisheries Management Zone (FMZ) at depths of 200 to 1000 meters. These include rocky bottoms with mixed assemblages dominated by cold-water corals and gorgonians, as well as sponges with both encrusting and erect growth habits. Vast expanses of different types of soft-bottom habitats are also present, mostly dominated by Anthozoa, Foraminifera and/or burrowing infauna. New habitat categories will need to be added to the existing habitat classification schemes for the deep Mediterranean Sea, including those of the European Nature Information System (EUNIS), and the Regional Activity Centre for Specially Protected Areas (RAC/SPA), to accommodate some of these discoveries.peer-reviewe