The objective of the CIRCAROCK0521 survey is to obtain the necessary information that will allow “identifying and evaluating the environmental status of circalittoral and rocky bathyal habitats”. The specific objectives that are proposed are: 1. Identify structuring species that characterize rocky circalittoral habitats. 2. Know the distribution of rocky circalittoral habitats. 3. Identify environmental variables involved in the distribution of rocky circalittoral habitats. 3. Compile information that is necessary to calculate the status and condition indicators that allow evaluating the conservation status of the different rocky circalittoral habitats. Additionally, the survey will allow documenting the rocky bottoms of the Cantabrian Sea and the Galician Atlantic coast in order to achieve the following secondary objectives: - Studies with multibeam probe and topas for mapping the rocky bottoms and characterization of the geomorphology of the area. - Document recording video and photo the species that characterize the different rocky circalittoral habitats. - Identify typical species of rocky circalittoral habitats from samples obtained with the rock dredge. - Prepare a catalog of species in which the taxonomy, the visual aspect and different biological and ecological characteristics of the different species are related.

Abundance indices, distribution patterns and faunal assemblages of demersal species in the northern coast of Spain (Atlantic Galician shelf and Cantabrian sea shelf), together with the possible driving factors of their distribution

Set up techniques of circalittoral benthic habitat study of sedimentary seabeds, including identification and cartography of habitat and characterization of benthic communities, aiming to develop MSFD indicators.

Evaluation of demersal and benthic ecosystem in the northern coast of Spain, using bottom trawl surveys

Identification and mapping of habitats. Characterization of benthic communities through the acquisition of underwater images, bathymetric data of the bottom and of the surface structure, and sampling with rock dredge, van veen and shipek. Identificación y cartografía de hábitats. Caracterización de comunidades bentónicas mediante la adquisición de imágenes submarinas, datos batimétricos de la superficie del fondo y de la estructura superficial, y muestreos con draga de roca, van veen y shipek.

Estimating the abundance and population structure of the target species of the trawl fishery in the Mediterranean, identified in the MEDITS project (Annex I), studying the biology of exploited communities on the shelf and upper slope of the study area and the impact of fishing on ecosystems.

To estimate the spawning stock biomass of european anchovy (Engraulis encrasicolus) in the Bay of Biscay in spring.

To estimate the spawning stock biomass of european anchovy (Engraulis encrasicolus) in the Bay of Biscay in spring.

The leg 1 of the NUREIEV 3 oceanographic cruise took place from 22 to 30 April 2016. The area of work has located on the continental margin of the SE of Iberian Peninsula, off the coast of Murcia and Almeria, with reference coordinates from 36º20'N to 37º36'N and 2º40'W to 0º40'W. The tasks performed consisted of: • Bathymetric mapping with multibeam echosounder for seabed mapping, from inner shelf to upper slope (50 to 1500 m depth). • Geophysical works with TOPAS, very high resolution seismic profiles, to characterize the sedimentary cover of the study area. • Recovery of 5 mooring lines, instrumented for the continuous monitoring of the hydrological (water masses) and sediment (particle fluxes) dynamics from the last cruise in September 2015. Each mooring line is composed by one current meter for measuring temperature, turbidity, velocity and direction of currents and one sediment trap for sampling sinking particles. In addition, each mooring is equipped with an acoustic release for recovery and with suitable buoyancy. Monitoring with instrumented mooring lines has covered an annual cycle, in two phases of 6 months each one. • CTD profiling and water sampling. Profiles have been made in each of the submarine canyons monitored for measuring physical and chemical variables of water column (temperature, salinity, turbidity, oxygen concentration and chlorophyll) and calibration of instruments of mooring lines. • Performing surface sampling of floating microplastics by neuston net. • Sampling of surface sediments by multicorer.

Estimating the abundance and population structure of the target species of the trawl fishery in the Mediterranean, identified in the MEDITS project (Annex I), studying the biology of exploited communities on the shelf and upper slope of the study area and the impact of fishing on ecosystems.