Location
Key Information
| 391 km2 | MARINE AREA |
| 391 km2 | TOTAL AREA i |
Regulations: Fisheries and Oceans Canada
Boundary: Canadian Protected and Conserved Areas Database (Unmodified)
2.0
May 2023
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Purpose
To protect cold-water corals. Cold-water corals are fragile, slow to recover, structure-providing species that provide habitat for many other forms of marine life. They act as spawning and breeding grounds, nurseries, and refuges for many aquatic species. The closure includes portions of large and small gorgonian (octo)coral areas identified as significant under the Policy for Managing the Impact of Fishing on Sensitive Benthic Areas. The dense aggregations created by large, structure-forming cold-water corals can alter bottom currents and provide niche space for other organisms. Prohibiting bottom-contact gear can protect not only the corals but a diversity of other species of fish and invertebrates that utilize the complex structural habitat the corals provide. This area can act as a natural refuge area that may contribute to increased species productivity, which in turn, could potentially lead to increased abundance within and adjacent to the area.
Species of Concern: Cold-water corals
Regulations Summary
Restrictions
All commercial bottom-contact fishing gear is prohibited.
Allowed
Other human activities that take place in this area that are compatible with the conservation of the ecological components of interest are permitted.