The effects of marine animal forests on the underlying benthic community

Mesophotic coral ecosystems (MCEs) represent an important but highly understudied research area. Nonetheless, data indicate diverse ecosystems with high endemism. The environmental stability, as well as the low productivity at mesophotic depths, promotes the formation of marine animal forests. As aggregations of ecosystem engineers, gorgonian forests may create microclimates that foster unique and diverse benthic assemblages. To understand the functional role of MCEs, information about their community composition is needed. Thus, the goal of this research was to study differences in epibenthic communities in relation to the density of forest-building species, along a depth gradient. Video transects were recorded and percentage cover of species, as well as morpho-functional groups was quantified. While no significant differences in the structure of epibenthic assemblages across forest densities could be detected, some important trends in individual morpho-functional groups were observed. Looking at the present results together with earlier studies may suggest that at lower densities the positive effects of gorgonian forests on the structure and diversity of the understory become less prominent. As a result of the ecological importance of MCEs, the exploration and protection of these ecosystems is of utmost importance.