13 th International Symposium on Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences PROCEEDINGS BOOK ISBN: 978-605-68894-0-0 Publication of e-book date: 17.12.2018 191 Preliminary Spatial Study of the Shallow Marine Communities of Gokceada Island Using Geolocational Habitat Mapping Techniques Herdem ASLAN 1 , Graham SAUNDERS 2 , Gökhan KABOĞLU 3 , Mehmet Baki YOKEŞ 4 , Emine Şükran OKUDAN 5 , Onur GÖNÜLAL 6 1 Department of Biology, Faculty of Science & Arts, Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart University, Canakkale-Turkey 2 GS Marine Ecology 13/10 Wardlaw Street, Edinburgh, EH11 1TN, United Kingdom 3 Institute of Marine Sciences and Technology, Dokuz Eylul University, 35340, Izmir- Turkey 4 AMBRD Laboratories, Hanımefendi Sok. 160/6 Şişli, 34384, Istanbul -Turkey 5 Faculty of Aquatic Sciences and Fisheries, Akdeniz University,07059, Antalya- Turkey 6 Gökçeada Marine Research Department, Istanbul University, Çanakkale-Turkey asherdem@comu.edu.tr ABSTRACT Knowledge of the distribution and composition of marine communities is an essential requirement for European Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) reporting, with seabed mapping a key tool in understanding anthropogenic impacts on marine ecosystems. This information is presently lacking in Turkish waters and a standardized survey method incorporating the use of ecological “units” such as the EUNIS scheme is needed. In this study, we have applied a transect-based approach used elsewhere in Europe to a survey of the inshore marine habitats around the island of Gokceada. Eleven locations were selected for diver transects deployed perpendicular to the shore. Species & substrate observation was supplemented by photography and video taken within the transect area. The entire length of each transect was accurately mapped using a diver-attached GPS logging device, allowing fine-scale mapping of observational data. The recorded data have been tabulated and the process of identifying discrete community/habitat types and their possible alignment with the EUNIS definitions is presently underway. Preliminary analyses suggest that the shallow inshore waters of Gokceada support a small number of species- rich habitat types that are relatively evenly distributed around the island. The appropriateness and practicality of this approach for Mediterranean habitats is discussed with suggestions for improvements that would allow adoption as a standardized method for marine habitat mapping. Keywords: Benthic habitat, mapping, EUNIS INTRODUCTION Seabed habitat mapping has become an increasingly important tool for marine management and protection, with an expanding role in national planning activities as well as for status reporting requirements under European Directives, such as the Habitats Directive (HD) (European Council, 1992) and the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) (European Union, 2008). Marine habitat mapping will typically incorporate a range of techniques to gather substrate and biological community data which are then subsequently combined to generate maps that can be used for a range of purposes (e.g. Kenny et al., 2003; Diaz et al., 2004; Coggan et al., 2007; Freitas et al., 2011 & Buhl-Mortensen et al., 2015). Meanwhile, habitat classification schemes such as the European Nature Information System (EUNIS) are used