Avilés Canyon
Submarine canyon
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Avilés Canyon is a submarine canyon located off the coast of Asturias, Spain in the Cantabrian Sea. It makes up a system of submarine canyons called the Avilés Canyon System (ACS) with the Corviro and La Gaviera canyons.[1] It runs obliquely off the coast for 75 kilometers and reaches depths of nearly 5 kilometers making it one of the deepest submarine canyons on Earth.[2][3]
Biodiversity
It is a hotspot in biodiversity with around 1,300 different species being found in the Avilés Canyon. Many whale species such as Sperm whales use this area as a passing zone.[2] There are many species of starfish found in this canyon with species such as Nymphaster arenatus and Henricia caudani being frequently observed.[4] Species of white coral such as Madrepora occulata and Lophelia pertusa also build reefs in cold waters that can date back to more than 8,000 years ago.[5]
List of species observed
Cetacea
- Sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus)
Asteroidea
Source:[4]
- Henricia caudani
- Henricia sexradiata
- Myxaster perrieri
- Novodinia pandina
- Nymphaster arenatus
- Radiaster tizardi
Cephalopoda
- Giant squid (Architeuthis dux)
Coral
Source:[5]