Fine-scale aggregations and ecology of high-density Heliometra glacialis (Crinoidea) beds in a Marine Protected Area, Atlantic Canada

Fine-scale aggregations and ecology of high-density Heliometra glacialis (Crinoidea) beds in a Marine Protected Area, Atlantic Canada | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Fine-scale aggregations and ecology of high-density Heliometra glacialis (Crinoidea) beds in a Marine Protected Area, Atlantic Canada Laura Lynn Teed, Peter Lawton This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-8766787/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 5 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Benthic structure-forming species enhance habitat complexity and biodiversity, making them a priority for conservation and monitoring in Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). Here we document the presence of high-density beds of the unstalked crinoid Heliometra glacialis (Owen, 1833 ex Leach MS) within the St. Anns Bank MPA, off the Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia, Canada (45.8°N, 59.3°W). Crinoids were present in five transects within a near-seafloor optical imagery survey conducted in 2023 and 2024 to evaluate benthic community assemblages in the MPA. Within these transects, crinoids were found to occupy much of the area (4811 m 2 ; 43.9% of the area covered), at depths of 77 to 119 m, with high-resolution digital still images and seafloor video revealing maximum local densities of 59.1 ind. m − 2 and 139.3 ind. m − 2 , respectively. Analysis of a subset of still images found relatively little size variation amongst crinoids, with a mean arm length of 19.03 cm (± 2.81 cm). We found that crinoid beds were distributed across variable mixed substrates on or near slope features subject to variable current vectors but were most abundant on cobble substrates. Spatial statistics (including Global and Local Moran’s I and the Gi * hotspot statistic) revealed significant spatial autocorrelation between video observations, resulting in localized clusters and hotspots, highlighting the prevalence of fine-scale patchiness. Collectively, these findings represent the highest recorded densities reported for the region and provide the first extensive documentation of the natural distribution of H. glacialis . Crinoidea Fine-scale Spatial Aggregations Marine Protected Area Atlantic Canada Full Text Supplementary Files OnlineResource1SupplementaryMaterials.docx OnlineResource2CIOPSEBottomTemperature.csv OnlineResource3CIOPSEBottomCurrentSpeed.csv Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revise and Resubmit 13 Apr, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 23 Feb, 2026 Reviewers invited by journal 05 Feb, 2026 Editor assigned by journal 03 Feb, 2026 First submitted to journal 02 Feb, 2026 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-8766787","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":586672028,"identity":"014dc808-d3d5-46ee-aee2-cdc852374e51","order_by":0,"name":"Laura Lynn 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Here we document the presence of high-density beds of the unstalked crinoid \u003cem\u003eHeliometra glacialis\u003c/em\u003e (Owen, 1833 ex Leach MS) within the St. Anns Bank MPA, off the Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia, Canada (45.8\u0026deg;N, 59.3\u0026deg;W). Crinoids were present in five transects within a near-seafloor optical imagery survey conducted in 2023 and 2024 to evaluate benthic community assemblages in the MPA. Within these transects, crinoids were found to occupy much of the area (4811 m\u003csup\u003e2\u003c/sup\u003e; 43.9% of the area covered), at depths of 77 to 119 m, with high-resolution digital still images and seafloor video revealing maximum local densities of 59.1 ind. m\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;2\u003c/sup\u003e and 139.3 ind. m\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;2\u003c/sup\u003e, respectively. 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