Eastern Gulf of St. Lawrence Coral Conservation Area

Location

Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence Bioregion (Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador)

Approximate Size (km²) contribution to Marine Conservation Targets

423 km²

Approximate % coverage contribution to Marine Conservation Targets

<0.01%

Conservation Objective

Cold-water coral protection

Ecological Components of Interest

Species of regional importance: cold-water corals

• Why they are important: Cold-water corals are fragile, slow to recover, structure-providing species.

Habitat that is important to biodiversity conservation: cold-water corals

• Why they are important: This area has the highest concentration of Pennatula grandis sea pens in the Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence bioregion, as well as a high concentration of Anthoptilum grandiflorum sea pens. These species create structures that provide diverse habitat for many other species.

Prohibitions

The ecological components of interest are effectively conserved through the following prohibitions:

All fishing that uses bottom-contact gear, such as bottom trawls, dredges, bottom seining, traps, gillnets, and bottom longlines.

Other Considerations

No human activities that are incompatible with the conservation of the ecological components of interest may occur or be foreseeable within the area.

Environmental Context

This conservation area includes communities of sea pens that are classified as significant benthic areas (CSAS SAR - 2017/007) in the Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence bioregion.

High concentrations of these soft corals create habitat with complex structures that provide refuge, feeding, and rearing areas for many marine species, thus supporting greater biodiversity.

Prohibiting bottom-contact fishing gear makes it possible to directly protect the fragile structure of corals and can also help protect the fish and invertebrate species that rely on this habitat.