1aa297bc0606a9d4d31e3bb958b434b2 English dataset NatureScot (HQ Inverness) data_supply@nature.scot pointOfContact 2025-06-03 MEDIN 3.1.2 EPSG Geodetic Parameter Registry 2021-01-06 revision WGS 84 2004 Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) Loch Paible (Balranald Bog and Loch nam Feithean SSSI) intertidal sediment flats site condition monitoring survey 2008-07-02 publication GB-SCT-SNH-ME-000093-MRSNH01100000007-PAIB NS-000093 NatureScot project ID Loch Paible lies within the Balranald Bog and Loch nam Feithean SSSI on the west side of North Uist. The site includes terrestrial and freshwater features of national importance. The marine feature of conservation interest within the site is the sediment flats of Loch Paible. It is a mandatory requirement of SSSIs that monitoring of a site is carried out (site condition monitoring) to identify deterioration in the condition of the features for which the site has been established. The purpose of the current study was to initiate site condition monitoring of the intertidal sediment flats of Loch Paible. This was done to establish a baseline biological data set that would facilitate the assessment of the condition of the intertidal sediment flat habitats in the future and to allow a judgement to be formed on the current condition of these habitats. The approach taken to achieve these objectives was to establish a series of relocatable stations along transects that reflects the biological and environmental diversity of the sediment flats. Survey transects were worked as two survey events chosen to represent good geographical coverage and the likely spectrum of physiochemical conditions and biotopes. Fixed relocatable points were established, and recorded by dGPS with supporting photographic evidence for re-location, sketches and video. Transects followed constant bearings down the shore to the lowest level exposed at low tide (where possible taking advantage of conspicuous target features to aid reloaction). Zonation of dominant habitats were noted against distance down the tape. Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH), Headquaters Data Manager 01463 725000 data_supply@nature.scot owner NatureScot (HQ Inverness) NatureScot Data Manager data_supply@nature.scot custodian Colin Moore Colin Moore Consultant c.g.moore84@gmail.com originator Esther Hughes Data Archive for Seabed Species and Habitats (DASSH) Data Manager 01752 633102 dassh.enquiries@mba.ac.uk distributor notPlanned Marine Environmental Data and Information Network MEDIN metadata record availability 2025-06-03 revision NDGO0005 NDGO0005 2025-06-03 revision Habitats and biotopes GEMET - INSPIRE themes, version 1.0 2021-09-28 revision Habitat characterisation Habitat extent Macroalgae and seagrass taxonomy-related counts Sediment grain size parameters Zoobenthos taxonomic abundance Zoobenthos taxonomy-related counts SeaDataNet Parameter Discovery Vocabulary 2021-09-28 revision otherRestrictions Not for navigational use; SNH copyright data which is available for re-use under government licence terms: http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/ otherRestrictions no restrictions to public access English 8-bit variable size UCS Transfer Format, based on ISO/IEC 10646 biota environment geoscientificInformation oceans -7.5027 -7.4794 57.5823 57.5951 SeaVox salt and freshwater body gazetteer 2021-01-06 creation North Atlantic Ocean Charting Progress 2 Sea Areas 2021-01-06 creation Scottish Continental Shelf 2004-07-17 2004-07-19 SeaVoX Vertical Co-ordinate Coverages 2021-01-06 revision infralittoral Moore, C.G., Mair, J.M. and Edwards, D.C.B. (2005). Site condition monitoring of the intertidal sediment flats of Loch Paible (Balranald Bog and Loch nam Feithean SSSI). Scottish Natural Heritage Commissioned Report No. 101 (ROAME No. F02AA409a). Database Marine Recorder Documents Published report Geographic Information System shapefile dataset Commission Regulation (EU) No 1089/2010 of 23 November 2010 implementing Directive 2007/2/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards interoperability of spatial data sets and services 2010-12-08 publication Sample stations (6 in total) were selected along the transect to represent shore levels, substrates and possible biotopes. Station positions and zone transitions were recorded using dGPS and height below station marker determined with a level. And a comparison of datum to predicted tidal height was also levelled. Data collected at each station along the transect were entered into a station recording form in the field. At each station a note was taken of the approximate shore level, substrate type, moisture level, surface features, depth of anaerobic layer and the nature of the habitat. - Five replicate photo quadrats of the sediment surface were taken by photographing a haphazardly thrown 0.25m2 quadrat. Additional general views were photographed and digital video footage taken of the area around all the stations and along the transect. - At each station eight replicate core samples of 10.3 cm diameter and 20cm length were taken at random and pooled. At one station on each of the transects deemed to be of particular interest, four replicate pooled samples were taken. The sediment was sieved on a 1mm mesh sieve and sievings stored in 5% formalin for analysis of the macrobenthos. - A 3.4cm diameter core sample to a depth of 20cm was taken for grain size analysis. These were dry sieved at 0.5 phi intervals, following separation and measurement of the silt/ clay fraction. N.B. the PSA outputs do not seem to have been entered into Marine Recorder but are recorded as percentage values in the associated report. - Assessment of the abundance of macrobenthic infauna from core samples was supplemented by in situ assessment of abundance by recording estimates of the abundance of casts of Arenicola marina and of conspicuous animals found in digging over a total area of 1m2 to a depth of c.20cm.Where necessary, samples of these animals were preserved for laboratory identification The macrobenthos was sorted, identified and counted by Sue Hamilton (22 Bryce Crescent, Currie, Midlothian). Sediment samples for grain size analysis were dry sieved using a nest of sieves from –4 to 4 phi at 0.5 phi intervals, following separation and measurement of the silt/clay fraction by puddling the sample of known weight, which had been soaked in sodium hexametaphosphate, through a 63 micron sieve. The sediment grain size parameters, median grain size and phi quartile deviation, were obtained by interpolation of the cumulative weight percentage curves. Beach profiles, based on surveyors’ level measurements of intertidal height and range were graphed using Excel and subsequently annotated within Micrografx Designer to produce summaries of the physical and biological characteristics of the transects. Based on the physicochemical characteristics of the sediment and the characterisation of the fauna obtained from the cores and in situ observations, the transect stations, and the zones along the transect that they represented, were ascribed to biotopes using the 2003 habitat classification system (Connor et al. 2003). To aid this process all species data for all stations were transformed to the SACFOR scale of abundance. Similarity and potential grouping of stations was investigated by non-metric multidimensional scaling of the SACFOR abundances using Bray-Curtis similarity and the Primer statistical package (Primer-E Ltd, Plymouth).