Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ) - Geoserver WMS Service

The marine biological valuation map of the Belgian Part of the North Sea (bwzeeval)

Integrated marine biological valuation map for the Belgian part of the North Sea for seabirds, macrobenthos, epibenthos and demersal fish. BWZEE: A Biological Valuation Map for the Belgian Continental Shelf

Marine biological valuation map of demersal fish of the Belgian Part of the North Sea (fish)

The marine biological valuation map of the demersal fish was calculated by averaging the scores of the assessment questions of each grid cell and dividing these values in five value classes. The three valuation questions: * Is the subzone characterized by high counts of many species? * Is the abundance of a certain species very high in the subzone? * Is the species richness in the subzone high?

Counts of many species - macrobenthos of the Belgian Part of the North Sea (macro1)

Map showing the results of the valuation question: 'Is the subzone characterized by high counts of many species?'. This question was asked to get an idea of the biological value of macrobenthos of the BPNS.

Reliability of the marine biological valuation map of macrobenthos of the Belgian Part of the North Sea (macrorel)

The reliability map of macrobenthos of the BPNS shows the reliability of the values of this ecosystem component and reflects the sampling/observation intensity of the Belgian Part of the North Sea. The data availability could be assessed by determining the number of samples (/observations) of each ecosystem component taken (/made) in each subzone. If certain assessment questions could not be answered due to a lack of available data, this should be noted, because this could seriously lower the reliability of the resulting biological valuation. This can easily be done by looking at the number of assessment questions that could be answered for each subzone in relation to the maximum amount of questions answered for a subzone. Such quality labels should also be consulted by anyone using the biological valuation maps. Attaching such ‘reliability labels’ also helps identifying knowledge gaps, which could direct scientific research in the future.

Bathymetric Position Index (zones) : large scale slopes, crests, flats and depressions on the Belgian continental shelf (UG_RCMG_BPI_z) (ug_rcmg_bpi_z)

Large scale zones indicating slopes, crests, flats and depressions on the Belgian continental shelf (BCS) derived from the digital elevation model (DEM) of the BCS using the Bathymetric Position Index (Weiss (2001); Iampietro & Kvitek (2002)). The DEM was compiled by the RCMG from bathymetric singlebeam data from the Ministry of the Flemish Community (Department of Environment and Infrastructure, Waterways and Marine Affairs Administration, Division Coast, Hydrographic Office) and was completed with data from the Hydrographic Office of the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.

Silt-clay percentage on the Belgian continental shelf (UG_RCMG_sicl) (ug_rcmg_sicl)

Silt-clay percentage (< 63 μm) on the Belgian continental shelf. Interpolated map using ordinary kriging based on sedisurf@ database hosted by Ghent University, Renard Centre of Marine Geology. Resolution of the map is 250m x 250 m.