Cruise report 64PE485 - ReViFES Borkum reef grounds Version 3

This cruise was carried out for the ReViFES project. The rationale behind this cruise and project is to find out what the scale of ecosystem services of reef structures are in the North Sea. The focal area was the Borkum Reef grounds on the border of the Dutch - German continental shelf, situated approximately 20 km offshore (north) from the island of Schiermonnikoog. In 2018 WWF started an experiment in this area by creating a man made European flat Oyster reef on an area of 100 × 100 m. Close to the site of the man-made oyster reef is a small rocky reef and a well developed Lanice conchilega reef. Aim of the project is to compare biodiversity and ecosystem functioning of these reef structures to the surrounding area without reef like structures.