DeepWalls: Report on summer 2020 survey with submersible LULA1000

This report describes the DeepWalls survey aimed to characterize and map the distribution of deep-sea megafaunal communities associated with vertical walls in the Azores by means of the submarine LULA1000 of the Rebikoff-Niggeler Foundation (FRN). The primary target areas for the submersible dives were the South of Pico and São Jorge Islands, where the existence of communities of interest in vertical walls had already been identified during exploratory dives performed by FRN based on the information compiled in the database (Deliverable 1.1). Five submersible dives were undertaken in 2020 in the vertical walls down to 1000 m depth around the islands of Pico and São Jorge. In addition to these dives, in August 2019, the DeepWalls team coordinated two dives on seamount ridge Baixo de São Mateus, located south of Pico Island. Theses dives, financed by Oceano Azul Foundation, collected information for the DeepWalls project and to support the process of identifying new areas of interest for conservation in the Azores EEZ under the Blue Azores program, in partnership with the Oceano Azul Foundation (FOA).