RV LITTORINA 05/09 Cruise Report/Fahrtbericht [L09-05] Südsylter Rückseitenwatt (Hörnum, North Sea) 4th May – 15th May 2009

Cruise RV Littorina 05/09 was conducted in the frame of the research project “Flächendeckende Erfassung benthischer Lebensraumtypen im Sublitoral des Hörnum Tiefs” (Survey of benthic habitats in the sublittoral of the Hörnum Tief). This project is part of the cooperation between the Institute of Geosciences at the University of Kiel and the Landesamt für Landwirtschaft, Umwelt und ländliche Räume (LLUR). The aim of this project is to survey benthic habitats in the tidal flats of the Hörnum Tief with a special focus on habitats for blue mussels. Questions to be answered are related to where substrates can be found, which are adequate for blue mussel settling and where already biogenic structures are existing. Furthermore the project should offer valuable clues to how the bottom substrates of the region are developed and in which range the mobility of the sediment in different parts of the Hörnum Tief is. During this cruise a C3D and a multibeam echosounder survey was performed in the Hörnum Tief area.