Request for Quotation for Cromer Shoal Chalk Beds MCZ Chalk Ecology Video Analysis.

The Cromer Shoal Chalk Beds Marine Conservation Zone (CSCB MCZ) along the north Norfolk coast is one of the most ecologically significant Marine Protected Areas for chalk habitats in the UK and Europe. It was designated in 2016 as part of Tranche 2 of the MCZ designation process under the Marine and Coastal Access Act (MCAA) 2009. The MCZ was designated for nine chalk, rock, and sedimentary habitats, and one geological feature. The conservation objectives for those features were set as 'maintain in favourable condition' based on best available evidence at the time. Subtidal chalk is a geomorphological feature comprising exposed chalk beds and outcrops. This feature is of significance because of the reef habitat the outcrops provide, and the associated communities that are attracted by the rocky substrate. As part of NEs ongoing work at the site we are looking to obtain further understanding of the ecological reliance on the subtidal chalk feature. Attributes of the subtidal chalk feature at CSCB MCZ relevant to this work are listed below: • Physical structure of rocky substrate • presence and spatial distribution of biological communities, • species composition of component communities, and • non-native species and pathogens. This RFQ is for the analysis of seabed imagery from a nearshore survey undertaken by Eastern IFCA during the summer of 2022 within the CSCB MCZ. Through this contract Natural England aim to obtain an assessment of benthic habitats, to include descriptions of the epifaunal communities observed and their association with subtidal chalk habitat categories of varying complexity.