The scavenging fauna of the Patagonian slope (900–1750 m), east of the Falkland Islands was investigated using the Aberdeen University Deep Ocean Submersible (AUDOS), an autonomous baited camera vehicle designed to photograph scavenging fish and invertebrates. The AUDOS was deployed on ten occasions in Falkland waters. Nine experiments were of 10–14 h duration and baited with 800 g of squid and one experiment lasted six days, baited with a 10 kg toothfish (Dissostichus eleginoides). Analysis of photographs revealed considerable patchiness in the composition of the scavenging fauna. Hagfish (Myxine cf. fernholmi) dominated three of the shallower experiments including the 6-d experiment, arriving quickly from down-current, holding station at the bait and consuming the soft tissues first, with consumption rates of up to 200 g h−1. In the other experiments, stone crabs (Lithodidae), the blue-hake (Antimora rostrata) and amphipods were the primary consumers, but the rate of bait consumption was lower. Patagonian toothfish (D. eleginoides) were attracted to the bait at each experiment, but did not attempt to consume the bait. The patchiness in the fauna may be a result of depth, substratum and topography, but in general the rapid response of the scavenging fauna indicates that carrion is rapidly dispersed, with little impact on the local sediment community.

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Deepwater represents a significant proportion of future oil and gas exploration and production. Scientists have however stated that the deepwater environment is less well understood than the dark side of the moon. At the same time there is increasing pressure from NGOs to postpone deepwater exploration until more is known about potential impacts. In partnership with the marine science community, and via capacity building in Angola, BP has developed and installed the world's first Deepwater Environmental Long-term Observatory System (DELOS) off the coast of Angola. Two environmental monitoring stations were installed, one in the near field and one in the far field 16 kms distant from, and upstream of, any infrastructure. These subsea platforms will be in place for around 25 years and, for the first time ever, will provide scientifically defensible data to distinguish between anthropogenic and natural change in the deep sea. Without this understanding future changes in the deepwater environment could be incorrectly attributed to E&P operations.The data collected will be fundamental in helping Industry and the scientific community to build a long-term picture of deep-sea processes and ecology. In particular, it will enable us to:Measure and monitor deep-sea biological communities Monitor the pace of recovery from any unforeseen impacts Differentiate between natural & anthropogenic changes and provide a linkage between marine biodiversity & climate change The development of the system from concept through to fabrication, installation, and first data recovery is outlined including a first use of non-corrosive Glass Reinforced Plastic (GRP) as the primary structural element for a deepwater subsea facility. The selection of the various instrumentation modules and their application is discussed.

A variable buoyancy system has been developed for underwater vehicles operating deep in the ocean. This paper reports on the design, testing and development of the system. The system was designed to change buoyancy at up to 1 1/min at a depth down to 6000m. The results showed that the system worked at its design specifications after modification but that friction losses resulted in a relatively low efficiency of around 35 % at low working depth, but efficiency increased with increasing depth to about 70% at 6000m. Efficiency could be increased further with redesign or with changes in specification.