The objectives of the present study were to characterize the benthic invertebrate communities at the Marine Protected Area (MPA) Namuncurá/Burdwood bank (created by the National Law 26875, year 2013) and their different sub-areas, to compare these benthic communities with nearby sub-areas, and to detect sites that meet the criteria of Vulnerable Marine Ecosystems (VMEs) to highlight the importance of this particular and rich sub-Antarctic region. We used quali- and quantitative data obtained from research cruises developed by Argentina in 2016 and 2017. The results showed that Porifera was the most important component (in terms of wet biomass) of these benthic communities, followed by Cnidaria and Echinodermata. The evidences regarding general composition of the main taxonomical groups of the benthic invertebrate community did not support the maintenance of the original zoning of the MPA (core, buffer, and transition), considering that only a weak differentiation was found among the sub-areas designed in the creation Law. Additionally, the analyzed evidences also demonstrated that this MPA was different from other neighboring areas. Vulnerable and fragile organisms recorded in many locations led to the detection of fourteen sites located inside the MPA Namuncurá that meet the characteristics of VMEs (wet biomass of ≥ 10 kg 1200 m⁻² of vulnerable and fragile species). These evidences reinforce the conservation value of these particular and susceptible sub-Antarctic benthic communities, composed of both Antarctic and Magellanic species.

本研究的目的是描述海洋保护区 (MPA) Namuncurá/Burdwood 银行（由 2013 年第 26875 号国家法律创建）及其不同子区域的底栖无脊椎动物群落的特征，以将这些底栖群落与附近的子区域，并检测符合脆弱海洋生态系统 (VME) 标准的地点，以突出这个特殊而丰富的亚南极地区的重要性。我们使用了从 2016 年和 2017 年阿根廷开发的研究巡航中获得的定性和定量数据。结果表明，Porifera 是这些底栖群落中最重要的组成部分（就湿生物量而言），其次是刺胞动物和棘皮动物。关于底栖无脊椎动物群落主要分类群的一般组成的证据不支持维持 MPA 的原始分区（核心、缓冲区和过渡），因为在设计的子区域之间只发现了微弱的差异在创世法中。此外，分析的证据还表明，该海洋保护区与其他邻近地区不同。许多地点记录的脆弱和脆弱的生物导致在 MPA Namuncurá 内发现了 14 个符合 VME 特征的地点（湿生物量≥ 10 kg 1200 m 分析的证据还表明，该海洋保护区与其他邻近地区不同。许多地点记录的脆弱和脆弱的生物导致在 MPA Namuncurá 内发现了 14 个符合 VME 特征的地点（湿生物量≥ 10 kg 1200 m 分析的证据还表明，该海洋保护区与其他邻近地区不同。许多地点记录的脆弱和脆弱的生物导致在 MPA Namuncurá 内发现了 14 个符合 VME 特征的地点（湿生物量≥ 10 kg 1200 m⁻²脆弱和脆弱物种）。这些证据加强了这些由南极和麦哲伦物种组成的特殊和易受影响的亚南极底栖群落的保护价值。