Porifera, Cladorhizidae, Deep Sea Ecology, Deep Sea Biology, taxonomy
Here we describe four additional species, including two species of Asbestopluma and two species of Cladorhiza. We report on species ranges, habitat, and ecology, including one from a chemosynthetic environment that appears to be using methane-oxidizing bacteria as a nutrient source.
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Callyspongiidae; Chalinidae; Callyspongia; Cladocroce; Aleutian Islands; North Pacific; Alaska
Four new species of Haplosclerida are described from the Aleutian Islands, Alaska: Callyspongia mucosa n.sp., Cladocroce infundibulum n. sp., Cladocroce attu n. sp. and Cladocroce kiska n. sp. The new species are described and compared to congeners of the region. This is the northernmost record of the genus Callyspongia and the first record of the subgenus Callyspongia from the North Pacific Ocean. To accommodate Cladocroce kiska in its genus the definition has to be broadened to allow sigmas.
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deep-sea coral; refugia; density; photography; conservation
Octocorals had been considered a common component of the seafloor fauna in the Gulf of Maine, but it appears a century of impacts have reduced coral distribution to small refugia. Here we provide a preliminary report of a recent expedition that discovered dense coral garden communities at two sites >200 m depth.
Florida, Habitat
NOAA bathymetric contour maps and digital elevation models were used to identify and delineate the areal extent of potential deep-sea coral habitat in the region from northeastern Florida through the Straits of Florida. These were ground-truthed with 241 dives with submersibles and remotely operated vehicles which confirmed deep-sea coral habitat.
Christmas tree coral, Antipathes dendrochristos, Southern California Bight
The Christmas tree coral Antipathes dendrochristos is a recently discovered black coral species that represents a habitat associated with numerous sensitive taxa in the Southern California Bight. We evaluated whether broad-scale oceanographic features influence coral density and size by selecting from among generalized additive models (for density) and generalized linear models (for size) that represented competing hypotheses.
model; shelf; habitat
Presence-absence data of benthic macro-invertebrates and associated habitat (i.e., sediment type and depth) were collected using a towed camera sled in selected areas along the coast off southern California. Using this information, we developed generalized linear models to predict the probability of occurrence of five commonly observed taxa (cup corals, hydroids, short and tall sea pens, and brittle stars in the sediment) within the Santa Barbara Channel.
Pacific, Seamount, Assemblage
A study of bathymetric variation in benthic megafauna, based on remotely operated vehicle video transects, on Davidson seamount (1246–3656 m) in the Northeast Pacific Ocean.
Deep-sea coral; Vulnerable marine ecosystems; Essential fish habitat; Fishing impacts; Trawling; Marine conservation; Marine protected areas
The present study reviews US efforts to address fishing impacts on vulnerable deep-sea habitats, particularly deep-water corals, and highlights approaches that are emerging as US best-practices in the context of ecosystem approaches to fisheries management.
Lead-210, Radiometry, Deep sea, Longevity, Isididae
Bamboo corals from Davidson Seamount and from the Gulf of Alaska were aged using a refined 210Pb dating technique. The goal was to determine growth rates and age for several bamboo corals with higher precision.
Endemic, Pacific Seamount, Seamount
Here, we construct a megafaunal inventory for Davidson Seamount off the central California coast based on six expeditions and over 60000 faunal observations. Utilizing additional data collected over the past 25 years by the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute combined with a survey of the literature, we assess the current rates of endemicity and biogeographic ranges for the megafaunal assemblage occurring on this seamount.