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National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Northeast Fisheries Science Center, Benthic Habitat Database
- Dataset ID: NOAA_NEFSC_BenthicDatabase
- Database Version: 20251001-0
- Data Provider: NOAA, Northeast Fisheries Science Center
- Data Contact: Fromm, Steven: steven.fromm@noaa.gov
Locator Map
Geographic Range
- Ocean: North Atlantic
- Fishery Management Council Region(s): New England, Mid-Atlantic, South Atlantic
- Large Marine Ecosystem(s): Northeast U.S. Continental Shelf, Southeast U.S. Continental Shelf, Scotian Shelf, Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico
- Marine Ecoregion(s): Virginian, Gulf of Maine/Bay of Fundy, Bahamian, Floridian, Scotian Shelf, Carolinian
Bounding box
Coordinates are in WGS 84: EPSG:4326
- Minimum Latitude: 24.167
- Maximum Latitude: 44.867
- Minimum Longitude: -81.917
- Maximum Longitude: -63.6
Overview
Note: The numbers below only reflect published records. Additional records may be retained by the Program for further review.
- Number of records: 487
- Number of coral records: 487
- Number of sponge records: 0
- Records with images: 0
- Record type(s): catch record
- Minimum depth (meters): 7
- Maximum depth (meters): 2,451
- Number of records flagged as <50 meters depth: 25
- Time frame: 1953 to 1983
Data Set Description: This is a subset of the Deep Sea Coral Research and Technology Program’s National Database. Benthic fauna data have been collected from 1881 to the present by the National Marine Fisheries Service Laboratories at Woods Hole, MA and Sandy Hook, NJ. The data represent records of corals (a subset of the larger database 21,000 sample sites), most collected between 1956 and 1986, and includes the work by Wigley and Theroux on the macrofauna of the Northeastern United States. Other major studies include Ocean Pulse, the Northeast Monitoring Program, New York Bight, 12 Mile Dumpsite, Long Island Sound and Raritan Bay surveys. Parameters included in these surveys include depth, sediment type, gear type, number, weight, family, class, genus, species name, and abundance. Changes to the original dataset may have been made to conform to the National Database Schema and for quality control purposes. Further information can be found at: https://inport.nmfs.noaa.gov/inport/item/25749
Collection methodogy details:
See link for methods.
Link: https://data.noaa.gov/dataset/dataset/nefsc-benthic-database
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Data Set Level Citation
NOAA, Northeast Fisheries Science Center. Observation date range: 1953 to 1983. Coral or sponge occurrence observations submitted to the NOAA National Database for Deep Sea Corals and Sponges (www.deepseacoraldata.noaa.gov). DSCRTP Dataset ID: NOAA_NEFSC_BenthicDatabase. Database version: 20251001-0.
Note: Individual records within a data set may have additional citations in the ‘Citation’ field.
Taxonomic Summary
Percent of coral, sponge, and fish records by lowest taxonomic rank.
Corals
Number of coral records: 487
| Taxon rank | Percent of all coral records |
|---|---|
| class | 0 % |
| order | 30 % |
| family | 1 % |
| genus | 35 % |
| species | 25 % |
| NA | 8 % |
Sponges
Number of sponge records: 0
## No sponge records in this data set.Fishes
Number of fish records: 0
## No fish records in this data set.Coral Taxa Observed
Note: Nothing will appear here if no coral taxa were observed.
| ScientificName | AphiaID | Order | Family | Records |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Acanella | 125303 | Scleralcyonacea | Keratoisididae | 1 |
| Acanella arbuscula | 125371 | Scleralcyonacea | Keratoisididae | 3 |
| Alcyoniidae | 125269 | Malacalcyonacea | Alcyoniidae | 1 |
| Alcyonium | 125284 | Malacalcyonacea | Alcyoniidae | 1 |
| Astrangia | 135126 | Scleractinia | Astrangiidae | 9 |
| Astrangia poculata | 157967 | Scleractinia | Astrangiidae | 11 |
| Dasmosmilia | 135091 | Scleractinia | Caryophylliidae | 2 |
| Flabellum | 135114 | Scleractinia | Flabellidae | 26 |
| Flabellum (Ulocyathus) alabastrum | 135194 | Scleractinia | Flabellidae | 6 |
| Gorgoniidae | 125275 | Malacalcyonacea | Gorgoniidae | 1 |
| Kophobelemnon | 128492 | Scleralcyonacea | Kophobelemnidae | 9 |
| Octocorallia | 1341 | NA | NA | 2 |
| Paragorgia | 125326 | Scleralcyonacea | Coralliidae | 7 |
| Paragorgia arborea | 125418 | Scleralcyonacea | Coralliidae | 2 |
| Pennatula | 128495 | Scleralcyonacea | Pennatulidae | 68 |
| Pennatula aculeata | 128515 | Scleralcyonacea | Pennatulidae | 68 |
| Pennatulidae | 128484 | Scleralcyonacea | Pennatulidae | 4 |
| Pennatuloidea | 1609360 | Scleralcyonacea | NA | 38 |
| Primnoa | 125321 | Scleralcyonacea | Primnoidae | 47 |
| Primnoa resedaeformis | 125411 | Scleralcyonacea | Primnoidae | 4 |
| Renilla | 267800 | Scleralcyonacea | Renillidae | 1 |
| Scleractinia | 1363 | Scleractinia | NA | 146 |
| Stylatula elegans | 128537 | Scleralcyonacea | Virgulariidae | 30 |
Sponge Taxa Observed
Note: Nothing will appear here if no sponge taxa were observed.
## No sponge records in this data set.