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National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Mapping Essential Fish Habitat in the US Caribbean to Inform MPA Management; Nancy Foster, July 2019
- Dataset ID: NOAA_NF-19-01
- Database Version: 20260416-1
- Data Provider: NOAA, National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science
- Data Contact: Etnoyer, Peter: peter.etnoyer@noaa.gov
Locator Map
Geographic Range
- Ocean: North Atlantic
- Fishery Management Council Region(s): Caribbean
- Large Marine Ecosystem(s): Caribbean Sea
- Marine Ecoregion(s): Eastern Caribbean, Greater Antilles
Bounding box
Coordinates are in WGS 84: EPSG:4326
- Minimum Latitude: 17.71385
- Maximum Latitude: 18.20503
- Minimum Longitude: -65.10892
- Maximum Longitude: -64.85602
Overview
Note: The numbers below only reflect published records. Additional records may be retained by the Program for further review.
- Number of records: 2,256
- Number of coral records: 1,051
- Number of sponge records: 1,205
- Records with images: 2256
- Record type(s): still image, specimen
- Minimum depth (meters): 40
- Maximum depth (meters): 262
- Number of records flagged as <50 meters depth: 161
- Time frame: 2019 to 2020
Data Set Description: This is a subset of the Deep Sea Coral Research and Technology Program’s National Database. NOAA Ship Nancy Foster NF-19-01: Mapping Essential Fish Habitat in the US Caribbean to Inform MPA Management (2019). In 2019, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) undertook its fifteenth year of scientific operations in the US Caribbean aboard NOAA Ship Nancy Foster, funded by Coral Reef Conservation Program. The purpose of the work is to map and survey coral reef habitat in support of marine management objectives. The purpose of this cruise was to collect multibeam sonar bathymetry, acoustic backscatter, ROV optical validation, and fishery acoustics within coastal waters of Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands. The data represent observations of deep-sea corals and sponges observed during the surveys in the following localities:Frederiksted Pier, North St. Croix, NNW St. Croix, West St. Croix, South St. Thomas, NW St. Croix, and St. Thomas. This research and exploration cruise was conducted between July 2 through July 11, 2019. 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://repository.library.noaa.gov/view/noaa/25356
Collection methodogy details:
See link for methods.
Link: https://repository.library.noaa.gov/view/noaa/25356
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Data Set Level Citation
NOAA, National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science. Observation date range: 2019 to 2020. Coral or sponge occurrence observations submitted to the NOAA National Database for Deep Sea Corals and Sponges (www.deepseacoraldata.noaa.gov). Principal investigator: Battista, Tim. DSCRTP Dataset ID: NOAA_NF-19-01. Database version: 20260416-1.
Note: Individual records within a data set may have additional citations in the ‘Citation’ field.
Expedition Details
| SurveyID | Vessel | VehicleName | SamplingEquipment | RecordType |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NF1901 | Nancy Foster R/V | Mohawk ROV | ROV | still image, specimen |
Taxonomic Summary
Percent of coral, sponge, and fish records by lowest taxonomic rank.
Corals
Number of coral records: 1,051
| Taxon rank | Percent of all coral records |
|---|---|
| class | 0 % |
| order | 9 % |
| family | 16 % |
| genus | 70 % |
| species | 5 % |
Sponges
Number of sponge records: 1,205
| Taxon rank | Percent of all sponge records |
|---|---|
| phylum | 0 % |
| class | 73 % |
| family | 1 % |
| genus | 18 % |
| species | 7 % |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Acanthogorgia | 125293 | Malacalcyonacea | Acanthogorgiidae | 3 |
| Acanthogorgiidae | 125272 | Malacalcyonacea | Acanthogorgiidae | 40 |
| Antipatharia | 22549 | Antipatharia | NA | 81 |
| Antipathes | 103302 | Antipatharia | Antipathidae | 22 |
| Antipathes caribbeana | 283884 | Antipatharia | Antipathidae | 1 |
| Antipathes furcata | 103312 | Antipatharia | Antipathidae | 3 |
| Aphanipathes | 103303 | Antipatharia | Aphanipathidae | 3 |
| Aquaumbridae | 701654 | Malacalcyonacea | Aquaumbridae | 11 |
| Bebryce | 125308 | Malacalcyonacea | Acanthogorgiidae | 19 |
| Caliacis nutans | 289550 | Octocorallia incertae sedis | NA | 1 |
| Callogorgia | 125317 | Scleralcyonacea | Primnoidae | 7 |
| Chrysogorgiidae | 125273 | Scleralcyonacea | Chrysogorgiidae | 7 |
| Distichopora | 205513 | Anthoathecata | Stylasteridae | 44 |
| Elatopathes | 267407 | Antipatharia | Aphanipathidae | 8 |
| Ellisella | 125298 | Scleralcyonacea | Ellisellidae | 124 |
| Ellisellidae | 125274 | Scleralcyonacea | Ellisellidae | 4 |
| Iciligorgia schrammi | 290178 | Malacalcyonacea | Melithaeidae | 21 |
| Leptogorgia | 125302 | Malacalcyonacea | Gorgoniidae | 12 |
| Madracis | 135125 | Scleractinia | Pocilloporidae | 65 |
| Muricea | 177745 | Malacalcyonacea | Plexauridae | 21 |
| Nephtheidae | 146762 | Malacalcyonacea | Nephtheidae | 8 |
| Nicella | 125299 | Scleralcyonacea | Ellisellidae | 127 |
| Octocorallia | 1341 | NA | NA | 4 |
| Paramuricea | 125311 | Malacalcyonacea | Acanthogorgiidae | 3 |
| Plexauridae | 125277 | Malacalcyonacea | Plexauridae | 88 |
| Plumarella | 177839 | Scleralcyonacea | Primnoidae | 14 |
| Primnoidae | 125278 | Scleralcyonacea | Primnoidae | 2 |
| Scleractinia | 1363 | Scleractinia | NA | 12 |
| Stichopathes | 103308 | Antipatharia | Antipathidae | 206 |
| Stylasteridae | 22805 | Anthoathecata | Stylasteridae | 4 |
| Swiftia exserta | 286416 | Malacalcyonacea | Plexauridae | 27 |
| Thesea | 125315 | Malacalcyonacea | Malacalcyonacea incertae sedis | 9 |
| Villogorgia | 125316 | Malacalcyonacea | Acanthogorgiidae | 50 |
Sponge Taxa Observed
Note: Nothing will appear here if no sponge taxa were observed.
| ScientificName | AphiaID | Order | Family | Records |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agelas | 131771 | Agelasida | Agelasidae | 100 |
| Agelas conifera | 164824 | Agelasida | Agelasidae | 15 |
| Amphimedon nodosa | 1814728 | Haplosclerida | Niphatidae | 35 |
| Aplysina | 131975 | Verongiida | Aplysinidae | 90 |
| Aplysina archeri | 169636 | Verongiida | Aplysinidae | 13 |
| Demospongiae | 164811 | NA | NA | 885 |
| Porifera | 558 | NA | NA | 2 |
| Tretodictyidae | 131690 | Sceptrulophora | Tretodictyidae | 17 |
| Xestospongia | 131849 | Haplosclerida | Petrosiidae | 25 |
| Xestospongia muta | 166894 | Haplosclerida | Petrosiidae | 23 |