Gulf of Mexico Deep Coral (Lophelia) Communities

USGS and University of North Carolina scientists and collaborators to study Gulf of Mexico Deep Coral (Lophelia) Communities in partnership with the Minerals Management Service. 

The studies described here represent six components of a project funded by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) involving marine scientists from the USGS, the University of North Carolina at Wilmington (UNCW), and other collaborators that will begin in the Summer of 2008 and continue through 2011.

The project will focus on understanding community structure, function, trophodynamics, genetics and microbial ecology within Lophelia (coral) communities and adjacent deep water habitats in the Gulf of Mexico. These efforts are being initiated at the request of the Minerals Management Service (MMS) and were designed to complement an anticipated MMS-funded competitive procurement titled "Continued Investigation of Northern Gulf of Mexico Deepwater Hard Bottom Communities with Emphasis on Lophelia Coral." The separate but integrated USGS and MMS studies will collectively and cooperatively address important ecological issues including resilience, connectivity, and diversity of deep-sea coral communities.

US Geological Survey Deepwater Program: Lophelia II: Continuing Ecological Research on Deep-Sea Corals and Deep Reef Habitats in the Gulf of Mexico (2008-2011)

• Physical oceanography, ecology, and overall cruise support; Trophodynamics; Benthic Ecology - Part I, II, & IV
  
  
• Phylogeography and population genetics structure of the deep-sea coral Lophelia pertusa- Part III
  
  
• Microbiology in Deep-Coral Habitats: 2008-2011 - Part V
  
  
• Benthic Ecology, Trophodynamics, and Ecosystem Connectivity of Deep Reefs - Part VI