FAU Institutional Repository http://purl.fcla.edu/fau/fauir This paper was submitted by the faculty of FAU’s Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute. Notice: ©2003 South Carolina Department of Natural Resources. This publication may be cited as: Arendt, M. D., Barans, C. A., Sedberry, G. R., Van Dolah, R. F., Reed, J. K., & Ross, S. W. (2003). Summary of seafloor mapping and benthic sampling in 200‐2000m, from North Carolina through Florida. Final report for Phase II of the Deep‐Water Habitat Mapping Project. [Submitted to the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council and the NOAA Coastal Services Center]. (pp. 1‐156). Charleston, SC: South Carolina Department of Natural Resources. Summary of Seafloor Mapping and Benthic Sampling Conducted in 200-2000m, from North Carolina through Florida 200 m 2000 m Final Report to the NOAA Coastal Services Center Deep-Water Habitat Mapping Project, Phase II April 2003 Final Report Deep-Water Habitat Mapping Project Phase II Summary of Seafloor Mapping and Benthic Sampling in 200-2000m from North Carolina through Florida by: Michael D. Arendt, Charles A. Barans, George R. Sedberry, and Robert F. Van Dolah Marine Resources Research Institute South Carolina Department of Natural Resources 217 Fort Johnson Road Charleston, SC 29422 John K. Reed Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution Division of Biomedical Marine Research 5600 U.S. 1, North Fort Pierce, FL 34946 Steven W. Ross 55301 Holt Road Wilmington, NC 28409 Submitted to: South Atlantic Fishery Management Council One Southpark Circle, Suite 306 Charleston, SC 294407-4699 And NOAA Coastal Services Center 2234 South Hobson Avenue Charleston, SC 29405-2413 April 2003 Table of Contents List of Tables, Figures, and Appendices………………………………………...…………i Introduction………………………………………………………………………………..1 Methods……………………………………………………………………………………2 Results and Discussion……………………………………………………………………3 Summary of data sources ..………………………………………………………..3 Major findings …………………………………………………………………….3 Cost assessment for obtaining data in Phase III………………………………….11 Acknowledgements………………………………………………………………………12 References (some cited in text, others cited in Appendix IV)…………………………...12 Appendix I……………………………………………………………………………….23 Appendix II………………………………………………………….…………………...24 Appendix III……………………………………………………………………………...27 Appendix IV………………………………………………………………………...30-156 List of Tables, Figures, and Appendices Table 1. Descriptive characteristics of data collected by various programs within the Deep-Water Habitat Mapping region. Data exist in either electronic (E) or hard-copy (H) formats, which were either interpreted (I) or un-interpreted (U).………………………..10 Figure 1. Distribution of large-scale, regional studies conducted in the Deep-Water Habitat Mapping Project study area. Data for regional studies may be continuous or dis- continuous within the coverage area. Program codes are defined in Appendix II.………5 Figure 2. Distribution of major programs (excluding most R/V Eastward data due to limited access to cruise reports) conducted within the northern portion of the NC sub- region. Program codes are defined in Appendix II ………………………………………6 Figure 3. Distribution of major programs (excluding most R/V Eastward data due to limited access to cruise reports) conducted within the southern portion of the NC sub- region. Program codes are defined in Appendix II ………………………………………7 Figure 4. Distribution of programs limited in spatial extent, primarily within the SC-GA sub-region. See Figures 3-5 for additional programs. Program codes are defined in Appendix II.……………………………………………………………………………….8 Figure 5. Distribution of programs limited in spatial extent within the FL sub-region and two multi-source interpretative data layers (PP01, OM01). Program codes are defined in Appendix II……………………………………………………………….……………….9 Figure 6. Temporal distribution of sampling in the Deep-Water Habitat Mapping region…………………………………………………………………………………….11 Appendix I. Major organizations and vessels conducting benthic or seismic sampling in the Deep-Water Habitat Mapping Project region since 1950……………………...…….23 Appendix II. Programs and program codes (n =127) identified in the Deep-Water Habitat Mapping Project Phase II database……………………………………………...24 Appendix III. Gear codes included in the Deep-Water Habitat Mapping Project Phase II database…………………………………………………………………………………..27 Appendix IV. Detailed profiles of the programs (n =127, in alphabetical order) in the Deep-Water Habitat Mapping Project Phase II database …………………………..30-156 i Introduction Biological habitats and mineral resources in deep-waters should be identified, summarized into a database and their locations mapped. Comprehensive maps of deep- water resources are a prerequisite for managing these areas and their associated resources. In addition, this type of information is useful in mitigating conflicting user- group interests and protecting biodiversity. In the South Atlantic Bight (SAB), biological habitats of importance to deep-water fisheries resources include coral mounds, “live bottom” areas, rock outcroppings, man-made structures, tilefish mud bottom, and possibly mineral deposit areas such as manganese nodules and pavement sites. Congressional mandates, such as the Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) provisions of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, and recognition of Habitat Areas of Particular Concern (HAPC) under the Magnuson Act re-authorization, have emphasized protecting critical habitats and their associated resources (Murawski et al. 2000, Reed 2000). In the southeastern U.S., information on the distribution and abundance of resources, which was needed to manage and protect such areas, resulted from extensive mapping of specific substrates (e.g., reefs) and species associations (e.g., sponge and/or coral; obligate reef fishes) on the continental shelf during past 20-25 years. Although much is known about bottom type on the continental shelf, considerably less is known about the distribution and importance of bottom type in the waters beyond the shelf edge. In 1985, the Southeast Area Monitoring and Assessment Program (SEAMAP-South Atlantic) established a Bottom Mapping Work Group (BMWG) to develop a regional database that describes the location and characteristics of bottom habitats throughout the South Atlantic Bight (SAB). The primary focus of this effort was to identify the location and extent of hard-bottom reef habitats, since these areas represent essential fish habitat (EFH) for a wide variety of species that are commercially and recreationally harvested in the South Atlantic region. In order for state and federal resource agencies to adequately assess reef-fish populations and the effects of changes in fishing pressure, the distribution and amount of hard-bottom reef habitat available for these species must be identified. These important reef habitats also need to be protected from adverse effects related to various anthropogenic stresses. As part of the BMWG’s overall effort to identify critical habitat areas, bottom areas where there was less definitive evidence of reef habitat, no evidence of reef habitat, and the locations of artificial reef were also identified. The efforts of the SEAMAP-SA BMWG resulted in a regional database with data layers available in ArcView GIS format. Also, a report was prepared by the Florida Marine Research Institute (FMRI), with maps of different habitat types to a depth of 200 m. The database (SEAMAP-SA 2001) includes specific point and line coordinates for many different types of records (eg. Television, submersible, diver observations, trawl, trap, side scan records, etc.) as well as a summary of all data available within a 1 minute x 1 minute grid overlay for the entire region. This regional summary of the data has also become an integral base layer of the NOAA Ocean Planning and Information System (OPIS) for the southeast. 1 In 2001, the SEAMAP and the BMWG identified deep-water resources as a priority area for mapping, and initiated an expansion to the existing shelf database to include deep-water data. The objective was to synthesize data on habitat distributions for water depths between 200 and 2000 m within the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) extending from just south of the VA-NC border to the Florida Keys. This effort was to be completed in three phases. In Phase I, a subcommittee of the BMWG began identifying benthic data sampling methods and developing protocols to evaluate each type of deep-water data using standardized protocols to define bottom type. Phase II (described in this report) involved identifying and summarizing the relevant biological and geological data sets within the project study area for inclusion into a relational database. In Phase III, the data sets identified in Phase II will be acquired and the protocols from Phase I applied during the analysis portion of this effort. Analysis of data sets acquired in Phase III will be compatible with analyses for the shelf database (SEAMAP-SA 2001), facilitating the creation of a combined shelf, slope, and Blake Plateau GIS database that will be available on CD-ROM via the Internet, possibly as an inter-active (i.e., data and map serving capability) product. Methods Identification and summarization of data sources within the project study area was partitioned into three sub-regions (NC, SC and GA, FL). The primary contractor for completing this effort was the Marine Resources Research Institute (MRRI) of the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, with sub-contracts to Dr. Steven W. Ross