Research Technical Report

Corals, Sponges, and An Octopus Garden in Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary

King, C. and J. Brown (March 2019)

Oceanography 32(1):52-53, supplement

DOI: 10.5670/oceanog.2019.supplement.01

Excerpt:

Multibeam data collected during 2017 E/V Nautilus cruise NA080 were used to identify dive targets southeast of Davidson Seamount in a previously unexplored deepwater (›3,000 m) region of basaltic rocky reef. Objectives of the 2018 NA103 cruise included: characterization of the rocky reef area and documentation of the distribution and abundance of corals, sponges, fishes and other biota; collection of biological samples of corals, sponges, and associated species for identification; exploration of previously unseen areas of Davidson Seamount; documentation of associations of fishes, corals, sponges, and rocky substrate; collection of sediment and water samples to analyze for the presence of persistent organic pollutants (POPs); and mapping along the Big Sur coast and the southwest corner of the DSMZ. Unfortunately, due to technical issues and weather, NA103 only completed two ROV dives.

Suggested Citation:

King, C. and J. Brown. 2019. Corals, sponges, and an octopus garden in Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. In: N.A. Raineault and J. Flanders (editors), New frontiers in ocean exploration: The E/V Nautilus, NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer, and R/V Falkor 2018 field season. Oceanography 32(1):52-53, supplement. https://doi.org/10.5670/oceanog.2019.supplement.01.