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NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration Quick Look Report

Expedition Title: \_[Exploration of Unique Outer Shelf and Slope "Reef"
Habitats off the Southeastern United States]{.underline}

+------------------+---------------------------------------------------+
| Results (please  | Details (please describe any novel discoveries in |
| check all        | the discipline, answers such as "possible,        |
| disciplines in   | awaiting data analysis" and "no apparent          |
| which this       | discoveries" are acceptable)                      |
| cruise collected |                                                   |
| data)            | Much of the below are estimates as data analyses  |
|                  | have not yet been conducted.                      |
+------------------+---------------------------------------------------+
| Bathymetric      | (please note total area mapped and technology     |
| Mapping          | employed, e.g. multibeam, side scan, etc.)        |
|                  |                                                   |
| ¨x Yes ¨ No      | Single beam (Knudsen 12 khz) surveys were         |
|                  | conducted and data saved from eight general areas |
|                  | from Cape Canaveral to Cape Lookout and from a    |
|                  | few tracks between areas..                        |
+------------------+---------------------------------------------------+
| New Species      | (please note number, type, and significance ,i.e. |
| Discovered       | radically new vs. slight adaptation of known      |
|                  | species)                                          |
| ¨x? Yes ¨ No     |                                                   |
|                  | Numbers of these are uncertain and await          |
|                  | confirmation in the lab, but there seem to be     |
|                  | some new invertebrates possibly.                  |
+------------------+---------------------------------------------------+
| Bio-prospecting  | (please note number, type, and potential use of   |
|                  | new compounds discovered)                         |
| ¨ Yes ¨ No       |                                                   |
+------------------+---------------------------------------------------+
| Habitat Range    | (please note species discovered in new habitats   |
| Extended         | and how far from previous range were they found0  |
|                  |                                                   |
| ¨x Yes ¨ No      | For both fishes and invertebrates there are       |
|                  | several range extensions, but these also await    |
|                  | final confirmation in the lab.                    |
+------------------+---------------------------------------------------+
| Chemical         | (please note new or unusual chemical properties   |
| Processes        | such as methane seeps, hypersaline pools, vents,  |
|                  | etc. observed)                                    |
| ¨ Yes ¨X No      |                                                   |
+------------------+---------------------------------------------------+
| Geologic         | (please note new or unusual geologic processes    |
| Processes        | that may impact scientific understanding of the   |
|                  | region)                                           |
| ¨x Yes ¨ No      |                                                   |
|                  | We noted great underlying geological differences  |
|                  | in the general structure of formations upon which |
|                  | corals were attached. Banks north of Cape Fear    |
|                  | seemed to be coral formed while those to the      |
|                  | south appeared to have different morphologies     |
|                  | suggesting different formation histories.         |
+------------------+---------------------------------------------------+
| Physical         | (please note new or unusual oceanographic         |
| Processes        | processes that may impact scientific              |
|                  | understanding of the region)                      |
| ¨x Yes ¨ No      |                                                   |
|                  | Although not new, we documented currents and      |
|                  | water column parameters at every work site.       |
|                  | Currents were more extreme on the surface and     |
|                  | bottom than experienced in previous cruises.      |
+------------------+---------------------------------------------------+
| Sub/ROV/AUV      | (please note name, type, and cumulative hours of  |
| Dives            | bottom time for each platform / if available      |
|                  | please provide average working time per dive for  |
| ¨x Yes ¨ No      | each platform / please note if new depth records  |
|                  | were set)                                         |
|                  |                                                   |
|                  | We completed 25 JSL submersible dives, averaging  |
|                  | 3.5 hrs each (surface to surface).                |
+------------------+---------------------------------------------------+
| New Technology   | (please note any new tools developed for or       |
|                  | during this cruise, also identify first use of an |
| ¨x Yes ¨ No      | existing technology in a new application) We      |
|                  | developed/manufactured several coral sampling     |
|                  | devices, sediment sampling devices and traps to   |
|                  | test and deploy from the submersible.             |
+------------------+---------------------------------------------------+
| Maritime         | (please note discoveries impacting knowledge of   |
| Cultural         | the past, i.e. number and type of shipwrecks)     |
| Heritage         |                                                   |
|                  |                                                   |
| ¨ Yes X¨ No      |                                                   |
+------------------+---------------------------------------------------+
| Outreach         | (please describe outreach channels, e.g. web,     |
|                  | port call, etc., used in this project)            |
| ¨x Yes ¨ No      |                                                   |
|                  | We created and maintained a web site at the NC    |
|                  | Museum of Natural Sciences and contributed daily  |
|                  | updates to it and answered questions submitted    |
|                  | through it. We also carried two educators who     |
|                  | will take outreach products from this cruise to   |
|                  | various audiences.                                |
+------------------+---------------------------------------------------+
| Students         | (please note the number and level of students on  |
| Involved         | the expedition)                                   |
|                  |                                                   |
| ¨x Yes ¨ No      | Our crew included two graduate students,          |
|                  | representing UNC-Wilmington and McMaster Univ.,   |
|                  | working on Sargassum communities and coral        |
|                  | aging/climatology, respectively.                  |
+------------------+---------------------------------------------------+
| M                | (please identify the formal disciplines           |
| ultidisciplinary | represented in the science party)                 |
|                  |                                                   |
| ¨x Yes ¨ No      | Ichthyology/fishery biology, Invertebrate         |
|                  | zoology, Multimedia, Genetics, Education,         |
|                  | Climatology                                       |
+------------------+---------------------------------------------------+
| Exploration of   | (please note if the area of operations had been   |
| New Regions      | previously studied, if so please check no and     |
|                  | approximate as slight, moderate or significant,   |
| ¨x Yes ¨ No      | the level of knowledge before the cruise) During  |
|                  | the cruise we sampled new coral bank areas as     |
|                  | well as areas that we and others had previously   |
|                  | sampled. The degree of previous sampling ranged   |
|                  | from slight to moderate.                          |
+------------------+---------------------------------------------------+

NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration

FY 2004 Expeditions

Quick Look Report Required Elements

**Project title:** **Exploration of Unique Outer Shelf and Slope "Reef"
Habitats off the Southeastern**

> **United States**

**Principal Investigator and institution:** (as listed in original
proposal):

Steve W. Ross, Lead PI (University of NC at Wilmington, Center for
Marine Science, Wilmington, NC)

Kenneth J. Sulak (US Geological Survey, Center for Aquatic Resource
Studies, Gainesville, FL)

Martha S. Nizinski (NMFS Systematics Laboratory, Smithsonian Inst.,
Washington, DC)

Elizabeth Baird (North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, Raleigh, NC)

**Expedition title:** (working name of the expedition): Life on the Edge
II: Exploring Deep Ocean Habitats

Expedition dates and itinerary: CRUISE PLAN ITINERARY (8 - 22 June 2004)

8 June - Science crews arrived at Fort Pierce/Link Port and loaded the
R/V Seward Johnson, being ready to depart by early afternoon (around
1500 hr). Science crew organized/stowed gear in afternoon and evening.
Crew & PI meetings began in the evening as we steamed to the first site.

**9 June** - First Dive Day: on station around northern Cape Canaveral
sites (**28 47.6258\' N, 79 37.5859\' W**, 2350-2500 ft.), early
morning. All dives and other operations were within 3-5 nmi of the above
target location. Upon arrival in new areas bottom surveys located dive
sites for next day.

**10 June** - Jacksonville Lithoherms (**30 30.1194\' N, 79 39.4743\'
W** to \~**30 48.5\'N, 79 38.5\'W**, 1800-2000 ft.), methods same as
above.

**11 June -** Generally same area and methods as above. After last dive,
steamed north to Savannah area. Night watch conducted depth sounder
surveys for next day dive and other sampling as time allowed.

**12 June -** Savannah Lithoherms & "Alvin" dive area (**31 44.4447\'
N, 79 05.2685\' W** to \~**31 48\' N, 79 15\' W**, depth
1650-1800\'), same methods. After last dive, steamed east to Stetson
area.

**13 June -** "The Stetson Banks" (**32 00.9731\' N, 77 43.3354' W**,
2160 ft.), same methods as above. Lost a dive here due to inclement
weather. After the dive, steamed toward "southern NC coral banks".

**14 June -** "Southern NC coral bank" (\~ **33 33.75\' N, 76 28.6\'
W**). Kept out of this area by navy ship operations. Ran inshore to MPA
area (\~**33 25\' N, 77 00\' W**, depth 260-300\') and conducted two
late dives. Methods same as above. After last dive of day, moved vessel
to northern NC deep coral bank sites & upon arrival conducted depth
surveys for next day dives (net sampling by night watch when possible).

**15 June -** Submersible dives on the *Lophelia* bank dive sites off
Cape Lookout (around **34 19.42\' N, 75 47.48\' W** or **34 11.38\'
N, 75 53.78\' W**, depth 1200-1375\'). Same methods as above, moved
toward coral bank just to the south during night & trawl sampled in area
by night watch.

**16 June** - Coral bank just 6 nm south. Same methods. After last dive,
steamed south to coral bank off Cape Fear.

**17 June** - "Southern NC coral bank" (\~ **33 33.75\' N, 76 28.6\'
W**). R/V Cape Fear brought VIPs/media out around 1230 hrs to observe
our operations for this day. Crew & PIs interacted with them. They
departed about 1600 hrs. After last dive, steamed as quickly as possible
south to the "Stetson Bank" area (see above).

**18 June** - "Stetson area", same methods. After last dive, moved SW to
Jacksonville Lithoherm area (see above).

**19 June** - Jacksonville Lithoherms, same methods. After last dive,
steamed south to northern Cape Canaveral site, conducting bottom surveys
along the whole track.

**20 June** - Site just north of Cape Canaveral (same area as 9 June).
After last dive, moved south to unsurveyed area just south of Cape
Canaveral. Conducted brief night lighting station along the way.

**21 June** - Southern Canaveral site (\~**28 02.04\' N, 79 36.51\'
W**). Ship steamed for Link Port, FL (early evening). PI debriefing
meeting about cruise and future work.

22 June - Arrive Link Port (around noon). Crew moved all gear off vessel
& departed.

Chief Scientist and institution: Steve W. Ross, Lead PI (University of
NC at Wilmington)

Co-sponsors / partners / participating organizations: (a table of names
and affiliations)

Besides the above principal investigators and their institutions, cruise
personnel and cooperators included the following:

Art Howard (Napro Communications) - professional videographer

Dr. Cheryl Morrison (USGS) - coral genetics

Branwen Williams (McMaster Univ.) - graduate student, coral aging and
climate change

Dr. Alan Brooks (USGS) - invertebrate specialist

Andrea Quattrini (UNCW) - data manager, deep reef and larval fish
specialist

Tara Casazza (UNCW) - graduate student, Sargassum community specialist

Andy Quaid (USGS) - GIS specialist and data management

Bill Harden (USGS) - specimen photography and isotope work

Mike Randall (USGS) - night watch chief, isotope work

George Yeargin (USGS) - gear fabrication, gear management

Katie Cartwright - Educator-at-Sea, help in all outreach and education

Jeremy Potter (NOAA OE) - liason between all parties, daily
communication with shore

Steve Rutz (NOAA) - NOAA data management

WRAL television - helped with HD video issues and provided some
equipment and support

NURC (UNC-Wilmington) - provided vessel support for Media/VIP day and
support for an ROV cruise

Bill Lange (Woods Hole Oceanographic Inst.) - provided HD camera gear
for the submersible

**Vessel Identification:** R/V Seward Johnson (Harbor Branch
Oceanographic Inst.)

Primary Equipment: (embarked vehicles, sensors, and tools of
significance)

The major gear used in this cruise was the research submersible
Johnson-Sea-Link I, equipped with high definition video camera, digital
still camera, chemical dispensers, suction devices and storage
containers, various other receptacles, Seabird environmental data
logger, and grab claw. We also used various traps and collectors that we
especially built for use on the submersible. Digital video cameras and
audio recorders were used from inside the submersible. When the
submersible was not in the water we deployed from the surface ship a 3.5
m small mesh bottom trawl, a 2-3 m neuston net, a variety of plankton
nets, and dipnets.

**Geographic area of operations** (identify common name as well as
boundary coordinates for the area, and a map if available): "South
Atlantic Bight", Southeastern US coast from Cape Canaveral area to Cape
Lookout in depth range of 80-700 m. Latitude range covered 34 19.5\' N
to 28 02.0\' N. See attached map for operational region and target
study areas.

Summary of Expedition Objectives: (proposed objectives that were met as
a result of the expedition)**:**

We collected adequate data (along with data from past cruises) to
address all of the mission objectives. However, the actual degree of
success can not be measured until extensive data analyses are completed.

[Science Objectives]{.underline}

1.  Define poorly known or previously undocumented deep "reef" habitats.

2.  Define community structure (sizes, abundances, distributions) for
    all study sites (whole water column).

3.  Classify reef and off-reef habitat zones and document faunal
    affinities.

4.  Classify deep (\> 250m) reef fish and macroinvertebrate species for
    degree of habitat affinity or obligation.

5.  Collect deep water corals (mostly *Lophelia*) for aging and climate
    anlaysis.

6.  Collect deep water corals for genetics studies.

7.  Define general trophodynamics of coral bank systems.

8.  Collect data in proposed NC Marine Protected Area to evaluate the
    boundaries and habitats.

9.  Continue investigating the spread of deep water invasive species
    (e.g., lionfish) in the area.1

10. Collect specimens of all biota as vouchers for photographic, video,
    and visual observations.

[Education/Outreach Objectives]{.underline}

1\. Provide at sea education experience and real-time at sea
communication to the public.

2\. Provide education/outreach products to a variety of audiences as the
project progresses.

3\. Provide at sea science experience for a public school teacher.

4\. Complete a High Definition film targeted at museum and television
audiences.

**Milestones Achieved:**

Summarizing the linear cruise track of the vessel during the 14 days at
sea, we covered over 1,220 nautical miles (round trip from Ft. Pierce
Inlet); however, this does not account for the large amount of survey
transects completed in each study area. Good weather facilitated our
progress. Even so, covering this much territory and sampling on schedule
in each target area was considered a great accomplishment. We
successfully completed 25 JSL submersible dives, losing only one planned
dive to poor weather. Although other ship-board sampling with nets was
not done as much as we had hoped, part of that was due to the large
distances we had to cover between study areas.

We added observations and collections to the data already accumulated
from sites we had previously sampled. More importantly we sampled many
coral bank areas we had not sampled and some coral bank areas no one had
sampled. We collected over 50 samples for stable isotope analyses. We
collected several fish and invertebrate species (awaiting
identification) that may be either new species (invertebrates?) or range
extensions. The examples of deep water lobster and shrimps were
particularly valuable. We observed and collected at least five different
species of galatheid crabs. The video data documenting habitat usage and
behaviors of both invertebrates and fishes were some of the first
collected for many species. The filmed galatheid feeding behavior is new
data. Overall, our collections are a significant increase in known
invertebrate faunal diversity associated with deep coral banks. We
greatly increased our knowledge about coral species diversity in general
in this region. There appeared to be more species of corals to the
south, albeit the banks were less well developed, compared to those off
NC.

We collected samples from every dive and every study area over the whole
1,200 miles for both genetics studies and coral aging/climatology.
Having such a broad spread of collections adds great value to these
samples. Ninety six coral samples (from at least 7 species) were
collected for genetics work and 30 coral samples were collected for
aging. These will be supplemented later this summer by samples from the
Gulf of Mexico, making them even more valuable.

We conducted bathymetric surveys of eight areas of suspected or known
coral bank concentrations. Data were saved electronically and will be
used to construct rudimentary maps of these areas. Such maps will
facilitate future research and management.

Besides its research value, the extensive High Definition underwater
video footage we collected is unique and will be used in a number of
education, outreach, and public relations venues. These represent the
first such video data collected in these deep sea habitats (to our
knowledge). A large amount of surface high definition and mini-DV
footage were also collected and documented life at sea during a science
expedition.

Incorporating education aspects into this cruise broadened the
dimensions of the cruise considerably. By having two educators (one a
co-PI) involved in all aspects of the work we were able to easily have
real time translation of technical matters that were sent off the ship
each day and that will be used after the cruise.

Sample log entries: (from any daily logs of activities)

See attached as an example of a submersible dive data sheet and log. See
also example of other gear deployment data sheet.

**Summary of Digital Data Collected:** (Identify volume in MB/GB/ etc. &
type of data.

Underwater High Definition Videotapes - about 50 hours

Underwater Mini-DV Videotapes - about 100 hours

Digital audio recordings - 150 hours, 1.5 GB

Depth sounder and ship recorded data logs - 4 GB

Underwater Digital still photographs - 185 MB

**Summary of outreach and educational activities**:

The education and outreach for the 2004 Life on the Edge mission
consisted of 4 primary pieces; the educator at sea, an interactive
website, a High Definition (HD) production, and a media day. Each
component was designed to reach particular audiences with the intent of
providing broad coverage for the cruise. The educator at sea supports
outstanding educators by giving first hand experience in a research
setting and providing ways to apply the experience to classroom
curriculum. The interactive website is a near real-time way for students
and the general public to virtually participate in the mission. In
addition to daily journals, visitors to the site can download
curriculum, submit questions to the research team, and view images and
videoclips. The HD production for the North Carolina Museum of Natural
Sciences (NCMNS) has been a three year effort and will result in a movie
shown to hundreds of thousands of visitors a year on the 22 foot HD
screen in the Museum's auditorium. The media/VIP day allows members of
the press and other special guests to visit the ship and see field
research as it occurs.

Educator at Sea

Educator at Sea, Katie Cartwright from Camp E-Ma-Henwu, (a
wilderness-experience based school for at-risk youth) served on the
night watch. She became familiar with the processes for labeling and
preserving specimens, running transects, and night lighting. She
collected videos, data, and photographs to create curriculum materials
for her students and the NCMNS website. Katie was the observer in the
rear compartment of the submersible for two dives.

The North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences Website

The NCMNS website served as the primary host for the interactive web
component of the mission. Daily journals, including pictures, were
transmitted every day of the cruise. The email system on board provided
some challenges initially with problems in both sending and receiving
messages for the first several days of the cruise. There were about 15
questions received during the first 12 days of the trip. This number is
much lower than anticipated which may be due to the fact that most
students are out of school at this point. Previous missions have
occurred while school was in session and the number of questions
received has been much higher. Although the number received was lower
than expected, the questions came from a several states including North
Carolina, Virginia, Tennessee, and Washington.

High Definition Filming and Digital photography

A High Definition camera mounted externally on the submersible was a new
addition to the continuing HD work. This camera came from Woods Hole
Oceanographic Institution Advanced Imaging and Visualization Laboratory
and is being funded primarily by the NCMNS. The use of HD enhanced the
images collected for research as well as supporting the HD production.
Art Howard, of NAPRO Communications, has been shooting footage for the
HD production for the past three years. He has recorded hundreds of
hours of the process of science at sea, including deck work, scenes from
inside the submersible, interviews with scientists, preservation of
specimens and day to day operations of a research mission. High
Definition technology provides the scientists with more detailed images
than is possible with standard video. The camera fed to both an HD deck
and a Mini-DV deck. The camera worked well and recorded to the Mini-DV
deck on every dive. The Mini-DV tapes are the ones used by the
scientists for research. The HD deck did not perform as well. It
recorded approximately 70% of the dives. Typically, it would function
for two hours and then shut down. The Harbor Branch sub crew worked
diligently to help determine the cause of the problem, but there was
never a clear reason for the success or failure of the HD tape deck.
Even though the HD deck was not reliable, more than 42 hours of
underwater High Definition footage was recorded. Remarkable images of
life under the sea were captured for use in the final production.

In addition to the HD video, day to day work of the science team was
recorded on Mini-DV. A short video of the mission was created for
distribution at the media day. An additional video summary and
compilation of digital still images is being created for posting on the
NOAA OE and the NCMNS websites.

The still images, HD video, and Mini-DV collected during the mission
will be used for several future applications. These might include an
educational interactive CDROM/DVD for use by students, a "Bio Bulletin"
for exhibit in the NCMNS and possible distribution by the Museum of
Natural History in New York, and audio clips for NPR's "Our Ocean
World."

Media/VIP Day

A media / VIP Day was held on Thursday, June 16. This event was
coordinated by Maria Sadowski, Assistant Communications Director at
NCMNS, and supported by the National Undersea Research Center at UNC-
Wilmington, NC. The group that came out to the ship included members of
the media, political representatives, and supporters of the NCMNS. The
entourage included the following:

Margaret Lillard and Sara Davis - Associated Press

Rick Armstrong - WRAL TV Reporter/Photographer

John Sall and son -- Museum Friends

Anna Menzies and son Holt -- Museum Friends

Bill Chandler -- Marine Conservation Biology Institute

Fred Gorell -- NOAA

Mary Ellen Stevens -- Office of North Carolina Representative Mike
McIntyre

Wayne Starnes - North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences Curator of
Fishes

Walter Sturgeon -- North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences Assistant
Director

Communications Intern, Wilmington Star newspaper.

The group arrived via the R/V Cape Fear out of UNC Wilmington. After a
brief welcome and introduction with specimens kept in the lab, the group
was treated to an outstanding lunch. A tour of the ship followed, with a
visit to the bridge, bow and then to the submersible on the rear deck.
Craig Caddigan, head of the sub crew, demonstrated the remote control
arm and Steve Ross (Chief Scientist) talked briefly about the
capabilities of the sub. The visitors then met some of the scientists in
the dry lab and learned a little bit more about the research. Steve Ross
gave a brief talk about the overall research mission. Rick Armstrong of
WRAL-TV recorded a few short videos and the other reporters took the
opportunity to talk to several or the researchers on board. At four p.m.
the visitors watched the afternoon sub launch from the bridge, and then
transferred back to the RV Cape Fear. Media representatives received a
CDROM of still images with captions, a Mini-DV highlights tape, a press
release from the Museum and a Styrofoam cup shrunken by a trip on the
sub.

**Thoughts for the Future:** (ideas for future exploration, research, or
management activities related to the work)

As with most science data collecting activities, as many questions are
generated as are answered. The data collected during this and past
cruises will be analyzed during the next 2-3 years with products
appearing throughout that time (and probably beyond). Some of the these
products may go to various management agencies as needed to support
their charges to manage resources in the US EEZ.

Our ability to conduct similar sampling of deep coral and rocky habitats
over such a large geographic area helped us to generate a number of
broader ideas about these habitats than our previous North Carolina
cruises had allowed. For instance, it appears that both the fauna and
the habitat expression are very different from about Cape Fear south
compared to coral banks to the north. Future research may try to
elucidate the nature or causes of these differences. It became clear
during this mission that multibeam survey maps of target coral bank
areas are a significant need. We will propose conducting such work in
concert with ground truthing in future proposals. Some additional ideas
discussed during the cruise included: real time delivery of education
materials to the public and the media, expansion of the genetics and
aging components of the coral work to include greater depths and
latitudes as well as additional species, collaboration with European
scientists, especially during the international 2005 cruises, deploying
a deep coral bank environmental monitoring station. We hope to continue
the trophodynamics work along the coral banks as a comparison to our
extensive data off Cape Hatteras.

**Summary of Expedition Operations** (Identify as many of the following
elements as possible for each "operation." Table formats are ideal for
this aspect: data type collected / time / position / ID tag /operation
type /dive tracklines / depth /comments)

SEE BELOW\_\_\_\_![](media/image2.wmf){width="8.038194444444445in"
height="6.325in"}

Eight major study areas (in red) for Ross et al. cruise from 8-22 June
2004.

APPENDIX 2. Listing of all submersible stations occupied from 8-22 June
2004 from Cape Lookout, NC to Cape Canaveral, FL. Steve W. Ross was
chief scientist.5