OCS Study 

BOEM 2016-058

U.S. Department of the Interior Bureau of Ocean Energy Management

Gulf of Mexico OCS Region

Cooperative Agreement

Coastal Marine Institute

Louisiana State University

Coastal Marine Institute

Optimization of Non-voucher

Gulf of Mexico Specimen Archives–

A Cooperative Effort with the

U.S. National Museum of Natural History
OCS Study 

BOEM 2016-058

Published by

U.S. Department of the Interior

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management

Gulf of Mexico OCS Region

Cooperative Agreement

Coastal Marine Institute

Louisiana State University

Coastal Marine Institute

Optimization of Non-voucher

Gulf of Mexico Specimen Archives–

A Cooperative Effort with the

U.S. National Museum of Natural History

Author

Robert S. Carney

July 2016

Prepared under BOEM Cooperative Agreement M12AC00014

by 

Louisiana State University

Coastal Marine Institute

Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70803
iii

DISCLAIMER

This report was prepared under contract between the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management

(BOEM) and Louisiana State University. This report has been technically reviewed by BOEM, 

and it has been approved for publication. Approval does not necessarily signify that the contents 

reflect the views and policies of BOEM, nor does mention of trade names or commercial 

products constitute endorsement or recommendation for use. 

REPORT AVAILABILITY

To download a PDF file of this Gulf of Mexico OCS Region report, go to the U.S. Department of 

the Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Environmental Studies Program Information 

System website and search on OCS Study BOEM 2016-058. 

This report can be viewed at select Federal Depository Libraries. It can also be obtained from the 

National Technical Information Service; the contact information is below.

U.S. Department of Commerce 

National Technical Information Service

5301 Shawnee Rd. 

Springfield, Virginia 22312 

Phone: (703) 605-6000, 1(800)553-6847 

Fax: (703) 605-6900 

Website: http://www.ntis.gov/ 

CITATION

Carney, R.S. 2016. Optimization of non-voucher Gulf of Mexico benthic fauna specimen 

archives– a cooperative effort with the U.S. National Museum of Natural History. U.S. Dept. 

of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Gulf of Mexico OCS Region, New 

Orleans, LA. OCS Study BOEM 2016-058. 10 pp. 

ABOUT THE COVER

Photograph of jars of preserved seep mussels Bathymodiolus childressi collected during 

BOEM studies that have been tagged with a Johnson SeaLink dive number in preparation for 

shipment to the U.S. National Museum of Natural History. Photo credit Dr. Robert Carney. 
v 

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This project would not have been possible without funding by the Bureau of Ocean Energy 

Management during both building of the LSU specimen archive and support for the specimen 

transfer reported herein. The curators and staff of the U.S. National Museum of Natural History, 

Department of Invertebrate Zoology helped in all stages of the project. 
vii

ABSTRACT

The collection of natural history specimens from all offshore habitats is done at great expense 

and often with considerable logistical difficulty. It is beneficial for both the research community 

that devotes much effort to these collections and Bureau of Ocean Energy Management

(BOEM), which has provided a high level of funding to maximize the long-term usage of 

material. Unfortunately, the ability of universities to maintain specimen archives beyond the 

professional life of individual faculty members is rapidly diminishing. Retired Louisiana State 

University (LSU) professors Robert Carney and Harry Roberts were supported by the Coastal 

Marine Institute program to transfer large collections of biological specimens collected during 

hydrocarbon seep projects and offshore platform studies. Authigenic carbonates from seep 

projects were also to be transferred. Approximately 16,000 seep community specimens and 

38,000 offshore platform specimens were transferred. At the time of this report, the seep 

collection had been accessed by the U.S. National Museum of Natural History (USNMNH). 

Accession of the offshore platform collection is pending. When fully processed, data for both 

collections will be available for search via the Ocean Biogeographic Information System. 

During discussions with the USNMNH, it was found that the cooperative program between 

the USNMNH and BOEM is officially restricted to only invertebrate species. The donation of 

the authigenic carbonates was declined by the USNMNH, and those samples remain at LSU.
ix

CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS........................................................................................................... v

ABSTRACT...................................................................................................................................vii

Contents ......................................................................................................................................... ix

1. Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 1

2. Studies Contributing to Archive ................................................................................................. 2

3. Shipment Preparation and Accession .......................................................................................... 3

4. Status of Gulf of Mexico Taxonomy .......................................................................................... 4

5. Discussion and Recommendations ............................................................................................. 6

6. Literature Cited ........................................................................................................................... 7

APPENDIX A: USNMNH CHEMO FAUNA INVENTORY................................................... A-1

APPENDIX B: LSU OFFSHORE PLATFORM INTERIM INVENTORY.............................. B-1
1 

1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 OBJECTIVES

The project “Optimization of Non-Voucher Gulf of Mexico Benthic Fauna Specimen 

Archives–A Cooperative Effort with the U.S. National Museum of Natural History,” is one of a 

series of programs intended to increase the scientific and management value of Bureau of Ocean 

Energy Management (BOEM) investigations. Programs of similar purpose have been undertaken 

by the co-principal investigators since the inception of cooperative programs between Louisiana 

State University (LSU) and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM). 

The purpose of the project was to transfer natural history specimens, currently archived at

LSU, to a more permanent archive and develop data and metadata that would increase the 

utilization of the specimens. LSU has amassed extensive natural history collections of marine 

organisms and rock samples from the Gulf of Mexico during more than 20 years of BOEM 

support. Voucher specimens from the underlying studies have been archived with the U.S. 

National Museum of Natural History (USNMNH), but numerous non-voucher specimens are still

of scientific and management interest. It is the primary intent of the proposed work to 

substantially improve specimen-based background information about the Gulf of Mexico through 

the selective transfer of specimens to the USNMNH. The collection consists of approximately 

2000 formaldehyde-preserved biological lots, 300 frozen (-80°C) samples and 450 carbonate 

rock samples. The primary sources of specimens were the BOEM studies Chemosynthetic 

Ecosystem Studies (Chemo) I (MacDonald et al. 1995), II (MacDonald 2002), and III (Brooks et. 

al. 2014), and Characterization of Algal-Invertebrate Mats at Platforms (Carney 2005). 

1.2 USNMNH COLLECTION

The USNMNH is part of the Smithsonian Institution complex of museums and research 

centers. Founded in 1846, the Smithsonian predated the establishment of both the U.S. 

Commission of Fish and Fisheries in 1871 and the U.S. Geological Survey in 1879. The 

Smithsonian was instrumental in the establishment of both agencies, and the careers of agency 

founders such as Spencer F. Baird and John W. Powell included high positions at the 

Smithsonian. As a result of the close ties among agencies, the USNMNH became a repository 

and center of research for many land and ocean surveys. This important function was expanded 

by the construction of the current USNMNH. 

When BOEM, then a component of the Department of the Interior Bureau of Land 

Management, began planning extensive continental shelf surveys, negotiations with the 

Smithsonian led to the designation of the Department of Invertebrate Zoology as the primary 

repository of voucher and other specimens. That function continues to this day and the collection 

is housed in the USNMNH Support Facility at Suitland, Maryland. It should be noted that the 

contract with the USNMNH provides only for collections of invertebrate specimens and omits 

vertebrate, minerals, cultural artifacts, etc. The cooperative agreement was put into effect in 1979 

after sampling completion for the Mississippi, Alabama, Florida Survey and the Southwest 

Florida Shelf Ecosystems Study programs but before the South Texas Outer Continental Shelf 

(OCS) study. 
2 

2. STUDIES CONTRIBUTING TO ARCHIVE

2.1 CHEMO I, II, AND III

Material transferred to the USNMNH consisted of approximately 15,846 individual 

organisms in 488 lots. A dataset using the USNMNH fields was prepared by the staff of the 

Museum Support facility and is provided in Appendix A. 

Targeted exploration for and investigation of chemosynthetic communities in the Gulf of 

Mexico were initiated by BOEM shortly after the discovery of such deep communities in 1984 

(Boland 2010). Since that time, the Gulf of Mexico hydrocarbon seeps continue to be the focus 

of numerous studies supported by U.S. and international funding agencies. The foundation for 

these investigations was laid by three large and several smaller BOEM studies. The larger ones 

are often referred to as Chemo I, II, and III. The associated reports are available through the 

Environmental Studies Program Information System (ESPIS) and are Chemosynthetic 

Ecosystem Studies I (MacDonald et al. 1995), II (MacDonald 2002), and III (Brooks et. al. 

2014). Samples stored at LSU came from these major studies and related smaller ones.

BOEM moved quickly to protect the newly discovered seep communities by putting into 

place Notice to Lessees (NTL) 88. The protective provisions have been revised and are currently 

incorporated into NTL 2009-G40 as extended by NTL 2015-N02. Much remains to be known 

about seep community ecology. Of particular relevance to BOEM’s mission needs is 

development of a capability to assess the state of a community as it naturally transitions from 

initial colonization to local extinction. Without such an assessment, human impacts cannot be 

convincingly assessed. Specimen archives, such as the one created by this transfer of samples to 

the USNMNH, can afford a cost-effective means of developing the needed methodology and 

assessments.

The specimens transferred to the USNMNH consist primarily of scoop samples taken largely 

with the Johnson SeaLink submersibles I and II previously operated by the Harbor Branch 

Oceanographic Laboratory (HBOI). There were scoop and boxcore samples collected with the 

submersible Alvin operated by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute (WHOI). Trawl and trap 

samples were also included. Specimens collected during Chemo I were used to determine the 

site-to-site differences in assemblage structure. Specimens collected during Chemo II and III 

were primarily for foodweb tracing using stable isotopes. 

2.2. PLATFORM ALGAL AND INVERTEBRATE BIOTA

Material transferred to the USNMNH consisted of approximately 38,061 individual 

organisms in 657 lots. These await accession to the collection. An interim database is provided in 

Appendix B. 

Those specimens were collected during a CMI investigation of three Gulf of Mexico

platforms: South Timbalier 54 (22m depth), Grand Isle 94 (60m depth) and Green Canyon 18 

(219m depth). Field sampling by divers took place between 1995 and 1997 and was followed by 

student study of the samples (Carney 2005). 

That study was just one component of BOEM structure studies that began with the inception 

of offshore environmental management. In some instances, those studies sought to determine the 

effect of platform activity on the surrounding environment and were included in the monitoring 

component of large projects such as the Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, and South Texas Outer 

Continental Shelf studies (McKown and Montalvo 1976). These environmental-effects studies 
3 

culminated in the Gulf of Mexico Offshore Monitoring Experiment study, a 

multiplatform comparison (Kennicutt et al. 1996). 

In addition to BOEM studies on the effects of platform activity, many studies have been 

devoted to an understanding of the composition and function of the assemblages occupying the 

offshore platform habitat. Two studies examined the distribution of platform assemblages across 

a depth gradient but with only a small number of platform replicates (Gallaway and Loubel 

1982; Carney 2005). Others have focused on restricted faunal groups of particular management 

importance such as fishes (Stanley and Wilson 2000) and corals (Sammarco 2013a, 2013b). 

Viewing platform assemblages as a potential source for bioprospecting surveys of potentially 

useful faunal groups has also been carried out (Rouse 2009). 

Though a substantial amount of specific information has been gained about a handful of 

offshore platforms, a comprehensive view of the ecological effect of the thousands of offshore 

structures in the Gulf of Mexico remains to be developed. Such a synthesis will require sampling 

on a much larger geographic scale than previously attempted. The specimens donated to the 

USNMNH reported here can contribute to the quality of taxonomic data should large-scale 

sampling be attempted. 

3. SHIPMENT PREPARATION AND ACCESSION

Wet sample lots are stored in alcohol or formalin in containers ranging from 5 gallons to

small shell vials. Wet samples are stored in a safety-compliant hazardous materials storage room 

(1138 Energy Coast and Environment Building). 

Wet uniform-content samples were transferred in small working sets of approximately 100 

items from storage to the Benthic Ecology Lab (Energy Coast and Environment Room 2196). 

Student workers under supervision of a technician and Dr. Carney scanned existing bar codes 

into a Microsoft® Excel® spreadsheet using a Symbol (Motorola) LS2208-SR20007R. New 

labels will be printed and affixed when needed using a Sato CT410 Direct Thermal printer. All 

label information, lot content, and type of container will be added to each Microsoft® Excel® 

record to facilitate following work. Lots will be returned to storage separating single-species 

from mixed lots.

Wet sample mixed-lots will be transferred from storage to the Benthos Lab in working sets. 

Formalin stored lots will be soaked in deionized water for 24 hours and then stored in 80% 

ethanol. Once converted to ethanol storage, each lot was hand sorted into morphologically 

distinct groups. All lots were sieved through a 0.5 millimeter (mm) sieve in the field; this set the 

smallest specimen size at 0.5 mm. Sorted material will be separately preserved. The residual 

material from each sorting was be examined by Dr. Carney to assure completeness of specimen 

extraction.

Transfer of alcohol-preserved specimens was done in full accordance with hazardous 

material shipping regulations. Two LSU student workers attended a training session on 

packaging and shipping at the USNMNH Museum Support Facility. At the time of packing and 

shipping three Support Facility personal came to LSU. The collections required nine 55 gallon 

shipping barrels. There were secured on pallets and shipped via common carrier truck licensed

for transport of hazardous materials.

Since delivery to the USNMNH Support Facility, the chemosynthetic collection has been 

unpacked, assigned accession numbers, and a final dataset completed (Appendix A). The 

Offshore Platform collection remains to be accessed. An interim dataset is included in this report 

(Appendix B). 
4 

4. STATUS OF GULF OF MEXICO TAXONOMY

4.1. BOEM’S ROLE IN ASSURING TAXONOMIC QUALITY

Obtaining an inventory of the species occupying a particular habitat, based on consistent and 

correct identifications, is a fundamental component of all efforts to characterize diversity and 

understand how communities function and persist. The development of these critical inventories 

can be thought of as a three-step process. 

Step 1- Identification is the correct and consistent identification of collected organisms. 

Step 2- Database is development of a database that facilitates data analysis. 

Step 3- Analysis is the execution of the analyses which meet information needs. 

Over the past 10 years, taxonomists and biodiversity researchers have cooperated to make 

great strides in steps 2 and 3. Local faunal inventories have been refined and merged into 

international interconnected datasets. Development of similar aids for step 1, correct 

identification, lags behind. It is in this area that specimen repositories will play an important role.

As an early and major sponsor of faunal surveys, BOEM recognized the need for correct and 

consistent identification in the Gulf of Mexico and the southern California OCS. Major 

contributions have been the seven-volume series Taxonomic Guide to the Polychaetes of the 

Northern Gulf of Mexico (Uebelacker and Johnson 1984) and the 14-volume series Taxonomic 

Atlas of the Benthic Fauna of the Santa Maria Basin and Western Santa Barbara Channel

(Blake and Lissner 1994). Building a computer aided identification system from the polychaete 

volumes was attempted with only limited success (Carney 2003). 

BOEM’s role in developing taxonomic and biodiversity databases has been that of a 

collaborator and supporter. The Environmental Studies Program was established in 1973 and 

quickly began the planning phase for a series of baseline studies in the Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico, 

Pacific, and Arctic. The need for taxonomic data standardization resulted in the contractual 

requirement that fauna survey data conforms to the National Oceanographic Data Center 

(NODC) MULti-Discipline Archives Retrieval System (MULDARS) format that had been 

developed in the 1970s for National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and Navy 

purposes. Central to MULDARS was the use of a 12-digit integer species identification code 

maintained by NODC (NODC 1996). These codes were last updated in an eighth version in 1996 

and the task of maintaining the codes was given to the Integrated Taxonomic Information System 

(ITIS). Since that transfer, NODC codes have been discontinued and replaced by the ITIS 

Taxonomic Serial Number (TSN). The ITIS is primarily a partnership among U.S. Federal 

agencies that make use of taxonomic data, but it includes Canadian and Mexican participation. 

Adding an extra level of complexity to the use of taxonomic databases is the fact that ID

codes continue to change. NODC codes originally used in BOEM studies were replaced by the 

TSN. Now, the AphiaID is coming into greater usage (Vandepitte et al. 2015). 

4.2. DATA RESOURCES FOR GULF OF MEXICO TAXONOMY

The USNMNH is the primary repository of animal specimens from the Gulf of Mexico. The 

associated data may be searched via the USNMNH’s on-line system or through the Ocean 

Biogeographic Information System (OBIS) portals. Within the Gulf states, marine specimens 
5 

collected by Texas A&M are maintained in the Texas Cooperative Wildlife Biodiversity 

Research and Teaching Collections. 

The most extensive taxonomic compilation for the Gulf of Mexico is the Gulf of Mexico 

Origin, Waters, and Biota Vol. 1 Biodiversity (Felder and Camp 2009). The species-level data 

from this volume are available in a searchable database at GulfBase–Biodiversity of the Gulf of 

Mexico Database (BioGoMx)(Moretzsohn et al 2016). Distribution data, however, is limited to 8 

octants and 6 depth zones. 

The World Registry of Marine Species (WoRMS Editorial Board 2016is currently the most 

intensive searchable online taxonomic database consisting of 537,635 taxa gathered from the 

compilation of 80 component databases (Vandepitte et al. 2015). WoRMS draws on ITIS and 

OBIS. None of the currently available databases provides identification tools. One organization 

that is providing on-line identification resources is the Marine Species Identification Portal that 

currently provides 52 identification keys but none specifically for the Gulf of Mexico. 
6 

5. DISCUSSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

“Taxonomy is fast reinventing itself as an information science that is able to collate and

publish information on the Web, rapidly and on demand.” Vincent S. Smith 2008. 

As an agency whose information needs include the correct and consistent identification of 

species, BOEM is in a somewhat difficult situation. BOEM needs higher-quality identifications 

but can make a major contribution to the rapidly advancing area of taxonomy information 

science only by creating a large, expensive, and dedicated program. BOEM should carefully 

consider how it can be most effective. The following actions are recommended: 

1. Consistently follow up on the status of archived specimens when their submission

has been a contractual obligation of field studies.

2. Establish a cooperative agreement with a geosciences repository for rocks and

sediment cores.

3. Provide staff to stay current with international standards of specimen preservation

and storage. Contractual obligations should be consistent with the best science.

4. Provide staff to stay current with the development of taxonomic information science.

Contractual obligations should include the most useful database construction.

Determining which agencies have the lead in taxonomy information science can be 

problematic. Useful and very detailed instructions on data management and quality, stressing the 

need for correct identification, have been provided by Global Biodiversity Information Facility. 

Centralizing the task of taxonomic data analyses within ITIS by Federal agencies was a major 

step forward. However, competing data programs with difficult to understand interconnections 

may prove of greater use to BOEM. Unsettling is the fact that seemingly useful data programs 

can be terminated as part of budget reductions. For example, the Department of the Interior’s 

National Biological Information Infrastructure (NBII) was terminated in 2012 and The Society

for the Management of Electronic Biodiversity Data was dissolved in 2014. 

Currently, OBIS-USA is the best portal for submission of original species inventory data 

provided by BOEM studies. Before submission of data, spelling and validity of taxonomic names 

should be checked with WoRMS. If analyses require a numerical taxonomic identifier, ITIS TSN 

and ApidID should be used. Otherwise, the recognized taxonomic name can be used without a 

code.
7 

6. LITERATURE CITED

Blake J.A. and A.L. Lissner. 1994. Taxonomic Atlas of the Benthic Fauna of the Santa Maria 

Basin and Western Santa Barbara Channel. 14 vols. U.S. Dept of the Interior Minerals 

Management Service Pacific OCS Region. Contract 14-35-0001-30484. 

Boland, G. 2010. Challenges in adaptive management: chemosynthetic communities in the Gulf 

of Mexico. Sea Grant Law and Policy Journal 3:19-30. 

Brooks, J.M., C. Fisher, H. Roberts, B. Bernard, I. McDonald, et al. 2014. Investigations of 

chemosynthetic communities on the lower continental slope of the Gulf of Mexico: 

Volume I: final report. U.S. Dept. of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, 

Gulf of Mexico OCS Region, New Orleans, LA. OCS Study BOEM 2014-650. 560 pp. 

Carney, R.S. 2003. Preparation of an interactive key for the northern Gulf of Mexico polychaetes 

taxonomy employing the DELTA/INTKEY system. U.S. Dept. of the Interior, Minerals 

Management Service, Gulf of Mexico OCS, New Orleans, La. 46 pages, OCS Study 

MMS 2003-065 

Carney, R.S. 2005. Characterization of algal-invertebrate mats at offshore platforms and the 

assessment of methods for artificial substrate studies: final report. U.S. Dept. of the 

Interior, Minerals Management Service, Gulf of Mexico OCS, New Orleans, La. OCS 

Study MMS 2005 038. 93 pp. 

Gallaway, B.J., and G.S. Loubel. 1982. The ecology of petroleum platforms in the northwestern 

Gulf of Mexico: a community profile. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Office of 

Biological Services, Washington, D.C. FWS/OBS-82/27. Bureau of Land Management, 

Gulf of Mexico OCS Regional Office, Open-File Report 82-03, xiv + 92 pp. 

Johnson, P.G., and J.M. Uebelacker (eds). 1984. Taxonomic guide to the polychaetes of the 

northern Gulf of Mexico. Minerals Management Service, U.S. Dept. of the Interior. 

Kennicutt, M.C. II, R.H. Green, P. Montagna, and P.F. Roscigno. 1996. Gulf of Mexico offshore 

operations monitoring experiment (GOOMEX), Phase I: sublethal responses to 

contaminant exposure: introduction and overview. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and 

Aquatic Sciences 53:2540-2553. 

MacDonald, I.R., ed. 2002. Stability and change in Gulf of Mexico chemosynthetic 

communities. Volume II: technical report. U.S. Dept. of the Interior, Minerals Mgmt. 

Service, Gulf of Mexico OCS Region, New Orleans, LA. OCS Study MMS 2002-036. 

456 pp. 

MacDonald, I.R., W.W. Schroeder, JM Brooks (eds). 1995. Chemosynthetic ecosystems study 

final report, Volume I: executive summary. U.S. Dept. of the Interior, Minerals Mgmt. 

Service, Gulf of Mexico OCS Region, New Orleans, LA. OCS Study MMS 95-0021. 33 

pp. 

McKown, M. M. and J. G. Montalvo. 1976. Quality control for MAFLA IV and South Texas II 

investigations. U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management Gulf of 

Mexico OCS Office, New Orleans, LA. 189 pp. 

Moretzsohn, F., J. Brenner, P. Michaud, J.W. Tunnell, and T. Shirley. 2016. Biodiversity of the 

Gulf of Mexico Database (BioGoMx). Version 1.0. Harte Research Institute for Gulf of 
8 

Mexico Studies (HRI), Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi (TAMUCC), Corpus 

Christi, Texas.

NODC, 1996. NODC standard product: NIDC Taxonomic Code on CD-ROM (NODC 

Accession 0050418). 

Sammarco, P. W. 2013a. Corals on oil and gas platforms near the Flower Garden Banks: 

population characteristics, recruitment, and genetic affinity. U.S. Dept. of the Interior, 

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Gulf of Mexico OCS Region, OCS Study BOEM 

2013-216 

Sammarco, P. W. 2013b. Deepwater coral distribution and abundance on active offshore oil and 

gas platforms and decommissioned “Rigs-to Reefs” platforms. U.S. Dept. of the Interior, 

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Gulf of Mexico Region, OCS Study BOEM 2013-

217. 

Smith, V.S. 2008. Review of the New Taxonomy. Quentin D. Wheeler (editor). 2008. The 

Systematics Association Special Volume Series 76. CRC Press, New York. xi + 237 pp. 

Stanley, D.R. and C.A. Wilson. 2000. Seasonal and spatial variation in the biomass and size 

frequency distribution of fish associated with oil and gas platforms in the northern Gulf 

of Mexico. U.S. Department of the Interior, Minerals Management Service Gulf of 

Mexico OCS Region, New Orleans, LA. OCS Study MMS 2000-005. 

Vandepitte, L.; Vanhoorne, B.; Decock, W.; Dekeyzer, S.; Trias Verbeeck, A.; et al. 2015. Aphia—the 

platform behind several online and taxonomically oriented databases—can serve both the 

taxonomic community and the field of biodiversity informatics. J. Mar. Sci. Eng. 3, 

1448-1473. 

WoRMS Editorial Board (2016). World Register of Marine Species. Available from 

http://www.marinespecies.org. Accessed 2017-01-04. 
A-1

APPENDIX A: USNMNH CHEMO FAUNA INVENTORY 

The Excel file Appendix_A.xlsx is attached to the digital version 

of this report and may be accessed and examined in Excel via 

the Attachment menu. See page iii for details.
APPENDIX B: LSU OFFSHORE PLATFORM INTERIM INVENTORY

The Excel file Appendix_B.xlsx is attached to the digital version of this report and 

may be accessed and examined in Excel via the Attachment menu. See page iii for 

details.

B-1