{"id":1647,"date":"2010-07-01T09:54:51","date_gmt":"2010-07-01T16:54:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/?p=1647"},"modified":"2010-07-08T14:15:56","modified_gmt":"2010-07-08T21:15:56","slug":"deepwater-corals-are-out-of-sight-but-they-shouldn%e2%80%99t-be-out-of-mind","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/2010\/07\/01\/deepwater-corals-are-out-of-sight-but-they-shouldn%e2%80%99t-be-out-of-mind\/","title":{"rendered":"Deepwater Corals Are Out of Sight, But They Shouldn\u2019t Be Out of Mind"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_1653\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1653\" style=\"width: 150px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/2010\/07\/lophelia-ross-SM.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-1653 \" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/2010\/07\/lophelia-ross-SM-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1653\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Credit: Steve W. Ross (UNCW), unpubl. data.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Among the unseen and uncounted victims of the BP oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico are the inhabitants of the ancient deepwater coral reefs that lie under the still-growing plume of oil.\u00a0 Newly discovered, and still largely unexplored, these \u201crainforests of the deep\u201d may become polluted and degraded before we even know exactly where they occur.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Deepwater wonders<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Deepwater corals were first discovered in U.S. waters in the 19<sup>th<\/sup> century, during the early voyages of discovery, but only in the modern age of deepsea submarines and remotely operated vehicles\u00a0did exploration truly begin.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1652\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1652\" style=\"width: 150px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/2010\/07\/S-Ross-Lophelia-047.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-1652\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/2010\/07\/S-Ross-Lophelia-047-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1652\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Credit: Steve W. Ross (UNCW), unpubl. data.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>As exploration has unfolded, scientists have been amazed at the extent and character of these underwater wonderlands, with new species being discovered with nearly every dive, including unknown forms with the potential to contain novel chemicals with pharmaceutical applications.\u00a0 A cancer cure may lie in the darkness of the deep sea.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Additionally, the branches of millennia-old corals have recorded in their layers an unequalled history of the recent life of the planet, including deepsea conditions that will allow ancient climates to be modeled.<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Gulf of Mexico coral reefs<\/strong><\/p>\n<table style=\"width: 375px;height: 199px\" align=\"right\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><figure id=\"attachment_1651\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1651\" style=\"width: 150px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/2010\/07\/geoplat-30-June-closeup.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-1651\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/2010\/07\/geoplat-30-June-closeup-150x150.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1651\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Credit: Geoplatform.gov<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/td>\n<td>\n<p><figure id=\"attachment_1648\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1648\" style=\"width: 150px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/2010\/07\/viosca-knoll.gif\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-1648\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/2010\/07\/viosca-knoll-150x150.gif\" alt=\"\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1648\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Credit: USGS<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align: center\" colspan=\"2\">\u00a0Click images for larger view<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>The best-known deepwater reefs in the Gulf are located in the Viosca Knolls region, on the northern edge of the DeSoto Canyon, only twenty miles from the blown-out BP well, and on the edge of the Mississippi Canyon west of the blowout site.\u00a0 In addition, there are known deepwater reefs off the West Florida Shelf and elsewhere in the Gulf.\u00a0 Exciting research is currently underway in the Gulf, including the deployment of \u201clunar lander\u201d data recorders for year-long stays on the bottom near the reefs, which could provide badly needed baseline information for pre-blowout conditions.<\/p>\n<p><em>See a thorough analysis of coral reefs in the Gulf, Southeast and elsewhere <a href=\"http:\/\/www.nmfs.noaa.gov\/habitat\/dce.html\">here<\/a>. <\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>Toxins raining down on corals<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The deepwater origin of the BP oil disaster, the use of dispersants at the wellhead, and the resulting development of sub-surface plumes of oil-based pollution floating and drifting with sub-surface currents, mean that Gulf deepwater corals are at serious risk of direct degradation from the broken well, including a wide array of materials that would likely prove toxic to them. Normally, at least some of the toxic substances from an oil spill would evaporate as oil sits on the ocean surface, but in this situation, many of the toxins remain dissolved, emulsified or otherwise entrained in near-bottom waters and middle depths, drifting with the currents and potentially exposing deepwater reefs.\u00a0\u00a0 Coral\u2019s naturally slow growth rates and uncertain reproduction means that any damage would be difficult if not impossible to remediate or offset.<\/p>\n<p>To make matters worse, oil that does make it to the ocean surface doesn\u2019t stay there.\u00a0 While some of the toxic material on the surface is burned or evaporated, much is again treated with dispersant chemicals, forming smaller droplets that easily stick to debris raining into the abyss. \u00a0In addition, a significant fraction of weathered oil also ultimately sinks back to the depths of the ocean. Although estimates vary widely, the best guess is that 25-30% or so of the oil from the 1979 Ixtoc 1 blowout in Campeche Bay in the southwestern Gulf sank to the bottom.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1649\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1649\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/2010\/07\/deadzone_072709.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1649\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/2010\/07\/deadzone_072709-300x109.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"109\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/2010\/07\/deadzone_072709-300x109.jpg 300w, https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/2010\/07\/deadzone_072709.jpg 704w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1649\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Credit: LUMCON<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Another real threat comes from the decomposition of oil-based organic matter under water.\u00a0 \u201cDead zones\u201d are well-known in the shallower waters of the northern Gulf, driven mostly by nutrients and organic matter from the outflows from the Mississippi River.\u00a0 In this case, underwater \u201cdead zones\u201d at a variety of depths are likely, and could add an additional punch to fragile ancient corals.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Protecting deepwater treasures<\/strong><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1650\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1650\" style=\"width: 229px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/2010\/07\/dwc-map-final.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1650\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/2010\/07\/dwc-map-final-229x300.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"229\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/2010\/07\/dwc-map-final-229x300.png 229w, https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/2010\/07\/dwc-map-final.png 556w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 229px) 100vw, 229px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1650\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Credit: SAFMC<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Ironically, as Gulf coral reefs face an uncertain future, thousands of square miles of reefs are being protected in a new program nearby in the Southeast Atlantic. I had the great privilege of <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/2009\/08\/12\/edf-senior-scientist-successfully-works-with-south-atlantic-council-to-safeguard-corals\/\">chairing the panel<\/a> responsible for this magnificent advance.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Over the past decade, a unique collaboration of academic researchers, managers and fishermen have worked together to craft a <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/2009\/09\/24\/safmc-protects-deep-water-corals\/\">landmark protection program<\/a> for 23,000 square miles of deepwater reefs stretching from North Carolina to Florida.\u00a0 The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration approved these protections just this month, which will protect the coral reefs against fishing and many non-fishing threats. \u00a0While this designation by itself does not guarantee that oil and gas drilling could not occur there, it means that risks to those corals would have to be taken into account during lease sales and other project planning and design.<\/p>\n<p>Two of the many researchers instrumental in securing these coral protections\u2014<a href=\"http:\/\/appserv02.uncw.edu\/news\/artview.aspx?id=2745\">Dr. Steve Ross<\/a> from UNC Wilmington and <a href=\"http:\/\/oceanexplorer.noaa.gov\/edu\/oceanage\/03reed\/reed.html\">Dr. John Reed<\/a> from Harbor Branch\u2014have each published their corals research online.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Corals in the crosshairs<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The bottom line, sadly, is that ancient Gulf of Mexico coral reefs lie in the crosshairs of oil pollution from the BP oil disaster and it will be some time before scientists are able to begin damage assessments.\u00a0 Research cruises scheduled for September may begin that process.<\/p>\n<p><em>Never miss a post! <strong><a href=\"http:\/\/feeds2.feedburner.com\/EDFish\" target=\"_blank\">Subscribe<\/a><\/strong> to EDFish via a email or a feed reader.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/2010\/07\/lophelia-ross-SM.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Among the unseen and uncounted victims of the BP oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico are the inhabitants of the ancient deepwater coral reefs that lie under the still-growing plume of oil.  Newly discovered, and still largely unexplored, these \u201crainforests of the deep\u201d may become polluted and degraded before we even know exactly where they occur. <strong>Deepwater wonders<\/strong> Deepwater corals were first discovered in U.S. waters in the 19th century, during the early voyages of discovery, but only in the modern age of deepsea submarines and remotely operated vehicles did exploration truly begin.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/2010\/07\/01\/deepwater-corals-are-out-of-sight-but-they-shouldn%e2%80%99t-be-out-of-mind\/\" \/>Read the full post &raquo;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2157,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[263],"tags":[5065,657,5066,650,995,658,5068,5067],"coauthors":[5155],"class_list":["post-1647","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-gulf-of-mexico","tag-coral-reef","tag-corals","tag-dead-zone","tag-deepwater-corals","tag-dispersants","tag-doug-rader","tag-dr-john-reed","tag-dr-steve-ross"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.1.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Deepwater Corals Are Out of Sight, But They Shouldn\u2019t Be Out of Mind - EDFish<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/2010\/07\/01\/deepwater-corals-are-out-of-sight-but-they-shouldn\u2019t-be-out-of-mind\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Deepwater Corals Are Out of Sight, But They Shouldn\u2019t Be Out of Mind - EDFish\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Among the unseen and uncounted victims of the BP oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico are the inhabitants of the ancient deepwater coral reefs that lie under the still-growing plume of oil. Newly discovered, and still largely unexplored, these \u201crainforests of the deep\u201d may become polluted and degraded before we even know exactly where they occur. Deepwater wonders Deepwater corals were first discovered in U.S. waters in the 19th century, during the early voyages of discovery, but only in the modern age of deepsea submarines and remotely operated vehicles did exploration truly begin.  Read the full post &raquo;\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/2010\/07\/01\/deepwater-corals-are-out-of-sight-but-they-shouldn\u2019t-be-out-of-mind\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"EDFish\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2010-07-01T16:54:51+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2010-07-08T21:15:56+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/2010\/07\/lophelia-ross-SM-150x150.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Doug Rader\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Doug Rader\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/2010\/07\/01\/deepwater-corals-are-out-of-sight-but-they-shouldn%e2%80%99t-be-out-of-mind\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/2010\/07\/01\/deepwater-corals-are-out-of-sight-but-they-shouldn%e2%80%99t-be-out-of-mind\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Doug Rader\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/#\/schema\/person\/cd7c7349857ab3f1634c04aa5e1ad05f\"},\"headline\":\"Deepwater Corals Are Out of Sight, But They Shouldn\u2019t Be Out of Mind\",\"datePublished\":\"2010-07-01T16:54:51+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2010-07-08T21:15:56+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/2010\/07\/01\/deepwater-corals-are-out-of-sight-but-they-shouldn%e2%80%99t-be-out-of-mind\/\"},\"wordCount\":917,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/2010\/07\/01\/deepwater-corals-are-out-of-sight-but-they-shouldn%e2%80%99t-be-out-of-mind\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"http:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/2010\/07\/lophelia-ross-SM-150x150.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"coral reef\",\"Corals\",\"dead zone\",\"Deepwater Corals\",\"dispersants\",\"Doug Rader\",\"Dr. John Reed\",\"Dr. Steve Ross\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Gulf of Mexico\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/2010\/07\/01\/deepwater-corals-are-out-of-sight-but-they-shouldn%e2%80%99t-be-out-of-mind\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/2010\/07\/01\/deepwater-corals-are-out-of-sight-but-they-shouldn%e2%80%99t-be-out-of-mind\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/edfish\/2010\/07\/01\/deepwater-corals-are-out-of-sight-but-they-shouldn%e2%80%99t-be-out-of-mind\/\",\"name\":\"Deepwater Corals Are Out of Sight, But They Shouldn\u2019t Be Out of Mind - 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Newly discovered, and still largely unexplored, these \u201crainforests of the deep\u201d may become polluted and degraded before we even know exactly where they occur. Deepwater wonders Deepwater corals were first discovered in U.S. waters in the 19th century, during the early voyages of discovery, but only in the modern age of deepsea submarines and remotely operated vehicles did exploration truly begin.  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