Deep sea coral
(Credit: NOAA)

The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council is meeting today in Key Largo, Florida to address a variety of issues affecting federal fisheries management and alternatives for protecting deepwater coral areas in this area.

To expand the coral images below and see how beautiful they are is only half the story: the proposed Comprehensive Ecosystem-Based Amendment 1 would protect what is currently thought to be the largest contiguous distribution of deepwater ecosystems in the world. Over 23,000 square miles of deepwater habitat would be designated as Coral Habitat Areas of Particular Concern (CHAPCs – see 1st image below).

Many are concerned over the state of our deepwater corals, and rightfully so. Unlike reef-building tropical corals, deepwater corals are found beyond the reach of sunlight and are adapted to the dark environment. Different from shallow water corals, deepwater coral polyps do not contain the symbiotic algae that provide their tropical cousins with energy via photosynthesis. Instead, deepwater corals rely on catching passing food in the water column.

As a result, deepwater corals grow very slowly, from less than one centimeter to up to two centimeters per year. Deepwater coral colonies tend to be found in areas where there are strong water currents, which supply food and remove sediments that would otherwise smother the coral polyps. They are also typically found along rocky ledges or in narrow regions.

Deepwater coral systems are receiving increased attention worldwide, because they are rich in diversity and provide habitat for many species, ones that we never see in the supermarket or restaurant, but are still doing their part in the ecosystem deep underwater.

Further reading:

1. A Profile of the Charleston Bump

Proposed coral HAPCs
(Credit: NOAA)

Southeastern deep sea coral
(Credit: NOAA)

Charleston Bump surface temp deflection
(Credit: NOAA)