Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit, South Florida Caribbean CESU

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The Office of the Eastern Regional Director of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in support of the USGS Terrestrial, Freshwater, and Marine Ecosystems Program, is offering a Cooperative Agreement to one or more member universities of the Cooperative Ecosystems Studies Unit (CESU) Program. The project is titled “Lophelia II: Continuing Ecological Research on Deep-Sea Corals and Deep Reef Habitats in the Gulf of Mexico” (“Lophelia” for short). This USGS-funded project will coordinate closely with a planned project that will be sponsored by the U.S. Minerals Management Service (MMS) titled “Exploration and Research of Northern Gulf of Mexico Deepwater Natural and Artificial Hard Bottom Habitats with Emphasis on Coral Communities: Reefs, Rigs and Wrecks.” (information about the planned MMS offer is at http://www.fbo.gov/spg/DOI/MMS/PO/M08PS00032/SynopsisR.html) The USGS effort is comprised of six interrelated study components, three of which (Part I -Physical oceanography and ecology; Part II - Trophodynamics; Part III - Benthic ecology) are included in this announcement. An overarching goal of this effort is to better understand the distribution, biology and ecology of the deep water coral, Lophelia pertusa, which will lead to improved management and habitat protection. Associated project objectives are to develop and synthesize information on Lophelia and other deep corals and hardgrounds, and compare community composition, faunal linkages, genetic structures and energetics, across latitudes, habitat types, depth zones and regions. The planned research will expand upon prior projects that focused on Lophelia communities in the Gulf of Mexico at depths of 300-1000 meters. Collectively, these efforts will allow for a regional synthesis at the end of these proposed studies.

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