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A new U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Fact Sheet highlights microbiological experiments that will be conducted in submarine canyons along the U.S. east coast. This work is part of the USGS DISCOVRE (Diversity, Systematics, and Connectivity of Vulnerable Reef Ecosystems) Project, an integrated, multidisciplinary effort investigating deep-sea communities from the microscopic to the ecosystem level. DISCOVRE is the USGS-funded component of a much larger research effort focused on the deep-water canyons off of the U.S. mid-Atlantic coast that involves the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE), and numerous academic researchers. (See related article "High-Resolution Multibeam Mapping of Mid-Atlantic Canyons to Assess Tsunami Hazards," this issue.)

During a series of research cruises in 2012-14, samples will be collected and experiments deployed in the canyons along the mid-Atlantic bight (a coastal region running from Massachusetts to North Carolina). Characterized by swift currents and steep walls that extend miles deep, these canyons are unique ecosystems that have rarely been studied. Rocky outcrops in the canyons provide important habitat for deep-sea corals, which require hard surfaces to grow on. This study will identify and characterize the beneficial microbes associated with these corals, as well as the microbial biofilms that initially colonize hard surfaces in the canyons to prepare them for settlement by larger invertebrates, such as corals and sponges. Additionally, the microbial communities in the soft sediment on the floors of the canyons will be counted and classified to incorporate them into food web and benthic ecology studies.

Check out the new Fact Sheet, “Microbial Ecology of Deep-Water Mid-Atlantic Canyons.”