Habitat Characterization

Conservation Issue

Management of place-based resources, such as those at Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary (FGBNMS), benefits greatly from information on fine-scale habitat characterization. Such characterization directly supports critical decisions related to species management, spatial planning, restoration, research, and incident response. There are key gaps in habitat characterization data at FGBNMS, primarily across mesophotic habitats (the most extensive habitat type in the sanctuary), as well as at banks newly added to the sanctuary during its 2021 expansion.

Description

Bathymetric mapping has been conducted in FGBNMS by NOAA and its partners since the early 1990s. These data have been integral in generating habitat classification maps for East and West Flower Garden Banks and Stetson Bank, and in planning and conducting regional exploratory research that supported sanctuary expansion (e.g., identifying hard bottom habitats connecting the banks, and revealing the distribution of spatially disconnected features). Additional high-resolution data collection and ground-truthing is needed to improve habitat maps across the expanded sanctuary. Further, to improve the accuracy of these maps, oceanographic processes across the region need to be characterized and integrated into habitat models. Habitats of particular interest to sanctuary managers include shallow coral reefs, mesophotic coral ecosystems, rhodolith beds, coralline algae reefs, deep reefs, soft sediments, potential connectivity highways that connect the reefs and banks of the sanctuary, and unusual features like brine seeps, gas seeps, and mud volcanoes. Habitat characterization efforts to date have been critical tools for sanctuary management, but additional and improved information is necessary to guide future actions and decision-making.

Data and Analysis Needs

1. Ecological monitoring across all 17 banks within FGBNMS, including water quality, habitat health, and biodiversity indicators
2. In situ imagery and remote sensing to refine FGBNMS habitat maps and develop and validate predictive models for key habitat-forming species, particularly in mesophotic habitats
3. Identification and characterization of critical habitats for key species, including nurseries and spawning grounds, the timing and location of spawning aggregations, and nursery requirements for vulnerable species
4. Expanded habitat characterization beyond the current sanctuary boundaries to address data gaps and improve habitat classification in surrounding areas.
5. Oceanographic and climate variables such as pH, oxygen levels, temperature, salinity, currents, and photosynthetically active radiation within key sanctuary habitats, and assessment of how these variables may affect certain characteristics of particular habitats
   
6. Information on the ecological function of key habitats and how they connect with other habitats
7. Assessment of ecosystem services, including social and economic benefits, of sanctuary habitats
8. Assessment of how education and outreach programs can highlight both the economic and personal value of habitats to stakeholders and users

Potential Products

• Artificial intelligence programs that can increase the speed and scope of habitat assessment and characterization
• Predictive models of the distribution of habitats and key habitat-forming species
• In situ oceanographic datasets
• Regional oceanographic current models
• Improved habitat and species connectivity models
• Species distribution forecasting models
• Food web and energy transfer models
• Socioeconomic value assessment
• Detailed imagery for outreach, including photo mosaics and 360° images

Supplementary Information

• Condition reports
• Climate vulnerability assessment
• Long-term monitoring reports
• Early alert data dashboard
• SoFar buoy data dashboard

For more information about this assessment, contact flowergarden@noaa.gov.