Data and Reports

Explore our library of NCCOS Technical Memos and various data sets. Filter by the type of publication, research category, region or contact. To access data and reports predating 2017, please visit the Legacy Publications Explorer.

Does the fall phytoplankton bloom control recruitment of Georges Bank haddock, Melanogrammus aeglefinus, through parental condition?

In 2003, the Georges Bank stock of haddock (Melanogrammus aeglefinus) experienced the largest recruitment event recorded during its assessed history. Several hypotheses have been advanced to explain recruitment variability in this much-scrutinized stock, including variability in the retention of eggs and larvae on Georges Bank, the timing of haddock spawning, ...

Domoic acid and fish behavior: A review

This paper provides a summary of the “state of knowledge” regarding behavioral impacts of domoic acid exposure on fish. Initial studies by authors of this paper suggested that fish are behaviorally impacted by domoic acid in the same way that birds and mammals are impacted during toxic Pseudo-nitzschia blooms. However, ...

Drifter Observations of the Gulf of Maine Coastal Current

Two-hundred and twenty seven satellite-tracked drifters were deployed in the Gulf of Maine (GoM) from 1988 to 2007, primarily during spring and summer. The archive of tracks includes over 100,000 km logged thus far. Statistics such as transit times, mean velocities, response to wind events, and preferred pathways are compiled ...

Drones in the Coastal Zone: Report of a Regional Workshop for the US Southeast and Caribbean

This report summarizes outcomes from a series of virtual workshops for researchers and managers in the southeast US and US Caribbean entitled Drones in the Coastal Zone ...

Dynamic responses and implications to coastal wetlands and the surrounding regions under sea level rise

Two distinct microtidal estuarine systems were assessed to advance the understanding of the coastal dynamics of sea level rise in salt marshes. A coupled hydrodynamic-marsh model (Hydro-MEM) was applied to both a marine-dominated (Grand Bay, Mississippi) and a mixed fluvial/marine (Weeks Bay, Alabama) system to compute marsh productivity, marsh migration, ...

Dynamic simulation and numerical analysis of hurricane storm surge under sea level rise with geomorphologic changes along the northern Gulf of Mexico

This work outlines a dynamic modeling framework to examine the effects of global climate change, and sea level rise (SLR) in particular, on tropical cyclone-driven storm surge inundation. The methodology, applied across the northern Gulf of Mexico, adapts a present day large-domain, high resolution, tide, wind-wave, and hurricane storm surge ...

Dynamics and distribution of natural and human-caused coastal hypoxia

Water masses can become undersaturated with oxygen when natural processes alone or in combination with anthropogenic processes produce enough organic carbon that is aerobically decomposed faster than the rate of oxygen re-aeration. The dominant natural processes usually involved are photosynthetic carbon production and microbial respiration. The re-supply rate is indirectly ...

Dynamics of a mesoscale eddy off Cape Ann, Massachusetts in May 2005

Observations and numerical modeling indicate that a mesoscale anti-cyclonic eddy formed south of Cape Ann at the northern entrance of Massachusetts Bay (MB) during May 2005, when large river discharges in the western Gulf of Maine and two strong Nor'easters passing through the regions led to an unprecedented toxic Alexandrium ...

EcoGIS - GIS Tools for Ecosystem Approaches to Fisheries Management

The EcoGIS project was launched in September 2004 to investigate how Geographic Information Systems (GIS), marine data, and custom analysis tools can better enable fisheries scientists and managers to adopt Ecosystem Approaches to Fisheries Management (EAFM). EcoGIS is a collaborative effort between NOAA's National Ocean Service (NOS) and National Marine ...

Ecological Assessment of the Beneficial Use of Dredged Sediments for Island Restoration: Mordecai Island, Barnegat Bay, NJ

Scientists from the NOAA National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) documented sediment and soil characteristics, erosion rates and biological communities within the sediment placement region and in undisturbed inter‐and subtidal regions of Mordecai Island from 2017 – 2019. The goal of these efforts was to quantify the immediate success ...

Ecological Assessment of Wisconsin - Lake Michigan

This report is an assessment of key physical, chemical, and biological attributes that influence the natural and cultural resources of western mid-lake Lake Michigan. It is a synthesis of existing scientific literature and a collection of new ecological data that substantially expands the body of ecological knowledge within Lake Michigan ...

Ecological condition of coastal ocean and estuarine waters of the U.S. South Atlantic Bight: 2000-2004

This document provides an assessment of ecological condition in coastal ocean and estuarine waters of the U.S. South Atlantic Bight from Cape Henry, Virginia, through the southern end of the Indian River Lagoon along the east coast of Florida. Data are from sampling conducted in open shelf waters during March-April ...

Ecological condition of coastal ocean waters along the U.S. continental shelf of northeastern Gulf of Mexico: 2010

This document provides an assessment of ecological condition, with an emphasis on soft-bottom habitats and overlying waters, along the U.S. continental shelf in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico, from Anclote Key on the west coast of Florida to the Mississippi River Delta. Sampling was conducted in August 2010, approximately one ...

Ecological condition of coastal ocean waters along the U.S. Mid-Atlantic Bight: 2006

This document presents the results of an assessment of ecological condition and potential stressor impacts in coastal-ocean waters of the mid-Atlantic Bight (MAB), along the eastern U.S. continental shelf from Cape Cod, MA to Cape Hatteras, NC, based on sampling conducted in May 2006. The project was a collaborative effort ...

Ecological Condition of Coastal Ocean Waters along the U.S. Western Continental Shelf: 2003

This document provides an assessment of the status of ecological condition in coastal-ocean waters along the U.S. continental shelf, from the Strait of Juan de Fuca, WA to the Mexican border, based on sampling conducted in June 2003. The project was a large collaborative effort by the U.S. Environmental Protection ...

Ecological condition of coastal ocean waters of the U.S. continental shelf off south Florida: 2007

This document provides an assessment of ecological condition, with an emphasis on soft-bottom habitats, in coastal ocean waters of the U.S. continental shelf off south Florida, from Anclote Key on the Gulf coast to West Palm Beach on the Atlantic coast, inclusive of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. Sampling ...

Ecological condition of coastal ocean waters of the western Gulf of Mexico: 2011

The overall purpose of the study was to assess the current status of ecological condition and stressor impacts throughout these waters and to provide this information as a framework for evaluating future changes due to natural or human-induced disturbances. To address this objective, the study incorporated standard methods and indicators ...

Ecological condition of coastal ocean waters within Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary: 2008

This document presents the results of an assessment of ecological condition and potential stressor impacts in coastal-ocean waters of the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary (SBNMS), based on sampling conducted in June 2008. The project was a collaborative effort by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the National Oceanic ...

Ecological Forecasting: New Tools for Coastal and Marine Ecosystem Management

Policy makers, natural resource managers, regulators, and the public often call on scientists to estimate the potential ecological changes caused by both natural and human-induced stresses, and to determine how those changes will impact people and the environment. To develop accurate forecasts of ecological changes we need to: 1) increase ...

Economic valuation of natural resources: A handbook for coastal resource policymakers

The major focus of this handbook is on introducing and illustrating concepts of environmental valuation, among them Travel Cost models and Contingent Valuation. These concepts, combined with advances in natural sciences that allow us to better understand how changes in the natural environment influence human behavior, aim to address some ...

About NCCOS

NCCOS delivers ecosystem science solutions for stewardship of the nation’s ocean and coastal resources to sustain thriving coastal communities and economies.

Stay Connected

Sign up for our quarterly newsletter or view our archives.

NCCOS Multimedia

Visit our new NCCOS Multimedia Gallery. 

Follow us on Social

Listen to our Podcast

Check out our new podcast "Coastal Conversations"