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Projects Explorer

The NCCOS Project Explorer provides a snapshot of our official, discrete lines of research.
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Characterization of Land-Based Sources of Pollution and Effects in the St. Thomas East End Reserves (STEER)

dennis.apeti@noaa.gov, Ecological and Biogeographic Assessments, ian.hartwell@noaa.gov, laurie.bauer@noaa.gov, Marine Spatial Ecology, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, tony.pait@noaa.gov, U.S. States and Territories, U.S. Virgin Islands
We assessed the condition of the St. Thomas East End Reserves, establishing a baseline from which we can evaluate the effectiveness of restoration activities. This ...
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Characterization of Toxin Synthesis Pathways in Toxic Dinoflagellates

Alabama, Florida, Gulf of America (formerly Gulf of Mexico), Harmful Algal Bloom Detection and Forecasting, Louisiana, Mississippi, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, Texas, Tod.Leighfield@noaa.gov, U.S. States and Territories, Waterbodies
During the past 25 years, the abundance, range, and variety of harmful algal blooms (HABs) and their toxins have been increasing, impacting human and marine ...
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Characterizing and Mapping Essential Fish Habitats Affected by Human Activities off Puerto Rico

Assessing Human Use, Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, chris.jeffrey@noaa.gov, Habitat Mapping, john.christensen@noaa.gov, Marine Spatial Ecology, Puerto Rico, Social Science, U.S. States and Territories, Waterbodies
The purpose of this project was to collect, integrate and map available information on the features of essential fish habitats in protected and non-protected marine ...
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Characterizing Benthic Habitats Around Saipan, CNMI to Support RICHARD Campaign

bryan.costa@noaa.gov, CNMI, Coral, Habitat Mapping, jennifer.kraus@noaa.gov, Marine Spatial Ecology, tim.battista@noaa.gov, U.S. States and Territories
In 2019, NOAA launched the Pacific Mapping Cooperative: RICHARD (Rainier Integrates Charting Hydrography and Reef Demographics) Marianas Campaign to develop a plan to conduct much-needed ...
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Characterizing Benthic Habitats in Haputo Ecological Reserve Area, Guam

bryan.costa@noaa.gov, Coral, ed.sweeney@noaa.gov, Habitat Mapping, Marine Spatial Ecology, tim.battista@noaa.gov
In 2012, the US Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) Marianas developed an Integrated Natural Resource Management Plan (INRMP) for the Joint Region Marianas (JRM). The ...
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Characterizing Fish and Invertebrates of the Shallow Coral Reefs of the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary

Coral, coral reef, Ecological and Biogeographic Assessments, Gulf of America (formerly Gulf of Mexico), Marine Spatial Ecology, randy.clark@noaa.gov, Texas, U.S. States and Territories, Waterbodies
We characterized the coral and fish communities on the sanctuary’s shallow reefs based on data collected in 2006 and 2007. We focused on two management ...
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Characterizing Potential Distributions of Deep-Sea Corals, Sponges, and Macrofauna Offshore of the U.S. West Coast

California, Coral, Ecological and Biogeographic Assessments, Habitat Mapping, Marine Spatial Ecology, matthew.poti@noaa.gov, Oregon, Protected Species, Regional Ecosystem Science, U.S. States and Territories, Washington
We developed spatial predictive models for deep-sea corals, sponges, and benthic macrofauna offshore of the continental U.S. West Coast. Maps and geospatial data depicting the ...
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Characterizing Recreational Shore-based Fishers and Fishing on St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands

Assessing Human Use, Caribbean Sea, recreational fishing, roving creel survey, shore-based fishing, Social Science, St. Croix; U.S. Virgin Islands, subsistence fishing, survey recreational fishers, theresa.goedeke@noaa.gov, U.S. States and Territories, U.S. Virgin Islands, Waterbodies
The objective of our survey on St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands was to test an approach for collecting shore-based recreational fishing data, such as who ...
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Characterizing Shallow-water Benthic Habitats Around the Tinian Military Lease Area, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI)

bryan.costa@noaa.gov, CNMI, Coral, edward.sweeney@noaa.gov, Habitat Mapping, Marine Spatial Ecology
Nearshore marine areas around the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands have diverse ecosystems that provide people with seafood, recreation opportunities, and coral reefs that ...
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Characterizing Shallow-water Benthic Habitats In Select Areas Around Saipan, Tinian, and Rota (CNMI)

bryan.costa@noaa.gov, CNMI, Coral, edward.sweeney@noaa.gov, Habitat Mapping, Marine Spatial Ecology, Pacific Ocean
Nearshore marine areas around the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands have diverse ecosystems that provide people with seafood, recreation opportunities, and coral reefs that ...
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Characterizing Spatial Distributions of Deep-sea Corals and Chemosynthetic Communities in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico

Alabama, Ecological and Biogeographic Assessments, Florida, Gulf of America (formerly Gulf of Mexico), Habitat Mapping, Louisiana, Marine Spatial Ecology, matthew.poti@noaa.gov, Mississippi, Regional Ecosystem Science, Texas, U.S. States and Territories, Waterbodies
We compiled observations of deep-sea corals and chemosynthetic communities from field surveys and developed spatial predictive models for these organisms and habitats in the U.S ...
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Characterizing Spatial Distributions of Deep-sea Corals and Hardbottom Habitats in the U.S. Southeast Atlantic

deep sea coral, deep-sea coral model, Ecological and Biogeographic Assessments, Habitat Mapping, habitat model, hard bottom habitat, maps of deep-sea coral in US SE Atlantic, Marine Spatial Ecology, matthew.poti@noaa.gov, Regional Ecosystem Science, spatial distributions of deep-sea coral, species model, US SE Atlantic
We are compiling observations of deep-sea corals and hardbottom habitats from field surveys and developing spatial predictive models for these organisms and habitats in the ...
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Characterizing Submerged Lands around Navy Base Guam, CNMI

bryan.costa@noaa.gov, CNMI, Coral, Habitat Mapping, Marine Spatial Ecology, Pacific Ocean, tim.battista@noaa.gov, U.S. States and Territories, Waterbodies
In 2012, the U.S. Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) Marianas developed a resource plan for the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). The purpose ...
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Chesapeake Bay Climate Sensitivity Assessment

Chesapeake Bay, climate change, Coastal Change, estuary, Marine Spatial Ecology, Maryland, NERRS, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, U.S. States and Territories, Virginia, Vulnerability and Risk Assessment, vulnerability assessment, Waterbodies
The Chesapeake Bay is one of the largest estuaries in the world, economically valuable for its productive habitats, valuable fisheries, and recreational opportunities. However, it ...
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Chesapeake Bay Joint Pilot Fish Habitat Assessment

andrew.leight@noaa.gov, Chesapeake Bay, Coastal Change, Ecological and Biogeographic Assessments, Habitat Mapping, Marine Spatial Ecology, Restoration, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, Water Quality, Waterbodies
With a land-to-water ratio of 14:1 and an estimated population of over 18 million people, living resources of the Chesapeake Bay have suffered from a ...
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Chesapeake Bay Vibrio Pathogen Forecast

Chesapeake Bay, ecological forecasting, john.jacobs@noaa.gov, Marine Spatial Ecology, pathogens, seafood poisoning, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, vibrio, vibrio vulnificus, Waterbodies
We forecast where and when pathogens are most likely to be found in the Chesapeake Bay, based on the salinity and temperature of the water ...
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CIGUAHAB: New Tools to Aid in Managing Ciguatera Poisoning Risks in the Caribbean

Assessing Vulnerability and Resilience, Atlantic Ocean, Biological Effects of Contaminants and Nutrients, Caribbean Sea, ciguatoxin, ECOHAB, Florida, gambierdiscus, Gulf of America (formerly Gulf of Mexico), harmful algal bloom, marc.suddleson@noaa.gov, Social Science, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, Texas, U.S. States and Territories, U.S. Virgin Islands, Waterbodies
Ciguatera fish poisoning is the most frequently reported non-bacterial illness associated with eating fish in the United States and the U. S. territorial islands. Ciguatera ...
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Ciguatera Fish Poisoning: Identifying Toxic Species

Caribbean Sea, ciguatoxin, Florida, gambierdiscus, Guam, Harmful Algal Bloom Detection and Forecasting, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, U.S. States and Territories, U.S. Virgin Islands, Waterbodies, wayne.litaker@noaa.gov
Ciguatera fish poisoning (CFP) is the most common, non-bacterial, seafood illness. The condition is caused by toxins from the microalga Gambierdiscus, and can lead to ...
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CIGUATOX: A Study of Gambierdiscus ‘Super Bugs’ and Ciguatoxin Fate in Coral Reef Food Webs

Florida, Harmful Algal Bloom Detection and Forecasting, marc.suddleson@noaa.gov, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, U.S. States and Territories, U.S. Virgin Islands
Ciguatera fish poisoning (CFP) is the most common algal-borne illness worldwide. It is a debilitating syndrome caused by consumption of fish contaminated with ciguatoxins (CTXs) ...
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Ciguatoxin Impacts on Foraging Behavior in Hawaiian Monk Seals

Biological Effects of Contaminants and Nutrients, Harmful Algal Bloom Detection and Forecasting, Hawaii, john.ramsdell@noaa.gov, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, U.S. States and Territories
Hawaiian monk seals, which are critically endangered, inhabit the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument and the Hawaiian Islands. For the first time we have identified the ...
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Climate Change and Acidification Impacts on Cyanobacterial Harmful Algal Blooms in the Great Lakes

Canada, Foreign Countries, Great Lakes, Harmful Algal Bloom Detection and Forecasting, maggie.broadwater@noaa.gov, Michigan, Ohio, Other Topics, reagan.errera@noaa.gov, Sponsored Research, Stressor Impacts and Mitigation, U.S. States and Territories, Waterbodies, Wisconsin
The Great Lakes experience recurrent toxin-producing cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms (cHABs). While cHAB events have been well-studied in recent years, little attention has been given ...
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