Deep pelagic habitat from the entire Gulf of Mexico (GOM) was classified using the deviation of sea surface height (SSH) from mean SSH for the entire GOM and water temperature at 300 m water depth, founded on ocean condition data from the 1/25° GOM HYbrid Coordinate Ocean Model (HYCOM). Pelagic habitats were segregated into anticyclonic, mixed boundaries, and common water units – all of which likely produce varying levels of forage for deep-sea fauna and may be trophic drivers. Model classifications were compared to classifications based on water column temperature and salinity at depth, as measured by CTD casts during cruises DP01-DP04 in the northern GOM (GRIIDC datasets R4.x257.230:0004, R4.x257.230:0010, R4.x257.230:0011, and R4.x257.230:0012). The classification scheme was further cross-validated by comparing the model classifications to classifications based on microbial communities found within the same water masses. This tool will be used to aid pelagic community analyses of fauna collected by DEEPEND cruises in the GOM spanning 2015-2016.
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/tracey-sutton/213/
To classify GOM pelagic waters and aid pelagic community analyses of fauna collected by DEEPEND cruises in the GOM spanning the years 2015-2016.