Corals on Seamounts

Benthic megafaunal community structure of cobalt-rich manganese crusts on Necker Ridge

“…Rogers et al, 2007). However, on Necker Ridge there could be a competitive interaction between the crinoids and the corals and/or sponges.…”

Habitat-forming cold-water corals show affinity for seamounts in the New Zealand region

“…'reef', 'mound' or 'thicket' structures and often provide biogenic habitat on slope margins, ridges and seamounts (Mortenson et al 2001, Auster et al 2005, Rogers et al 2007, Wheeler et al 2007, Reveillaud et al 2008. Some reef structures can be large; for example, the Sula Ridge Lophelia pertusa coral reef off the Norwegian coast is 14 km long and up to 35 m in height (Huehnerbach et al 2007).…”

“…A more recent anthropogenic threat of increasing global significance is that of decreased calcification rates in cold-water corals due to ocean acidification, which is predicted to affect their distribution (Caldeira & Wickett 2003, Guinotte et al 2006, Turley et al 2007, Maier et al 2009. Awareness of the threats to cold-water corals has grown rapidly (Roberts & Hirshfield 2004, Roberts et al 2006, and understanding the ecosystem role, function and value of this important group, and the associated fauna, has become a priority in those regions where habitat-forming stony corals are particularly common, for example, around New Zealand (Consalvey et al 2006, Rogers et al 2007, Hourigan et al 2008. In particular, a good understanding of the distribution of the major cold-water coral species in a particular region or the entire seafloor jurisdiction of a country (e.g.…”

Water mass characteristics and associated fauna of a recently discovered Lophelia pertusa (Scleractinia: Anthozoa) reef in Greenlandic waters

“…The other stretches along the American continental slope from Nova Scotia to Florida and into the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea (ICES 2008). The two areas are well separated by deep-sea basins and great distances, with few occurrences on seamounts (Rogers et al 2007), raising speculation on the likelihood and means of genetic interchange. The recent discovery of L. pertusa from Greenlandic waters, made in 2012 , has created an important extension to the biogeographic range of this species by narrowing the geographical gap between eastern and western Atlantic L. pertusa populations.…”

“…Lophelia pertusa is the best known among the reefforming deepwater species, with a wealth of publications existing on various aspects of its distribution and ecology (partly reviewed in Rogers 1999;Freiwald et al 2004;Rogers et al 2007;Sulak et al 2007;Davies et al 2008). Lophelia pertusa can form cohesive reefs or reef fields (aggregations of smaller reefs), with or without bioherms (build-up of organic matter under the reef structure), but also occurs as isolated colonies.…”