collection of cephalopods was an Isaak-Kidd mid-water trawl. It is unlikely that benthic
habitats were sampled with this type of gear.
Extensive deep sea samplings of the southwestern Atlantic were performed during the
period between 1955 and 1965 by the exploratory fishing vessels R/V Oregon, R/V Silver
Bay, R/V Combat, and R/V Pelican (Bullis and Thompson, 1965; Manning, 1969). From this
period, taxonomic records of deep sea fauna were reported from at least 10 sampling
stations occupied by the R/V Oregon and the R/V Silver Bay in the west coast of Puerto
Rico. Also, during the 1960-70’s the University of Miami launched its Deep Sea Expeditions
Program, occupying more than one thousand sampling stations from the R/V Gerda,
Columbus-Iselin, R/V Oregon, and R/V John Elliot Pillsbury in the Florida Straits, Gulf of
Mexico, western and southwestern Caribbean, Bahamas, and the West Indies (Gore, 1974;
Cairns, 1976; Cooper, 1977; Meyer et al. 1978). It seems that the US Caribbean EEZ was
mostly excluded from the deep sea sampling expeditions of the U. Miami. Taxonomic
records of deep sea fauna are reported from at least three stations occupied by the R/V
John Elliot Pillsbury in waters off Vieques, and from the Puerto Rican Trench during
sampling cruises of 1969 and 1971 (Cooper, 1977).
After the 1970’s, most of the research attention on deep reef communities of Puerto Rico
and the USVI was focused toward fishery resources. Assessment surveys of the deep sea
snapper and grouper fisheries potential were performed during the late 70’s and throughout
the 1980’s by the National Marine Fishery Service in collaboration with the local
governments of Puerto Rico, USVI and the Caribbean Fishery Management Council (Juhl,
1972; Silvester and Dammann, 1974; Collazo, 1980; NOAA, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983,
1984, 1985, 1987; Appledoorn, 1985; Nelson and Appledoorn, 1985; Rosario, 1986). These
surveys consisted of at least 11 cruises of the R/V Oregon II, R/V Delaware II and the
Seward Johnson-Sea Link II submersible survey of the insular slope of PR and the USVI in
1985. The submersible survey provided an unprecedented and exceptional insight of our
deep sea reef communities at depths between 100 – 1250 meters. Whereas observations
about a rich and highly complex reef community near the top of the insular shelf appear in
the Seward Johnson-Sea Link II report (Nelson and Appledoorn, 1985), the upper slope reef
communities were left mostly undescribed. Despite the generalized conclusion from these
surveys that deep sea fish stocks were depauperate, deep sea snapper and grouper
fisheries still represent the main fisheries resource in terms of catch and value in the U. S.
Caribbean.
17
habitats were sampled with this type of gear.
Extensive deep sea samplings of the southwestern Atlantic were performed during the
period between 1955 and 1965 by the exploratory fishing vessels R/V Oregon, R/V Silver
Bay, R/V Combat, and R/V Pelican (Bullis and Thompson, 1965; Manning, 1969). From this
period, taxonomic records of deep sea fauna were reported from at least 10 sampling
stations occupied by the R/V Oregon and the R/V Silver Bay in the west coast of Puerto
Rico. Also, during the 1960-70’s the University of Miami launched its Deep Sea Expeditions
Program, occupying more than one thousand sampling stations from the R/V Gerda,
Columbus-Iselin, R/V Oregon, and R/V John Elliot Pillsbury in the Florida Straits, Gulf of
Mexico, western and southwestern Caribbean, Bahamas, and the West Indies (Gore, 1974;
Cairns, 1976; Cooper, 1977; Meyer et al. 1978). It seems that the US Caribbean EEZ was
mostly excluded from the deep sea sampling expeditions of the U. Miami. Taxonomic
records of deep sea fauna are reported from at least three stations occupied by the R/V
John Elliot Pillsbury in waters off Vieques, and from the Puerto Rican Trench during
sampling cruises of 1969 and 1971 (Cooper, 1977).
After the 1970’s, most of the research attention on deep reef communities of Puerto Rico
and the USVI was focused toward fishery resources. Assessment surveys of the deep sea
snapper and grouper fisheries potential were performed during the late 70’s and throughout
the 1980’s by the National Marine Fishery Service in collaboration with the local
governments of Puerto Rico, USVI and the Caribbean Fishery Management Council (Juhl,
1972; Silvester and Dammann, 1974; Collazo, 1980; NOAA, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983,
1984, 1985, 1987; Appledoorn, 1985; Nelson and Appledoorn, 1985; Rosario, 1986). These
surveys consisted of at least 11 cruises of the R/V Oregon II, R/V Delaware II and the
Seward Johnson-Sea Link II submersible survey of the insular slope of PR and the USVI in
1985. The submersible survey provided an unprecedented and exceptional insight of our
deep sea reef communities at depths between 100 – 1250 meters. Whereas observations
about a rich and highly complex reef community near the top of the insular shelf appear in
the Seward Johnson-Sea Link II report (Nelson and Appledoorn, 1985), the upper slope reef
communities were left mostly undescribed. Despite the generalized conclusion from these
surveys that deep sea fish stocks were depauperate, deep sea snapper and grouper
fisheries still represent the main fisheries resource in terms of catch and value in the U. S.
Caribbean.
17