Pioneering NOAA expedition maps Bering Sea deepwater corals

摘要

Hundreds of miles from shore in the Bering Sea, where the continental shelf begins its descent into the abyss, there is a series of vast, convoluted canyons, including some of the largest submarine canyons in the world. Hidden in and around those canyons are fragile, deepwater corals that may provide habitat for a great diversity of marine life.At the same time, the Bering Sea is home to some of the most valuable and productive fisheries in the world. Among them is the Alaska pollock fishery, which landed 1.3 million metric tons of fish in 2012 - the largest catch in the nation by far. Large as it is, that catch is sustainable. Scientists keep close tabs on the pollock population, and catch limits are set well below what the stock can support. As aresult of this careful management, Alaska pollock has never been overfished.