Effects of Hypoxia on Sediment Properties in the Northern Gulf of Mexico
Abstract
The effects of hypoxia on benthic community structure and processes are well documented but the direct and indirect effects of hypoxia on seafloor properties are unknown. Using bottom oxygen data compiled by Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium, we chose four provinces with sea floors having different number of annual exposures to hypoxia from 1985 to 2006. The provinces were arrayed east to west along the 30-m depth contour from the Mississippi River bird's foot (FH), to south of Terrebonne Bay (BH), and to south of Atchafalaya Bay (HO and NO). Several sediment properties can be affected as a consequence of the vertical zonation and diversity differences between benthos living in hypoxic and normoxic areas. Sediment physical and acoustic properties were measured on cores collected from the March/April 2009 cruise to attain baseline values for comparison among provinces and between pre-hypoxic and persistently hypoxic provinces to be sampled in early September 2009, August 2010, and July 2011.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 2009
- Accession Number
- ADA513781
Entities
People
- Jan Watkins
- Kevin B. Briggs
- Shivakumar Shivarudrappa
- Valerie Hartmann
Organizations
- United States Naval Research Laboratory