This page lists online databases and resources that aren't necessarily specific to the Gulf of Mexico, but the GulfBase team has found them to be especially useful for Gulf of Mexico studies.

Image courtesy LaCoast.gov

LACOAST.GOV

LaCoast.gov is a website funded by the Coastal Wetlands Planning, Protection and Restoration Act (CWPPRA), and maintained by the US Geological Survey's National Wetlands Research Center. The site contains information and links relating to coastal restoration projects in coastal Louisiana.

Louisiana is blessed with an abundance of natural resources, containing approximately 40 percent of the coastal wetlands of the lower 48 states. Unfortunately this fragile environment is disappearing at an alarming rate. Louisiana has lost up to 40 square miles of marsh a year for several decades - that is 80 percent of the nation's annual coastal wetland loss. If the current rate of loss is not slowed, by the year 2040 an additional 800,000 acres of wetlands will disappear, and the Louisiana shoreline will advance inland as much as 33 miles in some areas.

This prompted Congress to pass the CWPPRA in 1990. It funds wetland enhancement projects nationwide, designating approximately $50 million annually for work in Louisiana. The CWPPRA Task Force annually develops a list of high-priority projects to be constructed. To date, fourteen such priority lists have been formulated. The projects funded by CWPPRA all focus on marsh creation, restoration, protection or enhancement.

Image courtesy FishBase.org

FISHBASE.ORG

FishBase is an information system with key data on the biology of all fishes. It is a relational database with information to cater to different professionals such as research scientists, fisheries managers, zoologists and many more. FishBase on the web contains practically all fish species known to science. It was developed at the WorldFish Center in collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) with support from the European Commission (EC). Since 2001 FishBase is supported by a consortium of seven research institutions.

As an all-inclusive database, Fishbase contains useful information on all fished that occur in the Gulf of Mexico. Similar to an encyclopedia, it contains different things for different people. For example:

• Fisheries managers will dive into the largest existing compilation of population dynamics data;
• Teachers and students will find numerous graphs illustrating basic concepts of fish biology;
• Taxonomists will enjoy access to Eschmeyer's (1998) Catalog of fishes databases;
• Conservationists will use the lists of threatened fishes for any given country;
• Policymakers may be interested in a chronological, annotated list of introductions to their country;
• Research scientists, as well as funding agencies will find it useful to gain a quick overview of what is known about a certain species;
• Zoologists and physiologists will have the largest existing compilations of fish morphology, metabolism, gill area, brain size, eye pigment, or swimming speed at their fingertips;
• Ecologists will likewise use data on diet composition, trophic levels, food consumption and predators as inputs for their models;
• Aquaculturists will see functional databases on genetic traits and culture experiments, as well as the foundation for a global strains registry;
• Geneticists will find the largest compilation of allele frequencies;
• The fishing industry will find proximate analysis, as well as processing recommendations for many marine species;
• Anglers will enjoy a listing of all game fishes occurring in a particular country;
• Scholars interested in local knowledge will find more than 70,000 common names of fishes together with the language/culture in which they are used and comments on their etymology.

Image courtesy ReefBase.org

REEFBASE.ORG

Reefbase is an outstanding online information system on coral reefs. It provides information useful to coral reef professionals involved in management, research, monitoring, conservation and education. The goal of ReefBase is to facilitate sustainable management of coral reefs and related coastal/marine environments.

The Reefbase.org database provides a variety of data and information on reefs located in the Gulf of Mexico, including the status of these resources, threats which have negative impacts, and what is being done to monitor and protect them. Also available are numerous maps and photos as well as references and contact information to access key publications about the reefs located in the Gulf.

Image courtesy GCOOS

The Gulf of Mexico Coastal Ocean Observing System (GCOOS)

Many organizations and individuals are concerned with sustained observations and/or products and services based on such observations from the estuaries and Exclusive Economic Zone of the Gulf of Mexico. A group of these entities have agreed to form a Gulf of Mexico Coastal Ocean Observing System (GCOOS) as part of a U.S. National Federation of such systems. GCOOS is an effort of this group of entities to establish a sustained observing system for the Gulf of Mexico. GCOOS seeks to provide observations and products needed by users in this region for the purposes of detecting and predicting climate variability and consequences, preserving and restoring healthy marine ecosystems, ensuring human health, managing resources, facilitating safe and efficient marine transportation, enhancing national security, and predicting and mitigating against coastal hazards.

There are many repositories of data and marine information, and ongoing activities to collect additional data and produce new information regarding the Gulf of Mexico. Some of these are sustained for socioeconomic needs, while others are for research needs. All may be considered to contribute to the GCOOS. Website links are available and organized into four groups pertaining to 1) in situ data, 2) satellite data and products, 3) models and other products, and 4) associated activities/users.

NCCOS Projects Explorer

The NCCOS Projects Explorer (NPE) provides a snapshot of all peer-reviewed projects funded by NOAA's National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) from FY 2002 to the present. This database includes intramural research conducted at the NCCOS Centers, as well as extramural projects funded via NCCOS's Center for Sponsored Coastal Ocean Research (CSCOR). The NPE is an up-to-date resource of the most recent research activities, and is updated throughout the calendar year. It offers the option of searching all tasks by principal investigator, NCCOS Center, fiscal year, stressor, ecosystem, location; and within project titles, descriptions, and outcomes. The information provided in the NPE is used in reports to the National Ocean Service, NOAA, the Department of Commerce, the Office of Management and Budget, the United States Congress, various stakeholder groups, and others.

Access the Projects Explorer advanced search page via NOAA: http://www8.nos.noaa.gov/nccos/npe/queryadvanced.aspx.

Digital Coast: Legislative Atlas

The Digital Coast: Legislative Atlas is a project initiated by NOAA Coastal Services Center. The website allows users to visualize where selected coastal and ocean laws apply, helping regional collaborations to make sense of the complex governance system of our oceans and coasts.

A growing number of regional collaborations are forming among federal, state and local agencies across the country to address management issues that cut across existing political and jurisdictional boundaries. The Legislative Atlas supports regional ocean and coastal management efforts by mapping key state and federal laws and jurisdictions.

The website contains a searchable database of coastal and ocean legislation, state and federal legislative and agency summaries, downloadable spatial data and metadata and on-line mapping capabilities. The Atlas will be able to search the US coastlines by region, including the Gulf of Mexico, Great Lakes, Northeast, Southeast, Caribbean, California, Alaska and Hawaii. Currently only federal and state data for the Gulf of Mexico is available for searching.