2025 NC Wildlife Action Plan

Southeast Conservation Blueprint Summary for North Carolina

Coastal & marine Atlantic coral & hardbottom

This indicator predicts the presence of coral and hardbottom in the Atlantic Ocean based on direct observations, distribution models, and known locations of artificial reefs and shipwrecks. The models use hardbottom observations and a suite of environmental predictors including measures of depth, seafloor topography and substrate, oceanography, and geography. Hardbottom provides an anchor for important seafloor habitats such as deep-sea corals, plants, and sponges, providing valuable structure that supports a wide range of invertebrate and fish species. This indicator combines data from multiple sources, including The Nature Conservancy's South Atlantic Bight Marine Assessment, several National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration datasets, Florida state data, and more.

226 miles

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Confirmed hardbottom-associated species (corals, sponges) Confirmed natural hardbottom Artificial reefs Shipwrecks Predicted cold-water coral mounds (Blake Plateau) Highest probability of hardbottom (>80th percentile) High probability of hardbottom (>60th-80th percentile) Medium probability of hardbottom (>40th-60th percentile) Not identified as hardbottom

Created 11/20/2024 using the Southeast Conservation Blueprint Explorer

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