NOAA’s 2015 ‘Our Living Oceans: Habitat’ report[1] is the first comprehensive national summary of the status and trends of the various habitats types used by living marine resources under NOAA Fisheries’ purview. The report is part of the Our Living Oceans (OLO) series, which also includes OLO: Living Marine Resources and OLO: The Economic Status of U.S. Fisheries.
There are also regional fact sheets available that provide a summary of the information found in each section of the OLO: Habitat report. The Northeast Regional fact sheet contains information about its 3 major areas – the Gulf of Maine, Georges Bank, and Southern New England/Mid-Atlantic Bight – and associated coastal and estuarine areas.
OLO: Habitat is intended to provide a conceptual framework for understanding habitat-use patterns of the Nation’s federally managed species of fishes, marine mammals, sea turtles, and invertebrates – and to guide and prioritize research needs.
OLO: Habitat provides an assessment of the current issues facing these habitats – and ways to protect remaining habitats, and repair or restore habitats that have been degraded or lost.
[1] NMFS. 2015. Our living oceans: habitat. Status of the habitat of U.S. living marine resources. U.S. Dep. Commer., NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS-F/SPO-75, 327 p.
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