Abstract

The Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary (FGBNMS) is comprised of three uplifted salt dome fea-tures located in the northwestern Gulf of Mexico (East Bank, West Bank, and Stetson Bank), between 70-115 miles offshore of Galveston, Texas. These features represent three of dozens of reefs and banks in the Northwestern Gulf of Mexico. The banks rise from the surrounding seafloor at approximately 55-145 m and crest between 17-21 m of the sea surface, and support well-developed benthic communities throughout. Distinct biological zones describing the habitats within FGBNMS have been developed, including coral reef, coral community, coralline algae (including coral-line algae reefs and algal nodules), deep coral, soft bottom, brine seep, and mud volcano. Each of these biological zones harbors a distinct and characteristic benthic community. This study presents the addition of fish community data associ-ated with these biological zones, linking dominant fish species to each habitat. While the data presented here origi-nates from surveys at the three banks located within FGBNMS, extensive remotely operated vehicle surveys of nearby locations by the sanctuary and partners indicate these biological zones and associated fish communities possess a wider applicability to the many reefs and banks of the northwestern Gulf of Mexico.

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