Answer: The offshore habitats of the Sound are home to a diverse array of fish, crustaceans (like lobster), mollusks (like oysters and clams), and other wildlife that are integral parts of the food chain which support a wide diversity of resident and migratory marine species in the Sound. As there is more to learn about the health of the habitats, and its wildlife that depend on them, the Partnership is focusing on seafloor habitat mapping, data collection, and species assessment.
*The Objective’s Measure of Success define reasonable outcomes and ensure that progress towards the Objective can be clearly and precisely tracked over time.
Based on the Measure of Success and Indicators, the overall status of this Objective is:
Five offshore habitat management and restoration projects supported by the Partnership in 2025.
These indicators provide supporting data and insight into the progress made towards the Objective.
Acres by Habitat type
Counts
The primary measure of success is to support and implement 25 restoration and management projects focused on seafloor habitat mapping, data collection, and species assessments.
The objective’s measure of success is based on the goals in the Long Island Sound Seafloor Habitat Mapping Initiative, which aims to complete mapping of the entire seafloor to better understand the ecological characterization, biodiversity, and threats (e.g., invasives and adverse impacts from electric transmission cable placement).
The research team for the Habitat Mapping Initiative have explored the Stratford Shoals area in the central Sound (Phase I), eastern Long Island Sound (Phase II), western Long Island Sound (Phase III), and central Long Island Sound (Phase IV). Next up is a section of east central Long Island Sound (Phase V). These five regions encompass 64 percent of Long Island Sound, leaving 37 percent of Long Island Sound remaining to be mapped by 2035.
The University of Connecticut’s Habitat Mapping page describes the many inherent challenges of studying the ocean floor. The features of the ocean, such as temperature, light, pressure, and salinity, create a hostile environment for both humans and the tools used to study beneath the sea. Also, researchers need to gather information on the big picture view of the underwater landscape, as well as the small-scale creatures living around the seafloor. Therefore, the Long Island Sound Habitat Mapping Initiative’s teams of scientists must rely upon a diversity of approaches and tools – acoustic systems, physical sampling tools, and imaging technologies. All the data from these tools are ultimately combined to create a three-dimensional perspective of the Sound’s underwater ecosystem.
The diverse biota of offshore habitat, like sponges and cold-water corals, are incredibly valuable in which many key recreational and commercial fishery species rely upon. The Long Island Sound Seafloor Habitat Mapping Initiative and this objective enable the Partnership to better protect and preserve the biodiversity that make up these critical ecosystems.
DeAva Lambert, CT DEEP, deava.lambert@ct.gov
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Offshore habitats are located beyond 10-foot contour depth at Mean Low Lower Water (images taken in May 2018 as part of the Long Island Sound Habitat Mapping Initiative).