Cuba’s Twilight Zone Reefs and Their Regional Connectivity

Mission Summary

From May 15 - June 13, 2017, the R/V F.G. Walton Smith circumnavigated Cuba, conducting daily remotely operated vehicle dives to focus on the mesophotic reef sites at depths of 30-150 meters. The purpose of the research expedition was to, in collaboration with our Cuban scientific partners, discover and characterize the extent of mesophotic reefs in Cuba and to compare the health and connectivity (physical, genetic, and ecological) among the mesophotic and shallow coral reef systems in Cuba and the United States.

Learn more