Summary:
We request funds to maintain continuity of critical timesensitive biological sampling of offshore benthic seaweeds and macrocrustaceans related to the DWH oil spill in the northern Gulf of Mexico. These funds are to cover a gap in critical data acquisition during the late summer period spanning August 1 to September 30, 2011, until an RFP-II grant proposal can be submitted at a later date. In addition to observations and sampling, we are also requesting salaries for the PIs for ancillary work, i.e. to catalogue samples, to preserve samples, and to make these materials and related data available to the wider scientific community. The research proposed under RFP-III contributes to the major research theme #3 addressed in RFP-I; in particular it relates to environmental effects of petroleum/dispersant on benthic organisms of hard banks and the sea floor, along with critical assessment of ecosystem vitality and recovery.