A Comparison of Gray's Reef and Savannah Scarp September 10,
2001 Reed Bohne, Manager Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary
Dr. Jack McGovern Associate Marine Scientist South Carolina
Department of Natural Resources View a video of one of the sea's
most fascinating creatures, the octopus. (5.6 MB, QuickTime
required). For those of us from the Gray's Reef National Marine
Sanctuary, the exploration of the Savannah Scarp is a trip to a
realm closely related to, but significantly different from, the
familiar waters of the sanctuary. At the surface, the endless
expanse of water with Sargassum weed drifting by is familiar,
but at this depth and proximity to the Gulf Stream, the water is
a deep cobalt blue. At Gray's Reef, 40 mi shoreward, the water
over the reef 60 ft below is often a jade green, rich in
nutrients and influenced substantially by sediments washing off
the coastal plain in Georgia and out the rivers and estuaries
along the shore. At the Scarp we are riding the edge of the Gulf
Stream, with its clear,