The Cayman Crown: newly protected coral reefs at the edge of the Cayman Trench

The Cayman Crown is a recently identified, highly resilient coral reef ecosystem in the deep-water channel between Belize and Guatemala. We collected single and multi-beam sonar data to map bathymetry and describe the unique reef morphology and high resilience. The morphology is the result of the setting of the reef along the edge of the North American tectonic plate at the southwestern apex of the Cayman Trench. Our data were used to support the creation of newly declared marine reserves.