Radiocarbon‐based ages and growth rates of bamboo corals from the Gulf of Alaska

Deep‐sea coral communities have long been recognized by fisherman as areas that support large populations of commercial fish. As a consequence, many deep‐sea coral communities are threatened by bottom trawling. Successful management and conservation of this widespread deep‐sea habitat requires knowledge of the age and growth rates of deep‐sea corals. These organisms also contain important archives of intermediate and deep‐water variability, and are thus of interest in the context of decadal to century‐scale climate dynamics. Here, we present Δ 14 C data that suggest that bamboo corals from the Gulf of Alaska are long‐lived (75–126 years) and that they acquire skeletal carbon from two distinct sources. Independent verification of our growth rate estimates and coral ages is obtained by counting seasonal Sr/Ca cycles and probable lunar cycle growth bands.