The Grand Banks of Newfoundland are a group of underwater plateaus southeast of Newfoundland on the North American continental shelf. These areas are relatively shallow, ranging from 80 to 330 feet (24–100 m) in depth. The cold Labrador Current mixes with the warm waters of the Gulf Stream here.
The mixing of these waters and the shape of the ocean bottom lifts nutrients to the surface. These conditions helped to create one of the richest fishing grounds in the world. Fish species include Atlantic cod, sword fish, haddock, and capelin. Shellfish include scallop and lobster. The area also supports large colonies of sea birds such as Northern Gannets, shearwaters, and sea ducks and various sea mammals such as seals, dolphins, and whales.
In addition to the effects on nutrients, the mixing of the cold and warm currents often causes fog in the area. It is also noted for its proximity to the sinking of the RMS Titanic, and thus the launching point of Titanic shipwreck expeditions.
Read more about Grand Banks Of Newfoundland: History, Research, Culture
Famous quotes containing the words grand banks, grand and/or banks:
“One of my playmates, who was apprenticed to a printer, and was somewhat of a wag, asked his master one afternoon if he might go a-fishing, and his master consented. He was gone three months. When he came back, he said that he had been to the Grand Banks, and went to setting type again as if only an afternoon had intervened.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“The grand style arises when beauty wins a victory over the monstrous.”
—Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900)
“Ye banks and braes o’ bonnie Doon,
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How can ye chant, ye little birds,
And I sae weary fu’ o’ care?
Thou’lt break my heart, thou warbling bird,
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Thou minds me o’ departed joys,
Departed never to return.”
—Robert Burns (1759–1796)