Geologists Seamounts

Geologists Seamounts (alternatively were named South West Hawaii Group ) are a cluster of seamounts in the Pacific Ocean, located mainly 100 mi south of Oahu, Hawaii and 100 - 200 km south-west from Big Island (Hawaii). Clockwise from north they are named Perret, Jaggar, McCall, Pensacola, Daly, Swordfish, Cross, Washington and Ellis. The Kauluakalana seamount to the north of Oahu on the far side of the Hawaiian chain to the other seamounts of the cluster, and south-east of the Musicians Seamounts has reason to be regarded as part of the Geologists Seamounts, but would not so be grouped logically by the former name for the cluster.

Geology
The seamounts developed during the Cretaceous, about 80 million years ago, and there is no geological relationship to the neighbouring Hawaiian Islands. There is about contemporaneous timing with the formation of the Musicians Seamounts to the north-west of Oahu and Hawaii, from the limited sampling and analysis to date. Ages that have been obtained include 80.5 Ma for Kauluakalana, 84.5 Ma for Cross and 82.7 Ma for McCall. Rocks dredged from the seamounts include iron-manganese crusts, carbonates and basalts.

Ecology
Corals and sponges have been recorded at the south-western Swordfish Seamount at a depth of 1071 m with plexauridae, alcyonacea, and coralliidae corals. The deeper coral community on Ellis Seamount at a depth of 2135 m was less diverse with bamboo corals dominant.