Reef Relief

Fishery-Independent Assessment Coming to Southeast Florida

Reef Relief — Tue, 15 May 2012 15:02:31 +0000

By: Jamie Monty. Assistant Manager

On January 31, 2012, the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) hosted a workshop called “Integration & Coordination of Efforts to Monitor Reef Fish Populations on the Florida Reef Tract”. This kick-off meeting brought together scientists and managers from the Florida Keys and southeast Florida regions to coordinate a fisheries-independent monitoring effort along the entire Florida Reef Tract. Fisheries-independent monitoring is a fish monitoring program using standardized sampling methods to examine the population of fishes as a whole (e.g., every fish you see when you’re SCUBA diving); in contrast, a fishery-dependent monitoring program uses data from only the exploited segment of a population (e.g., only the fish you catch using hook and line or a net). Florida’s Coral Reef Conservation Program has been building partnerships and obtaining funding to implement fisheries-independent monitoring, a priority information gap in the southeast Florida region. The sampling design is currently underway, and the first in-water assessment will begin this summer. The data collected in southeast Florida will be based on the Reef Visual Census (RVC) method, so that southeast Florida fish data will be comparable to the decade’s worth of data from the National Parks and Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. This will be the first time the fish population of the entire Florida Reef Tract will be looked at holistically – which will help inform resource management decisions. Additionally, these methods were recently recognized by NOAA as the most appropriate for fish surveys throughout the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico.

June 8th is World Oceans Day

Reef Relief — Tue, 15 May 2012 15:01:17 +0000

World Oceans Day—our planet’s biggest celebration of the ocean, held every June 8^th. This year, we encourage you to reach out to young people in your community and help inspire them for the 2012 theme Youth: the Next Wave for Change. The future of ocean conservation is in their hands! Explore this site for ideas, resources, and information about how you can get involved!

Science The 7 Weirdest Creatures Under The Sea

Reef Relief — Mon, 14 May 2012 18:35:36 +0000

Andrew Liszewski May 10, 2012 4:00 PM. http://www.gizmodo.com.au

If you’re looking for a good fright, forget about going to see a horror movie or wandering through a cemetery in the middle of the night. Just flip on the National Geographic channel and find yourself a good documentary about the horrors lurking under the sea.

Living thousands of metres below the water’s surface may not have done these creatures any favours in the looks department, but it has led to some utterly bizarre adaptations that let mother nature’s ugly step-children survive in their unique environment. And while it’s fun to point and stare at how hideous they all are, just remember they’d probably do the same to us if they visited dry land. See more at http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2012/05/the-7-weirdest-creatures-under-the-sea/

Five-Limbed Brittle Stars Move Bilaterally, Like People

Reef Relief — Mon, 14 May 2012 18:30:08 +0000

ScienceDaily (May 10, 2012) — Brittle stars and people have something in common: They move in fundamentally similar ways. Though not bilaterally symmetrical like humans and many other animals, brittle stars have come up with a mechanism to choose any of its five limbs to direct its movement on the seabed. It’s as if each arm can be the creature’s front, capable of locomotion and charting direction. Results appear in the Journal of Experimental Biology.It

It appears that the brittle star, the humble, five-limbed dragnet of the seabed, moves very similarly to us.

Why bother with turns or pivots? The brittle star doesn’t turn as most animals do. It simply designates another of its five limbs as its new front and continues moving forward. (Credit: Henry Astley/Brown University)

In a series of first-time experiments, Brown University evolutionary biologist Henry Astley discovered that brittle stars, despite having no brain, move in a very coordinated fashion, choosing a central arm to chart direction and then designating other limbs to propel it along. Yet when the brittle star wants to change direction, it designates a new front, meaning that it chooses a new center arm and two other limbs to move. Brittle stars have come up with a mechanism to choose any of its five limbs to be central control, each capable of determining direction or pitching in to help it move.

Read the full article at http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120510100345.htm

First Satellite Tag Study for Manta Rays Reveals Habits and Hidden Journeys of Ocean Giants

Reef Relief — Mon, 14 May 2012 18:25:50 +0000

ScienceDaily (May 11, 2012) — Using the latest satellite tracking technology, conservationists from the Wildlife Conservation Society, the University of Exeter (UK), and the Government of Mexico have completed a ground-breaking study on a mysterious ocean giant: the manta ray.

The research team has produced the first published study on the use of satellite telemetry to track the open-ocean journeys of the world’s largest ray, which can grow up to 25 feet in width. Researchers say the manta ray — listed as “Vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) — has become increasingly threatened by fishing and accidental capture and now needs more protection.

The study was published May 11 in the online journal PLoS ONE. The authors include: Rachel T. Graham of the Wildlife Conservation Society and the University of Exeter; Matthew J. Witt of the University of Exeter; Dan W. Castellanos of the Wildlife Conservation Society; Francisco Remolina of the National Commission of Protected Areas, Cancun, Mexico; Sara Maxwell of the Marine Conservation Institute and the University of California-Santa Cruz; Brenden J. Godley of the University of Exeter; and Lucy A. Hawkes of Bangor University, Bangor, United Kingdom.

Read the full article at http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120511122228.htm

New shark species found in RAK

Reef Relief — Fri, 04 May 2012 20:26:45 +0000

Martin Croucher. May 4, 2012 . http://www.thenational.ae/news/uae-news/

DUBAI // A marine biologist hopes she may soon be lending her name to a new species of shark she discovered in UAE waters.

Rima Jabado, who for the past two years has been cataloguing shark species in the Emirates’ waters, recently found the fish at a landing site in Ras Al Khaimah.

She said her curiosity was sparked by subtle differences in the teeth and the shape of the sharks’ mouths.

“They are smaller sharks, similar to the milk sharks,” Ms Jabado said. “They don’t grow very big. I found very few of them but they just looked slightly different.” Read full story at http://www.thenational.ae/news/uae-news/environment/new-shark-species-found-in-rak

Your chance to Have a say on Florida Keys Marine Conservation

Reef Relief — Fri, 04 May 2012 20:20:23 +0000

This June, NOAA, the Florida DEP and the USFWS are gathering public input on rules for the Florida Keys National Wildlife Sanctuary, the Key West National Wildlife Refuge and the Great White Heron National Wildlife Refuge. The Sanctuary’s focus is its’ zoning and boundary plan which includes areas such the Ecological Preserves and Sanctuary Preservation Areas but the public can make recommendations on other issues related to it management and regulation.This is your opportunity to have a say in the future management and regulation of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary and the backcountry management of the Florida Keys by the USFWS. Public comments are being accepted Through June 29, 2012. Comments may be submitted electronically and via mail, and during five public meetings.

Public Meetings

All meeting will ne held 4:00pm-8:00pm

June 19: Marathom, FL; Monroe County Government Center; Emergency Operations Center

June 20: Key Largo, FL; Key Largo Library

June 21: Key West, FL; Doubletree Grand Key Resort; Tortuga Ballroom

June 26: Miami, FL; Florida Internationl University; Graham University Center; room GC243

June 27: Fort Myers, FL; Joseph P. Alessandro Office Complex; Room 165C and D

For more information visit: floridakeys.noaa.gov

The Nature Conservancy (TNC), Save-A-Turtle, Friends and Volunteers of Refuges (FAVOR) and Reef Relief are hosting open meetings about the public scoping process, timing and opportunities to add your input in the regulatory review process.

Informational Meeting Dates:

Big Pine Key - May 1, 2012 at 7:00pm at the St. Francis in the Keys Episcopal Church, 1600 Key Deer Boulevard, Big Pine Keys. Hosted by FAVOR and TNC.

Marathon - May 7, 2012 at 7:30pm at the Turtle Hospital, 2396 Overseas Highway, MM 48.5 bayside, Marathon. Hosted by TNC and Save-A-Turtle.

Key West - May 10, 2012 at 6:30pm at the Florida Keys Eco-Discovery Center, 35 East Quay road, Key West. Hosted by TNC and Reef Relief.

For more information contact Chris Bergh at the Nature Conservancy’s Florida Keys office at 305-872-7071 or cbergh@tnc.org

Protect Funding for America’s Oceans

Reef Relief — Fri, 04 May 2012 20:09:27 +0000

On May 8 the House of Representatives is expected to consider an amendment that would block funding for the Obama administration’s National Ocean Policy. Such an amendment would seriously hamper conservation and management of marine resources and wildlife. The National Ocean Policy is a comprehensive, common-sense way to handle the growing demands on our coasts. It stimulates job creation and economic growth while protecting the health of ecosystems

The National Ocean Policy is the country’s framework for coping with the competing and growing demands on our oceans and coasts. Urge your representative to oppose any amendment that would block this sensible approach.

TAKE ACTION NOW by signing the Pew Environment.org petition at http://www.pewenvironment.org/campaigns/campaign-for-healthy-oceans/id/8589941316/take-action/

Coral Reefs Are Being Decimated, All for a Few Gaudy Trinkets

Reef Relief — Tue, 01 May 2012 18:45:46 +0000

By Chris Sweeney Thursday, May 3 2012. Miami New Times

Kate Lunz didn’t know what to expect as she piloted her white Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission truck to the Port of Tampa in July 2010. The day before, customs authorities had called the 32-year-old, PhD-toting marine biologist and asked her to inspect the contents of two 40-foot shipping containers that had been sent from the Solomon Islands and pulled for investigation.

This marked the first time Lunz had been summoned to the port to do her job. To look official, she wore her white FWC shirt, pulled back her short blond hair, and packed an employee badge, a professional accouterment she rarely used. A federal escort met Lunz at the port’s entry and led her past rotund oil tanks and looming smokestacks toward a secure Customs and Border Protection warehouse the size of a football field. Lunz walked inside to find piles of what appeared to be white rubble wrapped in damp beer boxes and foreign newspapers. She snapped on a surgical mask to stave off the stench of mold and dust and began surveying the haul. Read the full story at http://www.miaminewtimes.com/2012-05-03/news/coral-reefs-are-being-decimated-all-for-a-few-gaudy-trinkets/

Global Warming Refuge Discovered Near At-Risk Pacific Island Nation of Kiribati

Reef Relief — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 18:15:39 +0000

ScienceDaily (Apr. 30, 2012) — Scientists predict ocean temperatures will rise in the equatorial Pacific by the end of the century, wreaking havoc on coral reef ecosystems.

But a new study shows that climate change could cause ocean currents to operate in a way that mitigates warming near a handful of islands right on the equator.

Those islands include some of the 33 coral atolls that form the nation of Kiribati. This low-lying country is at risk from sea-level rise caused by global warming.

Surprisingly, these Pacific islands within two degrees north and south of the equator may become isolated climate change refuges for corals and fish.