Alexandros Simitzis’ Post

CORAL REEF OPINION: Counting on Corals - As struggling reefs put a squeeze on Belize’s Blue Economy, could heat-tolerant corals be the answer? It’s well past lunchtime in the central lagoon of Turneffe Atoll, the largest and most biologically diverse coral atoll in Belize. Palacio, who is 25, along with his little brother Deaton and friend Dajon Anderson—also in their 20s—have been idling languidly in their weather-beaten skiff since 8:30 AM without a single catch. “We’ve rarely seen any lobster,” Palacio says as Anderson, garbed in a wet suit, fastens his scuba mask to get ready for another dive. “There’s nothing in the shades and nothing in the traps.” He pauses for a moment and then blurts out, “We don’t know where they’re going, mon. No one knows!” Spiny lobster is one of several target species for many of the 1,300 commercial fishers around Turneffe Atoll, a 360,000-acre marine reserve off the coast of Belize that comprises general-use and no-take zones. But over the past decade, the crustaceans in this Central American paradise have become difficult to harvest. It turns out, many of the once-vibrant reefs that protect spiny lobsters from sunlight and predators have withered into spectral skeletons owing to a warming ocean. As their shelters bleach and crumble, the lobsters migrate to deeper waters, making it difficult and even impossible to harvest them for freedivers like Palacio. Read full story here: https://lnkd.in/eNuyxP8y #coralreefs #coralnews #spinylobster #supercorals #climatechange #coral #globalwarming #coralbleaching #coralreefecology #marineecology #marinebiology

Heat-tolerant corals? They will evolve automatically to acid and warmer environments. But we humans, as a doing species, want to quicken the process? Good idea? Bad idea? Geoengineering? Or acceptable because it's local pH increase? #sea #islands #tourism #cleaning

That’s truly inspiring! Enric Sala’s work with Nat Geo Pristine Seas is a remarkable example of how dedicated efforts can lead to significant environmental recovery. The revival of the coral reefs in the Southern Line Islands is a beacon of hope for marine conservation. It’s amazing to see how these expeditions not only document the beauty and biodiversity of these ecosystems but also contribute to their protection. The fact that 27 areas are now under protection, covering over 6.6 million square kilometers, is a testament to the impact of these efforts. If you’re interested in supporting coral protection and regeneration, the organizations you mentioned are doing incredible work worldwide. Each one plays a crucial role in preserving our oceans and ensuring the health of coral reefs for future generations. Do you have a favorite organization or project among those listed? Or perhaps you’re involved in any conservation efforts yourself? #EMerfalen #Coral #Reef #Recovery

A significant threat looms over the idyllic beaches of Florida and the Caribbean as massive clusters of sargassum seaweed are set to inundate the shores once again. According to the University of South Florida Optical Oceanography Lab, the seaweed bloom has surged to unprecedented levels, as reported by MSN Weather. In a disturbing ecological development, the sargassum bloom's size increased dramatically last month, setting a new record for December. The quantity in the central Atlantic jumped from one million metric tons in November to five million tons by December, the highest volume ever recorded for the month.

CORAL REEF OPINION: Florida’s Coral Reef Is Dead - Now What? When I first snorkeled off of Key West as a teenager back in 1966, Florida’s coral reef was estimated to have 90 percent live cover—a multi-hued array of fan, brain, pillar and elkhorn corals, shoaling fish, grazing sea turtles, and hammerhead sharks that stretched from Palm Beach to the Dry Tortugas seventy miles west of Key West. Coral reefs are unique, complex, and harbor one of the most biologically diverse ecosystems on Earth. They were formed by underwater ridges built up over thousands of years on the exoskeletons of multiple generations of coral polyps, a marine animal that spawns once a year. But when that top living layer of the reef dies, it all begins to erode away. The two largest coral reefs today are Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, stretching over 1,600 miles (it is the largest living object that can be seen from space), and the 700-mile-long Mesoamerican reef off of Central America. Then there was Florida’s at 350 miles. “The Florida coral reef track used to be the third largest reef but when you have 2 percent live coral cover—by textbook definition you are no longer a coral reef. It’s an algal turf reef now but not a coral reef. That’s gone,” says Dr. Sarah Frias-Torres, an oceanographer and marine ecologist with the Smithsonian (but speaking on her own behalf) who has studied the Florida reef and its wildlife for over two decades. Read full story here: https://lnkd.in/d4FSbRk7 #coralreefs #coralnews #coralhealth #habitatloss #habitatdegradation #coral #florida #coralreefecology #marinescience #marineecology #marinebiology

The coastal ichthyofauna of the Mediterranean coral reef: the case of Mljet National Park (Croatia, southern Adriatic Sea) - Frontiers in Marine Science: The authors studied the structure of the coastal fish assemblage in a temperate coral reef within a marine protected area in order to provide a baseline information on the occurrence and temporal distribution of fish and to highlight the importance of the coral reef to ichthyofauna. The coastal fish assemblage was investigated at two sites in Veliko jezero (Mljet National Park) in the southern Adriatic Sea with a non-destructive SCUBA visual technique in the period from 2013 to 2021. Altogether, 38 fish taxa were recorded on the right bank (coral reef) and 36 species on the left bank. The presence of the coral reef at a depth range between 9 m to 12 m is the main factor differentiating the fish fauna in these two areas, which are otherwise governed by the same environmental factors. At the coral reef a decrease in fish diversity was discovered with a steady regression from 2013 to 2021.

𝐏𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐟𝐢𝐜 𝐒𝐞𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐫𝐝𝐬: 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩𝐛𝐨𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐯𝐞𝐲𝐬 𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐮𝐬 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐏𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐟𝐢𝐜 𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐫𝐝𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐲 𝐝𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫? Join SPREP’s Threatened and Migratory Species Adviser Karen Baird and seabird expert Chris Gaskin live (ship-to-shore) from onboard E/V Nautilus to learn more about Pacific seabirds. Karen and Chris have been surveying seabirds aboard an Ocean Exploration Trust expedition traveling from Pago Pago to Palau. The team will be about halfway through the voyage for this exciting event sharing early results with you! There are approximately 11,000 species of birds worldwide, but remarkably, only 370 are ‘seabirds’ (birds that spend most of their lives at sea). Of those, 42 are known to breed within Oceania, with 17 unique to our region. At least 21 other seabird species that breed outside the region migrate between hemispheres and utilise a vast oceanic habitat through their yearly life cycle. EU/SPREP BioScapes, SPREP will soon be launching a Pacific Seabird Survey & Monitoring Manual: Tools to support seabird research across ecosystems in Oceania. Come and learn more about this resource and especially one survey technique we will be showcasing: At-Sea Surveys. How are these done and what value can they add to our knowledge of seabirds. Date: Thursday, October 10th at 1 PM Samoa time Register here: https://lnkd.in/gNMaW3TT European Union in the Pacific @SPREP #BioScapes #pacific #biodiversity #conservation #seabirds #ecosystems #PacificBiodiversity #CleanPacific @DelegationOfTheEuropeanUnionForThePacific @eupasifika #NautilusLive #NOAAOECI

Shifting Strategies to Save Corals As record ocean heat threatens corals off Florida and globally, conservationists are shifting strategies. Last summer's marine heatwave, the longest in decades, bleached many corals, leaving their survival in question. Conservation groups, like the Coral Restoration Foundation, evacuated corals to land, then returned them to cooler waters. Now, efforts focus on heat-resistant species, like boulder corals, and relocating nurseries to deeper waters. The goal is to save what remains of Florida's coral reefs, crucial to marine ecosystems and regional tourism, from the increasing threat of climate-induced heatwaves. #marineconservation #oceanprotection #climatechange https://lnkd.in/gv6N8kEK

Coral Reef

The Waitt Institute has recently held separate meetings with our Blue Prosperity partners—Global Fishing Watch, National Geographic Pristine Seas, and the Sandin Lab from University of California San Diego. 🌊 In a meeting with Global Fishing Watch, we discussed strategies to improve the transparency of maritime activities. This collaboration is poised to equip our partner governments with the data needed for equitable and sustainable ocean stewardship. 🌐 Our session with National Geographic Pristine Seas focused on scientific expeditions, such as the recent nationwide survey in the Federated States of Micronesia. This research can provide important information for countries to make decisions on ocean management. 🔍 In discussions with Dr. Sandin's Lab at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California San Diego we discussed how coral reef monitoring can inform ocean management. Global Fishing Watch National Geographic Society Pristine Seas Scripps Institution of Oceanography #BlueProsperity #BlueProsperityCoalition #WeAreBlueProsperity #SustainableOceans #PartnershipForTheOcean #OceanConservation #ScienceInAction