Eyes of the Reef

Coral disease has emerged as a serious threat to coral reefs worldwide.  Hawaii strives to be proactive in its management and has developed programs, such as EOR, to respond to disease outbreaks.  Florida has a disease outbreak that has been ongoing since 2014 and has spread from Miami down into the Florida Keys.  This dire situation warns all coral reef managers of the extent of the danger that can occur from disease outbreaks.  Please take a  look at the overview of the disease outbreak Florida has provided. Disease Overview_Final 2018.05.15

Each generation of young ocean explorers enters the water for the first time and is amazed at the wonders of the undersea world, not knowing how coral reefs looked in yesteryear.   This is called a “shifting baseline”.   The booklet,  2012 Reef Reminiscences Booklet, interviews select pioneer marine biologists to get their memories of how glorious our oceans once were.  I recommend anyone that loves the ocean and coral reefs, to take a look at this booklet to see what we have lost, so that we can renew the fight for what we still have!

In 2010, pufferfish (Arothron hispidus) around the state were dying in large numbers.  EOR members were quick to send in reports of dying fish giving scientists valuable information on how widespread and extensive the die-off was. Read More

A group of divers on Maui have been ridding their reefs of unwanted garbage.  Shawn Jezerinac, Lloyd Johnson, Bryan Sherman, Clayton, Bill Epplett, and Sharon Woloshen have removed almost 1000 lbs of discarded fishing line, weights, hooks, and other garbage.  A big mahalo to these dedicated souls for working to make Hawaii’s reef healthy!

http://cordioea.net/bleaching_resilience/coral-bleaching-videos/