Have you registered for REEF Fest 2015 yet? It’s not too late! Join REEF, September 24th-27th, for a celebration of marine conservation success in the Florida Keys!
Thank you to all our members who have donated during our winter fundraising campaign! If you haven’t yet made a donation, we still need your help. Tomorrow is the last day to make a 2016 tax deductible donation. Please take a moment to contribute online at www.REEF.org/donate, mail your donation to REEF at PO Box 370246, Key Largo, FL 33037, or call us at 305-852-0030. Donors giving $250 or more will receive a limited edition, signed and numbered Paul Humann print featuring two Mandarinfish.
We are in the last few weeks of our summer fundraising campaign, and we need your help. Donations from our members are critical to REEF’s marine conservation efforts. In addition to supporting programs for marine biodiversity, fisheries management, and invasive species control, we are asking our members to make an extra donation this summer to help us build an Interpretive Center on the REEF Campus in Key Largo. Please help us continue to build our legacy of ocean conservation by being a part of this special campaign.
The third annual Fish Out of Water Virtual 5K is coming up on June 6-12. If you haven't registered yet, visit www.REEF.org/5K to sign up today! Be sure to register before April 30 to receive the early bird registration rate. When you sign up for the 5K, you will choose to join one of five Fish Teams. Read on to learn more about our 2022 Fish Teams, and you can check out each fish's "race personality" here.
The REEF Volunteer Fish Survey Project operates worldwide, and REEF members are located all over the globe, but our physical location - and our home since REEF was founded in 1990 - has always been in the Florida Keys. The REEF Campus in Key Largo is a visitor center and nature center, which includes the historic REEF Headquarters building, the Interpretive Center, and an outdoor oasis including a Native Plants Trail, butterfly garden, and covered picnic and gathering area.
While we all knew it was just a matter of time, the call still came with a bit of surprise and dread as the first confirmed lionfish sighting in the Florida Keys came in on January 6th, 2009. REEF member Becky Fowler, from Greenville, SC, was diving just offshore of the Benwood Wreck in Key Largo when she spotted the invasive lionfish near the base of a ledge at 66'. With all of the recent focus and outreach efforts that REEF has been forwarding to our members, she knew immediately that she needed to document the sighting and gather a detailed description of its location.
Reef Environmental Education Foundation (REEF) with help from the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary (FKNMS) will host an inaugural series of lionfish derbies in the Keys starting this weekend. Divers who remove lionfish from Sanctuary waters will be eligible for more than $10,000 in cash and prizes. Awards will go to the top 3 teams in the following categories: most lionfish, biggest lionfish, and smallest lionfish.
Every month, scientists, government agencies, and other groups request raw data from REEF’s Fish Survey Project database. Here is a sampling of who has asked for REEF data recently and what they are using it for:
-Researchers used data on yelloweye rockfish frequency of occurrence in the San Juan Islands in Washington to evaluate population status for the San Juan County Community Development and Planning Department.
REEF's Director of Special Projects, Lad Akins, and REEF affiliate scientist Dr. Stephanie Green (Oregon State University) and REEF Advisory Panel member Dr. Steve Gittings (NOAA National Marine Sanctuaries) participated in the first submersible expedition to assess the lionfish invasion on deep marine habitats off South Florida June 27-29. While REEF and other scientists have studied lionfish in shallow habitats, the Antipodes lionfish expedition gave scientists the opportunity to learn about lionfish populations far below recreational diving limits.
A few weeks ago, in honor of Earth Day, REEF asked for your help in supporting our educational programs. Through classroom and field activities, these programs have inspired thousands of school children, young adults, divers, and researchers. If you haven't already made a donation, please consider making a difference in the life of a future ocean conservationist!
Contribute securely online today at www.REEF.org/contribute
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