We are excited to welcome Carolyn Corley to the REEF staff team as an Education Coordinator. You may recognize Carolyn, as she served as a REEF Marine Conservation Fellow for Education & Outreach from August 2023 to June 2024. During the summer of 2023, she participated in the REEF Marine Conservation Internship program as the 2023 Dr. Jamie L. King REEF Marine Conservation Intern through Our World Underwater Scholarship Society. Carolyn graduated in May 2023 from the University of San Diego with a B.S.
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 at the World Resources Institute are using western Atlantic REEF data in an analysis of threats to the world’s coral reefs called Reefs at Risk Revisited.
- A scientist from Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife is evaluating population trends of rock scallop in preparation for harvest rule updates.
We're counting down to the 2025 Florida Keys Lionfish Derby & Arts Festival this April! This event uniquely combines invasive lionfish removal with vibrant local arts and conservation efforts, aiming to engage the community in ocean conservation through interactive and educational activities. Here's what to expect:
What a year 2025 was for REEF. From the long-anticipated Grand Opening of the Ocean Exploration Center to record-breaking citizen science contributions, REEF members, donors, partners, and volunteers helped us reach more people, remove more invasive species, and advance more marine science than ever before. We're thrilled to share that our 2025 Impact Report is now live at www.reef.org/2025-impact-report — we hope you'll take a few minutes to dive in.
By the Numbers
A few of the year's highlights:
Last Summer during a dive with Pacific Adventure Charters in Hood Canal, Washington, a group of REEF Pacific Advanced Assessment Team (AAT) surveyors came across something unexpected. As part of REEF’s funded project with The Russell Family Foundation, the team’s goal was to look for invasive tunicates and do REEF marine life surveys on several previously unsurveyed sites. While they found the invasive tunicates they were looking for, they also found a derelict fishing net that was damaging fragile habitat and ensnaring marine life.
REEF is proud to announce Ed Martin, of Islamorada, Florida, as our 2015 Volunteer of the Year. Ed became a REEF member in 2012, and has since conducted 60 REEF surveys in the Tropical Western Atlantic (TWA) region. He is also a skilled underwater photographer and a member of the Century Club, having recorded at least 100 fish species on a one tank dive. In 2015, Ed became a member of REEF's Advanced Assessment Team by achieving 'Expert' surveyor status in the TWA.
We are excited to welcome our Summer 2023 Marine Conservation Interns to REEF! They will assist with education, outreach, events, and daily operations around the REEF Campus in Key Largo, Florida. Pictured from left to right are Carolyn Corley, Shalini Thinakaran, and Brian Chansky. Here's a bit more about them:
REEF is working in close partnership with the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary (FKNMS) to diligently track lionfish reports and initiate removal efforts in South Florida. The first confirmed lionfish in the Florida Keys was reported and captured within 24 hours in January 2009 (see previous enews article). Subsequent early reports in March-June were met with successful rapid response.
In response to the growing threat of lionfish in the Atlantic and the need for coordinated planning, REEF, NOAA and the USGS are hosting a technical workshop on Non-native Marine Fish Introductions of South Florida in the Florida Keys June 18 and 19. The workshop, jointly funded through a recent Mote Marine Laboratory’s Protect Our Reefs grant, NOAA’s Exotic Species and National Marine Sanctuary Programs and the Gulf and Atlantic States Regional Panel on Aquatic Invasive Species,will bring together personnel from more than 18 different agencies and organizations.
We recently said a fond farewell to Madalyn “Moose” Mussey, who served as REEF Education Manager for the Ocean Explorers Program for the past five years. Moose started at REEF as a Marine Conservation Intern during the Spring 2019 semester. Following this, she served as Lead Intern for the Invasive Species Program, and joined the staff in November 2019.