REEF Fish and Friends

 

REEF, Fish and Friends is a monthly seminar series co-sponsered by REEF and the Sanctuary Friends Foundation that revolves around marine life and Diving that Counts.  Snorkelers, divers, and natural history buffs are invited to entertaining presentations by guest speakers, join informal discussions, and enjoy some laid-back, Keys-style fun with friends who share your passion.

REEF Environmental Education Foundation and the Sanctuary Friends Foundation of the Florida Keys welcomes Donna Blaszcak as the guest speaker for June's Fish and Friends event!

3rd Annual Green Turtle Cay Lionfish Derby

 

Click here for additional information and registry details!

Upper Keys Lionfish Derby

 

Teams compete for cash prizes for most, largest, and smallest lionfish!

 

Click here for more information, including registry info, on REEF's Lionfish Derby webpage.

Key Largo Lionfish Workshop

 

REEF is offering a lionfish workshop on June 15th at the Key Largo Library from 6:30 to about 8:00. All workshop participants will be eligible for a federal permit to collect lionfish, with nets or slurguns, from the no-take zones, the Sanctuary Preservation Areas (SPAs) in the FL Keys National Marine Sanctuary using nets. The permits will be issued a week or two following the workshop.

Take a Dive Trip That Counts

We are pleased to announce the 2012 REEF Field Survey trip schedule - check it out online at www.REEF.org/trips. We have an exciting lineup of destinations planned and we hope you will join us. These trips offer a great introduction to fish identification for novice fishwatchers, and are a fun way for experienced surveyors to build their life list while interacting with fellow fishwatchers. REEF staff, board members, and other REEF instructors lead these trips, and each features daily classroom seminars and a full diving schedule.

Making It Count - May 2011

Putting It to Work: Who’s Using REEF Data, May 2011

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 in the Classroom

We live in a small town called Nelson, in the mountains of British Columbia about 3 hours north of Spokane Washington. In the Fall I decided to take students to Belize to study reef systems and how they may be changing. The course is called "Coral Reef Studies in Belize " and 15 grade 11 & 12 high school students from LV Rogers Secondary signed up for the trip with the help of Island Expeditions from Vancouver.

Watch an Online Screening of Alien Invaders Tomorrow Night - June 2nd

Changing Seas, an original production of Miami’s public television station WPBT2, will host a live online screening event of Alien Invaders, the series’ latest episode focusing on the lionfish invasion in the Caribbean and Western Atlantic. Alien Invaders will be screened live on the Changing Seas website (www.changingseas.tv/webcast) on Thursday, June 2nd at 7:30 p.m. EST. During the screening, dive enthusiasts will have the opportunity to join an online chat with producers and the experts featured in the program.

The Faces of REEF: Member Spotlight, Itziar Aretxaga

REEF members are at the heart of our grassroots marine conservation programs. Over 43,000 divers, snorkelers, students, and armchair naturalists stand behind our mission.

This month we highlight Itziar Aretxaga (REEF member since 2003). Itziar has conducted 263 REEF surveys in three REEF regions, and she is a member of the Advanced Assessment Team in the Tropical Western Atlantic. Here's what Itziar had to say about REEF:

When and how did you first volunteer with REEF?

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