George Town, Grand Cayman–The Department of Environment (DoE), the Reef Environmental Education Foundation (REEF) and the Darwin Initiative are collaborating on a project that will help identify the different types of fish species that visit designated spawning sites in the Cayman Islands using specialised underwater devices.
REEF's Invasive Species Program shows citizens how they can get involved in reducing lionfish populations.
We are blessed in the Pacific NW with the opportunity to also survey many of our Invertebrate marine species.
Please join me in a fun evening to learn about the 46 Invertebrates surveyed in our beautiful emerald green waters.
E-mail me at llafever@comcast.net and I will send a copy of the study list for you to review. Please indicate REEF Inverts in the subject line.
Key Largo Lionfish Derby set for September 14
Pennekamp, Sanctuary and FWC to allow spearing of invasive fish in no-spear zones
By Keri Kenning, REEF Communications Manager
REEF members are at the heart of our grassroots marine conservation programs. Over 50,000 divers, snorkelers, students, and armchair naturalists stand behind our mission.
Earlier this summer, we proudly released the next generation of REEF survey technology, the REEF Data Entry Program. When surveying began in 1993, divers and snorkelers wrote out each sighted fish species on a slate and submitted the surveys to the database using paper scantron forms. In 1994, we developed pre-printed underwater survey paper to make surveying easier, and in 2005 we said goodbye to bubble-filling and premiered online data entry using the Internet. The time had come to innovate yet again.
We are pleased to share the publication of two new scientific papers that utilize data collected by REEF volunteers in the Monterey Peninsula area of California. Co-authored by REEF Pacific Advanced Assessment Team (AAT) member, John Wolfe, and REEF Director of Science, Dr. Christy Pattengill-Semmens, the companion papers were published earlier this summer in the journal CalCOFI Reports.
We are pleased to share with you the the 2014 REEF Field Survey Trip schedule. 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 experts lead these trips, and each features daily classroom seminars and a full diving schedule.
New Fishinars are always being added. Check out the Webinar Training page (www.REEF.org/fishinars) for the most up-to-date listing. These popular online training sessions provide fishie fun in the comfort of your own home. Fishinars are free, and open to all REEF members. You need to register for each session you want to attend. No special software is required, just a web browser. Upcoming sessions include:
Perplexing Parrotfish of the Caribbean - September 10