REEF is proud to partner with over 130 dive shops, dive clubs, individuals, and other organizations as REEF Field Stations.
This month we feature Marker Buoy Dive Club in Washington, which has been a Field Station for about a year. The Marker Buoy Dive Club was founded in 1961 and some of its club members have been diving in Puget Sound since the 1960s and 1970s, so they are very aware of long-term changes in some local fish populations. The Marker Buoy Dive Club currently has about 145 members. They have a dedicated group of members who encourage club participation in the REEF program and in other local activities that raise public awareness of the marine life in Puget Sound. The club is very fortunate to have an active REEF Level 5 surveyor (Rhoda Green) who is willing to teach REEF Introduction to Fish and Invertebrate Identification classes.
In addition to offering ID classes, the club hosts survey dives on a regular basis (sometimes as often as once/week) and encourage club members to report their sightings from their own dives. They have added a REEF News section to our monthly newsletter and are featuring a “Critter of the Month” from the PNW Critter Watchers archive. The club will be recognizing the volunteer efforts of members who have been most active in the REEF program and all club members who turn in at least 10 surveys this year will be entered in a drawing for some fun prizes. Some future plans include encouraging members to become advanced level REEF surveyors and to broaden the range of ID classes including Hawaiian fish identification class for club members who are planning to go on a dive trip to Maui. Club members recently remarked "REEF wouldn’t be the program that it is without the efforts and dedication of our regional Outreach Coordinator, Janna Nichols, and all of the people who volunteer their time to teach the classes, host survey dives, log their surveys and report their sightings – keep up the good work!"
Thanks Marker Buoy Dive Club – you’re a shining beacon to us all!