Outstanding in their Field: Featured REEF Field Station, San Diego Oceans Foundation

REEF is proud to partner with over 130 dive shops, dive clubs, individuals, and other organizations as REEF Field Stations

This month we feature San Diego Oceans Foundation (SDOF), an organization that promotes ocean stewardship by leading community-supported projects that enhance the ocean habitat and encourage sustainable use of the oceans resources. SDOF took on REEF as one of its core projects in 2003. SDOF offers REEF training classes and organizes survey dives; they also host a Great Annual Fish Count (GAFC) event each year. SDOF occasionally hosts other special opportunities for its REEF surveyors, including special tours at Sea World and of the collections department at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, and'Aqua-Talk' sessions, where REEFers can learn more about some aspect of the marine environment.

One of SDOF's lead REEF supporters and teachers, Herb Gruenhagen, explains why REEF works so well as an SDOF program - "Our volunteers become ocean stewards and begin personalizing their commitment to the sea. Then the magic happens! We've hooked them (not literally) and that's how we spread our message of ocean stewardship. So many divers see something while underwater and ask each other 'Did you see that?' or 'What do you think that was?' Conducting REEF surveys helps our local divers and snorkelers learn the identification of the fish and invertebrate species that call Southern California ‘home’. The REEF method is easy to do, and Southern California has many diverse fishes and invertebrates that are easy to ID and count." Herb goes on to say, "By teaching the classes, I learn a great deal more than any of my students and that makes my diving that much more enjoyable. I hope to keep on inspiring others to 'count fishes'." When asked about some of his favorite finds as a REEF surveyor, Herb mentioned the Speckled Fin midshipman that he found at a site in La Jolla Canyon called 'Secret Garden', and that he now can distinguish between a Southern Spearnose Poacher and a Pygmy Poacher (now how exciting is that?).