Author: Paul Humann, REEF Board of Trustees
During our Summer Fundraising Campaign, we reach out to you, our valued members, and ask for your financial support. Your contribution will ensure that our important marine conservation work can continue. Donations made during the campaign will be matched dollar for dollar by the Curtis and Edith Munson Foundation, doubling the impact of your support. You can donate securely online at www.REEF.org/contribute, mail your donation to REEF at PO Box 246, Key Largo, FL 33037, or call us at 305-852-0030. REEF is making a difference in the marine environment. We strive to stay on the cutting edge of science, education, and outreach initiatives, but we cannot do this without your support. Thank you to everyone who has already donated. Please help us meet our goal of raising $60,000 in 60 days.
Author: Christy Pattengill-Semmens, Ph.D., Director of Science
REEF Director of Science, Christy Pattengill-Semmens, and REEF Outreach Coordinator, Janna Nichols, attended a rockfish conference in Seattle earlier this week. The workshop, Rockfish Recovery in the Salish Sea: Research and Management Priorities, was organized by NOAA, WDFW, and the SeaDoc Society, and served as a venue for scientists, managers, and policy makers from throughout the region to share their work and help chart a course for future work. Christy presented an overview of REEF data collected throughout the Salish Sea, and showed distribution maps for 12 species of rockfish. The REEF Volunteer Survey Program expanded to the Northwest in 1998. To date, REEF volunteers have submitted 12,495 surveys from 781 sites throughout the Salish Sea. These data are a valuable information resource for those working to protect and restore declining rockfish populations. Several other active Pacific Northwest surveyors also attended the conference.
Author: Sasha Medlen, REEF Membership Coordinator
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 Mike Phelan (REEF member since 1998). Mike is a member of our Golden Hamlet Club, having conducted over 1,000 surveys (1,211 to be exact!), and he is a member of the Advanced Assessment Team in the Tropical Western Atlantic. In addition to being an active REEF surveyor, Mike has been documenting an annual aggregation of Goliath Grouper in Florida. Here's what Mike had to say about REEF:
When and how did you first volunteer with REEF? I read an article in Skin Diver Magazine over 12 years ago. Shortly thereafter, I signed up for a REEF Field Survey trip to Saba and several other nearby islands on a live aboard. Since then, I have participated in seven REEF Field Surveys and several REEF Advanced Assessment Team surveys in the Florida Keys. The most memorable was my trip to St. Vincent. I was fortunate to add several fish to my species life list including the illusive Black Brotula. My favorite part of being a REEF member is interacting with fellow citizen scientists.
What inspires you to complete REEF surveys? What is the most interesting thing you’ve learned doing a REEF fish survey? I believe that REEF members occupy a somewhat unique position to make a dive that really counts. I find that the focused experience of completing a survey opens up your eyes to the entire reef ecosystem including fish behaviors, the surrounding benthic community, and both species presence and absence. I have been a diver for over 44 years, and I can state with certainty that you need to enlarge your diving hobby beyond “blowing bubbles” to keep that inquisitiveness that attracted you to diving in the first place.
Do you dive close to where you live, and if so, what is the best part about diving there? I live in SE Florida and most of my diving takes place on the off-shore reef system of Jupiter, Florida. Jupiter is a unique location. It is the only known aggregation and spawning site for the Goliath grouper (Epinephelus itajara) in the SE United States. In the late Summer, aggregations of 30-50 Goliath groupers can be seen. Since the species was almost fished to extinction in the late 1980s, it is a privilege to witness its repopulation on the reefs of Florida. Jupiter is also a major nesting site for three species of sea turtle (Leatherback, Loggerhead, and Green). In the Spring and Summer, the reefs abound in turtles. They are very cool animals. Lastly, there is a Winter aggregation of lemon sharks (Negaprion brevirostris) and seeing them is quite a thrill.
Do you have a favorite local (or not) REEF field station or dive shop? My favorite dive shop is the Jupiter Dive Center. They are very supportive of the Goliath grouper research.
What is the most fascinating fish encounter you’ve experienced? While bluewater drift diving in the Gulf Stream near Jupiter, I sighted a large Sailfish that turned sharply upon sensing me and thereby displayed its sail. Last year, I was able to see the Flashlightfish in a cave at night in the Solomon Islands. The flashing light was very disorienting since you were hovering in completely black water while the blinking lights of about 30 fish turned on and off. The number one fish that I would like to see is the Sawfish (Pristis pectinata).
Do you have any surveying, fishwatching, or identification tips for REEF members? My recommendation for all fish surveyors is to slow down and let nature emerge right in front of you. Carry a point and shoot type camera to aid in identification after the dive. This can be very helpful with the smaller gobies and blennies.
In your opinion, what is the most important aspect of REEF’s projects and programs? By far, the database containing the fish and sea turtle sightings gains ever more importance each year. There really is no other information source on the planet containing the number of reported survey dives with such a broad geographic scope.
Author: Janna Nichols, REEF Outreach Coordinator
REEF is proud to partner with over 130 dive shops, dive clubs, individuals, and other organizations as REEF Field Stations.
This month we feature the Eugene Dive Club, an active club in Oregon with over 100 members. The club serves as the go-to arm of the official REEF Field Station at Eugene Skin Divers Supply. The club's involvement was spearheaded by two active northwest REEF surveyors and Eugene locals, Christine and Jim Pendergrass. Chris and Jim took the PADI Habitat class through Eugene Skin Divers Supply, which fed them into the volunteer dive program at the Oregon Coast Aquarium. That sparked their interest in fish ID and led them to REEF. Since then, Jim and Chris have been teaching REEF fish and invertebrate ID classes, sponsoring monthly REEF dives along the Oregon coast, and helping with REEF’s online training webinars. They have also created a fun ID game called ‘Cash Boat’, a fish/invert ID contest modeled after TV’s ‘Cash Cab’. Their efforts have paid off, and we have seen an increase in Oregon divers involved in the REEF survey program. They are now planning to expand their REEF class schedule, planning more REEF Blitz Weekends, and continuing to introduce folks from other dive clubs to the wonders of Oregon diving and critterwatching. When asked about what they like best about being involved with REEF, Jim and Chris say "It’s a great way to learn more about the marine environment and meet like-minded people. And you get to share exciting underwater finds, like the Monkeyface Prickleback!" Thanks to Jim, Chris, and the folks at the Eugene Skin Divers Supply for helping invigorate the REEF program in Oregon.
Author: Christy Pattengill-Semmens, Ph.D., Director of Science and Brice Semmens, Ph.D., Grouper Moon Project Lead Scientist
We are happy to share with you a short (3-minute) Public Service Announcement (PSA) from the REEF Grouper Moon Project, featuring spectacular underwater footage and the hopeful story of the Nassau grouper in the Cayman Islands. The video discusses the importance of protections for spawning aggregations and the work that REEF and our collaborators at the Cayman Islands Department of the Environment (CIDOE) and Oregon State University have done on this important conservation issue. The PSA is on REEF's We Speak Fish YouTube channel -- http://www.youtube.com/user/WeSpeakFish
Cayman Island spawning aggregations have been seasonally protected from fishing for the last 8 years at all current and historic aggregation sites. This protection expires at the end of 2011. The status of future protections for the aggregations is still uncertain. Based on the research and findings of the Grouper Moon Project, the CIDOE has recommended a permanent seasonal closure during the spawning season (Nov-Mar) for Nassau grouper.
Author: Christy Pattengill-Semmens, Ph.D., Director of Science
The REEF database topped 150,000 surveys this month! The lucky 150k survey was conducted by Ross Whiteside on June 13, 2011, at Mixing Bowl in Little Cayman. Ross and his wife Terri have been active REEF members since 2002 and are members of the Advanced Assessment Team. Congrats Ross and Terri, and thanks to all of our surveying members for helping us achieve this landmark!
Author: Janna Nichols, REEF Citizen Science Program Manager
The 20th annual Great Annual Fish Count (GAFC) is rapidly approaching! Will you be participating? We encourage local shops, dive clubs and other groups to organize an activity anytime during the month of July. You can view events already scheduled, and add your own, by visiting www.fishcount.org.
The goals of the GAFC are to not only accumulate large numbers of surveys during the month of July, but to introduce divers and snorkelers to fishwatching and conducting REEF surveys. Interested groups can offer free fish ID classes, organize dive/snorkel days, and turn them into fun gatherings! To find out more, contact us at gafc@reef.org.
