Our March Fish of the Month is the Barberfish, Johnrandallia nigrirostris!
Our online programs are free and open to all! Check out what's coming up, and view the entire schedule of Fishinars and other online programs here.
Fishinar: Strange Fishes of the Pacific Northwest
Tuesday, March 19 8pm EDT
Click here to register.
Poachers, snailfish, lumpsuckers... join us to learn about some of the weird fish who call the Pacific Northwest home.
Marbled Snailfish photo by Greg Jensen.
REEF members are the heart of our grassroots marine conservation programs. A diverse community of divers, snorkelers, and ocean enthusiasts support our mission to conserve marine environments worldwide.
This month we highlight Debbie Cacace, a REEF member from Virginia. She joined REEF in 2017 and has conducted more than 460 surveys in the Tropical Western Atlantic region, where she is a Level 5 surveyor. Thank you Debbie, for being a dedicated and active part of REEF!
We are so proud to share that Alice and Will Ribbens are our 2023 REEF Volunteers of the Year! Alice has been a REEF member since 2010, and Will joined in 2012. Since then, they have been active and dedicated members of the REEF community who serve as outstanding ambassadors for REEF's mission and ocean conservation work.
Put your pectoral fins together in a round of applause for Sara Cowles, who has recently achieved REEF Golden Hamlet Club status!
REEF is proud to partner with educational institutions, dive operators and club, and conservation-focused groups all around the globe to engage individuals in ocean conservation, education and citizen science. REEF Ocean Explorers Education Program staff work with groups to implement the Volunteer Fish Survey Project into their existing curriculums and courses. This month, we are pleased to highlight two partners who recently incorporated REEF lessons and materials into their programming.
With heavy hearts, we share the news that REEF Co-Founder Paul Humann passed away on February 5, 2024. Paul was a passionate advocate for the oceans, a visionary scuba diver, and pioneering underwater photographer. His enthusiasm for the underwater world touched countless lives, and his dedication was a driving force in advancing the dive industry, ocean citizen science, and natural history.
REEF recently concluded the annual field season for the Grouper Moon Project, a highly successful conservation science collaboration between REEF and the Cayman Islands Department of Environment (DOE) to study one of the largest and last known spawning aggregations of endangered Nassau Grouper in the Caribbean. The research team, made up of REEF staff and volunteers, along with our collaborators from DOE, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, and Oregon State University, conducted daily dives on the aggregation off the west end of Little Cayman, and visited the an active aggregation on Caym
REEF programs use citizen science, research, and education to engage peope in marine conservation. REEF members like you are an essential part of our work, and we are so thankful for the generosity of all who have contributed to REEF this winter. Your support helped us kick of 2024 on a strong note! If you have not yet made a gift this winter, will you consider making a donation now to support our ocean conservation mission? You can visit www.REEF.org/donate to contribute securely online.
Classrooms and students throughout the Cayman Islands have dived into conservation by taking part in this year's Grouper Moon Project! While the Nassau Grouper were spawning during the January full moon, REEF and the Cayman Islands Department of Environment partnered to host three livesteam sessions as an opportunity for students to interact with Grouper Moon Project researchers, learn about pathways to becoming marine scientist, and share the importance of collaboration to protect endangered Nassau Grouper.