2024 is winding down, and if you have any REEF surveys that you haven't yet entered, now is a great time to get them submitted so you can start off 2025 with a fresh "slate!" The marine life information collected by REEF volunteers is used by scientists and researchers to learn more about our oceans and how to best protect them. Each survey you conduct as a citizen scientist can help make a difference, but these data must be submitted to the REEF database.
In 2024, REEF’s education initiatives have made a profound impact, from raising awareness about marine conservation to engaging communities in protecting ocean life. Here's a look at how REEF education programs made an impact this year:
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 Max Arseneault, a REEF member who lives in California. He joined REEF in 2021 and has conducted more than 140 surveys in the US/Canada Pacific Coast (PAC) region, where he is a Level 3 surveyor! We are proud to feature Max this month, and are glad that he is part of REEF.
REEF Into the Blue Book Club will discuss our latest book selection, Underjungle, by Jame Sturz
All are invited to join in this meeting, whether you have read the book or not. For more details about Into the Blue Book Club, visit www.REEF.org/bookclub.
This meeting will be led by Hilary, REEF Education Manager and Diana Phillips, Marine Education and Conservation Fellow.
Water temperatures were 55F. Nevertheless, members of the Pacific Northwest REEF Advanced Assessment Team (AAT) jumped off a perfectly good boat last month to count fish and invertebrate populations, all in the name of citizen science and fun! Expert Level surveyors (Levels 4 and 5) assisted with the annual Salish Sea monitoring project. This year’s effort was focused in the southern Salish Sea - South Puget Sound in Washington.
REEF's 16th annual Florida Keys Lionfish Derby will culminate on Sunday April 27, 2025 at the which will include a lionfish weigh-in and awards and conservation science and arts festival open to the public at the REEF campus.
Please contact lionfish@REEF.org with questions
Meet our festive December Fish of the Month, the Candycane Pygmygoby, Trimma cana!
Survey Regions: The Candycane Pygmygoby is found throughout the tropical Pacific, including Indonesia, the Philippines, and Micronesia, part of REEF's Central Indo-Pacific (CIP) region. Click here to see a distribution for this species in the REEF database.
Are you an educator with a passion for marine conservation and hands-on learning? Check out the REEF Educator in the Field Fellowship! This unique opportunity is a great way to deepen your knowledge of ocean citizen science.The Fellowship, awarded annually, enables a qualified educator to participate in a REEF Field Survey Trip. They will join other citizen scientist volunteers to learn about marine life and conduct fish surveys while scuba diving or snorkeling as part of the REEF Volunteer Fish Survey Project.