On May 7-18, scientists from NOAA’s National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science and Southeast Fisheries Science Center led a multiagency field mission to conduct the most comprehensive visual fishery-independent characterization of fish and benthic communities around the island of St. Croix USVI to date. The mission was funded by NOAA’s Coral Reef Conservation Program and [...]
Researchers from the National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science developed effective, inexpensive molecular lab tests for field samples to detect algae responsible for a widespread seafood-borne illness. In this month’s Journal of Phycology, the scientists describe assays to detect and quantify six species of Gambierdiscus that cause ciguatera fish poisoning in the Atlantic, Caribbean, and [...]
In June of this year, scientists from the National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) will begin the second phase of research aimed at characterizing impacts of land-based sources of pollution on diverse habitats of the St. Thomas East End Reserve (STEER) in the US Virgin Islands. The first phase of the research took place in June of [...]
The University of Puerto Rico research cruise, April 25-May 10, sponsored by the National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science, used high-resolution bathymetric mapping to further detail the distribution of MCEs within the U.S. Caribbean, which will aid in quantifying, understanding and eventually predicting their occurrence. Because MCEs serve as essential habitat and refugia for threatened [...]
Underwater acoustics for mapping the water column Underwater acoustics (ie. fisheries sonars) uses sound to detect and map the presence of fish and other organisms in the water column. An acoustic signal or ping is sent into the water column from an transducer. The strength of the return signal is measured and is correlated to [...]
Staff from the National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science traveled to St. Thomas, USVI from March 26th-29th to meet with local partners as part of a collaborative effort to provide a baseline characterization of living marine resources and chemical contamination in biota within the St. Thomas East End Reserve (STEER). Data collected as part of [...]
An Environmental Social Scientist at the National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science traveled with NOAA colleagues to the US Virgin Islands the week of Feb 27th – March 2nd to lay the groundwork for a mapping study of human uses in the St Thomas East End Reserves (STEER). This spring, the project team will hold workshops on St [...]
During the week of February 27, National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) researchers met with U.S. Coral Reef Task Force stakeholders to provide the status of NCCOS’ collaborative research efforts in the Caribbean. NCCOS scientists provided attendees a status of ongoing coral research projects in the Caribbean with special attention to the status of [...]