Located at the southeastern end of St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI), the St. Thomas East End Reserves (STEER) is a collection of several existing protected areas, including Cas Cay/Mangrove Lagoon, St. James, and Compass Point Salt Pond Marine Reserves and Wildlife Sanctuaries (MRWS). The marine areas of the STEER ...

This report resulted from our ROV surveys to characterize the mesophotic coral reef ecosystems at Pulley Ridge and Tortugas as part of a research grant funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Center for Sponsored Coastal Ocean Research under an award NA11NOS4780045 to the University of Miami (Project ...

This report summarizes the remotely operated vehicle (ROV) surveys during four cruises from 2012 to 2015 which characterizes the mesophotic coral reef ecosystems at Pulley Ridge and Tortugas. This research is part of a grant funded by the NOAA National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science award NA11NOS4780045: “Connectivity of the ...

Navassa is a small, undeveloped island in the Windward Passage between Jamaica and Haiti. It was designated a National Wildlife Refuge under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 1999, but the remote location makes management and enforcement challenging, and the area is regularly fished by artisanal ...

Baseline characterization of resources is an essential part of marine protected area (MPA) management and is critical to inform adaptive management. Gray’s Reef National Marine Sanctuary (GRNMS) currently lacks adequate characterization of several key resources as identified in the 2006 Final Management Plan. The objectives of this characterization were to ...

Two research cruises were conducted in 2012 and 2013 to the region of Pulley Ridge and Dry Tortugas to study and survey the mesophotic reef communities and fish populations. The University of Miami’s R/V Walton Smith Cruise No. WS1213 was conducted from August 14 to 25, 2012 and Cruise No ...

Three research cruises were conducted in 2012, 2013 and 2014 to the region of Pulley Ridge and Dry Tortugas to study and survey the mesophotic reef communities and fish populations. Pulley Ridge is the deepest known photosynthetic coral reef in continental U.S. waters and is located in the Gulf of ...

This cruise was conducted at Pulley Ridge mesophotic reef in the Gulf of Mexico, from August 22 to September 4, 2015, in collaboration with the University of Miami, HBOI-CIOERT, NOAA Fisheries, and the University of North Carolina at Wilmington (UNCW) Undersea Vehicles Program. This is the fourth and final cruise ...

Insulin-like growth factor-binding proteins (IGFBPs) play important roles in downregulating IGF activity and growth and development in vertebrates under hypoxic stress. However, the mechanisms of hypoxia regulation of IGFBPs in teleost fishes are unknown. The involvement of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and hypoxia-inducible factors (HIFs) in hypoxia upregulation of IGFBPs ...

In 1999, the Chesapeake Bay Program completed a survey of existing data on chemical contaminants and the potential for bioeffects in 38 tidal river systems of Chesapeake Bay. This review led to the identification of 20 areas for which there were insufficient data to adequately characterize the potential for contaminant ...

Progress report on partnership between USDA and NOAA's National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS), Center for Coastal Monitoring and Assessment (CCMA) established by the Conservation Effects Assessment Project (CEAP) in the Jobos Bay watershed. Discusses sediment and pollutant predictions in the Jobos Bay watershed from a spatially explicit modeling ...

Non-commercial fishing, which includes recreational and subsistence fishing activity, is part of the culture and heritage of the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI). Residents of USVI fish for enjoyment, to gather food, to bond with others, as well as for gifting and other traditional activities. According to a 2010 report, recreational ...

Symbiotic relationships are a common phenomenon among marine invertebrates, forming both obligatory and facultative dependencies with their host. Here, we investigate and compare the population structure of two crustacean species associated with both shallow and mesophotic ecosystems: an obligate symbiont barnacle (Ceratoconcha domingensis), of the coral Agaricia lamarcki and a ...

This document presents environmental data collected in August 2013 consisting of coral tissue (Pocillopora damicornis) contaminants and surface water nutrients offshore from Tinian in the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). The study area is in and around the Tinian Marine Reserve on the southwest corner of the island. Despite ...

An activity book designed to introduce elementary school children to the animal and plant life and ecology of Chesapeake Bay ...

The Choptank watershed was selected by NOAA as a Habitat Focus Area (HFA) for the Habitat Blueprint Program. As such, NOAA plans an integrated set of activities combining resources from multiple programs to leverage the full weight of its eff orts (Figure 1.2). The HFA Implementation Plan includes programs for: ...

Domoic acid is an algal-derived seafood toxin that functions as a glutamate agonist and exerts excitotoxicity via overstimulation of glutamate receptors (AMPA, NMDA) in the central nervous system (CNS). At high (symptomatic) doses, domoic acid is well-known to cause seizures, brain lesions and memory loss; however, a significant knowledge gap ...

Changes in larval import, export, and self‐seeding will affect the resilience of coral reef ecosystems. Climate change will alter the ocean currents that transport larvae and also increase sea surface temperatures (SST), hastening development, and shortening larval durations. Here, we use transport simulations to estimate future larval connectivity due to: ...

Domoic acid is a potent neurotoxin produced by certain marine microalgae that can accumulate in the foodweb, posing a health threat to human seafood consumers and wildlife in coastal regions worldwide. Evidence of climatic regulation of domoic acid in shellfish over the past 20 y in the Northern California Current ...

Like most benthic marine organisms, coral reef fishes produce larvae that traverse open ocean waters before settling and metamorphosing into juveniles. Where larvae are transported and how they survive is a central question in marine and fisheries ecology. While there is increasing success in modelling potential larval trajectories, our knowledge ...