National Coral Reef Monitoring Program divers survey the reefs around St. John in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Credit: NOAA

NCCOSscientists, along with other federal and local partners, arediving on reefs surrounding St. Thomas and St. John fromJuly 13-23, collectingdata as part of the NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program's National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP). Earlier this summer, the team conducted similar dives offSt. Croix.

NCRMP provides a broader geographic context to supplement studies of tropical reef ecosystems and local monitoring efforts, and during these dives, scientists will gather information about fish and benthic communities in the waters around the U.S. Virgin Islands, down to depths of 100 feet, encompassing a range of sites within national parks and monuments, local preserves, and unprotected areas. These partnership efforts provide local resource managers and communities with the information needed to make management decisions that support both the resources and the people who depend on them.

These missions are a collaboration between NOAA's National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science, NOAA's Southeast Fisheries Science Center, the National Park Service, the University of the Virgin Islands, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the Virgin Islands Department of Planning and Natural Resources.

You can learn more about the National Coral Reef Monitoring Program at: http://www.coris.noaa.gov/monitoring/.

For further information, please contact Randy Clark ( Randy.Clark@noaa.gov ).