coral reefs

NOAA’s National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP) launched a new data visualization tool today, which will provide free and easy-to-access information on the status of U.S. coral reefs. It is the first tool focusing on shallow…

Today, NOAA is releasing a plan to guide future actions to treat and prevent the spread of a disease affecting coral reefs in Florida and the U.S. Caribbean. The plan also includes actions to prevent the spread of the disease to the…

National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science researchers and their partners have discovered that a sunscreen chemical commonly used in many soaps, cosmetics, and body fragrances is highly toxic to corals. The team's data show that even…

A new study from a team of international scientists finds that a common chemical in many sunscreen lotions and cosmetics is highly toxic to juvenile corals and other marine life. Oxybenzone, or BP-3, is found in more than 3,500 skin…

As the largest ecosystem on the planet, the ocean provides incredible resources and benefits to humanity — including contributing 2.5 percent of global GDP and 1.5 percent of global employment, as well as…

Corals have evolved over millennia to live, and even thrive, in waters with few nutrients. In healthy reefs, the water is often exceptionally clear, mainly because corals have found ways to make optimal use of…

This extensive study of the Hawaiian deep coral reefs, known as mesophotic coral ecosystems, led to some incredible finds published recently in the scientific journal PeerJ. offsite link These mesophotic coral ecosystems, the deepest of…

NOAA’s Coral Reef Conservation Program has awarded more than $8.3 million in grants and cooperative agreements, supporting conservation projects and scientific studies in seven U.S. states and territories, as well as international…

The reports, which cover coral reef ecosystems in American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, Hawaii, and the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument, say that more remote areas have few…

Coral reefs are often considered the medicine cabinets of the 21st century. Coral reefs are sometimes considered the medicine…

The project, Mission: Iconic Reefs, calls for restoring nearly three million square feet of the Florida Reef Tract, about the size of 52 football fields, one of the largest strategies ever proposed in the field of coral restoration.…

NOAA’s Coral Reef Conservation Program is awarding more than $10.5 million in grants to support coral conservation projects and scientific studies in seven U.S. states and territories, as well as international projects in the…

The U.S. Coral Reef Condition Status Report was developed by NOAA's National Coral Reef Monitoring Program and UMCES’s Integration and Application Network offsite link using data collected between 2012 and 2018. The scores are denoted…

In the spirit of this year’s Earth Day theme “Restore our Earth,” NOAA and partners are beginning a three-year effort to outplant more than 60,000 fragments of nursery-raised coral at Eastern Dry Rocks Sanctuary Preservation Area off…

NOAA’s Coral Reef Conservation Program has awarded more than $9.3 million in grants to support coral conservation projects and scientific studies in seven U.S. states and territories, as well as international projects in the…

Florida’s coral reefs have been in decline since the 1970s due to hurricanes, heat-induced bleaching, cold snaps, disease and increased human use. Members of the media are invited to learn more about the effort, interview…

Can coral survive a bleaching event? If the stress-caused bleaching is not severe, coral have been known to recover. If the algae loss is prolonged and the stress continues, coral eventually dies. Download this infographic:…

One of a Kind Meet the Bandit Angelfish, endemic to deep reefs located within the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. In waters 100 to 300 feet deep, nearly 50 percent of the fish…

Shifting Patterns For the first time, you can simultaneously view multiple sources of historical sea ice data from the oceans surrounding northern Alaska. Choose a region and…

On June 15, 2006, President George W. Bush created what was at the time the largest marine protected area in the world. To mark this anniversary, we're looking back at 10 years of conservation of one of the most remote groups of…

Urchin Business Tiny sea urchins are helping to combat invasive algae in Kaneohe Bay—part of a restoration plan from the settlement of the 2005…

1. Coral Bleaching in the Pacific The Pacific Islands experienced unusually warm ocean temperatures in the last few years, during the longest global coral bleaching event on…

Hidden beneath the ocean waters, coral reefs teem with life. Coral reefs support more species than any other marine environment and rival rainforests in their biodiversity. Countless numbers of creatures rely on coral reefs for their…

Healthy coral reefs are one of the most valuable ecosystems on Earth. They provide billions of dollars in economic and environmental services, such as food, coastal protection, and tourism. However, coral ecosystems around the world…

Coral in the Red Sea. Coral reefs support more species than any other marine environment and rival rainforests in their biodiversity. Countless numbers of creatures rely on coral reefs for their survival. Yet…

Coral reefs are under intense pressure from climate change, pollution, and unsustainable use. So what can we do about it? To answer that question, we need to better understand the connections and interactions between coral reefs and…