The Nature Conservancy in Cuba: A major step in protecting Caribbean resources
The Nature Conservancy has partnered with Cuban conservation agencies for more than 20 years, providing trainings such as protected area management and planning, GPS and GIS, coral reef monitoring, climate adaptation, and sustainable tourism that otherwise would not be available.
Reviving the Ocean Economy: The Case For Action – 2015
Ove Hoegh-Guldberg, in partnership with the University of Queensland, Boston Consulting Group, and WWF, has just launched a new report: Reviving the Ocean Economy: The Case For Action – 2015, illustrating the economic case for ocean conservation. The authors estimate...Herbivory And The Resilience Of Caribbean Coral Reefs: Knowledge Gaps And Implications For Management
This paper explores herbivory and how it affects the resilience of coral reefs in the Caribbean. The authors identify important knowledge gaps that limit our ability to predict when herbivores are most likely to support resilience. The authors explore: What processes...Recovery Potential Of The World’s Coral Reef Fishes
Fishing is the primary source of reduced reef function globally. Marine reserves are a critical tool to help fish populations recover, however, there are no benchmarks to determine if the protection is effective, or whether a reserve has recovered enough to be fished...Using Wastewater Treatment Technologies to Reduce Nutrient Pollution Impacts on Coral Reefs
Jim Bays, Technology Fellow at CH2M HILL discusses wastewater treatment technologies ranging from low-tech onsite treatment to large system level upgrades that improve public health and mitigate nutrient pollution impact to coral reefs and sensitive marine ecosystems....Relationship Between Phylogeny And Immunity Suggests Older Caribbean Coral Lineages Are More Resistant to Disease
This study looked at the evolutionary importance of coral immune traits, which are related to phylogeny in other organisms. 140 different fragments from healthy coral colonies were sampled, representing 14 of the most common Caribbean hard corals (20% of regional hard...Persistence and Change in Community Composition of Reef Corals through Present, Past and Future Climates
This study looked at long-term data from fossil and modern coral reefs to test for variation among coral genera over time, both in rates and directions of change in abundance. Data was synthesized from seven extant reefs, creating 78 trajectories of changing coral...New and improved Network Forum
Check out our interactive online community to connect and share with other coral reef managers and practitioners from around the world about marine management.
Assessing Habitat Risk From Human Activities To Inform Coastal And Marine Spatial Planning: A Demonstration In Belize
The expansion of existing and emerging ocean uses has negative effects on ecosystems that provide habitat for key species and benefits to people. Integrated coastal and ocean management needs straightforward approaches for understanding the effects people have on...New Reef Resilience Online Course Launched
Check out the six new modules on stressors affecting coral reefs, guidance for identifying coral reef resilience indicators, design principles for resilient MPA networks, methods for implementing resilience assessments, and important communication tools for managers.
Meta-Analysis Indicates Habitat-Specific Alterations to Primary Producer and Herbivore Communities in Marine Protected Areas
A recent global quantitative review and meta-analysis was conducted on the effects of MPAs on coral reef herbivores and primary producers to support management decisions. Based on criteria for the meta-analysis, which included only well-enforced no-take MPAs, 41...Fish with Chips: Tracking Reef Fish Movements to Evaluate Size and Connectivity of Caribbean Marine Protected Areas
Marine protected areas (MPAs) are commonly implemented in the Caribbean to address the rapid decline in the quality of coral reefs and in the abundance and body size of associated fish populations. However, MPAs are typically designed without sufficient knowledge of...How Are Our MPAs Doing? Challenges in Assessing Global Patterns in Marine Protected Area Performance
Marine protected areas (MPAs) are established for a variety of reasons including: protecting marine biodiversity and habitats from degradation, replenishing depleted fish populations, regulating tourism and recreation, accommodating conflicting resource uses, and...Invasive Lionfish in the Marketplace: Challenges and Opportunities
Since the 1980s, invasive Indo-Pacific lionfish have spread throughout the western Atlantic and Caribbean, threatening biodiversity and native reef fish, which are the livelihood of local cultures and economies. During the 66th annual meeting of the Gulf and Caribbean...Sint Maarten – MPA Design
The Establishment of Man of Shoals Marine Park
Lionfish invasion in the Caribbean – Mitigating the Threats of Invasive Alien Species in the Insular Caribbean (MTIASIC)
The Bahamas has taken the lead to address the lionfish invasion, creating a Lionfish Taskforce to document, collect, and remove lionfish from Bahamian waters. The Taskforce includes representatives from government agencies and local NGOs. Preliminary results from a pilot project to remove lionfish in the Bahamas suggest that invasive species can be effectively managed through public-private sector partnerships with substantial benefits for biodiversity and local economies.
New resource for Caribbean coral reef managers
This new handbook provides tools, information, and management recommendations for coral reef managers highlighting the latest scientific research on reefs and resilience to inform management actions.