Monthly Archives: March 2017

Be Wary of the New Fish in Town

Many aquariums boast exhibits of exotic fish from faraway places. While these may seem like harmless attractions behind the glass, these fish don’t always stay behind glass. Oftentimes, these foreign fish are released into local waters, altering their new environment. In my … Continue reading

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Corals of the Caribbean: White Band’s Ghost

Coral reefs are resilient yet gentle ecosystems that are affected by several diseases. They have overtaken the Caribbean reefs and have become a serious deteriorating factor. In my last post I talked about the effect of the Black Band Disease on … Continue reading

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El Niños Past and Present

While it is clear that the current ENSO-driven mass bleaching event has been devastating and widespread, to put it in perspective, it’s essential to look back and compare it to similar incidents in the past. Some of these, which you … Continue reading

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Can Climate Change Cause Diseases in Our Coral Reefs?

Corals are living organisms and as such they are susceptible to diseases. High temperatures can affect the severity of diseases. High temperature is a stressor and as such it can decrease an organisms immune response and increase the virulence of … Continue reading

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Ecotourism of Reefs: An Investment Worth Protecting

Not surprisingly, one of the main contributors to the economies of coastal areas near coral reefs is ecotourism. People come from all over the world to areas with vibrant and healthy coral reefs largely for the aesthetic pleasure they provide. Recent progress … Continue reading

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Toxic Air: How Ocean Acidification Affects Reef Organisms

Hello, everyone! This semester, I am writing a series of blog posts about the effects of ocean acidification on coral reefs. If you are unfamiliar with the concept of ocean acidification, please check out my last blog post, “When Air Meets … Continue reading

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Local Relief but Global Uncertainty in Marine Protected Areas

Lately, coral reefs have been making headlines across the world because of their drastic decline and severe bleaching, but one story this week gives us a glimmer of hope. On March 20th, the Sun Sentinel reported that a proposal was … Continue reading

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In order to Save Coral Reefs . . . We need to Save the Mangroves

The rainbow parrotfish (Scarus guacamaia) is the largest herbivorous fish in the Atlantic Ocean.1 As such, it plays an important role on coral reefs by grazing on and limiting the macroalgal biomass. A single juvenile parrotfish can take 28,000 bites … Continue reading

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Fish Out of Water: Impacts of Reef Fishing

In my last post, we analyzed reef fishing and took a deeper look into some of the techniques, such as fishing with explosives and poisons, utilized by fishermen to catch more fish while putting forth minimal effort. In order to … Continue reading

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Conserving the Treasures of the Deep: How and Why Deep Water Reefs Should Be Conserved

Coral reefs around the world are changing. Human’s detrimental impact on the world’s reefs through nutrient runoff, ocean acidification, physical damage, and rising sea temperatures and levels are threatening the diversity and even existence of many coral reefs. While this is readily … Continue reading

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