March 4, 2021
Marine protected areas (MPAs) around Oahu do not adequately protect populations of herbivorous reef fishes that eat algae on coral reefs.
December 2, 2020
New research shows how conservation policies can avoid having unintended consequences for local ecosystems and people.
To Feed or Not to Feed? Coral Reef Fish Responses to Artificial Feeding and Stakeholder Perceptions in the Aitutaki Lagoon, Cook Islands
Feeding wild animals is a regular habit in ecotourism worldwide with poorly known consequences for ecosystem functioning. This study investigates how effective bread feeding is at attracting coral reef fish in the South Pacific, which feeding groups of fish are most attracted, and how natural foraging rates of an omnivorous and a grazingdetritivorous fish are affected. Data were collected at sites where fish are regularly fed bread by snorkellers and at comparison sites where bread was only provided for this study, within the Aitutaki lagoon (Cook Islands).
August 19, 2020
The state of Hawaii’s Environmental Council has upheld the Board of Land and Natural Resources’ decision to maintain the ban on collecting fish for the aquarium pet trade off the west coast of Hawaii Island and to reject an environmental impact statement aimed at restarting the destructive practi
August 7, 2020
Resource fishes—species targeted for human consumption—play a key role in reef ecosystems long before they end up on the dinner table.
July 31, 2020
As global awareness of the importance of marine ecosystems grows, efforts are under way to protect, restore and nurture the reefs and mangroves that protect coastlines.
April 24, 2020
Rising carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and the consequent changes created through ocean acidification will cause severe ecosystem effects, impacting reef-forming habitats and the associated fish, according to new research.
April 3, 2020
The Great Barrier Reef is suffering its third mass bleaching event in five years. It follows the record-breaking mass bleaching event in 2016 that killed a third of Great Barrier Reef corals, immediately followed by another in 2017.
Tuvalu Marine Life
This project report has two components
1) a field survey of the fish biodiversity of Tuvalu’s reefs and lagoons, as well as documenting the species commonly caught by local fishermen and
2) a field survey of selected macro-invertebrate and fish densities in Tuvalu’s lagoons, to assess the stocks of valuable species on each atoll and test the effectiveness of the Conservation Areas (CAs).