Pacific Ocean

Unraveling Algal Biodiversity

Written by

A key aspect of the work being done during the GRE involves the characterization of the diversity (number of different species) of different organisms – fish, corals, other invertebrates and algae. While species inventories for algae have been completed here, …

Trick or Treat?

Written by

Several hours after dark on Halloween, a large school of bait fish attracted to the lights given off by the Golden Shadow, congregated near the aft deck to feed on plankton.  This fish behavior (and the lights) also attracted other …

New Caledonia Album

Beautiful ocean images and underwater photography from our New Caledonia Album in the Pacific Ocean taken during the Global Reef Expedition.

Amazing Algae

Written by

The average person doesn’t get too excited about algae, which most know as seaweed.  It smells when it accumulates on the beach and rots, it can outcompete coral when left unchecked, and it’s generally considered bad for reefs, especially when …

Surveys and Sampling

Written by

Two days of diving and our coral reef research is well underway in Isle de Pins, New Caledonia.  Although sea conditions were very murky, we explored three lagoonal patch reefs yesterday and successfully completed our standardized coral, benthic and fish …