Scientific Surveys

A Big Mouth

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Expedition Log: Palau – Day 6 When our benthic team is conducting surveys, we are usually looking down at the benthos, concentrating and writing furiously on our dive slates. We often come back to the boat and hear excited questions …

Fragile Flowers

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Expedition Log: Palau – Day 5 Usually we find the most delicate corals in protected deeper lagoonal waters.  Species such as Anacropora, a cousin of Acropora which forms bushes of long spindly branches, up to a meter tall but only …

Longjawed Mackerel: A Real ‘Big Mouth’

These weird and wonderful fish are the Longjawed Mackerel (Rastrelliger kanagurta). They swim around with their mouths open and gill rakers exposed, filtering zooplankton from the water for food. They swim in densely packed schools and are widespread throughout the …

The Bait Grounds

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Expedition Log: Palau – Day 3 Today we surveyed reefs in the Ngeruktabel complex of the Rock Islands, which are located south of Malakal harbor.  The area is known locally as the “bait grounds” because local fishermen use small nets …

Raging Remoras

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Expedition Log: Palau – Day 2 Remoras are a unique type fish. They use their distinctive specialized dorsal fin to attach to larger marine animals for transportation, protection and food. These fish are most commonly seen underwater hitching a free …

Palau’s Iconic Rock Islands

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Expedition Log: Palau – Day 1 We’ve embarked on our next research mission of the Global reef Expedition to Palau, a Freely Associated State with strong ties to the United States.  Palau is is in the western Pacific, fairly close …

Month-Long Palau Coral Reef Research Expedition Begins

LANDOVER, MD, January 8th, 2015 – Today a massive coral reef research expedition begins in Palau. It is a joint project between the Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation, the Coral Reef Research Foundation, and Palau International Coral Research Center …