Jacksonville Reef Research Team

03/07/2023

Finding a complete shipwreck, what a feeling that must be!

04/20/2022

Do you live in the Caribbean? We need your help! The long-spined sea urchin (Diadema) is experiencing a die-off throughout the region and volunteers are needed to report sightings.
https://go.usa.gov/xu2fZ Photo credit: Josh Patterson

04/14/2022

Hey snorkelers and divers, have you had the chance to head out to Phil Foster Park recently? If not, we’re here to share with you the new Reef Smart snorkel trail map! This weatherproof site map offers a great graphic of the reef trail for all to enjoy. The Department constructed the artificial reef in 2012. It is located just south of Phil Foster Park in Lake Worth Lagoon. The reef was constructed with 600 tons of rock placed in discrete piles in 6 to 10 feet of water. Six concrete reef modules, two tons each, were deployed between the piles of rock. These unique structures contain tunnels, half bowls, indents, interior cavities and ledges. The rock reef provides habitat for fish, octopus, seahorse and other types of sea life. A trio of hammerhead shark statues “swim” near the west end of the snorkel trail. The best time to explore the snorkel trail is at high tide when underwater visibility is the clearest. Learn more about the Department’s Artificial Reef Program here: https://discover.pbcgov.org/erm/Pages/Reefs.aspx

03/25/2022

You can try it.

03/28/2021

If you are or know a pilot sign up to help our ocean friends.

Experts looked at 126 marine mammals in which at least 25% of them are nearing extinction, and 98% of marine mammals are at a kind of risk level.

12/01/2020

Great Organization doing needed work.

Turtles Fly Too provides emergency transport to assist in endangered species rescue, from sea turtles to seals, humanitarian needs to whale disentanglement teams.

Turtles Fly Too has already flown over 250 critically endangered sea turtles which were rescued when they washed up on the shores, cold stunned from hypothermia this fall in Cape Cod. Each Turtle Flier contributes between $10-$35K per flight to transport these endangered species to rehabilitation centers in the south.

All of the agencies that provide these services, including ours have been severely impacted by loss of funding this year and can use your support. As you consider the organizations to support this year, consider conservation and rehabilitation as your theme, as we need to protect these species from extinction.

These are just a few of the agencies we work with that assist endangered species every day.

NOAA Fisheries Service
NOAA Fisheries New England/Mid-Atlantic
Mass Audubon's Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary
New England Aquarium
National Marine Life Center
The Turtle Hospital
SeaWorld Orlando
Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquariumi
Tampa Bay Aquarium
St. Louis Aquarium at Union Station
Vancouver Aquarium
South Carolina Aquarium
Loggerhead Marinelife Center
Gulf World Marine Institute
Clearwater Marine Aquarium
Brookfield Zoo
National Aquarium
Audubon Aquarium of the Americas
Tennessee Aquarium
The Sea Turtle Hospital at UF Whitney Lab
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
SR³ - Sealife Response, Rehabilitation & Research
Oregon Coast Aquarium
SeaWorld San Diego
Marine Mammal Stranding Center
Georgia Sea Turtle Center
MyFWC Florida Fish and Wildlife
Miamiseaquarium
The Ninety-Nines, Inc, International Organization of Women Pilots
Center for Coastal Studies
SE Section 99s

10/29/2020

A new reef was discovered!

Who wants to dive it?

"To find a new half-a-kilometer tall reef in the offshore Cape York area of the well-recognized Great Barrier Reef shows how mysterious the world is just beyond our coastline,” Jyotika Virmani, executive director of Schmidt Ocean Institute, said in a statement."

The reef is located off the coast of North Queensland, in the area around Cape York. Seven other detached reefs have been discovered in this region since the late 1800s.

10/28/2020

Great organization please help the Turtles Fly Too.