Conservation

Coral Guardian's team member, Sahril, ensures the maintenance of a restored coral reef.

Adopt a coral during lockdown

Corals are essential to the balance of the planet, but today they are threatened with extinction.  Thanks to restoration efforts as well as the construction of unique artificial reefs, dedicated to the rehabilitation of coral reefs in damaged areas, we make possible the return of lost biodiversity in this environment.

Shortfin mako shark

US & EU keep makos unprotected

The shortfin mako shark fishery of the north Atlantic is one of those that fisheries scientists have claimed to be potentially sustainable. It has been used to promote the idea that all shark fisheries can become sustainable, with the United States in the lead.

But in the meantime, the species has become globally endangered, and now, when other countries are urgently fighting for protection for the shortfin mako shark, the United States and the European Union have blocked it at the annual meeting of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT).

Not Just a FAD: Saving the Reefs in the Seychelles Islands

A diver cuts lose a FAD tangled in the reef, Alphonse Atoll, Seychelles. Photo by Christian Burger.

Drifting fish aggregating devices (dFADs) are threatening endangered marine species and coral reefs in the Indian Ocean. Marine conservationist Lucy Martin worked with the Island Conservation Society (ICS), a non-governmental organization in the Seychelles, on a large survey in 2015 to find out how big an issue FADs actually were.

Snorkelling with whale sharks is one of the most popular activities for tourist divers.
Snorkelling with whale sharks is one of the most popular activities for tourist divers.

Study shows value of shark tourism in Australia

A study has revealed that shark dive tourism in Australia contributes at least AUD$25.5 million annually to the country’s economy. These findings highlight the importance of proper management of shark species to support a sustainable dive tourism industry.

Focusing on four main shark viewing industries in Australia, the study was a collaboration between Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS), Flinders University, University of Western Australia, and Southern Cross University. It surveyed 711 tourist divers from May 2013 to June 2014.

Elkhorn corals in Florida Keys.
Elkhorn corals in Florida Keys.

Figuring out where to transplant nursery-grown corals

This sounds simple enough, but not when one considers that the reef - the third largest coral reef in the world - measures nearly 150 miles long and four miles wide. The question of where to place the new corals comes into play.

Enter biology professor Robert van Woesik, from Florida Institute of Technology.

Armed with a US$205,000 grant from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission, he and his team are working to identify the habitats and localities in the reef tract that offer optimal conditions for coral survival.

High Seas fishing Is a huge waste of money and resources

Close high seas fisheries; It is sound business

Isabelle Côté, a Simon Fraser University professor of marine ecology and conservation, has co-authored a new study that finds little would be lost by eliminating high seas fishing.

In this study Côté and her colleagues evaluated the impact of closing deep-sea fishing on fisheries' catches and values, and their economic consequences for individual countries, identifying which nations would stand to financially gain or lose.

Hunted Out of Fear

The shark is an apex predator that has been on this earth for over 400 million years—a predator that, through the media and our deep-seated fears, has been systematically targeted and hunted throughout the world's oceans, pushing many species close to extinction.