Skip to Content Skip to Navigation

Ocean Portal by The Smithsonian Institution

Habitat Destruction

FEATURES


VIDEO Efforts to Protect the Critically Endangered Monk Seal Monk seals -- the only completely tropical species of seal in the world -- are in trouble. Centuries of human exploitation and habitat destruction have caused the remaining populations of Me...MORE VIDEO


	VIDEO MORE VIDEOS The Last Wild Places In the Ocean Webcast The ocean is not as natural as it once was. Where there used to be large predato...
	PHOTO MORE PHOTOS Mangrove Island Clear-Cut for Tourism This mangrove island in the Pelican Cays, Belize, was clear-cut and filled with...
	BLOG POST MORE STORIES The Great Barrier Reef – Going, Going, Gone??? Australia’s Great Barrier Reef (or the GBR as it is known to reef aficionados) s...

EDUCATOR RESOURCES

LATEST TODAY'S CATCH


					Blue Carbon Apr 19, 2013 - 10:05AMWhat is blue carbon? It's a term used to describe the carbon that is captured from the atmosphere by ocean ecosystems, mainly coastal mangroves, seagrasses and salt marshes. These coastal areas can hold up to five times more...

Coral for Sale

Oct 19, 2012 - 11:07AM

Red coral necklaces fill a store display window. The United States annually...

Where did Half of the Great Barrier Reef's Coral Go?

Oct 3, 2012 - 1:57PM

In the past 30 years, the Great Barrier Reef -- Australia's iconic natural...

SPOTLIGHT


Two Views of Coral Reefs: Thriving and Threatened Coral reefs are beautiful, vibrant ecosystems that house roughly one quarter of all marine species and provide billions of...

Young Lemon Shark Swims Through Mangroves Sep 29 2011 - 1:43pm A lemon shark pup swims through a shallow mangrove forest off the coast of Bimini Island in the Bahamas in this image captured by National Geographic photojournalist Brian Skerry.	When Ships Strike Jan 26 2010 - 11:45am Phoenix’s mother, Stumpy (#1004), was killed in a collision with a ship near Virginia in February 2004. She was pregnant with her sixth known calf. More about whales can be found in our Tale of a whale featured story.
Protecting Arctic habitat Jul 26 2010 - 6:19pm Human activity is increasing in the Arctic marine environment due to climate change. To help the most vulnerable areas, the Global Marine Program of IUCN, along with partners, convened a series of workshops aimed at enhancing ecosystem-based management and identifying biologically or...	Where did Half of the Great Barrier Reef's Coral Go? Oct 3 2012 - 1:57pm In the past 30 years, the Great Barrier Reef -- Australia's iconic natural wonder -- has lost half of its coral to a combination of forces. Dr. Nancy Knowlton, Sant Chair of Marine Science at the Smithsonian Natural Museum of Natural History and Editor-in-Chief of the Ocean Portal, went on PBS...
Unhealthy Coral Reef, Kiritimi, Line Islands Dec 7 2009 - 1:48pm Algae has overtaken this coral reef off heavily populated Kiritimati, or Christmas Island. Few fish swim in the murky waters. The causes include pollution, overfishing, and increased water temperature. More about coral reef ecosystems can be found in our Coral Reefs featured story.	40 Years of National Marine Sanctuaries Oct 24 2012 - 1:18pm In 1872, the United States did something remarkable. We set aside one of our greatest natural treasures, Yellowstone National Park, for future generations to enjoy and appreciate. The logic was simple: this place is truly special, and we have a national responsibility to take care of it.
Changing Tides: A Series of Ocean Discussions May 24 2010 - 3:32pm PAST PROGRAMS IN THE SERIES	Efforts to Protect the Critically Endangered Monk Seal Jun 14 2011 - 2:53pm Monk seals -- the only completely tropical species of seal in the world -- are in trouble.
Orange Roughy and Bycatch Jul 27 2011 - 3:44pm Orange roughy (Hoplostethus atlanticus) is a deep ocean fish that grows and matures at a sluggish rate compared to most shallow water fish. They don't reproduce until they are at least 20 years old and can reportedly live to well past 100 years. In the last few decades fisherman have expanded their...	The Last Wild Places In the Ocean Webcast May 12 2011 - 4:36pm The ocean is not as natural as it once was. Where there used to be large predators that we took for sea monsters, now there are tiny fish and jellyfish. But there are a few untouched places left in the ocean, remote oases of life where sharks are the kings of the underwater world. These last wild...
Mangrove Island Clear-Cut for Tourism Jan 26 2010 - 11:46am This mangrove island in the Pelican Cays, Belize, was clear-cut and filled with dredged sand and coral from the adjacent reef flat. Developers are clearing and dredging mangroves in an attempt to create sand-based islands for tourists. Unfortunately, mangroves help prevent erosion and submergence...	Coral for Sale Oct 19 2012 - 11:07am Red coral necklaces fill a store display window. The United States annually imports around one million live coral animals from tropical reefs for use in aquariums, and is the largest documented consumer of precious red coral, commonly used in jewelry, according to a 2008 SeaWeb report (PDF).
Fishing with Dynamite Apr 17 2013 - 12:08pm Blast fishing, when dynamite or other explosives are used to stun or kill fish, is a practice used in many villages and isolated regions of the world. Hundreds of fish can be seen strewn across the reef, left as bycatch, such as these tropical fish in Thailand. Fishers are targeting larger,...	Avoid Coral Jewelry Jun 1 2010 - 7:50pm When you are shopping for gifts and jewelry, steer clear of gifts that use real coral or other marine animal products. Deepwater pink and red corals in particular have been prized for their beauty in jewelry making, but they belong in the sea, not in our homes. Visit SeaWeb’s Too Precious to Wear...
Coral Reef Covered by Silt and Sand Jan 26 2010 - 11:45am This coral reef in the Western Pacific Ocean was killed by human input of silt and sand from nearby islands reaching the coral reef habitat. More about coral reef ecosystems can be found in our Coral Reefs featured story.	Protecting Fragile Species Jan 26 2010 - 11:45am Sarah Gotheil, from IUCN Global Marine Programme, snapped this photo in the course of her research into fragile species and ecosystems. A new project led by IUCN will unveil the mysteries of southern Indian Ocean seamounts and help improve conservation and management of resources. Two research...