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IMAGE GALLERY 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 dollars in products and services to humans each year. But they are...MORE GALLERIES


	BLOG POST MORE STORIES Seafood for Thought Sunday, November 21 marks World Fisheries Day, an annual occasion observed in ma...
	BLOG POST MORE STORIES Saving Sharks and Dolphins, Near and Far Sophi Bromenshenkel is an unlikely shark-lover. She's eight years old and hails...
	VIDEO MORE VIDEOS Recycled Fishing Gear Converted into Energy Instead of adding castaway fishing nets to already crowded landfills, Hawaii’s m...

EDUCATOR RESOURCES

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					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...

Protected Pigfish and Mao-Mao School

Mar 13, 2013 - 7:21AM

Red Pigfish (Bodianus unimaculatus) and Blue Mao-Mao (Scorpis violacea)...

Hawaii’s Maro Coral Reef

Sep 28, 2012 - 10:35AM

This bluefin trevally is lucky to call Hawaii’s Maro Coral Reef, part...

SPOTLIGHT


40 Years of National Marine Sanctuaries In 1872, the United States did something remarkable. We set aside one of our greatest natural treasures, Yellowstone...

The Coral Gardener Mar 22 2011 - 10:18am A still from The Coral Gardener, part of the 19th Annual Environmental Film Festival in the Nation's Capital. The film is about Austin Bowden-Kerby, a man who gardens corals to help rebuild reefs.	Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System Nov 4 2010 - 11:49am The Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System site in Belize was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1996. The site is an outstanding natural system, consisting of the largest barrier reef in the northern hemisphere, offshore atolls, and several hundred sand cays, mangrove forests, coastal lagoons,...
Sian Ka'an, Mexico Nov 8 2010 - 1:57pm The Sian Ka’an site in Mexico was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1987. The site’s name means “Origin of the Sky” in Mayan and contains tropical forests, mangroves, and marshes, as well as a large marine area intersected by the Caribbean Barrier Reef. On land there are 1,200 plant species...	Scientists Use Bioacoustics to Protect Marine Mammals Sep 20 2011 - 12:27pm In the late 1990's, researchers at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) invented the D-Tag—a radio device that can be attached by suction cups to a whale's back. Using a tiny underwater microphone, the tag records sounds that the whale makes and hears underwater. It also records depth,...
St. Kilda, United Kingdom Nov 4 2010 - 3:54pm The St. Kilda site in the United Kingdom was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1986. The volcanic archipelago and surrounding marine waters have some of the highest cliffs in Europe and host large colonies of rare and endangered birds.	One Step Closer to a Healthier Ocean Jul 27 2010 - 1:44pm The year 2010 will likely be remembered as a tragic time for the ocean. Yet, despite the oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, I have hope for our ocean’s future. Last week President Obama signed an Executive Order to implement our nation’s first National Ocean Policy.
Coiba National Park and its Special Zone of Marine Protection, Panama Nov 5 2010 - 1:30pm The Coiba National Park and its Special Zone of Marine Protection site in Panama was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2005. The site, protected from the cold winds and effects of El Nino, provides a key ecological link to the Tropical Eastern Pacific for the transit and survival of pelagic...	Everglades National Park, United States Nov 4 2010 - 12:03pm The Everglades National Park in the United States was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1979. This site is a unique ecosystem created by a shallow, “imperceptible river” 50 miles wide, flowing slowly south to the tip of Florida.
5 Simple Things You Can Do for the Ocean Sep 2 2011 - 3:32pm CREDIT: Flickr User Fabi Fliervoet 1. Bring Your Own The trash we "throw away" doesn't disappear. Plastic bags, disposable food containers, snack wrappers, and other loose garbage can be washed into local waterways and eventually end up in the ocean where it poses a major hazard for...	Searching for Cancer Drugs in the Ocean Aug 9 2011 - 12:00pm Ever since fourth grade I’ve wanted to explore the creatures and landscapes of the deep ocean in a submersible. It took awhile, but I finally got my chance this summer as part of the Deep Reef Observation Project (DROP).
Sundarbans, Bangladesh Nov 4 2010 - 11:46am The Sundarbans site in Bangladesh was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1997.	Protected Pigfish and Mao-Mao School Mar 13 2013 - 7:21am Red Pigfish (Bodianus unimaculatus) and Blue Mao-Mao (Scorpis violacea) school at the edge of a cavern in New Zealand's Poor Knights Islands. Read photographer Brian Skerry's story behind this photo on the Ocean Portal blog.
Marine World Heritage Photo Gallery Nov 9 2010 - 12:54pm Marine World Heritage is a prestigious list of 43 marine ecosystems and biodiversity treasures from across the globe, including countries such as Australia, Iceland, Russia, South Africa, the Phillippines, United States, and Yemen. Together, they can be considered the “Crown Jewels of our...	Wadden Sea, Germany & the Netherlands Nov 4 2010 - 3:23pm The Wadden Sea site in Germany and the Netherlands was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2009. It’s a large relatively flat coastal wetland environment, with tidal channels, sandy shoals, sea-grass meadows, mussel beds, sandbars, mudflats, salt marshes, estuaries, beaches, and dunes. The site...
Spinner Dolphins in Hawaii Aug 16 2010 - 12:41pm Graceful spinner dolphins (Stenella longirostris) swim through the dazzling blue waters of the Papahānaumokuākea National Monument, northwest of the main Hawaiian archipelago. Papahānaumokuākea was listed as a Marine World Heritage Site in August 2010.	Península Valdés, Argentina Nov 4 2010 - 11:30am The Península Valdés in Argentina was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1999. The site is home to important breeding populations of the endangered southern right whale (Eubalaena australis), southern elephant seal (Mirounga leonina), and southern sea lion (Otaria flavescens), pictured here.