Coral Reefs

Divers participating in the Underwater Music Festival pretend to play musical instruments in the waters off of Big Pine Key, Florida.

This Florida Music Festival Takes Place Completely Underwater

To draw attention to coral reef conservation, divers play 'bass-oons' and 'trombonefish' at the Underwater Music Festival in Key West

North Carolina's Offshore Shipwrecks Have Surprising New Tenants—Tropical Fish

As species are pushed north by climate change, the reefs may serve as a refuge for tropical and sub-tropical fish

Month-Long Oil Spill in the Solomon Islands Threatens World's Largest Coral Reef Atoll

Australia has stepped in to help contain the 600 tons of heavy fuel oil leaking from the transport that ran aground on Rennell Island early last month

A plume of sediment off the coast of Queensland after recent flooding.

Australia Allows One Million Tons of Sludge to Be Dumped on Great Barrier Reef

A loophole in Australian federal law allows dredging spoils from port maintenance to be dumped in the marine park

The Smithsonian's Mary Hagedorn and hundreds of colleagues collaborated on the project, which used cryopreserved elkhorn coral sperm to fertilize live eggs to create larvae.

To Help Corals Fight Back, Scientists Are Breeding Populations Separated by Hundreds of Miles

A new study demonstrates that assisted reproduction using cryopreserved sperm leads to offspring that might be more resilient in the face of climate change

A sea turtle swimming by bleached corals of the Great Barrier Reef near Heron Island off the east coast of Australia.

Coral Larvae Cryogenically Frozen and Thawed for the First Time

Warming oceans are killing the world’s reefs, but scientists may have found a way to help them get out of hot water—by putting corals into a deep freeze

The dazzling pink and yellow fish is the only member of its genus known to reside in the Atlantic rather than the Pacific

Newly Discovered Neon Fish Species Is Named After Greek Goddess of Love

Researchers were so entranced by the pink and yellow fish that they failed to spot a sixgill shark swimming just above their heads

Maldivian Government Destroys World's First Intertidal Art Gallery

Before President Abdulla Yasmeen lost the country's election, his government ordered the demolition of the conservation-minded underwater sculpture garden

RangerBot is an autonomous underwater vehicle designed to identify and kill crown-of-thorns starfish by lethal injection.

Sea-Star Murdering Robots Are Deployed in the Great Barrier Reef

The RangerBot is a new line of defense against coral-eating crown-of-thorns starfish

How Hungry Baby Urchins Are Saving Hawaii's Reefs

They helped eat through invasive algae that was suffocating corals in Kāne'ohe Bay

Coral and its symbiotic algae

Algae and Coral Have Been BFFs Since the Dinosaur Age

A new study shows that the relationship between coral polyps and zooxanthellae that produces colorful coral reefs began 160 million years ago

The link between sunscreen and skin protection is watertight. Unfortunately, many common sunscreens may be devastating for the health of coral reefs.

Can We Create Sunscreen That Protects Both Humans and Coral Reefs?

Sunscreen is vital for skin protection. But researchers are finding that even 'reef-friendly' versions may pose serious environmental threats

Coral Reefs Need Fewer Rats and More Bird Poo

A study of rat-infested islands in the Chagos show that a lack of seabirds--and their guano--degrades surrounding coral ecosystems

Brush up on Your Scuba Certification—This Florida Museum Is Entirely Underwater

The Underwater Museum of Art will permanently exhibit seven sculptures in the Gulf coastal waters off Walton County, Florida

Three color morphs of bleached corals on the Great Barrier Reef

2016 Ocean Heatwave Killed 30 Percent of the Great Barrier Reef

Combined with a 2017 temperature spike, half of the 2 billion corals on the reef have died since 2015

Ocean Current That Keeps Europe Warm Is Weakening

Two new studies show the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation has decreased 15 to 20 percent over the last 150 years

Curasub commissioner/owner Adriaan Schrier and lead DROP scientist Carole Baldwin aboard the custom-built submersible.

How a Team of Submersible-Bound Scientists Redefined Reef Ecosystems

In tropical Curaçao, Smithsonian researchers are constantly confronting the unknown

Could Lab-Bred Super Coral Save Our Reefs?

Scientists are exploring a bold new plan that could help protect the world's coral reefs. Using selective breeding, they aim to produce a new strain

Billions of Pieces of Plastic Spread Disease in Coral Reefs

A new study has highlighted the scope of plastic pollution

Extremely Rare (and Peculiar) Fish Found Off Coast of Tasmania

The new population could double the known numbers of these oddball creatures

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