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This page includes highlights from NOAA Coral Reef News, the monthly e-newsletter of the NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program. Click here for newsletter subscription information.
December 2008 - (*pdf, 1.51 MB). *If you require this newsletter in another format, please contact us. NOAA Participates in the Launch of Two Global Coral Reef Reports. NOS Discourages Giving Coral-derived Gifts. Pacific Mapping and Monitoring Workshop Identifies Priorities and Gaps. Critical Habitat Designation for Threatened Acropora Species. NWHI Submersible Collections Yield Six New Genera of Deep Corals. NOAA Participates in the Launch of Two Global Coral Reef Reports. Last week, NOAA participated in two events for the U.S. release of two NOAA-supported Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network (GCRMN) reports: the ‘Status of Coral Reefs of the World: 2008’ and ‘Socioeconomic Conditions along the World’s Tropical Coasts: 2008,’ (pdf, 1.89 mb). NOAA leadership, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere, Timothy Keeney, and National Ocean Service Assistant Administrator, John Dunnigan, gave speeches during an evening reception at the Washington D.C. National Aquarium on December 9. On December 10, the Coral Reef Conservation Program Director, Kacky Andrews, and the report’s editors, Drs. Clive Wilkinson and Christy Loper, attend a press event at the Australian Embassy. Congressman Baird (D-WA) spoke during this event. Reporters from seven news outlets attended either the press briefing or reception, generating over 50 news articles in newsoutlets around the world. NOAA coordinated with the Australian embassy to create a press release for each report; they are linked below. Additional partners for the launch events included the U.S. State Department, GCRMN, Conservation International, Project Aware, the International Union for Conservation of Nature, and World Resources Institute. ‘Status of Coral Reefs of the World: 2008,’ a product of 370 contributors in 96 countries and states, is the most authoritative report on the world’s coral reefs. The report documents how human activities continue to be the primary cause of the global coral reef crisis. It also discusses major stresses to coral reefs and new initiatives aimed at reversing reef degradation. Both NOAA and the State Department contributed funding to this quadrennial report and NOAA’s national coral reef status makes up a portion of the data presented. You can find the press release online; the report will soon be available on the GCRMN Web site. Synthesizing data from close to 14,000 household interviews in 29 countries, the ‘Socioeconomic Conditions Along the World's Tropical Coasts: 2008’ report highlights dependence on coral reefs by local communities in developing countries, provides information on perceived threats to coastal resources, and points to the inability of coastal managers to effectively implement decades-old recommendations as a significant barrier to coral reef protection. It is the first-ever comprehensive analysis of data from the Global Socioeconomic Monitoring Initiative (SocMon) and was produced in partnership with Conservation International. You can find the press release online. Both reports will be extremely useful and in-demand tools for coral reef managers and scientists around the world. NOS Discourages Giving Coral-derived Gifts. In time to influence holiday shopping, NOAA’s National Ocean Service (NOS) discouraged giving coral-derived gifts on its home page and in a podcast. The story on the NOS home page is entitled ‘Corals Are Already a Gift. Don’t Give Them as Presents.’ The article discusses popular uses of coral in jewelry, souvenirs, and home décor, and the negative effects this popularity has on coral populations. In October, NOS released its debut audio podcast in a new series, ‘Making Waves.’ Episode 7 covered the topics of red tide toxins appearing in dolphin populations and why listeners should refrain from buying coral products for holiday presents. After highlighting the issues surrounding coral-derived products, the podcast featured information on the decline of Corallium, the coral species most often used in jewelry, art, and home décor. Pacific Mapping and Monitoring Workshop Identifies Priorities and Gaps. As a first step in a strategic planning effort to strengthen the link between science and management goals, the CRCP invited Pacific coral reef ecosystem managers and CRCP scientists to attend a three-day facilitated workshop during November 18-20 in Honolulu, Hawai`i. The workshop objectives were to 1) identify mapping and monitoring data needs for local and jurisdictional management efforts, 2) identify NOAA products and potential new solutions to meet management needs, and 3) gather input from the management and science community on NOAA’s national program for coral reef ecosystem monitoring. More than 25 representatives from local agencies of Hawai`i, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and American Samoa, as well as the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, the Western Pacific Fisheries Management Council, and the U.S. Department of the Interior, attended this workshop. NOAA scientists participated alongside the managers in order to discuss scientific capabilities and understand location-specific needs directly from the managers. The workshop was successful in determining priority information needs for managers, and highlighted important issues of concern for the jurisdictions, including the need for increased technical capacity, improved information and data dissemination, and improved communication of scientific information to general audiences. The outcomes from the meeting will inform strategic long-term funding decisions with regard to the CRCP’s monitoring and mapping activities, collectively termed the Coral Reef Ecosystem Integrated Observing System, to ensure they are cost-effective, aligned with management needs, and allow for the timely delivery of required products and services to all essential users, given funding constraints. The CRCP will host a complementary workshop in the Atlantic/Caribbean region in the Spring of 2009. Critical Habitat Designation for Threatened Acropora Species. NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service published the final critical habitat designations for elkhorn (Acropora palmata) and staghorn (A. cervicornis) corals in the Federal Register (FR) on Wednesday, November 26. This rulemaking is mandatory under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. The four areas designated as critical habitat for threatened corals are: (1) Florida area; (2) Puerto Rico area; (3) St. Thomas/St. John area; and (4) St. Croix area. The critical habitat for threatened corals includes water depths up to 98 feet. Within these areas, the feature essential to the conservation of threatened corals is natural consolidated hard substrate or dead coral skeleton that is free from fleshy and turf macroalgae cover and sediment cover to maximize the potential for successful recruitment and population growth. The effective date for this rulemaking is December 26, 2008. To download a copy of the FR notice, the economic analysis, or Frequently Asked Questions, please click here. NWHI Submersible Collections Yield Six New Genera of Deep Corals. Analysis of specimens collected at Twin Banks in the southern end of the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument (Monument) in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands (NWHI) has yielded a treasure trove of previously unknown biodiversity. Eight specimens of bamboo coral were collected on a Monument-sponsored submersible cruise last year at depths between 1100m and 1400m. Taxonomic analyses have just been completed and they indicate that seven of these specimens are new species. Even more amazing is that six of those species also represent new genera, not conforming to any of the currently recognized genera of bamboo coral. The number of genera now recognized as occurring in Hawai`i is thus increased from four to ten. The eighth specimen, while not a new species or genus, is a new record and had not been previously recorded in the North Pacific. Preliminary results were presented by staff from the NOAA Undersea Research Center’s Hawaii Undersea Research Laboratory at the Deepsea Coral Symposium 2008 in New Zealand during the first week of December. |
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