Photo Stories
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33 imagesIn the fight against climate change, ocean acidification, over-fishing, poverty, and biodiversity loss, scientists are shouting to us to realize just how important seagrass is. There are over 60 species of seagrass found all over the globe (except the poles). Seagrass meadows provide much of the oxygen we breathe and are vital habitat to many species, including many animals that we eat. They protect our coastlines, clean our water, support coral reefs and sequester carbon and lessen ocean acidification, helping in our fight against climate change. We have already destroyed 35% of the worlds seagrass and are losing another 1.5%% per year due to coastal development, nutrient runoff, storms, disease, pollution and direct physical damage from boat propellers and moorings. The tide is slowly turning in some places and restoration is sometimes possible, but more must be done to protect this invaluable habitat.
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45 imagesThey have been dubbed the worst invasive species case in human history. The lionfish have quickly spread throughout the warm Atlantic ocean and are wreaking havoc on the local fish populations and reefs. People are trying to cull as many as possible, though, eradication is almost certainly impossible.
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42 imagesLemon sharks depend on mangroves for the survival of the first 5-8 years of their lives. Mangroves are disappearing throughout the world and the fate of the lemon shark is left in the balance. We need to get proper protections for the world's mangroves and then enforce them. Read the full story here https://maptia.com/shanegross/stories/shark-nursery
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34 imagesEleuthera Island in the Bahamas has almost 200 in-land ponds and blue holes. Some of these hold amazing treasures like a yet-to-be described cave shrimp. One pond hosts the the highest density of seahorses in the world. Some are already altered and degraded from human activities. All of the ponds are under threat from development, invasive species and pollution. Protections are desperately needed.
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33 imagesQueen conch are the national food of The Bahamas and extremely important to the culture and economy of the island nation. Scientists are predicting a fishery collapse as numbers continue to decline. Scientists and conservationists have helped form laws to protect the fishery, but lack of enforcement has left them impotent.
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25 imagesCuba has done a better job than most countries at preserving their natural and cultural heritage. Climate change, however, is a global problem with local consequences. As sea levels rise two species of crocodile that are normally separate are slowly interbreeding their way to a single species.
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14 imagesDuring the winter full moons the normally solitary Nassau grouper gather en masse to spawn at certain locations throughout the Caribbean. Fisherman have exploited this phenomenon and left Nassau Grouper on the endangered species list. Learning about these aggregations is of major importance to protect and manage the economically, ecologically and culturally important fishery for these charismatic fish.
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48 imagesIn August 2019 the Greenpeace ship Esperanza set out on its expedition to the Sargasso Sea, a unique region in the North Atlantic Ocean that is home to a diverse array of marine life, including loggerhead and green sea turtles. The journey saw Greenpeace and University of Florida researchers team up to study the impact of plastics and microplastics on marine life and the importance that the Sargasso’s drifting Sargassum seaweed habitat has for the development of juvenile sea turtles.
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19 imagesIn 2017 hurricanes Irma and Maria decimated the island of Puerto Rico, killing almost 3000 people and handing the United States their longest ever power-outage. It's also darkened their bioluminescent bays, destroyed mangroves and coral reefs, killed off most conch, and weakened the economy. In 2020 earthquakes shook the island and now COVID-19 has the whole island on lock down. How much can the island take? To read the full story: https://conservationphotographers.org/?expedition=nature-is-the-light
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25 imagesA remote island and atoll in the western Indian ocean called D'Arros and St. Joseph were declared a marine protected area (MPA) in 2020 thanks in large part to the hard work of the Save Our Seas Foundation. Here, we are going to explore the wildlife, geography, and science that went in to make this jewel of the Seychelles an MPA.
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31 imagesClimate change is giving farmers in the Canadian prairies of southern Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta a longer growing season, but it's also making the area dryer. This has major consequences on local wildlife and the global demand on shrinking freshwater resources.
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26 imagesThe race to understand how kelp forests dampen ocean noise — before it’s too late As kelp forests decline, scientists worry sensitive sea creatures are losing a sanctuary from sonic overload Read the full story by Ainslie Cruickshank with photographs by Shane Gross here: https://thenarwhal.ca/bc-kelp-forest-quiet-refuge/