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What Might Have Caused Recent Increase of Coral Diseases in the Caribbean?

Marine diseases are killing coral populations all over the world, threatening the livelihoods of millions of people who depend on reefs for food and protection from storms. Are these diseases new and unprecedented infections, or do they erupt from the stresses of environmental change?

Ecologically or Biologically Significant Marine Areas

Ecologically or Biologically Significant Marine Areas

Green Economy, Oceans and SIDS

This event will discuss how the Green Economy approach for sustainable development can address some key biodiversity issues and also work towards biodiversity targets.

Decision XI/17

Marine and coastal biodiversity: ecologically or biologically significant marine areas

Decision XI/18

Marine and coastal biodiversity: sustainable fisheries and addressing adverse impacts of human activities, voluntary guidelines for environmental assessment, and marine spatial planning

Sustainable Ocean Initiative (SOI) Capacity-Building Workshop for West Africa (14 to 18 January, 2013) and South-Eastern Atlantic Regional Workshop to Facilitate the Description of Ecologically or Biologically Significant Marine Areas (EBSAs) (25 to 29 March, 2013)

Reference: SCBD/STTM/JL/JG/80877 (2012-134)
To: Regional seas conventions and action plans, regional fisheries management organizations (RFMOs), and other relevant regional initiatives

World's most northerly lake comes back to life

Kaffeklubben Sø, the world's most northerly lake, was entombed beneath a near-permanent layer of ice some 2400 years ago. Now it is beginning to thaw – and some of the organisms that disappeared from its waters are beginning to return.

Sustainable Ocean Initiative (SOI) Capacity-Building Workshop for West Africa (14 to 18 January, 2013) and South-Eastern Atlantic Regional Workshop to Facilitate the Description of Ecologically or Biologically Significant Marine Areas (EBSAs) (25 to 29 March, 2013)

Reference: SCBD/STTM/JL/JG/80877 (2012-133)
To: CBD National Focal Points and SBSTTA Focal Points of Morocco, Mauritania, Cape Verde, Senegal, Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Togo, Benin, Nigeria, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Sao Tome and Principe, Gabon, Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Angola, Namibia, and South Africa

Half of Great Barrier Reef coral lost in last 27 years

Australia's Great Barrier Reef has lost more than half its coral cover in the past 27 years, a new study shows.

Fish stocks said declining in the Adriatic

ROME, Sept. 28 (UPI) -- Sardines and anchovies are disappearing from the Adriatic as a result of poor fishery management, Greenpeace said while urging sustainable fishing practices.

Preserving Large Females Could Prevent Overfishing of Atlantic Cod, Swedish Study Finds

ScienceDaily (Sep. 26, 2012) — Cod are among Sweden's most common and most popular edible fish and have been fished hard for many years. One consequence is the risk of serious changes in cod stocks, reveals research from the University of Gothenburg, Sweden.

UNEP/CBD/COP/11/INF/42

2012 Interim Status Report on the OSPAR Network of Marine Protected Areas

UNEP/CBD/COP/11/INF/38

Progress on Refining Descriptions of Areas Meeting EBSA Criteria in the North-East Atlantic

Global shark conservation plan in the balance at landmark talks

Representatives from 50 nations have met to discuss the draft plan to ban shark finning and manage populations

Osteoporosis in the World's Oceans: Bioeroding Sponges Are Threatening Coral Reefs

ScienceDaily (Sep. 19, 2012) — Due to the massive production of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide, our oceans are becoming increasingly acidic. Scientists of Senckenberg am Meer in Wilhelmshaven studied the consequences of ocean acidification on sponges that bore into calcareous materials such a ...

Stop fishing in the Atlantic and reap the rewards

STOP fishing in the Atlantic for a decade and you will boost profits for a lifetime. At least, that's the conclusion reached by a UK-based think tank, which says that paying the fishing industry to keep its boats on dry land while stocks recover makes good economic sense.

West African and Caribbean seas 'need protection'

[ACCRA/MONTEVIDEO] More research and better policies are needed to protect the world's most vulnerable seas, lying off the coast of West Africa and the Caribbean, local experts have told SciDev.Net

Protecting mangroves cheaper than building coastal protection – official

Keeping coastal mangrove forests intact or replanting them is cheaper than building man-man structure to protect coastlines threatened by climate change, according to the head of the International Union for Conservation for Nature (IUCN).

AUSTRALIA: Seagrass needs protection

Australia's Environment Minister Tony Burke has called for a "higher level of protection" for threatened seagrass beds along the Australian coastline. Australia now has a mass of seagrass beds about one and a half times the size of Tasmania surrounding the country.

Corals can die in great numbers if climate change is not checked soon

Two thirds of corals could be saved only under a scenario with strong action on mitigating greenhouse-gas emissions and the assumption that corals can adapt at extremely rapid rates, suggests a study.

Ocean acidification and interspecies competition could transform ecosystems, research shows

One of the greatest threats to wildlife on the planet is the ongoing acidification of the ocean. As acidity rises, there is also less carbonate available in the ocean, which makes life difficult for hard-shelled creatures.

Call to freeze fishing in Europe to replenish stocks

A think tank has made a controversial case for freezing fishing in Europe, saying most fish stocks would return to sustainable levels within five years.

Australia to ban giant fishing trawler

Australia plans to block a controversial 'super trawler' from fishing in its waters for two years in a victory for environmental activists worried about the impact on fish stocks and other marine life.

Coral reefs in Caribbean on life support

Only 8 percent of the Caribbean's reefs today retain coral, according to a new report by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). With input and data from 36 scientists, the report paints a bleak picture of coral decline across the region, threatening fisheries, tourism, and ma ...

UNEP/CBD/COP/11/22

Marine and Coastal Biodiversity: Progress Report on Describing Areas That Meet the Criteria for Ecologically or Biologically Significant Marine Areas

Caribbean Coral Reefs Mostly Dead, IUCN Says

The Caribbean’s coral reefs have collapsed, mostly due to overfishing and climate change, according to a new report released by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

How Sea Otters Can Reduce CO2 in the Atmosphere: Appetite for Sea Urchins Allows Kelp to Thrive

Can an abundance of sea otters help reverse a principal cause of global warming? A new study by two UC Santa Cruz researchers suggest that a thriving sea otter population that keeps sea urchins in check will in turn allow kelp forests to prosper.

Fish trawling reshapes deep-sea canyons

Deep-sea trawling smoothes out the wrinkles of canyons on the continental slope, making marine mountainsides look more like ploughed fields, changing the habitat of deep-sea creatures.

Groups call for global shark protection

JEJU, South Korea, Sept. 4 (UPI) -- Conservation groups meeting in South Korea Tuesday urged governments to take steps to save sharks and rays from overfishing for international trade.

Press Release: How can we save the world’s oceans and coasts? Five countries’ ocean and coastal policies shortlisted for the 2012 Future Policy Award.

How can we save the world’s oceans and coasts? Five countries’ ocean and coastal policies shortlisted for the 2012 Future Policy Award

Hamburg/Montreal/Washington D.C./Rome, 28 August 2012 – Six policies from five countries are now shortlisted for the 2012 Future Policy Award, an international award that celebrates effective and exemplary policies. California (USA), Namibia, Palau, the Philippines, and South Africa are still in ...

Viruses could be the key to healthy corals

Corals are an invaluable part of the marine ecosystem, fostering biodiversity and protecting coastlines. But they're also increasingly endangered.

New pseudo reef sunk at Jebel Ali

Threatened marine life in UAE waters will benefit from a new artificial reef installed yesterday near a seawall off the port of Jebel Ali, said project overseers Atlantis, The Palm.

Rare, elusive marine fish observed

MONTEREY, Calif., Aug. 28 (UPI) -- U.S. marine scientists say they've captured the first-ever video of a rare anglerfish first identified from a dead specimen in 1891 but never seen alive.

Philippines’ marine ecosystem one of most deteriorated – study

Out of 171 territories surveyed by the Ocean Health Index, the Philippines ranked 105th among the world’s most deteriorated marine ecosystem, Sen. Loren Legarda said yesterday.

Declaracion del Sr. Braulio Ferreira De Souza Dias, Secretario Ejecutivo del Convenio sobre la Diversidad Biologica en ocasion del Taller regional del pacífico oriental tropical y templado para facilitar la descripción de áreas marinas de importancia ecológica o biológica, Galapagos, Ecuador, 28 Agosto 2012

Eastern Tropical and Temperate Pacific Regional Workshop to Facilitate the Description of Ecologically or Biologically Significant Marine Areas (EBSAs)

27 - 31 August 2012, Galápagos Islands, Ecuador

Some like it cold as sea life moves south

Ocean species that used to live off Sydney half a century ago now inhabit the Southern Ocean as climate change drives fish, plankton and microbes to colder waters, a scientific snapshot of marine health has found.

New Ocean Health Index Measures the Global State of the Seas

The new Ocean Health Index is designed to assess the importance of the seas to people as well as other species. Here, a man paddles over a coral reef in Bird's Head, Raja Ampat, Indonesia.

Tiny Pacific island tops healthy ocean index

SEYCHELLES and Germany have the healthiest seas of any inhabited territory, while Sierra Leone has the unhealthiest, according to a new index that says many oceans score poorly for biodiversity and as a human resource.

North American freshwater fish going extinct at rate over 800 times the fossil record

Since 1898 North America has lost at least 39 species of freshwater fish, according to a new study in Bioscience, and an additional 18 subspecies.

U.N. Launches New Oceans Compact Following Expo 2012

UNITED NATIONS, Aug 13 2012 (IPS) - As the three-month-long international exhibition Expo 2012 came to a close in the South Korean coastal town of Yeosu last week, the United Nations announced the launch of an “Oceans Compact” aimed at the preservation of marine resources worldwide.

UN launches plan to protect oceans, tackle sea levels

The UN chief Sunday announced an initiative to protect oceans from pollution and over-fis

Groups seek protection for great whites

LOS ANGELES, Aug. 12 (UPI) -- Environmental activists have filed a petition to have great white sharks off the coast of California listed as endangered species, officials said.

Yeosu Declaration Forum

12 August 2012, Yeosu, Republic of Korea

Marine species' deaths caused by UVB increases

Increased ultraviolet radiation has caused a sharp rise in the deaths of marine species, scientists have found. An international team gathered information from previous studies looking at the effects of ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation on marine life.

More Scottish jellyfish as temperatures rise

There has been an increase in sightings of jellyfish in Scottish waters in the past few weeks.

Gray whale 'baby boom' reported

ANCHORAGE, Alaska, Aug. 3 (UPI) -- A baby boom of gray whales is apparently under way along Alaska's coast and off Southern California, marine researchers say.

Hope for local fish species on the brink of extinction

India: Fish farms in the district have started breeding the indigenous mangur (clareous batracus) and singhi in ponds and other water bodies to save them from extinction. The farms run by the state fisheries department have succeeded in effecting induced breeding of the two varieties which were ...

Réunion Island revokes order to hunt sharks

Mayor forced to withdraw decision to pay fishermen to kill sharks after fatal attack because it contravenes French law