Americans are well-informed on freshwater conservation issues, but when it comes to understanding how saltwater fish use the ocean, we're pretty dumb.
The Reef Environmental Education Foundation's Baby Grouper Adrift project is looking to change that.
Basically, they deploy buoys equipped with satellite tracking devices (pictured right) in the grouper spawning realm off Little Cayman Island in the Caribbean while the fish are spawning. These buoys follow the currents and tides to help track where grouper larvae are going during the critical early stages of their life. Their new website lets you track the progress of their trackers as they hover over the projected path of the newly hatched grouper larvae.
This is the third year of the program, part of REEF's larger Grouper Moon Project, and the information they've gathered could lead to some great programs to protect areas vital to the survival of grouper from commercial fishing and development during these crucial times.
If this is successful, there is no reason that this same technique could not be applied to many of our other gamefish species that are in critical condition, and be a game-changing way to conserve our oceans.
–Brian McClintock
Interested in other saltwater conservation programs from organizations like the Bonefish & Tarpon Trust? Check out what GoFISHn has to say about protecting our marine resources.
