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Friday Harbor Seagrass Survey

Discovering how coastal marine ecosystems work—to keep them working

Our Mission

Climate change and biodiversity loss pose grand, intertwined challenges to nature and society. In the sea, those changes are largely invisible. MarineGEO is a growing network of partner observatories around the world working to reveal how and why coastal marine life and habitats are changing, globally and locally, to inform evidence-based solutions.

Sarah Gignoux-Wolfsohn samples a tagged coral colony, while a curious nurse shark (Ginglymostoma cirratum) observes her technique (Photo credit: Leah Harper).

Research In Action

In the COVID era, coral reefs face their own pandemic

The MarineGEO research team revisited the Carrie Bow Cay station in Belize in late 2022 and found that corals were facing their own pandemic, with signs of stony coral tissue loss disease (SCTLD) and a decline in coral cover.

Flourishing fish communities on a coral reef in Mangareva, French Polynesia

Research In Action

New MarineGEO Network Project Alert: BEACON Project

The BEACON project is a new MarineGEO network initiative to explore the relationship between biodiversity and energy availability in coastal marine ecosystems around the world.

Experiment deployed at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute at Bocas del Toro, Panama. (credit: Janina Seeman)

Research In Action

PanAmEx reveals that higher ocean temperatures lead to greater predation pressure

Scientists from 36 sites across 110 degrees of latitude ran the same experiment to assess the intensity and impact of predators on local marine invertebrate communities.

gorgonian coral in Panama

Research In Action

A doubling of coral cover on Carrie Bow Cay, Belize from 2014-2019

This study is the first to leverage the long-term photographic data collected by MarineGEO at Carrie Bow Cay to show that coral cover has improved there since the program began in 2014.

Fish swimming above squidpop

Research In Action

Global “BiteMap” Reveals How Marine Food Webs May Change With Climate

Where are small marine animals most vulnerable to getting eaten? The answer has big consequences for coastal ecosystems since predators can radically change underwater communities.

Seagrass sampling

Research In Action

Seagrasses: A global ocean life support system

MarineGEO is coordinating global seagrass research to gain a baseline understanding of seagrasses and the communities they support, both wild and human.

@MarineGEO

Why do we focus on ecosystems on the edge? Nearshore habitats are where people and marine biodiversity concentrate and interact the most. This makes them ground zero for climate change impacts. #OurSustainablePlanet pic.twitter.com/tOHx9nQjvb

— Smithsonian MarineGEO (@SImarineGEO) April 19, 2023

It is National #OceanMonth and we plan to celebrate all the incredible marine life that calls the ocean home over the next month.

First up, Permits! They can rotate their 👀360 degrees. They have excellent eyesight making them a challenging and popular target for flyfishing! pic.twitter.com/FJJjksNkC5

— Smithsonian MarineGEO (@SImarineGEO) June 2, 2023

This week we will be finishing up our #meettheteam series! @ValeCardona_ is one of our amazing technicians at the Bocas del Toro Station in Panama. Jellyfish are one of her favorite marine creatures! Learn more about Valentina here: https://t.co/mmsI1bZrMo.🪼🪸🤿 pic.twitter.com/y5aKWcHoFw

— Smithsonian MarineGEO (@SImarineGEO) June 6, 2023

#meettheteam Returning as a MarineGEO intern for another summer, @LuisXdePablo loves working with MarineGEO researchers from around the world to tackle global problems. 🦦are his favorite marine critter and he enjoys playing with his band. Learn more here: https://t.co/okKKekxdtJ pic.twitter.com/8juk0NQWxF

— Smithsonian MarineGEO (@SImarineGEO) June 7, 2023

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    • What We Do
    • Our Values
    • Who We Are
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  • Our Research
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Link to Smithsonian Institution homepage(link is external)
The Marine Global Earth Observatory (MarineGEO), directed by the Smithsonian’s Tennenbaum Marine Observatories Network (TMON), is a network of partners researching biodiversity as the heart of healthy, productive, coastal ecosystems, where marine life and people are concentrated and interact most. MarineGEO marshals the Smithsonian’s leadership in discovery and convening power to advance knowledge useful to decision-makers in supporting innovative management and protection of marine life.