All posts tagged: coral reef

Miss World Cayman Islands 2018: Kelsie Bodden Be Kind to the Environment

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The newly crowned Miss World Cayman Islands, Kelsie Bodden is embarking on a journey of raising environmental awareness during the Miss World competition held in Sanya, China and the Miss World “Beauty with a Purpose” project.  Kelsie’s personal motto is: ‘Go in to the world and do well, but more importantly, go into the world and do good.’  With this in mind, she is doing just that.  Kelsie is using her reign as Miss World Cayman Islands as a platform to work with local environmental non-profit organisations in the Cayman Islands, as well as within the local community to raise awareness about local environmental issues.  Her passion for the environment expands to her personal blog KelsieBodden.com with an all new series, “BE KIND TO OTHERS & BE KIND TO THE ENVIRONMENT,” In the first blog post of this new series, Kelsie discusses her dedication for protecting the environment and the local environmental organisations she has teamed up with alongside Miss World Cayman Islands.  Here is an excerpt from the blog post, “There is only one …

Dive Into Coral Reef Conservation

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Grand Cayman Eco Divers has officially launched their non-profit foundation “Eco Divers Reef Foundation” established 28 November 2017 and is based in the Cayman Islands.  Founders Brittany Balli and Aaron Hunt, are a husband and wife team, that are dedicated to their Coral Nursery Program aimed to restore fragile and damaged reefs in the Cayman Islands.  A primary focus of their coral conservation efforts is maintaining local coral nurseries and coral out plant sites.  Since the inception of coral nurseries in the Cayman Islands it has proven to be successful.  Likewise, they are devoted to ensuring a positive future for Cayman’s reefs by educating the youth and the community of the Cayman Islands about the importance of coral reefs, ocean conservation and the proper techniques of working with coral nurseries.  Their non-profit foundation was created as a separate organization from their dive company Grand Cayman Eco Divers to help generate funding for coral conservation efforts in the Cayman Islands. Conserving Cayman’s Reefs   Over the last few decades, the Cayman Islands has seen a significant …

coral reef cayman islands

Cayman Islands: Coral Nursery Conservation Program

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  The caribbean has already lost 80% of its coral reefs. Grand Cayman Eco Divers in collaboration with the Cayman Islands Department of Environment and various local dive establishments have teamed up for over a year aspiring to maintain coral nurseries to aid in conservation, sustainability and restoration of Cayman’s coral reefs. The program has developed effective strategies for protecting and restoring damaged areas of coral reef.  In short, their innovative approach is to grow Staghorn coral in nurseries.  Coral fragments are grown on structures referred to as coral trees.  These “trees” are made from PVC and fiberglass rods.  The fragments of coral grow into colonies.  After significant growth they are then later removed from the tree and out planted onto damaged coral reef areas to aid in their recovery.  For longevity it is proven to provide a sustainable way to maintain healthy reefs.  The successful transplantation and growth of the coral fragments help create diversity in the ecosystem as well as more resilient  reefs. Cayman Eco Divers are seeking to expand the current Coral …

Coral Reefs In Hot Water

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Photo Credit: World Wildlife Fund Australia   Brace yourself, for the third time a worldwide coral bleaching event is taking place.  A ripple effect has been set in motion.  Climate Change is causing the temperature of the ocean to rise and coral reefs are heating up and stressing out.  As a result, coral reefs are turning white.  Essentially, the coral bleaching is causing the coral’s white skeleton to be exposed.  The distressed coral reefs will have a negative impact on the eco-system and oceanic wildlife that depend on them. When corals are stressed by changes in conditions such as temperature, light, or nutrients, they expel the symbiotic algae living in their tissues, causing them to turn completely white. – NOAA Coral reefs are a life support system of the ocean.  They play a crucial role in keeping the balance of the ocean in check.  Coral reefs are a fragile eco-system and oceanic wildlife depend on them for their survival.  Reportedly, “This bleaching event could kill over 12,000 square kilometers (about 4,600 square miles) of reefs by the end …

Coral Reefs: The Ocean’s Treasure

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(Photo Credit: Swim For The Reef) Why do we need to protect coral reefs? Simply put, coral reefs are some of the most diverse and extremely valuable ecosystems on the Earth.  We cannot afford to lose coral reefs.  Coral reefs have an intrinsic value to both the environment and mankind. Did you know? Coral reefs support more species per unit area than any other marine environment, including about 4,000 species of fish, 800 species of hard corals and hundreds of other species. – National Ocean Service Education Coral Reefs: The Treasure of the Sea The ocean is full of wonder and enchantment.  Coral reefs are the treasure of the sea. Divers and snorkelers from all around the world flock to countries that have the privilege of being blessed with magnificent coral reefs.  For instance, Australia’s very own Great Barrier Reef.  One of the largest reefs in the world.  On the other side of the hemisphere, the caribbean has an incredible diving and snorkeling experience to offer.  Specifically, the Cayman Islands, are well known for their …

The Coral Triangle: The Ocean’s Amazon Rainforest

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  (Photo Credit: World Wildlife Fund) The Coral Triangle is rich in diversity and home to iridescent corals, fish, marine plant species and crustaceans. Additionally, it is home to twenty-two species of dolphin and endangered dugongs.  Seventy-five percent of the world’s coral species are found here—nearly 600 different species. The Coral Triangle is considered to be the underwater equivalent of Amazon Rainforest.  The reason being, the Amazon comes as a close rival to the Coral Triangle in terms of species richness.  Essentially, the Coral Triangle, is a hot spot for marine life, as it is home to an astonishing amount of marine species, more than anywhere else.  It is massive, spanning across the ocean, encompassing an area that is half the size of the United States.  This incredibly beautiful and rich in diversity, habitat is an underwater wonderland.  Unfortunately, this incredible are of coral reefs faces a variety of threats, including, pollution, climate change, and unsustainable fishing.  As a result, these threats are inflicting negative effects upon this precious eco-system, such as the degradation of …