Chris Malanuk, Author at NOAA's Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory

A new model predicts dynamic seawater chemistry on Florida’s coral reefs

Chris Malanuk — Thu, 29 May 2025 21:00:33 +0000

Water masses move over reefs, seagrass beds, and sandbanks – and as they do, the seawater chemistry changes. In the Florida Keys, changes in coral reef carbonate chemistry are driven by benthic metabolism, the origin of the water mass, and the connectivity of habitats. A new study from NOAA’s Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML) […]

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New study demonstrates the impacts of multiple stressors on reef-building corals

Chris Malanuk — Wed, 26 Mar 2025 19:53:01 +0000

In a new study, scientists at AOML and the University of Miami’s Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Sciences (CIMAS) demonstrated how some genotypes of the reef-building coral Acropora cervicornis (Staghorn Coral), listed on the Endangered Species Act, proved resilient when exposed to high nutrient levels or disease, but not when the two stressors were […]

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Scientists at AOML monitor the impacts of ocean acidification on reefs with new series of buoys

Chris Malanuk — Wed, 12 Mar 2025 18:36:51 +0000

Diver’s drop over the gunnel. Tanks, weights, divers, and a mesh bag full of tools all descend in emerald waters beneath grey skies. Off the vessel’s bow, a yellow beacon blinks with a red flashing light and a thin data cable stretching to the seafloor, all connected to a suite of sensors twenty feet below […]

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Coral Restoration: Using ‘Omics to Strategize and Manage Restoration Efforts

Chris Malanuk — Fri, 21 Feb 2025 20:42:19 +0000

A new study by scientists at the Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML) and the Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Sciences (CIMAS) provides new insights for effective restoration of the crucial reef-building coral species Acropora palmata, or Elkhorn coral. Applying ‘Omics techniques to investigate how habitat and coral microbiomes influence ongoing restoration efforts, this […]

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Scientists at AOML measure ocean’s crucial buffering against rising global carbon emissions

Chris Malanuk — Wed, 15 Jan 2025 19:03:07 +0000

Every year, scientists at AOML participate in the international effort led by the University of Exeter’s Global Systems Institute in developing the annual Global Carbon Budget Report, an assessment of global carbon emissions and the progress towards achieving the climate goals set by the 2016 Paris Agreement. The 2024 Global Carbon Budget Report now indicates […]

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Spatiotemporal Variation in Coral Assemblages and Reef Habitat Complexity among Shallow Fore-Reef Sites in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary

Chris Malanuk — Mon, 18 Dec 2023 21:55:27 +0000

Kayelyn R. Simmons, DelWayne R. Bohnenstiehl and David B. Eggleston

With the unprecedented degradation and loss of coral reefs at multiple scales, the underlying changes in abiotic and biotic features relevant to the three-dimensional architecture of coral reefs are critical to conservation and restoration. This study characterized the spatiotemporal variation of habitat metrics at eight fore-reef sites representing three management zones in the Florida Keys, USA using visual habitat surveys (2017–2018) acquired before and after Hurricane Irma. Post-hurricane, five of those sites were surveyed using structure-from-motion photogrammetry to further investigate coral morphology on structural complexity. Multivariate results for visual surveys identified moderate separation among sites, with fished sites characterized by complex physical features such as depth and vertical hard relief while protected sites generally harbored high abundances of live coral cover.

Download the Full Paper: https://doi.org/10.3390/d14030153

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