Fish and Wildlife Research Institute

Home : Features : Coral Reefs and Hard Grounds

Coral Reefs and Hard Grounds

Our primary concern is the conservation of Florida's coral habitats, which range from the Dry Tortugas National Park, approximately 60 miles west of Key West, to Martin County, approximately 100 miles north of Miami and up the gulf coast of Florida. These extremely diverse habitats provide shelter, food, and breeding sites for a wide variety of commercially and aesthetically important organisms.

Coral News and Information

General information on corals, including images of the most common coral species found in Florida.

Coral Reef Evaluation and Monitoring Project (CREMP)

CREMP has monitored the condition of coral reef and hardbottom habitats annually throughout the Florida Keys since 1996, southeast Florida since 2003, and the Dry Tortugas since 2004. It is one of the longest running coral reef monitoring projects in south Florida and has been extremely important in documenting the temporal changes that have occurred in recent years.

Damage to Coral Habitats

Information on assessment, restoration, and monitoring efforts for coral habitats that have been damaged by ships, spills, cables, pipelines, and storms.

Monitoring Videos

The corals research group with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission’s Fish and Wildlife Research Institute uses underwater video for many purposes. Video has been used to collect raw data and document scientific methods, underwater construction projects, and damage to coral habitat.



	Fish and Wildlife Research Institute 100 Eighth Avenue SE St. Petersburg, Florida 33701-5020 PH: 727-896-8626