Divers and snorkelers can explore a portion of the continental United States’ only coral barrier reef while enjoying an Underwater Music Festival that promotes reef preservation Saturday, July 10, in the Lower Florida Keys. The 37th annual Lower Keys Underwater Music Festival, a melodic experience that spotlights environmentally responsible diving as well as reef protection, … Read more
At its May meeting, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) listened to a presentation and stakeholder input on goliath grouper in Florida state waters. The Commission directed staff to continue ongoing efforts that recognize the goliath’s role in the ecosystem and promote stock rebuilding while allowing access to goliath through catch-and-release, ecotourism, and dive … Read more
You would think something called “Joes Tug” would actually be a tugboat. However, it is a 75-foot, steel-hulled shrimp boat, and one of the most well-known novice scuba diving wreck sites in the Lower Keys, located just 7 miles southeast of Key West. According to tales shared among Florida Keys dive operators, in 1986 Joe’s … Read more
Scuba Diving magazine named the Florida Keys among the worlds for 2020,. Florida Keys Diving.
Florida Keys Divers can help preserve the Florida Keys’ native reef fish populations during the fun, socially distanced Reef Environmental Education Foundation 2020 Lionfish Derby. Scheduled Thursday through Sunday, Sept. 10-13, the derby challenges participants to capture and remove as many non-native lionfish as possible from Keys waters. This year, COVID-19 restrictions have forced organizers … Read more
The hard corals of the Florida Keys reefs have spent eons developing a simple system to perpetuate the species. Coral Spawn, it’s one of nature’s mysteries that works without human intervention or complete understanding. The coral spawn is scientifically observed and documented each year along the continental United States’ only living coral barrier reef, which … Read more
For travelers seeking “voluntourism” opportunities to help sustain the continental United States’ only living coral barrier reef, the “Florida Keys Superfan” eco-adventure giveaway offers an enticing prize. One entrant is to win a five-night vacation that includes accommodations, eco-attractions and diving experiences to plant corals. The winner is to discover how divers can serve as … Read more
Looking for the best Florida Keys places to eat and drink? Here are suggestions from 10 Florida Keys Locals. Teri JohnstonPHOTOGRAPH BY JOHN E. MCDONALD Where to Meet Locals According to Teri Johnston, mayor of Key West When Teri Johnston was sworn in as mayor of Key West last year, the occasion made headlines around the … Read more
University of Florida researchers at The Florida Aquarium have begun breeding long-spined sea urchins to help Florida’s ailing reefs recover. NOAA Florida has an underappreciated secret weapon to help heal its ailing reefs: prickly sea urchins. This week, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration unveiled a $97 million rescue effort expected to take five to seven years. … Read more
Emily Hower, a research assistant at Nova Southeastern University doing field work on coral off Key West in Florida, bobs up out of the water and removes her diving mask. The news is not good. Most of the pillar coral that her team have been monitoring for years are dead.Hower and her colleagues are on … Read more
REEF Fest 2019 registration is now available! Book diving and snorkeling, register for events, and purchase your ticket to ‘For the Love of the Sea’ banquet online today! REEF Fest is an annual, four-day celebration to acknowledge the success of marine conservation and education initiatives in the Florida Keys. Events include educational seminars, social gatherings, diving and eco-adventures … Read more
This October 6th, a group of scuba divers submerged in the Atlantic Ocean at the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary to compete in the Underwater Pumpkin Carving Contest. The annual contest is held every October near a shallow coral reef off Key Largo. Divers of all ages used their carving skills to transform the pumpkin … Read more
Hammerhead sharks – Diving with dinosaurs
Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary encourages the safe removal of invasive lionfish from its waters and issues lionfish removal permits to divers for the collection of lionfish from Sanctuary Preservation Areas (SPAs). The permit allows lionfish to be removed from the SPAs, which are otherwise no-fishing, no-take zones, with hand nets or slurp guns only. Spearguns or … Read more
Eager to sample some spiny lobster prepared according to an authentic #FloridaKeys recipe? Spark your appetite with this “nibble” from “Taste the Florida Keys with Chef Michelle Bernstein,” a one-hour documentary exploring the island chain’s culinary culture and heritage. Watch it on your favorite PBS station by checking local listings for the broadcast date and … Read more
Lionfish, a brightly-colored, spiny fish that are not native to Florida, are taking over our reefs. How can we fight off this alien invasion? Floridians have come together to fight them off and save the reef. Lionfish, a brightly-colored, spiny fish that are not native to Florida, are taking over our reefs. How can we … Read more
Found a nice little patch of structure near Alligator Reef to explore. We got 91 minutes of bottom time on a single 80 cubic foot tank of air each.Watch out for the TriggerFish. Grey Triggerfish Appearance Olive-gray in color with plate-like scales Small mouth with chisel-like teeth used for crushing Dorsal and anal fins marbled … Read more
The Florida Keys are a fragile and unique environment brimming with life and complex ecosystems. Numerous state and federal regulations exist to protect the Florida Keys and surrounding ocean. Florida Keys Rules. Frequent reports of wildlife violations prompted us to create this guide to the many environmental protections that everyone, visitors and residents, should know. … Read more
Just a few short hours from Miami lies a place where palm trees sway in the breeze, restaurants and tiki bars line the water’s edge, boats bob up and down in the blue-green water, and colorful signs are found at many of the local shops. It’s the Florida Keys, a chain of islands 120 miles long, … Read more
Cleaning scuba equipment between each dive could help slow down the rapid spread of Coral Disease, white blotch-like lesions, that attack and eventually kill coral colonies, local agencies say. The Florida Reef Tract, the world’s third largest barrier reef and the only in the continental U.S., is suffering from a large-scale stony coral tissue loss, … Read more