Marine Conservation Organizations
MarineBio is deeply committed to marine conservation and founded on the concept that, by sharing the wonders of the ocean and marine life, people will be inspired to protect it. We hope you will consider becoming a member to help us bring the ocean and the conservation message to as many people as possible.
The oceans are downstream of everything. And they don't have an endless capacity to absorb waste. In fact, every year people dispose of 161 million gallons of used motor oil improperly—an amount greater than the Exxon Valdez oil spill. Much of this oil ends up in waterways and the oceans, where it takes a tremendous toll on aquatic life. By being careful about oil and other substances, you can help keep ocean waters clean. - Ocean Conservancy
Coral Reef Conservation
Coral Cay Conservation: a UK-based non-profit organization focused on ecotourism that sends volunteers to collect data on endangered coral reefs (and tropical forests).
Center for Ecosystem Survival (CES): works to protect coral reefs through its Adopt a Reef Program to raise funds for the conservation of threatened and endangered coral reefs and their surrounding marine ecosystems around the world.
Coral Reef Alliance: works with the diving community and others to protect and manage coral reefs around the world, establish marine parks, raise awareness, and assist conservation efforts.
Global Coral Reef Alliance GCRA: a coalition of volunteer scientists, divers, environmentalists and other individuals and organizations, committed to coral reef preservation. Focuses on coral reef restoration, marine diseases and other issues caused by global climate change, environmental stress, and pollution.
Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network: tasked by national governments, United Nations agencies, international NGOs and marine institutes to promote monitoring of the coral reefs of the world. The aim is to raise awareness on their current status and provide data to assist resource managers in coral reef conservation.
Great Barrier Reef Research Foundation: raises and manages funds for scientific efforts on the Great Barrier Reef carried out by Australian research institutions to: encourage understanding of human and natural causes of changes to the reef, conservation and restoration, promote human welfare for reef dependent populations, build partnerships for education.
International Coral Reef Action Network (ICRAN): a collaborative effort working to halt and reverse the decline in health of the world's coral reefs.
Planetary Coral Reef Foundation (PCRF): working to preserve and protect the earth's coral reefs through science, technology and education, including. Provides students with research experience aboard the RV Heraclitus.
Project Aware Foundation: PADI's foundation established to help conserve underwater environments through a wide variety of activities including education, advocacy, and action.
Reef Check: a volunteer, community-based monitoring mechanism operating in more than 60 countries designed to measure and maintain the health of coral reefs.
Reef Relief: dedicated to preserve and protect living coral reef ecosystems through local, regional, and global efforts focusing on science to educate the public and advocate policymakers to achieve conservation, protection, and restoration of coral reefs.
ReefBase: created to facilitate sustainable management of coral reefs and related coastal/marine environments, in order to benefit poor people in developing countries whose livelihoods depend on these natural resources....
Manatee Conservation
Save the Manatee Club: to promote public awareness and education, fund manatee research, rescue and rehabilitate injured manatees, and lobby for the protection of manatees and their habitat.
Polar Bears Conservation
Polar Bears International: a nonprofit organization dedicated to the worldwide conservation of the polar bear and its habitat through research, stewardship, and education. We provide scientific resources and information on polar bears and their habitat to institutions and the general public worldwide.
Sea Horse Conservation
Project Seahorse: an international and interdisciplinary marine conservation organization comprised of biologists, development specialists, and other professionals committed to conserving and managing seahorses, their relatives and habitats, through research, education, empowering communities, establishing marine-protected areas, managing subsistence fisheries, restructuring international trade, redressing habitat loss.
Sea Lion & Seal Conservation
Pacific Marine Mammal Center (PMMC): a non-profit organization staffed by volunteers whose mission is to rescue, treat, and rehabilitate marine mammals stranded on Orange County, California beaches then release healthy animals back to their natural habitat; and to increase public awareness of the marine environment through education and research.
Seal Conservation Society: a non-profit organization protecting and conserving pinnipeds (seals, sea lions, and walrus) worldwide by monitoring and minimizing threats to pinnipeds, providing comprehensive information on pinniped-related issues to individuals, groups and the media, and by working with other conservation groups, rescue and rehabilitation centers, research establishments, and governments.
Sea Otter Conservation
Defenders of Wildlife: employs education, litigation, research, legislation and advocacy to defend wildlife and its habitat. In each program area, an interdisciplinary team of scientists, attorneys, wildlife specialists and educators works to promote multi-faceted solutions to wildlife problems.
Friends of the Sea Otter (FSO): advocacy group working with state and federal agencies to maintain protection for sea otters and to increase and broaden preservation efforts. FSO also serves to educate the public at large about the otters' unique behavior and habitat.
Sea Turtle Conservation
Caribbean Conservation Corporation: a non-profit organization based in Florida that uses research, habitat protection, public education, community outreach, networking and advocacy to help protect sea turtle populations and their habitat worldwide.
Seaturtle.org: dedicated to providing online resources and solutions in support of sea turtle conservation and research. Satellite Tracking Project provides real-time public access to the project with live maps of the turtles' tracks provided online. Members of the public are invited to follow the movements of these turtles on a daily basis: "We have over 100,000 visits to our satellite tracking pages at http://www.seaturtle.org/tracking each month with the public marveling at the migratory endeavors of these amazing creatures." Dr. Michael Coyne, Director of seaturtle.org and research scientist at Duke University.
Sea Turtle Restoration Project (STRP): fights to protect endangered sea turtles in ways that make cultural and economic sense to the communities that share the beaches and waters with these gentle creatures. With offices in California and Costa Rica, STRP has been leading the international fight to protect sea turtle populations worldwide.
Sharks & Rays Conservation
Bite-back: Formed in 2002, Bite-Back continues to be the UK's only organisation dedicated to the protection of sharks by reducing consumer demand for its meat and fins. With the law of supply and demand at its cornerstone, Bite-Back works together with restaurants, fishmongers and retailers to remove shark products from menus and fish counters, effectively lowering the trade in this threatened species.
The Manta Network :: Save the Mantas: the principal objectives of the Manta Network fall into four areas: population studies, environmental education, environmental assessment studies and public awareness initiatives. Initial efforts have focused on population studies and environmental education employing the Internet.
Pelagic Shark Research Foundation: works with a variety of labs and institutes to develop and facilitate projects for a better understanding of elasmobranchs (sharks, skates, rays and chimaeras), particularly projects for conservation and management.
Shark Alliance: the Shark Alliance is a new coalition of international non-governmental organizations dedicated to restoring and conserving shark populations by improving European fishing policy.
Shark Research Institute (SRI): a US-based multi-disciplinary non-profit scientific research organization that sponsors and conducts research on sharks and promotes shark conservation. Whaleshark research is a large part of SRI and the public is invited to participate in SRI expeditions. SRI also maintains a database of shark attacks, and provides consultants to areas where attacks are clustered to determine the causes and to recommend environmentally sound solutions.
Shark Savers: a grassroots membership organization dedicated to shark conservation. Shark Savers creates educational awareness programs about sharks, their critical importance to a healthy ocean environment, and the severe decimation of shark populations occurring throughout the world, primarily to fill demand for shark fin soup. The organization also empowers people to take action in their own lives and community to further shark conservation and to stop their consumption of shark products.
Shark Trust: a UK-based marine conservation charity dedicated to promoting the study, management, and conservation of sharks, skates and rays (elasmobranchs) in the UK and internationally. The Shark Trust is led by a Board of Trustees, who oversee a small but dedicated Conservation and administration team, a voluntary Scientific Committee and a growing number of committed supporters.
Whales & Dolphin Conservation
American Cetacean Society (ACS): ACS works to protect whales, dolphins, porpoises, and their habitats through education, conservation and research.
Center for Cetacean Research and Conservation (CCRC): a nonprofit organization founded to conserve cetaceans and the ecosystems they inhabit. Mission is to conduct benign research on the biology of cetaceans, to raise awareness of marine conservation issues, especially those concerning cetaceans, by: Providing curriculum enrichment and community outreach programs, Publishing scientific findings in both professional and popular formats through various media, Offering practical experiences for interns and volunteers, Producing educational films for television, and finally to collaborate with and facilitate organizations and individuals of complementary purpose.
Cetacean Alliance: is a not-for-profit network of non-governmental organizations committed to preserving marine biodiversity and reducing human impact on cetacean populations.
Dolphin Care UK: aims to achieve better conservation of dolphins in the seas around Britain by involving the public in the monitoring of populations and the threats they face, and by the regular production of material to educate, inform and lobby for better environmental protection.
Marine Connection: a London-based charity committed to the care and protection of dolphins and whales through continuous education and campaigning.
Marine Mammal Center: works toward survival and conservation of marine mammals and their habitat through rescue services, research, education and communication.
Ocean Alliance: dedicated to the conservation of whales and their ocean environment through research and education.
Sea Shepherd Conservation Society: an international non-profit, marine wildlife conservation organization whos mission is to end the destruction of habitat and the slaughter of wildlife in the world's oceans in order to conserve and protect ecosystems and species. Sea Shepherd uses innovative direct-action tactics to investigate, document, and take action when necessary to expose and confront illegal activities on the high seas.
Whale & Dolphin Conservation Society (WDCS): an international non-profit working toward the conservation and welfare of all cetaceans (whales, dolphins, and porpoises) by reducing threats to cetaceans and their habitats and by raising awareness about the need to address the continuing threats to their welfare and survival.
We need another and a wiser and perhaps a more mystical concept of animals. Remote from universal nature, and living by complicated artifice, man in civilization surveys the creature through the glass of his knowledge and sees thereby a feather magnified and the whole image in distortion. We patronize them for their incompleteness, for their tragic fate of having taken form so far below ourselves. And therein we err, and greatly err. For the animal shall not be measured by man. In a world older and more complete than ours they move finished and complete, gifted with extensions of the senses we have lost or never attained, living by voices we shall never hear. They are not brethren, they are not underlings; they are other nations, caught with ourselves in the net of life and time, fellow prisoners of the splendor and travail of the earth. - Henry Beston, 1928
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Endangered Animal News :: ScienceDailyInvasive alien predator causes rapid declines of European ladybugs
A new study provides compelling evidence that the arrival of the invasive non-native harlequin ladybird (ladybug) to mainland Europe and subsequent spread has led to a rapid decline in historically-widespread species of ladybird in Britain, Belgium and Switzerland. The analysis is further evidence that harlequin ladybirds are displacing some native ladybirds, most probably through predation and competition.
Satellite tracking reveals sea turtle feeding hotspots
Satellite tracking of threatened loggerhead sea turtles has revealed two previously unknown feeding "hotspots" in the Gulf of Mexico that are providing important habitat for at least three separate populations of the turtles.
A battle of the vampires, 20 million years ago?
They are tiny, ugly, disease-carrying little blood-suckers that most people have never seen or heard of, but a new discovery in a one-of-a-kind fossil shows that "bat flies" have been doing their noxious business with bats for at least 20 million years.
Treasure trove of wildlife found in Peru park
The Wildlife Conservation Society's (WCS) Peru program recently announced the discovery of 365 species previously undocumented in Bahuaja Sonene National Park in southeastern Peru.
Volunteers clear tiger snares in China
Volunteers working in northeast China have cleared 162 illegal wire snares in an ongoing effort to protect the nation's remaining population of critically endangered Amur (Siberian) tigers.
Mammals shrink at faster rates than they grow: Research helps explain large-scale size changes and recovery from mass extinctions
It took about 10 million generations for terrestrial mammals to hit their maximum mass: that's about the size of a cat evolving into the size of an elephant. Sea mammals, such as whales took about half the number of generations to hit their maximum.
Mouse to elephant? Just wait 24 million generations
Scientists have for the first time measured how fast large-scale evolution can occur in mammals, showing it takes 24 million generations for a mouse-sized animal to evolve to the size of an elephant.
New biodiversity map of Andes shows species in dire need of protection
The Andes-Amazon basin of Peru and Bolivia is one of the most biologically rich and rapidly changing areas of the world. A new study has used information collected over the last 100 years by explorers and from satellite images which reveals detailed patterns of species and ecosystems that occur only in this region. Worryingly, the study also finds that many of these unique species and ecosystems are lacking vital national level protection. Endemic species are restricted to a specific area and occur nowhere else. These species are especially vulnerable to climate and environmental changes because they require unique climates and soil conditions.
Turtles' mating habits protect against effects of climate change
The mating habits of marine turtles may help to protect them against the effects of climate change. The study shows how the mating patterns of a population of endangered green turtles may be helping them deal with the fact that global warming is leading to a disproportionate number of females being born.
Fungi-filled forests are critical for endangered orchids
When it comes to conserving the world's orchids, not all forests are equal. Ecologists revealed that an orchid's fate hinges on two factors: A forest's age and its fungi.
Marine mammals on the menu in many parts of world
The fate of the world's great whale species commands global attention as a result of heated debate between pro and anti-whaling advocates, but the fate of smaller marine mammals is less understood, specifically because the deliberate and accidental catching and killing of dolphins, porpoises, manatees, and other warm-blooded aquatic species are rarely studied or monitored.
Saving the snow leopard with stem cells
The survival of the endangered snow leopard is looking promising thanks to scientists who have, for the first time, produced embryonic stem-like cells from the tissue of an adult leopard.
Mysterious monkey re-discovered in Borneo
Researchers were stunned to rediscover one of the rarest primates in Borneo, the grizzled langur, thought by many to be extinct.
Rare Miller's grizzled langur rediscovered in Borneo
Scientists have found one of the rarest and least known primates in Borneo, Miller's Grizzled Langur, a species which was believed to be extinct or on the verge of extinction. The findings confirms the continued existence of this endangered monkey and reveals that it lives in an area where it was previously not known to exist.
Biodiversity crisis is worse than climate change, experts say
Biodiversity is declining rapidly throughout the world. The challenges of conserving the world's species are perhaps even larger than mitigating the negative effects of global climate change, experts say.
Butterflies and birds unable to keep pace with climate change in Europe
Butterflies and birds are no longer able to keep up with climate change. Compared with 20 years ago, butterflies are now 135 kilometers behind the shifting climate zones and birds more than 200 kilometers, according to findings of a new study.
Extremely rare turtle is released into the wild
Biologists have successfully released a Southern River terrapin (Batagur affinis) – one of the most endangered turtles on Earth – into the Sre Ambel River in Cambodia.
Arctic plants face an uncertain future
New research shows that a warmer climate will have quite different consequences for plant species in the Arctic. While most species are expected to lose part of their current habitat, the genetic consequences will differ markedly among species. The research results will have major impact on future conservation efforts.
Climate adaptation difficult for Europe's birds
For the past 20 years, the climate in Europe has been getting warmer. Species of bird and butterfly which thrive in cool temperatures therefore need to move further north. However, they have difficulty adapting to the warmer climate quickly enough, as shown by new research.
Wandering albatross alters its foraging due to climate change
Wandering albatrosses have altered their foraging due to changes in wind fields in the southern hemisphere during the last decades. Since winds have increased in intensity and moved to the south, the flight speed of albatrosses increased and they spend less time foraging. As a consequence, breeding success has improved and birds have gained 1 kilogram.
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