Dr. Christy Semmens-Pattengill photographed this shark yesterday!!

Dr. Christy Semmens-Pattengill photographed this shark yesterday on Little Cayman!! What a beautiful image!! Who knows what species this shark is?

We met this exceedingly friendly Nassau Grouper on a dive site called “Mixing Bowl” on Little Cayman. Check it out!!

Friendly Grouper

Grouper Aggregation 1/21/14

This video was filmed at the aggregation site today on Little Cayman. We have noticed that this site is also being used by other fish to spawn. It appears to be a very important place biologically. Can you name the other school of fish that swim their way through this video? You may have to REALLY close!!

Hello Everyone!

Today during our webcast we spoke a little about the ocean currents and how they seem to determine when the groupers will spawn. Check out the website below to see how REEF scientists use satellite drifters to track the oceans currents during the Grouper Moon! It is very cool!!

http://www.reef.org/programs/grouper_moon/adrift/

The above illustration was submitted by Anna, a fifth grade student in Seattle, WA. Fantastic work, Anna!

Turtle + Grouper Funny Video!!

Click the link above!! This Hawksbill Turtle got a little surprise from a Nassau Grouper at the aggregation site here on Little Cayman. Check it out!

Deploying Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler

Click on the link above to watch REEF and DOE divers deploy the ADCP, which stands for Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler. The ADCP sends three laser beams up into the water column, which allows it to measure the ocean currents at different depths. It is a lot like sonar! Cool! Can anyone guess why the researchers are collecting data about the currents? Leave a comment below!!

Here is a fantastic scientific illustration of the Nassau Grouper (Epinephelus Striatus) by Phoebe, a fifth grade student in Seattle. Isn’t it awesome?! Great work, Phoebe!

Keep sending me your illustrations to: todd@reef.org

The poster above shows the life-cycle of the Nassau Grouper using scientific illustrations. You can find other examples of scientific illustrations in books, on the internet, and in magazines. Use these resources to help you draw your own scientific illustration of the Nassau Grouper (Epinephelus Striatus). Take a picture of your illustrations and email them to me at: todd@reef.org
I will post some of your illustrations on the Grouper Education blog next week!