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The Quest for Kelp and Diving with Dr. Sylvia Earle

Featured image: Salome (left) with Dr. Sylvia Earle inspecting kelp samples © Taylor Griffith
By Salome Buglass
To follow her research on the Galápagos kelp forests, follow Salome on Twitter @bugsalome and her research update on Experiment.

Kelps are giant, brown algae that look a lot like plants, but actually belong to the Protist Kingdom, so they are not even closely related. However, much like trees, kelp can form vast undersea canopies, called kelp forests, teeming with marine file, feeding, breeding and finding refuge there. Kelps are cold water species that need nutrients, light and a hard seafloor to latch on to with their holdfasts (a rootlike system). This is why kelp forests are almost exclusively found in higher, colder latitudes.…

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Research Expedition in the Galápagos Marine Reserve Focuses on Overlooked Species and Habitats

English and Spanish versions below
Image: Dr. Sylvia Earle is about to go in the submersible for an exploratory dive in the twilight zone a couple of miles off Wolf Island © Rolex/Franck Gazzola 
The Galapagos Islands Hope Spot, Ecuador (August 16th, 2022)

A multi-institutional team of scientists led by legendary oceanographer and National Geographic Explorer, Dr. Sylvia Earle (Mission Blue) carried out a two-week expedition in the Galápagos Marine Reserve on board the M/V Argo to rediscover and evaluate some of the largely overlooked habitats and species in the reserve, as the Reserve approaches its twenty-fifth anniversary in 2023. “Galapagos will always be a special place,” explained Dr. Earle. “It was here that I discovered cold water kelp communities on the equator fifty years ago, and it was Galápagos that, years later, inspired our Mission Blue Hope Spots initiative.”…

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New Management Plan Approved for the Cordillera de Coiba Hope Spot in Panama

Spanish version below.
Héctor Guzmán, marine conservation biologist of the Smithsonian Institution, worked on the development and drafting of the plan for the management of the expanded protected area. He is also the Champion of the Cordillera de Coiba Hope Spot. To learn more about this Hope Spot, click here.

In June 2021, Panama expanded the Cordillera de Coiba Marine Protected Area from approximately 17,000 to 68,000 square kilometers, accomplishing the goal of the Global Biodiversity Framework’s “30×30 Initiative” to protect 30% of the marine areas of the country by 2030. Less than a year later, in February 2022, Héctor Guzmán, a marine biologist with the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI), together with a multidisciplinary consulting team, delivered the final management plan for the expanded protected area that was recently approved by the Ministry of the Environment of Panama, according to resolution number DM-No.…

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Dr. Sylvia Earle Celebrates Expanded Marine Protected Area in the Galápagos Islands Hope Spot

By Avrah Sellar, Mission Blue

Today, January 14th, 2022, the President of Ecuador, Guillermo Lasso, signed an official decree enhancing the marine protected area (MPA) around the Galápagos Archipelago in the Eastern Tropical Pacific Ocean. The decree will expand protections by 60,000 square kilometers (23,166 square miles); half of which will be fully protected where no extractive activities are allowed. The new protected area known as La Hermandad, “the sisterhood,” will extend to the maritime border of Costa Rica offering an opportunity for multi-national cooperation to manage marine life like sharks, sea turtles and whales which migrate across countries waters.
 
 
Present at the ceremony was Dr. Sylvia Earle and Max Bello, Global Ocean Policy Advisor for Mission Blue, who attended at the invitation of the President.…

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Saving the Sargasso Sea: The Golden Floating Rainforest of the Atlantic

Header image: An expanse of Sargassum. (c) The Nonsuch Expeditions, JP Rouja
By Teresa Mackey, Programme Manager, Sargasso Sea Commission

The Sargasso Sea, a two million square nautical mile expanse of the North Atlantic, has long been an area famed for mystery and intrigue. Although sometimes referenced in popular culture in connection with the mythical ‘Bermuda Triangle’, for scientists around the world it is an area of interest due to its oceanographic history and the biodiversity of the high seas ecosystem. 
One mystery of the Sargasso Sea that continues to perplex scientists is the life cycle of the endangered European eel (Anguilla anguilla) and American eel (Anguilla rostrata). There is good scientific evidence that their spawning occurs in the Sargasso Sea, although the exact location has never been observed by scientists.…

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A Hope Spot Expedition Heads to the Tropical Eastern Pacific’s Enchanted Galápagos Islands

The Spanish version can be read below.

In the equatorial Eastern Pacific, 600 miles off the coast of Ecuador, lies an active volcanic archipelago that is like nowhere else on earth. Early Spanish sailors called these islands the Enchanted Isles because of the strong currents that pulled ships off course and heavy mist that caused the islands to “disappear”. Though the name was not initially intended to be a compliment, “enchanted” is still an apt description for this seemingly-magical geological and biological hotspot, now called the Galápagos Islands.
The 19 islands and dozens of islets that make up the Galápagos archipelago were all formed by volcanic activity, a hot spot where intense heat from the Earth’s mantle forced the crust of the Nazca Plate, an oceanic tectonic plate, upward.…

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Mission Blue announces it is joining the Humboldt Alliance

Renowned oceanographer Dr. Sylvia Earle heads the organization that aims to protect unique marine ecosystems such as the Humboldt Archipelago, which is being threatened by megaprojects Dominga and Cruz Grande.
Santiago (May 19, 2020) 

Mission Blue’s incorporation into the Humboldt Alliance was described as a great step toward the definitive protection of the Humboldt Archipelago. The Humboldt Alliance is a network of national and international organizations that came together over a year ago to ensure the conservation of this marine ecosystem which is currently being threatened by port mining project Dominga and port project Cruz Grande.
 
 
Mission Blue, whose international renown is based on its work to preserve marine ecosystems that are important to the health of oceans, had already recognized the unique characteristics of the Humboldt Archipelago, designating it as a Hope Spot in April 2018.…

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New Hope Spot in Panama Champions a Push for a Healthier Environment

Featured image by Bocas del Toro Productions
 
BOCAS DEL TORO ARCHIPELAGO, PANAMA (February 10th, 2020) 

Over the last 30 years, Panama’s Bocas del Toro archipelago has gone from an unknown paradise to capturing the hearts of globe-trotting wanderlusters. This small archipelago is home to just 16,000 residents, and in 2012 they hosted 225,000 tourists. Compared to many favorite destinations across the world, this chain of islands is relatively new to the tourism industry – but many locals and conservationists are already feeling the unintended effects of the sharp rise of travelers and accompanying development.
 
 
Water conditions surrounding the islands continue to worsen. Sedimentation, eutrophication, hypoxic events and turbidity have impacted the abundance of many coral species and have made conditions difficult for regrowth.…

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Newly Declared Florida Gulf Coast Hope Spot Shines Spotlight on Community-Wide Conservation– and Dr. Earle’s Beloved Hometown

FLORIDA GULF COAST, UNITED STATES (August 23rd, 2019) –  The Florida Gulf Coast Hope Spot hugs the state’s west side, spanning from Apalachicola Bay in the north to Ten Thousand Island in the south. The coast is famous for its immense beauty, rich biodiversity and booming local industries that sustain hundreds of thousands of people, and has become a cornerstone for sustainability. Conservationists, local business owners and members of the general public alike have built a culture upon preserving the integrity of the coast’s natural state– and a determination to protect the area’s marine life from threats created by human interference.  The home city of this Hope Spot, Dunedin, is especially near and dear to Mission Blue’s heart– this town is where Dr.…

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Western Australia’s Exmouth Gulf and Ningaloo Coast World Heritage Area Named a Hope Spot in Support of Greater Protection

EXMOUTH, AUSTRALIA (August 15th, 2019) – – Western Australia’s Exmouth Gulf and Ningaloo Coast World Heritage Area is a spectacular wilderness supporting nearly 2,000 species of fauna. Tourists trek there from all corners of the globe to snorkel the fringing coral reef, to witness one of the world’s most important humpback whale refuges, swim with the world’s largest fish the Whale shark, get a glimpse of dugong that are part of the last stable populations on Earth and many other creatures including manta rays, turtles and rare dolphins. It is also an internationally recognized wilderness ecotourism destination with the uninterrupted natural vistas free of industrial activities. Lesser known is that Exmouth Gulf supports an extensive intact arid-zone estuary containing vast tracts of mangroves and an incredible diversity of marine wildlife revealed in a new
science review led by Dr.…

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