Florida Reef Tract Coral Disease Outbreak

Rescued corals reproducing in tanks

Scientists caring for corals rescued from the Florida Reef Tract report a baby boom. The encouraging news comes from The Florida Aquarium Apollo Beach Conservation Campus where several species of corals are housed temporarily in Coral Arks to preserve genetic diversity in the wake of the stony coral tissue loss disease outbreak. Unlike spawning corals, brooding corals have internal fertilization and release fully-developed planula larvae that settle quickly. The recruits are so small – 2-7 millimeters in diameter - that researchers initially are unable to determine to which species they belong.

Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease response expands to Caribbean, Mexico

Scientists responding to stony coral tissue loss disease in Florida are consulting with resource managers throughout the Caribbean and Mexico where outbreaks in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Mexico, Jamaica, St. Maarten and the Dominican Republic share similar signs and patterns. However, making a connection with the Florida outbreak will be difficult until the responsible pathogen or other causative agent is identified. That investigation is ongoing.

The Florida response team, consisting of more than three dozen government agencies, universities and conservation organizations, is exchanging information with resource managers throughout the region, including disease interventions and treatments. As global and local threats to coral reefs increase in frequency and severity, natural resource managers are combining their limited resources to strategically address common challenges.

Coral Disease in the U.S. Virgin Islands

First report of Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease in the Dominican Republic

Citizen Scientist Diver Training

In an effort to learn more about the extent of stony coral tissue loss disease, Florida Sea Grant agents in South Florida are training recreational divers to conduct surveys. Learn to properly identify and report stony coral tissue loss disease to monitor disease progression and recovery along the Florida Reef Tract. The free training is followed by a reduced-fee dive.

March 23, 2019 – 9 a.m.

Grove Scuba
2809 SW 27th Avenue
Miami, Florida 33133

To register, contact Ana Zangroniz, azangroniz@ufl.edu, 305-421-4017

Florida Sea Grant Video

Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease response expands to Caribbean, Mexico, and Dominican Republic

Department of Planning and Natural Resources Scientists responding to stony coral tissue loss disease in Florida are consulting with resource managers throughout the Caribbean and Mexico where outbreaks in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Mexico, Jamaica, Dominican Republic, and St. Maarten share similar signs and patterns. However, making a connection with the Florida outbreak will be difficult until the responsible pathogen or other causative agent is identified. That investigation is ongoing.

The Florida response team, consisting of more than three dozen government agencies, universities and conservation organizations, is exchanging information with resource managers throughout the region, including disease interventions and treatments. As global and local threats to coral reefs increase in frequency and severity, natural resource managers are combining their limited resources to strategically address common challenges.

First report of Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease in the Dominican Republic

Disease found off Key West

In January 2019, science divers confirmed that the outbreak of stony coral tissue loss disease on the Florida Reef Tract extends south and west of Key West. In December 2018, signs of disease were observed at Maryland Shoals near the Saddlebunch Keys and Middle Sambo Reef, south of Boca Chica Key. By mid-January, an additional five sites between American Shoal and Eastern Dry Rocks were confirmed diseased.

Mexican marine park managers visit Florida

Managers from four Mexican marine national parks visited the Florida Keys in December 2018 to learn about stony coral tissue loss disease, which they now strongly suspect is affecting reefs in the Mexican Caribbean. Other Caribbean resource managers have expressed similar concerns. Mexico has initiated a regional monitoring program and is actively networking with international colleagues. The visitors saw first-hand the impact of the disease on Florida's coral reefs, and the likely cascading impacts on fisheries and tourism. They also examined management strategies such as dive gear disinfection. Marine national park managers in the region are connected through MPAConnect, a partnership among the Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries Institute, the NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program and 30 Caribbean marine national parks.

Divers and snorkelers: Decontaminate your gear

Divers and snorkelers can reduce their likelihood of transferring stony coral tissue loss disease through proper buoyancy, avoiding touching marine organisms and sanitizing equipment between dives and before and after each dive excursion, especially when travelling between countries or between infected and uninfected locations.

General Guidelines

• Remove debris and sediment following each dive.
• Between dives, sanitize gear that contacts corals with a bleach solution. Other gear should be washed in freshwater with an antibacterial soap.
• Use quaternary ammonium solutions to decontaminate dive gear after return to shore.
• Properly dispose of disinfectant solutions and rinse water in a sink, tub or shower. Never pour into the ocean or a storm drain.

(Note: Quaternary ammonium wastewaters may upset septic systems and leak into groundwater.)

Detailed Decontamination Guidelines