From Constellation to Coral Reefs

Why Are These Maps So Important?

It is nearly impossible to protect resources effectively without knowing exactly where they are, their condition and the threats they face. But now, Caribbean countries and territories have access to a unique visualization of the habitats found beneath the waves surrounding their shores, which will help guide the sustainable use and protection of critical marine resources. The unprecedented detail of these maps allows conservation scientists and practitioners, fishery managers, governments, educators and other stakeholders to:

• Identify priority marine areas that need protection and guide sustainable use
• Quantify the economic and coastal protection value of marine habitats to support policymaking
• Measure climate change impacts and evaluate threats to design targeted, nature-based solutions
• Pinpoint sites in need of urgent coral restoration, including those where conditions are optimal for survival and growth of new corals
• Catalyze conservation action and education by making habitat data readily available

In the Caribbean, the fishing and tourism industries drive economic stability, and they cannot survive without healthy marine habitats. Yet, living coral cover in the region has declined by about 60 percent in the last three decades alone. Approximately 70 percent of people in the region live along its coastlines, but the nearshore habitats naturally designed to protect them from storm impacts are dying faster than science can restore them.

This breakthrough approach to habitat mapping is a key piece in unlocking solutions that can halt and reverse this alarming decline. By providing unprecedented layers of information on coral reefs and other habitats, we gain a new level of understanding that supports smarter conservation at the pace required for meaningful impact—not only for the Caribbean but for marine regions in other parts of the globe.

Scaling Up: The Future of a Breakthrough Approach

Already, the maps are helping island nations protect and restore their underwater habitats. The Dominican Republic became the first country to utilize this novel combination of remote sensing technologies to guide coral restoration, after scientists collected data on the chemical footprint and composition of habitats in the Arrecifes del Sureste Marine Sanctuary with the help of the Global Airborne Observatory.

Thanks to these comprehensive data, TNC and partners were able to identify optimal sites for reef restoration: areas where transplanted corals would be most likely to survive and where healthy habitats would most benefit surrounding ecosystems and coastal communities. In other words, a clearer picture of the sea floor surrounding this Caribbean country permitted scientists to pinpoint sites where restoration efforts would have the greatest positive impact for nature and people. Their insights guided one of the most significant reef restoration initiatives in the country’s history, in which dozens of volunteers from conservation organizations, government agencies and local businesses mobilized to the southeastern coast of the Dominican Republic and planted nearly 3,000 endangered staghorn coral colonies.

As the true value of coral reefs and other marine habitats becomes increasingly recognized, more sectors around the world are mobilizing to save them—not only fishing and tourism but also insurance, pharmaceutical, engineering and tech. And rightfully so: our scientific understanding of Earth’s complex underwater habitats is evolving rapidly, and only revealing more interconnectedness with people and communities.

The new habitat maps, and the technologies involved in producing them, can advance conservation further and faster by allowing us to make more informed and strategic decisions. In capturing a clearer picture of its undersea world, the Caribbean region will be able to chart a new path forward for the preservation of its greatest asset, the ocean, and become more resilient in the face of a changing climate. And as the testing ground of this revolutionary approach, the Caribbean region’s initiative is indeed likely to make waves far beyond its shores for the benefit of endangered habitats—and the people who rely upon them—around the globe.

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