Every August, seven to 10 days after the full moon, the reef-building corals of NOAA's Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary put on a fantastic spawning display! The reserve offers miles of hiking trails—a great way to celebrate #NationalEstuariesWeek! Anglers, like this one in NOAA's Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, know that fishing helps maintain healthy ecosystems, benefits economies, and allows people to responsibly interact with nature. "Okay on the count of three we'll all jump in. This reticulated butterflyfish was spotted by photographer Rick Gaffney off the Big Island. The waters of Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary are filled with life! Eyes of a hawk, and ears of a...fish? Sea stars like these ones are a common site near NOAA Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary. Happy 45th anniversary to NOAA Monitor National Marine Sanctuary! Barnacles adhere to the underside of vessels, other sea life, each other...pretty much anything they come in contact with! Bonus points if you can spot the eel hanging out near this shark! Check out these Hawaiian spinner dolphins enjoying the blue waters of Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary! proposed expansion of NOAA Monitor National Marine Sanctuary, Get Into Your Sanctuary photo contest winners and submissions, 2017 Get Into Your Sanctuary Photo Contest, Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, collaborating with partners to find innovative ways to protect these whales, Learn more about the Count and how you can get involved, explore many of the wrecks while diving, snorkeling, kayaking, and more, marine mammal stranding coordinator hotline. "I spend so much time outdoors and am always very careful to leave it as I found it, or better than I found it. Start your week off right with a virtual trip to Fagatele Bay in NOAA National Marine Sanctuary of American Samoa! Have you guessed it yet? Did you know that coral reefs are one of the most diverse ecosystems on the planet? For many, caring for the environment can be driven by shared positive experiences. Our third place winner for the Sanctuary Life category goes to… Stan Schone! (JK, they eat sponges.). With the chill of winter upon us, we're dreaming about summertime sunshine. How many different species can you spot here? So, uh, was anyone going to tell us that northern elephant seals are WAY bigger than sea otters, or were we supposed to find that out ourselves? We consider this pom pom crab to be Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary's personal cheerleader! The colors of these fish remind us of pink lemonade and sunsets! Take a virtual dive and see what you can spot! Happy Thanksgiving from your National Marine Sanctuary System! In 1894, the wooden ship was headed for Milwaukee with its usual shipment of coal when a leak stopped it in its tracks. Life often flourishes on shipwrecks: here, fish swim around a tugboat located near NOAA Monitor National Marine Sanctuary. Perfectly said and perfectly captured. Have you ever seen a breach in action? Kelp forests provide food and shelter to this California sheephead protecting it from predators and rough storms. Elkhorn Slough is one of California's great coastal wetlands. Once the egg hatches, both parents spend another 5 to 6 months raising the chick before it leaves the island. We work with the NOAA Marine Debris Program to bring you information about marine debris, how it affects you and the ocean, and even better -- how you can prevent it. Together, we can conserve them for generations to come. Talk about feeling connected to the ocean! There is definitely a lot to celebrate here! Thanks to Douglas Croft Images, this hungry humpback whale lunged its way right into 3rd place in the Sanctuary Life category of our Get Into Your Sanctuary photo contest. While you're relaxing and having fun in your national marine sanctuaries this summer, don't forget to snap some photos and send them into the Get Into Your Sanctuary Photo Contest! NOAA and our partners are working to understand and control this invasive species with new traps, lionfish derbies, and more. Is anyone else having a hard time figuring out where this common octopus ends and the habitat starts? Today is National Shop for Travel Day, and it's an excellent time to start thinking about summer vacations in your national marine sanctuaries. This week is a celebration of these incredible ecosystems and the benefits estuaries provide. Tune in for the chance to see adorable octopuses and more. What will you do today, tomorrow, and the next day to help protect our blue planet? We strive to help the public better understand and appreciate the value and beauty of these creatures within the sanctuary! Grumpy that you missed last week's Nautilus Live expedition in NOAA's Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuary and NOAA's Greater Farallones National Marine Sanctuary? To help protect and restore these reefs, NOAA and our partners have launched Mission: Iconic Reefs. More information on the response from NOAA's Office of National Marine Sanctuaries can be found on sanctuaries.noaa.gov/coronavirus/. Maybe some new food will help! Print it out and share a photo with us showing how you make these fintastic predators come to life on the page by submitting to our Get Into Your Sanctuary photo contest in the "Sanctuaries at Home" category! We have a tricky quiz question for folks today: How many gills does this bluntnose sixgill shark in NOAA Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary have? These are gooseneck barnacles, found in NOAA Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary! We're considering a new national marine sanctuary in Lake Ontario, and we want to hear what you think! Twelve-year-old Nova is eagerly awaiting the launch of the space shuttle Challenger--it's the first time a teacher is going into space, and kids across America will watch the event on live TV in their classrooms. Salt was one of the first northern humpback whales to be recognized at Silver Bank off the coast of the Dominican Republic, providing proof of the humpback whale migratory route in the North Atlantic – which in turn has helped us better protect humpback whale populations through sister sanctuary relationships. Is an eagle by the sea technically a seagull? If you're out on the water whale watching or just in an area with whales, make sure to give the marine mammals plenty of space! Happy World Tourism Day! Bereef it or not, every year around 8 million metric tons of plastic make their way into our ocean! This fascinating feature is called a water vascular system, and is unique to echinoderms, like sea stars and sea urchins. Fishing entanglements, watercraft strikes, and interactions with humans put them at risk. Not a bad way to get a snack! Our sanctuaries are open to diving, surfing, swimming, kayaking, bird and wildlife watching, recreational fishing, virtual events and more! Each year, she and her mate Akeakamai return to Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge in the monument to mate, lay an egg, and raise their chick. Lost on April 14, 1942, this vessel is now acting as an artificial reef supporting an ecosystem from small invertebrates to sharks! Looking for fun and adventure this summer? If you knew Greg or his photography, we would love to hear your memories. When foraging for food for their young, it is estimated that manu-o-KÅ« may forage as far as 120 miles from land. Tag a friend you want to share this (manta) ray of light with. Acrobatic energy newborn is 100 % adorable inches per day the space they need to kick and. 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