A study led by Associate Professor Kelton McMahon at University of Rhode Island's Graduate School of Oceanography has found that food webs on tropical reefs are more fragile than we once thought.

In coral reefs throughout the world, visually striking bands of bare sand surrounding reefs are often visible in satellite imagery but their cause remains a mystery. One theory is fear. Parrotfish and ...

Coral reef fish communities represent one of the most diverse assemblages on the planet, with thousands of species occupying an array of ecological niches. These fishes underpin critical ecosystem ...

Scientists recently described the hairy ghost pipefish, Solenostomus snuffleupagus, after years of confusion around a camouflaged reef fish. The species shows how patient fieldwork, citizen ...

Coral reefs make up a tenth of one percent of the ocean’s surface area but support up to a third of multicellular ocean species. The reefs provide valuable shelter from predators and ocean currents ...

A new study links grazing halo patterns in coral reefs, as well as those in other patchy habitats, to the spatial patterns of the shelter habitat itself. The researchers found that grazing halos are ...

Grazing halos at Heron Island, Australia, are distinct where coral are clustered (outlined with a white box) but merge where coral are dispersed (outlined with a black box). In coral reefs throughout ...