Deep Blue Chronicles

10/05/2025

Sunday Funday!

10/05/2025

10/05/2025

10/04/2025

Happy Saturday from Reef Renewal USA!

The team is busy busy busy, ramping up operations in our land-based facility, maintaining our off-shore nurseries, fragmenting and outplanting corals, monitoring previously outplanted corals, educating at every opportunity, training future coral restoration practitioners, collaborating with partners to achieve our goals together, securing funding for all of the above, and organizing effective, innovative implementation of a master plan to renew our reefs for future generations.

Meanwhile, the corals we've outplanted are quietly doing what corals do: minding their own colonial existence, just living out their sessile lives on the reef, growing the foundation of their biodiverse dense reef ecosystem. Ultimately, we're just trying to help these incredible animals survive and thrive!

Thank you to our incredible volunteers Andrew and Camden, pictured here clearing away algae for these six month old outplanted corals to grow unobstructed.

10/04/2025

10/04/2025

🐓🐓🐓🩵🐓🐓🐓

🐓 What's the story behind the chickens in Key West?

If you’ve strolled the streets of Key West, chances are you’ve had to share the sidewalk (or even your lunch spot!) with one of the island’s famous chickens.

These feathered locals are descendants of jungle fowl found across the Caribbean, including Cuba. Early settlers raised them for food, but their story took a turn in the 1860s when Cuban families fleeing the Ten Years’ War brought cockfighting roosters to the island. After cockfighting was outlawed in the 80s, many birds were released, leading to the quirky flocks you see today.

Now, nearly 40 years later, these colorful chickens are just as much a part of the Conch Republic as the sunshine, conch fritters, and the sea. 🌴☀️🐓

📸 Key West Lighthouse & Keeper's Quarters Museum

10/04/2025

TROPICS | The NHC is watching one area of low pressure moving off of Africa that the models show becoming Jerry by next weekend. The two yellow X areas in the Gulf and over the Bahamas are not expected to develop but will increase rain chances here in Florida and in Louisiana over the next few days. Looking good for us in Tampa Bay for at least another week or two!

10/03/2025

10/03/2025

🎃

Getting ready for Halloween 🎃