A Bird’s Eye View of the NERRS
The rufous-breasted red knot migrates more than 9,000 miles every year, wintering as far south as Tierra Del Fuego at the southernmost tip of South America. Along the way, many take a break at South Carolina’s ACE Basin Reserve.
One Seal, Two Seal…
This spring, with support from the Narragansett Bay Reserve and EPA staff, volunteer citizen scientists participated in an annual Save the Bay tradition: counting seals. The Reserve was responsible for counting the seal population around Prudence Island.
Coastal Resilience Yankee Style
Across New England, communities are struggling with the impacts of climate change, and the Coastal Training Programs (CTP) at the Great Bay, Wells, and Narragansett Bay Reserves are there to help.
DC Download: April 2022
The President’s FY 2023 budget is now in the hands of Congress, and it is up to us to get the funding increases needed for the NERRS. The NERRS budgets for OPS and PAC cannot be left to chance.
Earth Day Retrospective
Last week, Reserves around the country celebrated Earth Day. We love to see people coming together for Earth Day at Reserves—It’s been a long two years, hasn’t it?
Reserves Ready to Keep Tabs on HABs
Harmful algal blooms (HABs) are a perennial threat to public health and coastal economies dependent on fishing and tourism. A new study has positioned the NERRS System-Wide Monitoring Program to support algal bloom research, management, and education through enhanced chlorophyll monitoring.
Welcome, Jay!
Please join NERRA in welcoming Rookery Bay’s new Research Coordinator, Jay Black, to the family!
Pulling Together for Native Oysters
If there’s one thing we can learn from oysters, it’s that we’re stronger together. One oyster can’t thrive alone and—just like oysters reefs—we do more, with greater impact, when we work together.
Talk NERRdy to Me: Sebastian Mejia
This month, NERRA’s correspondent-at-large Nik Charov interviewed Sebastian Mejia, Stewardship Coordinator at the Old Woman Creek Reserve in Ohio. They discussed the parallels between invasive species control and the Public Health Crisis That Shall Not Be Named, the real roots of stewardship, and creeks for Young Men, too.
Putting Living Shorelines in Reach
To protect their cherished marshes, many South Carolina communities are exploring the use of living shorelines. Thanks to our ACE Basin and North Inlet-Winyah Bay Reserves, now they have science-based path to secure the permits they need.
Turtles Find Well-Beeing in Texas
Honey bees and sea turtles may seem like animal odd couples, but these two species are unique collaborators in two of the Mission-Aransas Reserve’s stewardship programs: Fennessey Ranch and the Amos Rehabilitation Keep (ARK).
New Study Supports Native Oyster Comeback
When the pandemic hit, oyster scientists up and down the West Coast found themselves stuck at home, rather than out in the mud (where they like it). The result? A new paper in the journal PLOS ONE.
Breeding like Rabbits in Maine
The New England Cottontail is endangered in Maine, but at the Wells Reserve they’re breeding like, well, rabbits! Why? Continuous investment in protected land, local partnership, and dedicated stewardship.
DC Download: February 2022
We encourage all Reserve Friends, volunteers, and partners across our estuaries to join with NERRA in making a case for a FY 2023 budget that supports the science, data, education, training, and conservation needed by our communities and our nation.
Our Favorite #IHeartEstuaries Valentines
This month, estuary lovers across the System and beyond waxed poetic on why #iheartestuaries. A thousand people told us why they love estuaries, what makes these places so special, and why programs like Reserves are so important.
Baby Boom at the Slough
Last December, California’s Elkhorn Slough Reserve experienced a baby boom. Some 10,000 juvenile Olympia oysters were deployed in the tidal waters of the Reserve.
Rebuilding the ARK
When Hurricane Harvey hit the Mission-Aransas Reserve in 2017, one of the many casualties was the ARK. Today, thanks to the support of NOAA and friends, the ARK is returning about 500 turtles and 1000 birds to their native habitats every year.
Reserves for Every Body
Reserves strive to be places where everybody can experience coastal nature. While most of the land protected by the Reserve System is open to the public, those with disabilities often experience unique challenges experiencing these environments.
A Case for Oysters
Can restoring oysters really clean up polluted waters? That’s the $1.5 billion dollar question that scientists and restoration practitioners around the country want to answer.
Charged Up in Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico’s Jobos Bay Reserve has become the Island’s only government facility to be fully prepared to have electricity in the event of a blackout.
Creating Value from Waste
Since 2014, California’s Tijuana River Reserve has partnered with groups on both sides of the Mexico–United States border to remove approximately 80,000 pounds of debris from the Tijuana River Valley. With a grant, they are turning that waste into valuable products.
Talk NERRdy to Me: Deborah Rudd
This month, NERRA’s correspondent-at-large Nik Charov interviewed Deborah Rudd, public involvement coordinator at Oregon’s South Slough Reserve. They talked about a “slough” of things—from the birth of the first Reserve and Indigenous collaboration to the best way to spoil volunteers and keep vandals from spoiling the view.
DC Download: January 2022
The NERRS is time-tested, mission ready, and growing. In support of that, NERRA has put forward a $42.5M NERRS operations budget request for FY 2023.
Going for Green in Wisconsin
Barker’s Island has undergone many transformations since Captain Charles S. Barker dumped vengeance sand in front of the lakeside home of his political frenemy, the mayor of Superior.
Welcome Connecticut!
A big welcome to the newest member of our national network—the Connecticut National Estuarine Research Reserve! After decades of effort by many organizations and volunteers, the National Atmospheric and Oceanic Administration (NOAA) officially designated the Reserve today.