The National Coral Reef Institute

Coral Reef Restoration Recognizing the importance of assisting degraded coral reefs, NCRI conducts restoration research and the recovery of activities and develops, in situ and ex situ, theoretical and practical coral reef restoration tools. These include ■ hypothesis-based design development ■ offshore and onshore coral nurseries for reef repopulation ■ living coral stock collection to minimize extraction of experimental animals ■ restoration software (Visual Habitat Equivalency Analysis) Coral Reef Assessment NCRI assesses coral reefs across various scales. Activities include mapping of reefs and reef quality from satellite or airborne images, in situ population assessment, laboratory and mesocosm studies, and computer modeling of various reef aspects. Individual projects focus on ■ remote sensing (satellite, aerial photo)-based mapping ■ acoustic benthic characterization ■ lidar and multibeam bathymetry ■ reef fish community assessment ■ molecular assessment of population connectivity ■ invasive species mapping, modeling, and prediction (e.g., lionfish) ■ population status of threatened corals, such as staghorn ( Acropora cervicornis ) Coral Reef Restoration and Coral Reef Assessment 13