Latest Marine National Monument Stories

Hawai"˜i Institute of Marine Biology Celebrates its Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Research PartnershipLast week, managers from the 43 marine sites on the World Heritage List of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) met in Hawai"˜i to explore ways of strengthening marine conservation. This engagement also coincided with the official inscription ceremony for the new Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument World Heritage site. The manager's...

A new NOAA report on the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands (NWHI), protected by the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, provides the sharpest picture yet of the region's marine life and ecosystems.Prepared by NOAA's National Center for Coastal Ocean Science, the report, A Marine Biogeographic Assessment of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, examines the geographic distribution of the island chain's marine life and habitats, and the conditions that determine where they are...

Scientists identified seven new species of bamboo coral discovered on a NOAA-funded mission in the deep waters of the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument. Six of these species may represent entirely new genera, a remarkable feat given the broad classification a genus represents. A genus is a major category in the classification of organisms, ranking above a species and below a family. Scientists expect to identify more new species as analysis of samples continues."These...