Conserving Corals in the Caribbean

Justin Baumann, a Ph.D. student in the College’s department of marine sciences, works alongside Mariko Wallen, a local diver, in Placencia, Belize. To gather data on how certain types of coral respond to stressors (like warmer water temperatures), Baumann partnered with Fragments of Hope, a Belizean NGO dedicated to conserving coral reefs in the Caribbean. (photo by Mary Lide Parker)

Over the course of six days, Justin Baumann and his team collected 12 colonies of coral, cut them into 312 pieces, and then transplanted them onto underwater tables. Baumann will spend the next year monitoring their growth. (photo by Mary Lide Parker)Justin Baumann, a Ph.D. student in the College’s department of marine sciences, works alongside Mariko Wallen, a local diver, in Placencia, Belize. To gather data on how certain types of coral respond to stressors (like warmer water temperatures), Baumann partnered with Fragments of Hope, a Belizean NGO dedicated to conserving coral reefs in the Caribbean.

Over the course of six days, his team collected 12 colonies of coral, cut them into 312 pieces, and then transplanted them onto underwater tables. Baumann will spend the next year monitoring their growth.  Read more at Endeavors magazine.

Watch a video.

Photos and video by Mary Lide Parker ’10