The Reef Institute

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The Reef Institute The Reef Institute is a nonprofit on a mission for coral conservation through education, research This is accomplished in a myriad of unique and creative ways.

The Reef Institute works actively in research in multiple areas directly related to coral health and growth, protecting the diversity of our oceans. Our educational programming seeks to bring people of all ages from awareness of marine conservation to learning to better steward the ocean at large. Check us out!! reef institute.org

Transforming individuals into ocean stewards, one lesson at a time! 🪸At The Reef Institute, education is a fundamental p...
10/19/2026

Transforming individuals into ocean stewards, one lesson at a time! 🪸

At The Reef Institute, education is a fundamental part of our coral conservation efforts! Our goal is to not only spread awareness about the challenges corals are facing but also to inspire individuals to become passionate ocean stewards.

We believe that building coral knowledge is an important part of moving someone from awareness to ocean stewardship, which is one of the reasons our team created Mobile Coral 101!

Mobile Coral 101 is a dynamic lesson designed for a variety of settings, including classrooms, camps, and after-school programs. We’ve also recently begun bringing Coral 101 online through educational videos! Through hands-on lessons and interactive activities, students learn what corals are, why they are in trouble, and how they can help protect them.

Visit our website and contact us to learn more about Mobile Coral 101 and how to bring this hands-on coral conservation experience to your school or group. For any specific questions, feel free to reach out to our Education Director at [email protected]!

Together, we save the ocean! 💙

10/16/2026

Coral 101 is officially on YouTube! Link in the bio 🪸🎥

Have you ever wondered what coral actually is? You might be surprised by the answer!

We’re excited to launch Coral 101, a new educational YouTube series where we explore the fascinating world of corals, the science behind them, and why they matter.

For years, our education team has brought Coral 101 into classrooms and communities. Now, we’re bringing that experience online so even more people can discover the incredible world of coral reefs!

Whether you’re a curious ocean lover, an educator, or just looking to learn something new, there’s something for everyone.

Our first episode, What Is Coral?, is out now!

▶️ Watch the full episode on our YouTube channel. Link in bio and below!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2KQ7VZwggSc&t=7s

How do corals feed? 🪸Corals are animals, and like other animals, they need food to survive. Many reef-building corals ha...
10/14/2026

How do corals feed? 🪸

Corals are animals, and like other animals, they need food to survive. Many reef-building corals have a close relationship with microscopic algae that live within their tissues. These algae use sunlight to make food and can share some of it with the coral! But where does the rest of the coral’s food come from?

Corals are able to catch small prey in the water using specialized structures called tentacles. While these tentacles may look different depending on the species, their function of catching food and moving it toward the coral's mouth for digestion is generally the same.

The corals within our Living Coral Bank at The Reef Institute also use their tentacles to catch food! Our team feeds the corals regularly, preparing specialized diets based on each species and size.

Our corals also receive a varied diet to help provide the nutrients they need, as well as live food with the goal of stimulating their natural feeding behaviors.

Follow along to learn more about how corals work and how we take care of them here at The Reef Institute. 💙

Small beginnings can make a big difference for Florida’s Coral Reef. 🪸Over the last two months, The Reef Institute sent ...
10/09/2026

Small beginnings can make a big difference for Florida’s Coral Reef. 🪸

Over the last two months, The Reef Institute sent staff twice to the Florida Coral Rescue Center (FCRC) in Orlando to assist with their coral reproduction efforts, and last week, we brought approximately 366,000 larvae back to our facility!

Upon arrival, our team carefully placed these larvae into specialized bins lined with tiles. At this stage, they are incredibly small and can swim through the water. The goal is for these larvae to settle onto one of the tiles, where, with time and care, we hope they will grow into new corals that can eventually be outplanted and contribute to rebuilding Florida’s Coral Reef!

The journey of these tiny coral larvae is made possible through collaboration. Our partnership with the Florida Coral Rescue Center, and other organizations such as The Florida Aquarium, allow us to receive larvae to aid in our restoration work. These collaborations also allow larvae to be distributed to different organizations throughout Florida, creating a network that helps expand the reach of coral conservation!

Together, we save the ocean! 🌊

Meet the Great Star Coral! 🌟🪸Scientifically named Montastraea cavernosa, the Great Star Coral is one of the most distinc...
10/07/2026

Meet the Great Star Coral! 🌟🪸

Scientifically named Montastraea cavernosa, the Great Star Coral is one of the most distinctive looking reef-builders in Florida and the Caribbean! This species also plays an important role in coral reef ecosystems, providing habitat and shelter for other marine life.

Its relatively large polyps make the Great Star Coral an excellent species for observing the structure of a coral colony with the naked eye. While a coral colony might look like a single organism, it is made up of individual polyps that are connected by tissue and share a calcium carbonate skeleton. In Montastraea cavernosa, the size of these polyps can make them distinguishable without magnification.

The polyps have tentacles that surround the mouth. These tentacles help them capture tiny particles and organisms, which are then moved toward the mouth at the center of each polyp for ingestion.

At The Reef Institute, we care for and protect Great Star coral within our Living Coral Biobank. By maintaining living colonies and preserving their genetic diversity, we are helping preserve this important coral for future conservation efforts.

Follow along as we continue taking a closer look at the species in our care and the features that make each coral unique. 💙

We’re turning 10! 🎉🪸For the past 10 years, The Reef Institute has been working to protect corals, rebuild the reef, and ...
10/02/2026

We’re turning 10! 🎉🪸

For the past 10 years, The Reef Institute has been working to protect corals, rebuild the reef, and bring our community closer to the work happening right here in South Florida.

On November 5, we’re celebrating with Cocktails & Coral, our 10th birthday celebration and fundraising event, and we’d love for you to join us! 🥂

The evening will include tours of our labs and reef systems, craft cocktails and hors d’oeuvres, live music and art, a w**e pull, fundraising games, and more.

Come celebrate 10 years of coral, community, and conservation while helping support the work ahead. Together we save the ocean! 💜

🎟️ Tickets are available now! You can find them at the link in our bio or through the link below!

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/cocktails-coral-10-years-of-rescue-to-reef-tickets-1998675845256

Up close with the large flower coral! 🌸🪸The large flower coral, or M***a angulosa, is an incredibly unique stony coral f...
09/30/2026

Up close with the large flower coral! 🌸🪸

The large flower coral, or M***a angulosa, is an incredibly unique stony coral found across Florida’s Coral Reef and throughout the Caribbean. This species earns its name from its large polyps that resemble blooming flowers.

Each polyp features a mouth in the center, which takes in food and removes waste. Surrounding the mouth are tentacles that extend at night to feed, though they can be hard to spot during the day when they are often retracted.

At The Reef Institute, we preserve this species, along with numerous others, in our Living Coral Biobank as part of our efforts to help protect coral diversity for the future.

Follow along to learn more about the corals we are working to preserve and protect!

📸 Communications and Virtual Programming Coordinator Ana Ruiz Criado & Director of Science Communications Caleb Fix

A coral reef is a living community, and reef-building corals help create the structure and habitat that so many species ...
09/23/2026

A coral reef is a living community, and reef-building corals help create the structure and habitat that so many species depend on.

Fish move through the reef for food and shelter. Eels tuck into its structure. Sponges, soft corals, stony corals, and countless other organisms share the same space, each playing a role in a much larger ecosystem.

At The Reef Institute, our work is centered on helping rebuild that foundation. We care for stony corals on land, preserve coral diversity, support research and reproduction, and return corals to the ocean through outplanting.

Every coral we raise and every colony returned to the reef is part of something bigger: supporting habitat, biodiversity, and the recovery of Florida’s Coral Reef.

These efforts represent The Reef Institute’s contribution to the broader collaborative work happening across Florida to support the future of Florida’s Coral Reef and the many species that depend on it!

We operate what’s called a "living coral biobank."That means we keep living corals on land in specialized aquarium syste...
09/18/2026

We operate what’s called a "living coral biobank."

That means we keep living corals on land in specialized aquarium systems, helping preserve them for the future.

With corals in the ocean facing threats like warming waters, disease, and pollution, these systems give them a protected place to live, grow, and reproduce.

And that’s where the bigger picture comes in. Through our work with partners, we help raise coral larvae, grow young corals, and return corals to the ocean through a process called outplanting.

Our living coral biobank is one piece of a much larger effort to protect coral diversity and help rebuild the reef.

Because saving our ocean takes all of us working together!

09/16/2026

The magic of coral birth. 🪸

These clips were captured in our living coral biobank and show developing coral babies moving within smooth flower coral polyps, especially through the tentacles.

Smooth flower corals are brooders, meaning fertilization happens internally and their developing young remain within the coral before being released.
Because the tissue is partially translucent, we were able to watch this development happening in real time.

Eventually, these developing young are released from the coral. Some may already be larvae, while others can continue developing after release before becoming free-swimming larvae that search for a place to settle and begin growing into a new coral colony.

Watching something this tiny begin its journey right in front of us is pretty incredible. And we get to see it happen right here in our living coral biobank!

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520 24th Street
West Palm Beach, FL
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