REEF LIFE SURVEY
Turn 7–10 days of your itinerary into an unforgettable hands-on ocean-science mission.
Priority areas: Greece, Italy and the wider Mediterranean
Help map the life beneath your yacht
Reef Life Survey is inviting yacht owners, operators and crew to help explore and protect the world’s reefs. Host a small team of expert divers to survey shallow rocky and coral reefs—and give your crew the opportunity to learn the same proven survey methods, so they can contribute valuable observations long after the expedition ends. Advanced open water or higher minimum requirement for dive operations.
THE MISSION
Working from your yacht, the team will conduct visual surveys at suitable shallow reef sites, recording fishes, mobile invertebrates and reef habitats along 50-metre transects. On board, images are catalogued and data entered. No biological specimens are collected.
THE WHY
RLS data provide a consistent, long-term, species-level picture of reef health, showing what lives on reefs and how biodiversity changes over time. They help scientists and marine managers detect the effects of climate change and fishing, identify conservation priorities, and assess whether marine protected areas are working.
A LASTING LEGACY
Reef Life Survey data are openly shared to support marine science, conservation and management worldwide. By participating, your yacht can unlock access to remote or under-surveyed reefs while helping inspire a vessel-led legacy of reef monitoring.
YACHT SUPPORT NEEDED
Time required: Ideally 7–10 days; up to two weeks where an itinerary allows
Team: 2–4 scientists / survey divers
Priority areas: Greece, Italy and the wider Mediterranean
Other locations: Caribbean, French Polynesia and suitable global locations considered
Timing: Sept / Oct for Greece and Italy
Essential equipment: Scuba compressor, tanks, weights and tender
Project lead: Antonia Cooper, Operations Manager, Reef Life Survey Foundation
Contact: Rosie ODonnell
More information: www.reeflifesurvey.com
