United States Coral Reefs

Extensive coral reefs are found in the waters of the United States and its territories. In the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and the Caribbean Sea these include reefs off Florida, Texas, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. In the Pacific Ocean, they include those of the Hawaiian Islands, Wake Island, Johnston Atoll, the Northern Marianas, Saipan, Guam, Kingman Reef and Palmyra Atoll, Howland Island, Baker Island, Jarvis Island, and American Samoa. More than 60% of the Nation’s coral reefs are found in the extended Hawaiian Island chain.

There are extensive coral reefs in the waters of the United States and its territories, covering more than 4 million acres of the sea fl oor in the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean Sea, and the Pacifi c Ocean. More than 60% of the Nation’s coral reefs are found in the extended Hawaiian Island chain. Most of these are included in the recently designated Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Coral Reef Reserve, the largest U.S. nature preserve.

• Corals
  • Coral Reefs
  • Coral Reef Threats
  • Coral Reef Types
  • Great Barrier Reef
  • United States Coral Reefs
  • Coral Reefs in The Florida Keys

Reef Relief founders Craig and DeeVon Quirolo retired from the grassroots organization last July, only to begin an effort to provide an online resource on coral reefs. Their new website provides all the award-winning educational tools, grassroots strategies, project reports and images of coral reefs assembled during their work over the past 23 years in the Florida Keys and throughout the Caribbean protecting coral reefs. You can find it at www.reefrelieffounders.com

credit: NOAA, NASA, Reef Check, UNEP, Reef Relief, Australian Government, University of Texas, Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, Coral Reef Alliance,U.S. Department of the Interior