Crown of Thorns Survey and Assessment
calendar_monthMay 04, 2011
In their ongoing efforts to monitor and stay abreast of the Crown of Thorns (COTs) situation at Carless Reef, HEPCA scientists and divers carried out a fourth survey and re-assessment trip to the reef on Monday, the 2nd of May. Scientists discovered that COTs abundance in the area they surveyed (North side and between the pinnacles) was 0.016 individuals per square meter – five times the minimum abundance of an outbreak. Creature dissection carried out after a limited collection showed that all creatures were at the pre-spawning stage. HEPCA scientists stress the importance of multiple collections of COTs from Carless reef to minimize the chance of a secondary outbreak occurring and, barring that, to greatly reduce the size of an outbreak, if one does happen. HEPCA urges all Red Sea diving centers and visitors to report any sightings of COTs in the Red Sea using the form provided. Please note that HEPCA will be organizing workshops at our offices on COTs collection on Wednesday the 4th and Thursday the 5th of April at 6.30 pm. HEPCA will also provide diving centers with the requisite equipment required for COTs collections.
