Ocean
Along some of the world’s most bountiful coastlines, WCS works to safeguard 11 priority seascapes where the last of our ocean giants, coral reefs, and great colonies of sea birds thrive. These vast areas—where barrier reefs may protect shorelines, fishery stocks sustain human and wildlife communities, and migratory species like sea turtles and whales come to rear their young—are integral to both people and nature. Addressing the complex relationships between the ecosystems of the sea, coast, and areas inland, WCS links marine and land management initiatives in comprehensive conservation strategies. These strategies are the backbone of such WCS projects as the Sea & Sky initiative to protect Argentina’s Southwest Atlantic, and our work in the coastal forests and shallow waters of Madagascar’s Antongil Bay.
For more information on the WCS Marine Program, please contact marineprogram@wcs.org.
Featured Seascapes
Antongil Bay is one of the most important breeding grounds for humpback whales. Thirteen species of shark swim its waters.
The world’s largest population of leatherback turtles nests on Gabon and Congo beaches, and humpback whales breed in the waters.
Located at the heart of the largest coral reef system in the Western Hemisphere, this seascape nurtures rays, turtles, and sharks. Nassau grouper gather here in massive numbers to spawn.
Located in the middle of the Java Sea, Karimunjawa National Park was re-zoned to accommodate the needs of wildlife and local people.
Kenya’s marine ecosystems range from mangroves and coastal wetlands to lagoons, fringing coral reefs, and open ocean.
Local communities manage this seascape in the Coral Triangle through traditional ownership rights to land and sea.
New York’s waters encompass an extraordinary array of habitats that shelter migratory whales, sea turtles, sharks, and seabirds.
This wild, remote expanse provides critical feeding and breeding habitat for penguins, elephant seals, and southern right whales.
The North Sulawesi-Halmahera seascape is located in the heart of the spectacular Coral Triangle.
Sea turtles rely on nesting and feeding habitats in offshore waters and on island beaches along Nicaragua’s Caribbean coast.
This coastal region supports a seascape of barrier and fringing coral reefs, shallow lagoons, and abyssal slopes.
Thriving schools of fish, sharks, and turtles swim Fiji’s vibrant reefs. As coastal populations grow, Fiji is finding new ways to conserve marine resources.
Northwestern Sumatra’s coral reefs teem with fish, including the rare and unusual megamouth shark.
From the Newsroom
The first satellite tag study for the world’s largest ray, conducted by researchers from WCS, the University of Exeter, and the Mexican government, reveals its habits and hidden journeys.
With support from the Summit Foundation, WCS conservationists and their local and international partners have introduced a new system of managed access to the Glover's Reef Marine Reserve’s conch fishery.
When local fishers in Kia Island opened a protected coral reef to fishing for a short-term community fundraising effort, the effects of the harvest bore long-term consequences for the reef's health.
Marine mammals contend with new industrial developments in the Arctic as local waters become increasingly ice-free during the summer and fall.
A study by WCS and partners presents a novel approach for establishing new large-scale protected areas in Madagascar’s waters.
The Government of Bangladesh declares three new wildlife sanctuaries for Ganges River and Irrawaddy dolphins. A WCS collaborative study with the Bangladesh Forest Department helped pinpoint the locations of the new protected areas.
Researchers from WCS, Columbia University, and other institutions find an unusual divide in song themes sung by humpback whales in Madagascar and Western Australia.
A newly released study finds that people are increasingly consuming marine mammals—including some very rare species, like the Fraser’s dolphin—in more than 100 countries around the world.
A WCS marine project to reduce bycatch in Kenya and Curacao through a low-cost, low-tech fish trap design takes the top honor in a contest sponsored by Rare, in partnership with National Geographic.
Researchers find that fishery closures in Belize’s Glover’s Reef help barracudas, groupers, and other predatory fish recover while the parrotfish and other herbivores essential for reef recovery still need more protection.
WCS track the epic journey of “Jackson,” a young male elephant seal. Elephant seals are potential indicators of marine ecosystem health and may show how climate change influences the distribution of prey species in Patagonia’s oceans.