Nursery Expansion Project

RRFB Expands Capacity of Coral Nurseries RRFB is expanding its network of coral nurseries and restoration sites around Bonaire and Klein Bonaire. RRFB employs selective propagation and breeding to strengthen coral populations, targeting coral genotypes that have demonstrated resilience to rising temperatures and stony coral tissue loss disease (SCTLD). This project is made possible through ...

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Coral Seeding Collaboration

Coral Seeding: Synergies in Technology and Application to Restore Coral Reefs in the Caribbean Fundación Dominicana de Estudios Marinos (FUNDEMAR) has joined forces with Reef Renewal Foundation Bonaire (RRFB) and SECORE International to implement innovative approaches for large scale coral restoration. Key actions include optimizing mass breeding of corals, engineering individual steps of Coral Seeding ...

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Safeguarding the Genetic Diversity of Bonaire’s Coral Reefs

Safeguarding the Genetic Diversity of Bonaire's Coral Reefs Reef Renewal Foundation Bonaire (RRFB) uses selective breeding and assisted fertilization to increase the resilience of Bonaire’s coral reefs in the face of disease and rapidly warming waters. RRFB and partner organization Secore International share tools, expertise, and resources to strengthen populations of key coral species in ...

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Adjusting Our Strategy Amidst SCTLD

Reef Renewal Bonaire Strengthens Coral Resilience Amidst Growing Threats Reef Renewal Foundation Bonaire (RRFB) adjusts their restoration strategy to build coral resilience to Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease (SCTLD) and other threats to Bonaire’s reefs. RRFB aims to establish a land-based facility to bolster their larval propagation efforts, a vital step towards ensuring the genetic ...

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100+ Gather to Celebrate ReeFiesta 2023!

ReeFiesta 2023: A Celebration of Community and Coral Restoration in Bonaire Reef Renewal Foundation Bonaire (RRFB) hosted its 5th annual ReeFiesta event on Thursday, June 1st, 2023 to celebrate World Reef Awareness Day, with support from official sponsors World Wildlife Fund, Ocean Oasis Beach Club, and Orco Bank. Over 150 community members and 13 local ...

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Announcing ReeFiesta 2023

ReeFiesta 2023: Let’s Celebrate Our Reefs, Together! RRFB is hosting a free, all-day event on June 1st, 2023 to celebrate World Reef Awareness Day. Divers of any skill level and non-divers are invited to gain hands-on, coral restoration experience and celebrate Bonaire’s reefs in the company of like-minded community members. Download PDF 16 MAY 2023 ...

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Get to Know Our Team: Francesca Virdis

  Francesca Virdis Chief Operating Officer Francesca Virdis has played an integral role in coral restoration efforts on Bonaire since 2010, 2 years before the inception of Reef Renewal Foundation Bonaire. Over the last decade, she’s spearheaded the growth of the organization from just 2 small nurseries to 13, not to mention almost 20 restoration ...

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Revealing the Unique Genetic Fingerprint of Corals through Genotypic Analysis

By Allie Blanchette About 25 different genotypes of staghorn coral (Acropora cervicornis) and 30 genotypes of elkhorn coral (Acropora palmata) are raised in Reef Renewal Foundation Bonaire’s (RRFB) nurseries before eventually being outplanted onto the reef. Florida State University PhD candidate Allie Blanchette teamed up with RRFB to conduct genetic analysis on A. cervicornis and ...

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Outplanting a Boulder, More Resilient Reef

For the first time ever, RRFB has outplanted 3 species of boulder coral back to Bonaire’s reefs: lobed star coral (Orbicella annularis), mountainous star coral (Orbicella faveolata), and great star coral (Montastraea cavernosa). In late 2022, we began outplanting boulder coral fragments that were propagated via fragmentation almost 2 years prior and reared in nurseries. ...

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