Opportunistic consumption of coral spawn by the ruby brittle star (Ophioderma rubicundum) by Olivia M. Williamson, Alexander T. Mustard, Allan J. Bright, Dana E. Williams, Mark C. Ladd, Andrew C. Baker

“…Here, we document several instances of the ruby brittle star, Ophioderma rubicundum, capturing and consuming egg‐sperm bundles of the mountainous star coral, Orbicella faveolata, and the symmetrical brain coral, Pseudodiploria strigosa, during spawning events in the Cayman Islands in 2012 and the Florida Keys in 2022. These observations are widely separated in space and time (>600 km, 10 years), suggesting that this behavior may be prevalent on western Atlantic reefs. …”
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Coastal Flooding Associated with Hurricane Irma in Central Cuba (Ciego de Ávila Province) by Felipe Matos-Pupo, Matthew C. Peros, Roberto González-De Zayas, Alexey Valero-Jorge, Osvaldo E. Pérez-López, Flor Álvarez-Taboada, Rogert Sorí

“…This hurricane caused severe damage in the Caribbean area and the Florida Keys. The social, economic, and environmental impacts, mainly related to coastal flooding, were also significant in Cuba. …”
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Potential benefits and shortcomings of marine protected areas for small seabirds revealed using miniature tags by Sara M Maxwell, Melinda Grace Conners, Nicholas Sisson, Tiffany M Dawson

“…We determined movement parameters, such as flight speed, distance traveled and home range, and how birds used a complex of marine protected areas including the Dry Tortugas National Park which is largely no-take (i.e., no fishing or extraction permitted), and the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, of which two Ecological Reserves totaling 517.9 km2 are no-take. …”
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Optimizing Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease (SCTLD) Intervention Treatments on Montastraea cavernosa in an Endemic Zone by Brian K. Walker, Nicholas R. Turner, Hunter K. G. Noren, Samantha F. Buckley, Kelly A. Pitts

“…The antibiotic paste was highly effective in the Florida Keys, but its effectiveness in the Coral ECA was questionable. …”
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Use of a Population Viability Analysis to Evaluate Human-Induced Impacts and Mitigation for the Endangered Lower Keys Marsh Rabbit by David H. LaFever, Paige M. Schmidt, Neil D. Perry, Craig A. Faulhaber, Roel R. Lopez, Nova J. Silvy, Elizabeth A. Forys

“…Rapid development and urbanization of the lower Florida Keys in the last 30 years has fragmented the habitat of the Lower Keys marsh rabbit (Sylvilagus palustris hefneri), hereafter called marsh rabbit, and threatened it with extinction. …”
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Fallen Pillars: The Past, Present, and Future Population Dynamics of a Rare, Specialist Coral–Algal Symbiosis by Andrea N. Chan, Cynthia L. Lewis, Cynthia L. Lewis, Karen L. Neely, Karen L. Neely, Iliana B. Baums

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Semiochemicals released from five bacteria identified from animal wounds infested by primary screwworms and their effects on fly behavioral activity. by Junwei J Zhu, Muhammad F Chaudhury, Lisa M Durso, Agustin Sagel, Steven R Skoda, Nadia S Jelvez-Serra, Euzebio Goulart Santanab

“…However, it was recently detected in populations of wild deer and pets in the Florida Keys of the US. For monitoring purposes, screwworm flies are normally trapped using attractant bait with liver. …”
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Habitat Restoration Restores Underwater Soundscapes and Larval Recruitment by Jack Butler, Jack Butler, Emily R. Anderson, Emily R. Anderson, Mark J. Butler

“…We investigated these phenomena in sponge-dominated hardbottom habitat in the waters surrounding the middle Florida Keys (Florida, United States) that have been degraded in recent decades by massive sponge die-offs caused by harmful algal blooms. …”
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An Approach to Minimize Atmospheric Correction Error and Improve Physics-Based Satellite-Derived Bathymetry in a Coastal Environment by Christopher O. Ilori, Anders Knudby

“…To achieve this, we first tested a physics-based inversion method to estimate bathymetry for a nearshore area in the Florida Keys, USA. Using a freely available water-based AC algorithm (ACOLITE), we used Landsat 8 (L8) images to derive per-pixel remote sensing reflectances, from which bathymetry was subsequently estimated. …”
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Removal of corallivorous snails as a proactive tool for the conservation of acroporid corals by Dana E. Williams, Margaret W. Miller, Allan J. Bright, Caitlin M. Cameron

“…Long-term monitoring plots on six reefs in the upper Florida Keys were assigned to one of three removal treatments: (1) removal from A. palmata only, (2) removal from all host coral species, or (3) no-removal controls. …”
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Testing the relationship between microbiome composition and flux of carbon and nutrients in Caribbean coral reef sponges by Shelby E. Gantt, Steven E. McMurray, Amber D. Stubler, Christopher M. Finelli, Joseph R. Pawlik, Patrick M. Erwin

“…To investigate this relationship, we paired microbial community characterization (16S rRNA analysis, Illumina Mi-Seq platform) with carbon (DOC, POC) and nutrient (PO4, NOx, NH4) flux data (specific filtration rate) for 10 common Caribbean sponge species at two distant sites (Florida Keys vs. Belize, ~ 1203 km apart). Results Distance-based linear modeling revealed weak relationships overall between symbiont structure and carbon and nutrient flux, suggesting that the observed differences in POC, DOC, PO4, and NOx flux among sponges are not caused by variations in the composition of symbiont communities. …”
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Low net carbonate accretion characterizes Florida’s coral reef by John T. Morris, Ian C. Enochs, Nicole Besemer, T. Shay Viehman, Sarah H. Groves, Jeremiah Blondeau, Cory Ames, Erica K. Towle, Laura Jay W. Grove, Derek P. Manzello

“…Detailed comparison of reef types reveals that mid-channel reefs in the Florida Keys have the highest net carbonate production (0.84 kg CaCO3 m−2 year−1) and indicates that these reefs may be hold-outs for reef development throughout the region. …”
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Functional recovery of a 41-year-old quadriplegic spinal cord injury patient following multiple intravenous infusions of autologous adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells: a case r... by Ridhima Vij, Hosu Kim, Hyeonggeun Park, Thanh Cheng, Djamchid Lotfi, Donna Chang, Donna Chang

“…Here, we present a case of a 41-year-old quadriplegic male individual who experienced a traumatic C-5 incomplete SCI, after slipping off a boat in Florida Keys on August 4, 2017. He was diagnosed with C5–C6 Grade 2 anterolisthesis with flexion teardrop fracture of the anterior C6 with jumped facet on the right and perched facet on the left at C5–C6 with spinal canal stenosis. …”
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Genetic confirmation of Octopus insularis (Leite and Haimovici, 2008) in South Florida, United States using physical features and de novo genome assembly by Brigid Maloney, Eric Angel Ramos, Chelsea O. Bennice, Frank Young, Marcelo O. Magnasco

“…In this study, we present the first genetic confirmation of Octopus insularis (Leite and Haimovici, 2008) inhabiting the coastal waters of the Florida Keys, United States. We employed visual observations to identify species-specific body patterns of three wild-caught octopuses and used de novo genome assembly to confirm their species. …”
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Severe 2010 cold-water event caused unprecedented mortality to corals of the Florida reef tract and reversed previous survivorship patterns. by Diego Lirman, Stephanie Schopmeyer, Derek Manzello, Lewis J Gramer, William F Precht, Frank Muller-Karger, Kenneth Banks, Brian Barnes, Erich Bartels, Amanda Bourque, James Byrne, Scott Donahue, Janice Duquesnel, Louis Fisher, David Gilliam, James Hendee, Meaghan Johnson, Kerry Maxwell, Erin McDevitt, Jamie Monty, Digna Rueda, Rob Ruzicka, Sara Thanner

“…METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Reef surveys were conducted from Martin County to the Lower Florida Keys within weeks of the anomaly. The impacts recorded were catastrophic and exceeded those of any previous disturbances in the region. …”
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Power, planning, and the right to the post-disaster city : exploring opportunities for long-term housing affordability and resilience in earthquake recovery by Acuña, Alexander(Alexander Richard Louis)

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Marine Heat Waves over Natural and Urban Coastal Environments of South Florida by Yannis S. Androulidakis, Vassiliki Kourafalou

“…Specifically, the six most recent years (2015–2021) were characterized by the strongest formation of MHWs with a peak in 2015, 2019 and 2020, with more than 8 events/year and approximately 70 to 110 days/year duration in total. The Florida Keys, especially along the Straits of Florida (southern island coasts), revealed very strong increasing trends. …”
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Out to sea: ocean currents and patterns of asymmetric gene flow in an intertidal fish species by Anthony A. Snead, Andrey Tatarenkov, John C. Avise, D. Scott Taylor, Bruce J. Turner, Kristine Marson, Ryan L. Earley

“…Specifically, populations in the center of the range (Florida Keys) were identified as sinks that received migrants (and alleles) from other populations but failed to export individuals. …”
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Coral restoration for coastal resilience: Integrating ecology, hydrodynamics, and engineering at multiple scales by T. Shay Viehman, Borja G. Reguero, Hunter S. Lenihan, Johanna H. Rosman, Curt D. Storlazzi, Elizabeth A. Goergen, Miguel F. Canals Silander, Sarah H. Groves, Daniel M. Holstein, Andrew W. Bruckner, Jane V. Carrick, Brian K. Haus, Julia B. Royster, Melissa S. Duvall, Walter I. Torres, James L. Hench

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Satellite imagery and products of the 16–17 February 2020 Saharan Air Layer dust event over the eastern Atlantic: impacts of water vapor on dust detection and morphology by L. Grasso, D. Bikos, J. Torres, J. F. Dostalek, T.-C. Wu, J. Forsythe, H. Q. Cronk, C. J. Seaman, S. D. Miller, E. Berndt, H. G. Weinman, K. B. Kasper

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