USGS scuba diver on a coral reef in Dry Tortugas National Park

The U.S. Geological Survey is conducting research to guide the recovery of the threatened Elkhorn coral, Acropora palmata, in Dry Tortugas National Park and throughout the western Atlantic. A small Elkhorn colony, raised from a fragment collected after a storm, is shown here in the foreground after it was cemented to the reef to establish a new coral population. Elkhorn coral is a foundational species that creates large underwater ramparts that protect coastal communities from the onslaught of waves.

Learn more about USGS Coral Reef Ecosystem Studies.