Moorea Coral Reef LTER | Moorea Coral Reef Long-Term Ecological Research site
Overview
The Moorea Coral Reef Long-Term Ecological Research site was established by the U.S. National Science Foundation in 2004.
Core Time Series Data
MCR provides data describing key community dynamics and ecosystem processes.
Process-based Research
Short-term, mechanistic studies are used to investigate the resilience of coral reef ecosystems.
Hands-on Learning
K-12 classroom curriculum is complemented by field trips to a coral reef exhibit at UCSB.
Moorea Island Digital Ecosystem (IDEA)
The island of Moorea could soon become the first ecosystem in the world to be replicated in digital form.
Coral reefs represent one of the most diverse ecosystems on Earth. The Moorea Coral Reef Long-term Ecological Research (MCR LTER) site was established by the National Science Foundation in 2004 as a model system to better understand factors that mediate coral community structure and function. A primary goal of the MCR LTER is to explore the effects of external drivers such as disturbance and global climate change on the resilience of coral reefs. This goal is achieved through long term-observations, experimental tests and models. Long-term trends in community structure are used to generate hypotheses that are tested experimentally. These empirical studies are then synthesized and modeled to gain novel insight into the responses of coral reefs to changing environments. The MCR LTER site is a research partnership between the University of California, Santa Barbara and California State University, Northridge.
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MCR in the News
Moorea Coral Reef LTER site: Research in Paradise
MCR Promotes Student Mentorship
MCR Investigator Deron Burkepile's research in 60s
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Highlights
With groundbreaking discoveries and innovative techniques in long-term ecological  research,...
Watch and Listen as MCR Principal Investigators and UC Santa Barbara professors Dr Russ Schmitt and Dr...
Watch and Listen as MCR Investigator and UC Santa Barbara professor Dr Deron Burkepile explains his...