[Coral-List] Research Participation Opportunity

[Melanie Esch]

Are you a saltwater aquarium enthusiast interested in contributing to scientific research?

Investigators at Florida International University are working on a project aimed to protect the coastal ecosystems of South Florida from potentially damaging marine fish species. Identifying potential alien fishes is critical to protect Florida’s marine resources and forecasting which species might represent major risk would allow a range of conservation measures including public awareness and efficient reef monitoring. 

By conducting social surveys within the aquarium industry, they hope to:

1) gain a better understanding of the public’s awareness of alien species
2) learn about challenging experiences as an aquarist 
3) synthesize characteristics of potential alien marine fish species

The online survey should take no longer than 15 minutes and all responses are anonymous. Follow this link to take the survey: http://bit.ly/aquarium_survey <http://bit.ly/aquarium_survey>

This research is being conducted with IRB approval under protocol #IRB-19-0302. Contact Melanie Esch at mesch003 at fiu.edu <mailto:mesch003 at fiu.edu> with any questions or comments.