Volunteer Philippines

Help protect some of the most biodiverse reefs in the world

Volunteer Sinai

Help protect some of the most biodiverse and scientifically valuable  coral reefs in the world

2020

2020

"Despite sea temperatures rising faster than the global average rate, no mass bleaching events have occurred in the northern Red Sea "

  Dr. Jessica Bellworthy


The Red Sea is a seawater inlet between the continents of Africa and Asia,  connected to the Indian Ocean at the Bab el Mandeb straight. The Sinai peninsula is the most northerly part of the Red Sea; on the east of Sinai is the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Gulf of Suez on its western coastline.  The Red Sea was formed when the Arabian Peninsular split form the Horn of Africa - The Red Sea Rift, which began in the Eocene (~40 million years ago). To this day, the Red Sea is still widening, and eventually it will became an ocean.


The Red Sea is famous for its high salinity, ranging from 36ppt - 41ppt. Why is it so salty? High temperatures, very little  rainfall (<60mm annually) and a scarcity of fresh water riverine input create an environment of high evaporation and low precipitation. The Red Sea has very little tidal fluctuation and the currents are driven by wind.  Suspended material such as sediment is usually moved through water by  ocean currents, the movement and distribution of particulate matter in the Red Sea is dictated by wind. The extreme geology and oceanography of the Red Sea has created a unique marine environment, resulting in high endemism and unparalleled biodiversity.

Globally, our coral reefs are in trouble. Although governments around the world have pledged to limit rising temperatures to 1.5C by 2050; it's still getting hotter. Corals are very sensitive animals, and changes in temperature outside of a specific (and often very narrow) range can lead to coral bleaching. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association, 75% of the world's tropical coral reefs experienced severe heat stress between 2014 and 2017, and 30% of these bleached corals did not recover.


Coral reefs in the Red Sea, however, seem to be coping considerably better. Thermal stress experiments have shown that corals from the Gulf of Aqaba are more resilient to thermal stress than corals from tropical hotspots such as the Great Barrier Reef and the Caribbean.  A large body of research is demonstrating that corals in the northern Red Sea are uniquely resilient to thermal stress, and therefore resilient to the biggest challenge of climate change -  surviving in warmer waters.

The Project

Launching in November 2022, our Sinai Coral Reef Conservation Project (SCRCP) will be the beginning of a new chapter for Coral Cay Conservation. The first phase of this project is to evaluate the status of the coral reefs in Ras Abu Galum National Park, which is an hour north of Dahab.  SCUBA-based diving surveys will be used to obtain quantitative biophysical and ecological data which will start the beginning of a crucial long-term monitoring project in Sinai. Long-term monitoring allows us to see trends and changes in coral reef health over time, helping us better understand the environmental impacts facing coral reefs in Ras Abu Galum. The SCRCP data will be used to identify if/which parts of the reef are changing, and help inform policy and environmental protections for this vital habitat through the creation of MPAs and capacity building.


As always, volunteers are critical to our work. Without you, we cannot fund or complete coral reef monitoring.

As with all of our projects, we advocate best-practice and operate under a citizen-science framework. By operating in a bottom-up ecosystem based approach to conservation, working directly with local stakeholders, promoting co-management practices, we are able to achieve real-time results whilst empowering the local user group.


As always, we aim to regularly publish scientific papers, collaborate with universities and students,  and have open accessible data for everyone.


As the SCRCP is in is infancy and the next few years are critical; volunteers joining us in 2022 and 2023 will have a lasting impact on  our future outputs.

The first phase of the project will be spent in Dahab at our partner site SubSinai. All CCC volunteers need to have a minimum diving qualification of Advanced Open Water (AOW) (or equivalent) to join us on surveys.


Volunteers joining us without their  AOW will spend the first week becoming certified.  In the evenings after dive training,  our Head of Science will be giving lectures on coral reef ecology.  This will be a busy week!

Qualified AOW divers will join us at week 2, and our expedition team will be complete.  We will spend a few days in the classroom (don't worry, it's outside and sunny!) doing a Science Development Program,  practice survey diving,  and then head out to Ras Abu Galum Protectorate.  In Ras Abu Galum we will conduct our remote coral reef surveys, and dive twice a day; spending the evenings going through our data and analysing it or watching a film on the beach!

After a short break in Dahab to relax and have a day off, we will head back out to  Ras Abu Galum and continue survey diving. Our week will end back in Dahab at SubSinai, with a day to go through any remaining data and analysis, and finish with a relaxing sunset BBQ and beers.  You'll have downtime to pack, visit the market and buy gifts, or get your fill of the incredible local food before we leave.

We are currently working hard on the next stages for this expedition, and making sure that we have our website ready for taking bookings.  However, if you are interested in joining us, then you can complete an 'expression of interest form' which puts you at the top of our priority list for 2022 bookings. Until then, if you have any questions please feel free to email us at hello@coralcay.org

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Coral Cay Conservation SCRCP is live!

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