MERMAID (Marine Ecological Research Management Aid)

Transform your underwater insights into data-driven actions that save coral reefs

MERMAID aggregates and manages data on coral reef health - empowering scientists, communities, and governments in linking science to rapid action in marine conservation efforts.
For the first time, marine scientists can gather, analyze and share field-based reef surveys on an open-source platform that provides granular data.
MERMAID helps answer:
Is conservation working? Are reefs recovering? How can conservation efforts help reefs adapt to a changing climate?

MERMAID brings information and people together to protect coral reefs

Field-driven

MERMAID is powered by data collected and shared by scientists in the field and underwater, from coral reefs across the world.

Community-centric

MERMAID makes data accessible to coastal communities—empowering people with the knowledge to manage resources sustainably.

Human-centered

MERMAID encourages collaboration and the sharing of data, fueling discoveries and rapid action for reef protection.

MERMAID by the numbers

1969
Users
70
Organizations
5054
Coral reef sites
38
Countries

Collect reef data...

Aggregate your observations directly onto the MERMAID platform—quickly, effectively and accurately.

Get started

...and visualize it

Interact with the global MERMAID dashboard to get a snapshot of coral reef health around the globe.

View the dashboard

Reef Stories

Blog 19 Dec 2023

New in MERMAID Version 2.6

In Version 2.6, you can see observers who are no longer in your project, view fish species properties while inputting data, and click directly on the map to add a new site.

MERMAID is not only transformative for collecting and storing ecological data, but also facilitates the transdisciplinary research that is crucial for confronting the coral reef crisis.

Dr Josh Cinner
Distinguished Professor, ARC CoE, James Cook University, Australia

MERMAID works alongside tools like the Allen Coral Atlas to enable scientists to provide information on coral reefs to decision-makers in near real-time, helping us better protect reefs.

Dr Stacy Jupiter
Melanesia Regional Director, WCS

We are proud to support this effort to advance data-based marine protection and create more resilient, more sustainable ocean ecosystems.

Melissa Wright
Vibrant Oceans Initiative Lead, Bloomberg Philantropies

Coral reef monitoring in the past was a nightmare. MERMAID has literally saved us days of time – allowing us to push on more quickly to use the data to inform our work and decision-making.

Dominic Andradi-Brown, Ph.D.
Senior Marine Scientist, WWF

With MERMAID, the data are organized and cleaned, so shorter time for analyzing and faster result for decision making. Analyzing Reef Health data cannot be more enjoyable than this!

Amkieltiela
Master of Sustainable Development student, KU Leuven, Belgium

MERMAID will be a critical tool in supporting ICRI’s efforts to help governments implement and measure progress towards meeting the ambitious goals and targets of the Global Biodiversity Framework.

Francis Staub
Global Coordinator, International Coral Reef Initiative

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