Tortugas 2000 is the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary's initiative to create a no-take ecological reserve in the Tortugas region by the year 2000. Establishing an ecological reserve in the Tortugas has high potential for protecting and sustaining marine life populations downstream in the Florida Keys for the long term. Lee detects current patterns from satellite-derived sea surface temperature maps and by deploying drifters offshore of the Shark River Slough, on Florida's west coast at the edge of the Everglades. Satellite tracking of these drifters allows researchers to identify ocean current patterns. Ten years of research shows strong links among the Tortugas, Florida Bay and the Florida Keys.
Many marine species spend their early lives as larvae traveling in open water.
When larvae have matured sufficiently, they settle on hardbottom or seagrass nursery areas to continue their growth. Ocean currents determine where larvae will settle. The Florida Current is particularly important to slow-swimming species that spend long periods as larvae in the open water, such as spiny lobster and many local fish species. These larvae concentrate where ocean currents come together. Locally, researchers have found increased abundance of lobster and conch larvae near the outer reefs when convergence zones associated with the Florida Current move nearshore.