NOAA Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary

NOAA Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary Explore. Discover. Connect. Gray’s Reef National Marine Sanctuary (GRNMS) protects a vibrant hard-bottom area off the Georgia coast. Photos of Gray's Reef!

The reef’s scattered rocky outcroppings and ledges provide homes for an abundance of marine life. Crabs, lobsters, soft corals, sponges, sea stars and other organisms form a dense carpet of living creatures, covering the nooks and crannies of Gray's Reef and giving it the name “live bottom." The reef attracts more than 200 species of fish, including black sea bass, snappers, groupers and mackerels

. Loggerhead sea turtles, a threatened species, forage and rest year-round at Gray's Reef, and the reef is within the only known winter calving ground for the highly endangered North Atlantic right whale. Gray's Reef also attracts people: recreational boaters, anglers and divers are among the sanctuary's user groups. The bottom 1/3 of Gray's Reef is a research area where fishing and diving are prohibited. Boats may transit across the research area as long as they don't stop and all fishing gear is stowed and unavailable for use. The research area is used exclusively for controlled scientific studies. The 22-square-mile sanctuary is the only protected natural reef and one of a few natural marine protected areas in the Atlantic Ocean between Cape Hatteras, North Carolina and Cape Canaveral, Florida. However, given the sanctuary's remote location 16 miles east of Sapelo Island, Georgia, most people experience Gray's Reef through pictures or videos. Unlike reefs built by corals, Gray’s Reef comprises scattered limestone rock outcroppings that stand above the sandy surface of the nearly flat continental shelf. http://graysreef.noaa.gov/pgallery/welcome.html

Location of Gray's Reef. http://graysreef.noaa.gov/about/location/welcome.html

Diving at Gray's Reef. http://graysreef.noaa.gov/visit/diving/welcome.html

Fishing at Gray's Reef. http://graysreef.noaa.gov/visit/fishing/welcome.html

Next week is the last week of Super Sanctuary Summer 2026 at the Gray's Reef Ocean Discovery Center!For our last theme, ...
08/18/2026

Next week is the last week of Super Sanctuary Summer 2026 at the Gray's Reef Ocean Discovery Center!

For our last theme, we wanted to tie all previous themes together to make Sanctuary Superheros! From August 25 - 28th, join our educators and learn what you can do to help keep the ocean healthy and thriving. On Tuesday, August 25th, at 11:00 a.m. discover more about plastics with "Lift the Flap Questions and Answers About Plastics" by Katie Daynes. During the entire week, you can play a scavenger hunt to learn how long plastic and other trash lasts in the ocean and even build your own ecobrick!

The Ocean Discovery Center is located at 340 MLK Jr. Blvd., Savannah, GA. We are open from 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. Check out the link below for summer closure dates and how to plan your trip!

https://graysreef.noaa.gov/visit/centers/

Graphic by Danielle Oxman/NOAA

08/14/2026

As you head into the weekend, take some time to enjoy these marsh views!

Want to learn about wetlands and salt marshes? Next week for Sanctuary Summer at the Ocean Discovery Center, we are getting marsh mad! Learn all about these important ecosystems during this fun, themed week of summer programming. To learn about the activites, head to the link below.

https://graysreef.noaa.gov/visit/centers/

Video by Nick Zachar/NOAA

08/12/2026

Welcome back to school! As you are preparing for a full year of awesome learning, consider planning a trip to the Gray's Reef Ocean Discovery Center. We offer a variety of educational experiences for schools, groups, and all! With a focus on Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary, our educators love sharing the wonders of ocean ecosystems.

While you can begin your planning now, school groups will be welcomed into the Center beginning September 8th, 2026.

Check out our website for information about how to book your trip to the Ocean Discovery Center today!

https://graysreef.noaa.gov/visit/centers/

Content by NOAA. Music by Universal Production Music

It may not be March, but we are starting marsh madness at the Gray's Reef Ocean Discovery Center!From August 18 - 21st, ...
08/11/2026

It may not be March, but we are starting marsh madness at the Gray's Reef Ocean Discovery Center!

From August 18 - 21st, learn all about the incredible world of salt marshes! Join our educators on Tuesday, August 18th at 11:00 a.m. for a reading of "As the Tide Comes In ... Exploring a Georgia Salt Marsh" by Merryl Alber. All week long our educators will also be running a competition on who can build the most resilient marsh in our wetland in a pan activity! Lastly, help us turn the Ocean Discovery Center into a marsh by adding your own living organisms.

The Ocean Discovery Center is located at 340 MLK Jr. Blvd., Savannah, GA. We are open from 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. Check out the link below for summer closure dates and how to plan your trip!

https://graysreef.noaa.gov/visit/centers/

Graphic by Danielle Oxman/NOAA

08/06/2026

Happy International Scuba Day!

From fish surveys to invertebrate surveys, much of the research done at Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary is by scuba divers. While diving can be tiring, celebrate today by enjoying the relaxing sounds our divers hear when researching the sanctuary.

You can learn more about diving at Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary by visiting the link below.
https://graysreef.noaa.gov/visit/diving/sights-and-sounds.html

Content by NOAA

Creature feature!Today is National Oyster Day and we wanted to highlight an oyster that has been seen at Gray's Reef Nat...
08/05/2026

Creature feature!

Today is National Oyster Day and we wanted to highlight an oyster that has been seen at Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary. This is an Atlantic wing oyster. They are often seen attached to stalks of gorgonians on reefs or areas of hardbottom. These oysters can occasionally produce pearls but of no commercial value.

You can learn about more invertebrates on our website!

Content by Greg McFall.

Are you ready to learn some super awesome science skills?Join us for our next Super Sanctuary Summer theme: SCIENCE! Fro...
08/04/2026

Are you ready to learn some super awesome science skills?

Join us for our next Super Sanctuary Summer theme: SCIENCE! From August 12th - 14th, the Gray's Reef Ocean Discovery Center will be offering hands on activities like learning about the science of microplastics and how to build an aluminum research vessel! On Wednesday, August 12th, listen in to story time with Cece Loves Science by Kimberly Derting and Shelli R. Johannes.

As a reminder, the Discovery Center will be closed on Tuesday August 11th for a staff development day!

The Ocean Discovery Center is located at 340 MLK Jr. Blvd., Savannah, GA. We are open from 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. Check out the link below for summer closure dates and how to plan your trip!

https://graysreef.noaa.gov/visit/centers/

Did you know it can take 3 days for water from the Altamaha Sound to reach Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary? On Tu...
08/03/2026

Did you know it can take 3 days for water from the Altamaha Sound to reach Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary?

On Tuesday, September 1, 2015 researchers from Georgia Southern University and Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary released 50 gallons of a non-toxic red dye (rhodamine WT) into the Altamaha River. Runoff from coastal communities affects coastal and offshore waters and sediments, including Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary. While contaminant concentrations have been relatively low in previous years, contaminants have been discovered in the sediment and edible tissues of fish and shellfish species within the sanctuary.

Routine monitoring continues to be conducted at Gray's Reef, both at the surface and bottom of the water column, to determine what contaminants may be present and if or when any changes may occur.

With August being water quality month, we wanted to share some ways we study water quality. Check out the last photo for things you can do!

You can learn more about water quality in Gray's Reef at the link below!

https://sanctuaries.noaa.gov/science/sentinel-site-program/grays-reef/water-quality.html

Photos by NOAA.

Don't forget about the Get Into Your Sanctuary Photo Contest! This photo is an excellent example of one of the new categ...
07/31/2026

Don't forget about the Get Into Your Sanctuary Photo Contest!

This photo is an excellent example of one of the new categories: Life in Motion! It features Atlantic Spadefish. This particular fish is known to swim in large groups called schools, looking for sea jellies to snack on.
Spadefish are known as Gray’s Reef’s “Welcoming Party”, swimming with divers in schools of 10-100 fish. Now that is a lot of classmates' names to remember!

Checkout the other new submission categories!

Life in Motion
Sanctuaries and You
The Water’s Edge
Ripples from the Past

We can’t wait to see how you through your submissions. Be sure to submit your photos before the Labor Day deadline and share them using the hashtag .

Visit sanctuaries.noaa.gov/photo-contest.html and follow to learn more!

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Office/10 Ocean Science Cir
Savannah, GA
31411

Telephone

+19125982434

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