Nicole Helgason
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Nicole Helgason is a professional scuba diver and can often be found photographing corals and sharing her passion about coral reefs around the world. Nicole is Reef Builders Event Manager and is responsible for running ReefStock shows in Denver and Sydney. Nicole is also a manager for Reef Builders social media accounts and a weekly contributor to the Reef Builders site. Nicole has a Bachelors degree in Coastal Geography from the University of Victoria, and is originally from Vancouver Canada.

Surprising Growth Rates Found In Deep Water Leptoseris Coral

New research published in the journal Coral Reefs revealed unexpectedly high growth rates for deep water photosynthetic coral. The study measured growth rates of deep water Leptoseris corals in Hawaii and found growth rates between 1in – 0.3in or (25mm – 7.5mm)…

Tips For Taking Better Aquarium Pictures

Are your aquarium pictures always turning out blue, even when the colors appear bright and vibrant to your eyes? Here are a few tricks you can use to cut out the blue and bring color back to your images. Gel…

Coral Loss Can Lead To Bigger Fish Size, But The Results Are Short-Lived

According to a new study published in Functional Ecology, turf algae that grows on dead coral branches is a food bonanza for herbivorous fish. Turf algae overgrows corals after bleaching events and herbivorous fish like parrotfish, surgeonfish and rabbitfish grow even bigger in…

What Eats the Crown-of-Thorns Starfish? The Answer is Found in Fish Poop.

Crown-of-thorn starfish are coral-eating predators that can have more than a dozen legs and grow to 30 inches across. The starfish gets its name from the toxic thorn-like spines covering its body, which resemble a biblical “crown of thorns”. In…

Tools for Fragging Corals

Fragmenting coral or ‘fragging’ may look complicated but with the right tools, the job can be quick and rewarding. Once you have the right tools for fragging you’ll be on your way to multiplying your coral supply. To make it…

Juvenile Great White Shark Diet Surprises Scientists

Scientists inspected the stomach contents of 40 juvenile white sharks and were surprised to see how long they spend hunting along the seabed. “The stereotype of a shark’s dorsal fin above the surface as it hunts is probably not a…

64,000 Sea Turtles Recorded Off The Coast of Australia

The Great Barrier Reef Foundation has release incredible footage showing tens of thousands of green sea turtles swimming near Raine Island, North of Cairns Australia. The green sea turtles are coming ashore on Raine Island, which is about 620 kilometres…

Five Full Tanks From Instagram With #ReefBuilders

Last week we featured five nano tanks using #reefbuilders, and couldn’t help but browse the # again only this time for full tanks. Running full-size tanks like these requires dedication, and we can only imagine the time and money spent…

Banggai Cardinalfish Are Full Of Personality To Quickly Fill A Small Tank

When deciding what fish to get for our new reef tank, a captive-bred Banggai cardinalfish was always at the top of my list. Hardy, and adaptable and full of personality we knew the Banggai cardinal would be a perfect fit.…

Shrimp World! Take A Peek At Some Of The Worlds Tiniest Saltwater Shrimp [VIDEO]

Feast your eyes on some of the ocean’s most teeny-tiny shrimps! Filmed and edited by Marcelo Johan Ogata ‘BugDreamer’, the video Shrimp World is packed with some of the ocean’s most exotic, and iconic crustaceans. Marcelo’s is an underwater filmmaker…