Category: Ocean Awareness

Dolphins with Elevated Mercury Levels in Florida and Georgia

6/28/2024 - By ecomagazine.com. In a study with potential implications for the oceans and human health, scientists reported elevated mercury levels in dolphins in the US Southeast, with the greatest levels found in dolphins in Florida's St. Joseph and Choctawhatchee Bays. Dolphins are considered a "sentinel species" for oceans and human health… SEE MORE

The Pointe-Noire Interpretation and Observation Centre, near the village Tadoussac in Quebec, is a whale-watching and research hotspot. Photo by Adrien Le Toux/Alamy Stock Photo

Quieting the Global Growl

6/14/2024 - By Amorina Kingdom. Underwater noise from ships has gotten louder, reshaping marine ecosystems and the lives of animals that depend on sounds to eat, mate, and navigate. Can ships ever pipe down? It’s late September, and autumn colors flush the forested slopes of Quebec’s Laurentian Mountains. Sun dapples the two-lane… SEE MORE

Observing the Ocean

6/12/2024 - By gmri.org. The ocean is a big, ever-changing system. Fish are constantly moving around and weather conditions can change in an instant. This makes studying marine ecosystems challenging, but scientists have some innovative tools at their disposal to make it easier. Looking out at the Gulf of Maine, it may… SEE MORE

World’s Longest Wave?

6/9/2024 - By bluemarble.nasa.gov. The waters off the Pacific coast of northern Peru routinely build what has been called the world’s longest wave. There’s no way to know for sure, but the seemingly endless waves that roll up to the fishing town of Puerto Malabrigo (Chicama) are legendary among surfers. While some… SEE MORE

‘Knight in Spiny Armor’: Could Cobsters Help Save Florida’s Dying Corals?

6/5/2024 - By Richard Luscombe. A three-year study found that the spiny lobsters’ urine scared off predatory worms and snails who snack on the delicate organisms. An unexpected champion has emerged in the increasingly grave battle to save Florida’s imperiled coral reefs: spiny lobsters that urinate in the water and scare off… SEE MORE

The Doomsday Glacier is melting − fast. How Sea Level Rise Could Drench The World Map.

6/4/2024 - By Doyle Rice. More unsettling news from the bottom of the world. Scientists have uncovered evidence of "vigorous melting" at Antarctica’s Thwaites Glacier, (aka the "Doomsday Glacier") according to a new study published Monday in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. And for the first time, there is visible… SEE MORE

NOAA Predicts a Below-Normal 2024 Central Pacific Hurricane Season

5/25/2024 - By ecomagazine.com. The 2024 central Pacific hurricane season outlook from forecasters at NOAA’s Central Pacific Hurricane Center and NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center, calls for 1–4 tropical cyclones across the central Pacific Hurricane region. A near-normal season has 4 or 5 tropical cyclones, which include tropical depressions, tropical storms, and hurricanes.… SEE MORE

A species of zooplankton called Calanus finmarchicus floats in a sample jar in a laboratory at the Gulf of Maine Research Institute on Sept. 2, 2015. Credit: Gregory Rec/Portland Portland Press Herald via Getty Images)

Peeking into the Ocean’s Microscopic Baby Boom

5/8/2024 - By Kelly Fretwell and Adrienne Mason. The northeast Pacific Ocean is home to an astonishing array of marine creatures—spiky urchins, multiarmed sea stars, soft sea slugs the color of lemons, and barnacles with their heads glued to rocks. Strolling the seashore or diving below the ocean’s surface, we can see the adult… SEE MORE

Transforming Waste Fishing Gear into Profitable Resources

3/28/2024 - By Paul Molyneaux. Discarded fishing gear is a major contributor to ocean pollution. According to Ben Kneppers, who along with David Stover and Kevin Ahearn, co-founded the fishing net recycling company, Bureo, around 600,000 tons of fishing gear ends up in the ocean every year and continues to kill marine life.… SEE MORE

Virginia Lawmakers Move to Protect Commercial Fishermen from Harassment at Sea

3/27/2024 - By Larry Chowning. The Virginia General Assembly has passed HB 928, a bill designed to protect commercial fishermen and their boats from harassment at sea. The measure passed 38-1 by the state Senate and 99-0 in the lower House, and was signed on by legislative leaders in early March. Gov.… SEE MORE