Truly Giant Cuttlefish in False Bay, South Australia
Spencer Gulf in South Australia hosts the world’s largest cuttlefish mass spawning event. Each winter from May to August, thousands of Australian giant cuttlefish (Sepia apama) make…
Marine Biology
Build Back Smaller? Extinction and Origination Patterns Change After Mass Extinctions
A sweeping analysis of marine fossils from most of the past half-billion years shows the usual rules of body size evolution change during mass extinctions…
The Unusual Suspects: Mysterious Case of the Aquarium’s Disappearing Anti-Parasitic Medicine
Hungry microbes found responsible for stealing from Shedd Aquarium’s animals. For months, veterinarians put medicine into the animals’ quarantine habitats at Chicago’s Shedd Aquarium, ensuring…
Hidden Mangrove Forest Deep in the Heart of the Yucatan Peninsula Reveals Ancient Sea Levels
Researchers investigate an ancient coastal ecosystem found more than 120 miles from the nearest ocean, revealing sea level impacts from the last interglacial period. Deep…
Region of “Super Corals” Discovered Thriving in Extremely High Levels of Carbon Dioxide
In 2019, a hydrology professor at The University of Texas at Austin set out on a research project to see if he could identify harmful…
Coral Microbiome (Bacteria, Fungi and Viruses) Is Key to Surviving Climate Change
Researchers tease apart contributions of symbiotic bacteria and algae to corals’ heat tolerance and identify genes involved in stress response. The microbiomes of corals —…
Coral Reef Biodiversity Predicted To Shuffle Rather Than Collapse As Climate Changes With Ocean Warming and Acidification
Coral reefs are among the most biologically diverse, complex, and productive ecosystems on the planet. Most of coral reef biodiversity consists of tiny organisms living…
Seaweed Farms in River Estuaries Can Significantly Reduce Nitrogen Concentrations and Prevent Environmental Pollution
A new study by Tel Aviv University and University of California, Berkeley proposes a model according to which the establishment of seaweed farms in river…
Subtle Cloud Shadows Cue Mini-Migrations
Zooplankton swim up and down repeatedly due to subtle changes in daylight intensity. Cued by the setting sun, droves of zooplankton and small fish each…
Hundreds of Cape Fur Seals Entangled in Fishing Lines and Nets Every Year – Causing Horrific Injuries and Painful Deaths
High number of affected animals were pups and juveniles, which were mainly entangled around the neck by fishing line. Fishing line and nets are having…
Coral Reef Cover, Biodiversity, and Fish Catches Have Declined by Half Since the 1950s
Coral reefs around the world are under threat because of climate change, overfishing, pollution, and more. Now, researchers reporting in the journal One Earth today (September…
Neptune’s Vishnu Otter: A New Species Discovered in Germany
An Indian Otter found at Hammerschmiede: Neptune’s Vishnu otter arrived 11.4 million years ago from Southeast Asia. Researchers from the Universities of Tübingen and Zaragoza…
Climate Change Likely To Abruptly Impact Algae in the Global Ocean
Global warming is likely to cause abrupt changes to important algal communities because of shifting biodiversity ‘break point’ boundaries in the oceans – according to…
Global Ocean Patterns of Mercury Pollution Revealed by Bluefin Tuna
Researchers studied mercury accumulation in the migratory species around the world. Bluefin tuna, a long-lived migratory species that accumulates mercury as it ages, can be…
Tiger Beach Research Reveals Tiger Sharks Have Social Preferences for One Another
New research indicates that baited shark diving can influence tiger shark social behavior. Scientists at the University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric…
The Mystery of the Transforming Flexible Shell: Cryo-Tomography “Opened the Door To Reveal the Secret”
An international research team with participation of the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI has revealed a secret about a marine animal’s shell: The researchers have deciphered…
Genetic Mystery of the Seadragon Solved
Seadragons (Phyllopetryx taeniolatus) live off the coast in western and southern Australia. An international team involving evolutionary biologist Axel Meyer from the University of Konstanz…
Bowfin Genetics Reveals Old Dogfish Can Teach Researchers New Tricks
International team of researchers sequence genome of the enigmatic bowfin fish. The fish species Amia calva goes by many names including bowfin, freshwater dogfish, grinnel,…