You can now catch an Uber to the Great Barrier Reef, one of the great wonders of the world.
Tourists visiting Australia’s Great Barrier Reef can now hail an Uber that can take them on a tour of the famous coral reef.
Partnering with Tourism and Events Queensland, tourists will be able to book the world’s first rideshare submarine called ‘ScUber‘.
The ride will cost $1500 per person with the first departure taking place on May 27.
This once-in-a-lifetime opportunity will take passengers underwater where they will get an up close look at one of the world’s most important diverse ecosystems.
Starting with a helicopter ride, passengers will be transported to the submarine before starting their tour of the vast coral reef, designated one of the great wonders of the world.
During the journey, passengers will be get 180-degree views of the reef, travel down to the depths of up to 30 metres, all without having to get their hair wet.
A designated World Heritage Area since 1981, the Great Barrier Reef was the world’s first reef ecosystem recognised by UNESCO.
The Great Barrier is comprised of thousands of individual reefs and hundreds of islands.
As well as the colourful coral, the reef is home to a wide selection of marine life including Whales, Turtles, Clown Fish, and Manta Rays. In total, there over 1,500 species of fish.
Uber will be donating $100,000 to to Citizens of the Great Barrier Reef to help support their Reef conservation programs and the equivalent value of every ‘scUber’ booking taken during the available hire period.
The once-in-a-lifetime experience will be bookable exclusively through the Uber app, strictly subject to availability, from 27 May – 18 June 2019.
Have you experienced the Great Barrier Reef?
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Dive Sites on the South Coast off Sussex
The Indiana is located roughly one mile out to see from Worthing Pier. It rests in 8-12m of water depending on the tide. The Indiana was a British steam ship returning from Sicily with its cargo of lemons or oranges (although these have long since gone). She sank due to a collision with a German steam ship called the Washington who survived the crash while on her journey to New York.
This is one of our most frequently dive wrecks as it is perfect for novice and experienced divers. It has bags of marine life including large schools of Bib and Whiting, congor eels, crabs and shell fish. A great way to enter the world of UK sea diving.
There’s not much left of the structure of the Indiana as the tides have flattened much of it.
South West Rocks
This is a mini-wall / ledge that runs parallel to the shoreline between Shoreham by Sea, Brighton and Worthing. The wall is only 1-4m high but is really colourful and is home to eels, oysters, sleeping cod and crabs. A great shallow second dive on the way back to the marina.
Another one of our favourites but only suitable for Advanced open water dives and above due to it’s maximum depth of around 30m. The Fortuna lies on the Sussex seabed around 8 miles to the South East of Brighton. She is a great wreck for divers as she is still upright and relatively intact.
The Indian was a Dutch steamship that was 270ft long and a beam of 36ft. On 22nd October 2016 during World War 1 she struck a mine which resulted in the death of 15 of her crew. You can still see where the bomb exploded where you can enter the hull and swim the entire length of the hull. We advise your divers not to do this unless they have their wreck specialty as it can get very silty inside if you don’t know what you’re doing. Inside you can still see some of the cargo she was carrying such as bags of cement.
Often referred to as the ‘Titanic of Sussex’ due to her size. The Ocean was a huge P&O passenger liner that sank on 16th March 1912. She was 468 foot long, a beam of 52ft and weighed over 6,000 tons. She was built in 1888 and was then a state of the art ship to ferry passengers around the world in comfort. She collided with another ship called the Pisagna which was a 2,850 ton German 4 masted steel ship.
At low tide is she rests upright in 24m of water. The superstructure has now collapsed but the sides of the ship are still upright and in shape. You can still see the 7000hp engine and boilers which are home to hundreds of empty scallop shells.
This is probably the best dive in Sussex and every diver will find something of interest. Lobsters, scallops and crabs are scattered around the wreck and many different species of fish have made this their home. Most interesting of all the ship was reportedly carrying gold and silver ingots and not all of them were ever salvaged.
The Pentrych sank on 28th April 1918 as a result of a torpedo from UB-40. This 3,382 ton British steamship was carrying a cargo of coal and sank to a depth of 22m making only accessible for Advanced open water divers or above. Her bow is upright and the stern is also in tact but the middle of the ship has now collapsed, the boiler and engine rooms are partially visible as a result. On the stern is still the large gun. There is plenty of marine life including lots of scallops for those wanting a treat when they return home.


Conservation & Education
Conservation through innovation. Awareness through experience.
Ocean conservation is Biota’s #1 priority.
We believe that innovation and education are the best ways to protect and restore our marine environment. Aquaculture is essential for the future.
We must plant the sea and herd its animals using the sea as farmers instead of hunters. That is what civilization is all about – farming replacing hunting.
Our ocean is under threat
It’s no secret that the ocean is under increasing pressure from climate change, industrial fishing, pollution and other threats.
In the Pacific alone, several areas of reef have completely disappeared, taking with them a wide range of species, from corals, sponges and clams to turtles, rays and fish.
The status quo cannot continue. At Biota, we are doing everything we can to develop more sustainable aquaculture solutions. It’s our way of helping to safeguard the future of our marine environment.
Aquariums are the windows to our oceans
Our belief is that Aquariums play a very important role in Ocean Conservation. Our vision is to see an Aquarium in every science classroom in the world!
We are convinced that by bringing the awe and beauty of our Oceans into people’s lives we create passion for its protection.
Many people in our research and conservation partners institutions and fellow aquaculture community choose to dedicate their lives to ocean conservation and research due to a connection to the oceans firstly planted in their minds as kids being fascinated about the beauty of a vibrant Reef Aquarium.
Only if these Aquariums are fully sustainably stocked with cultured fish, coral, clams can we achieve this goal as we do not want to take from our oceans.


Palau’s cobalt drop-offs, prisms of colorful coral reefs and virtually limitless variety of sea life in this tropical paradise wow snorkelers, from beginners to experienced, with over fifty existing sites, each different from the next. Snorkeling is year-round in Palau and during the busiest season from January to April, spectacular sights such as migratory whale sharks passing by, sharks or mantas mating, and large schools of fish spawning can be seen.
Palau boasts the daring and the unusual – like Jellyfish Lake, where two types of jellyfish can be found, namely the golden jellyfish known as Mastigias and the moon jellyfish known as Aurelia. This intriguing enclosed marine lake departs radically from convention as over the course of millennia, resident jellyfish have completely lost their sting due to a lack of predators, allowing interested adventure seekers a rare opportunity to swim amongst these truly unique water creatures.
While the best locations for snorkeling in Palau are accessible by boat, closer to Koror, a visit to Dolphins Pacific, the world’s largest Dolphin Research Facility and a Non-Profit Corporation, is where one can interact with a dolphin while supervised by the dolphin trainer. For those who do not wish to get their feet wet, the Palau International Coral Reef Center, featuring the Palau Aquarium, is the most ideal place to see the best of underwater Palau. This marine research center showcases outdoor pools and indoor aquariums teeming with marine life from mangrove forest to outer reef.


Walt Dineen Society Annual Conference '97
|Session VII: Marine Ecology
||Abstract #: 97708
SEAGRASS MONITORING IN THE FLORIDA KEYS NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARY
Willsie, A.A.1, Fourqurean, J.W.1, Durako, M.D.2 and Zieman, J.C.3
1 Southeast Environmental Research Program and Department of Biology, Florida International University, Miami, Fl, 33199;
2 Florida Marine Research Institute, Florida Department of Environmental Protection, 100 8th Ave. SE, St. Petersburg, Fl 33701;
3 Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22903.
The purpose of seagrass monitoring in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary (FKNMS) is to measure the status and trends of seagrass communities to evaluate progress toward protecting and restoring the marine resources of the Sanctuary. Specific objectives are: 1) To provide data needed to make unbiased, statistically rigorous statements about the status and temporal trends of seagrass communities in the Sanctuary as a whole and within defined strata; 2) To define reference conditions in order to develop resource-based water quality standards; and 3) To provide a framework for testing hypothesized pollutant fate/effect relationships through process-oriented research and monitoring. To reach these goals, four kinds of data are being collected in seagrass beds in the FKNMS: 1) Distribution and abundance of seagrasses using rapid assessment Braun-Blanquet surveys; 2) Demographics of the seagrass communities using leaf-scar counting and population demographics techniques; 3) Seagrass productivity of the dominant species of seagrass (Thalassia testudinum) using the leaf-mark and harvest method; and 4) Seagrass nutrient availability using tissue concentration assays. We assess both inter-annual and intra-annual trends in seagrass communities. The mix of site types is intended to monitor trends through quarterly sampling at a few permanent locations and to annually characterize the broader seagrass population through less intensive, one-time sampling at more locations. Clear spatial and seasonal patterns in productivity, demographics, distribution, abundance, and elemental content are present in the data.


Shell beach is located on Hamelin Road about 45km from Denham, at Shark Bay, Western Australia. The beach stretches approximately 110km with the shell build up between 7-10m deep. By the way, don’t forget to take your sunglasses, because the glare can be blinding.
The beach is covered in millions and millions of small white cockle shells. The shells are known as Cardiid Cockles, a species that live in the coastal waters between Dampier and the Abrolhos Islands in Western Australia.
The reason for this high accumulation of shells is due to the high salinity (salt concentration) in the area between Lharidon Bight and Hamelin Pool. The high salt level results in the rapid breeding of this particular species. Its main predator, the shell grilling gastropods, can not survive very well in the salty conditions, therefore allowing the shells to live quite untroubled in the two bays.
The beach has been formed over thousands of years. As storms washed up sediment (sand, debris and shells) from the floor of the bay onto the shore, the strong winds blew away the sand and debris leaving only the shells. Over the years the shells eventually cement together to form soft coquina limestone. This coquina limestone has been quarried and used as blocks to build many of Shark Bay’s old buildings.


Gulf coast oil disaster to an estimated $20 billion settlement in the 2010 bp oil spill in the gulf of mexico evidence showing his company’s culpability in the bp oil spill disaster . In early march a 30,000-pound mat of oily gunk washed up on east grand terre, a barrier island in the mouth of louisiana’s barataria bay it was an ugly reminder of the blowout at bp’s macondo . Deepwater horizon review – bp oil spill drama captures heroics and heartache 4 out of 5 stars mark wahlberg stars in peter berg’s excellent nail-biting drama about the 2010 disaster that cost . Bp oil spill which is also known as gulf of mexico and deepwater horizon oil spill is the largest marine oil spill throughout the history which was caused by an explosion on offshore oil platform namely deepwater horizon on 20th april, 2010 located at the mississippi river delta.
Oil from bp spill still degrading historic shipwreck us approves $20 billion settlement with bp over 2010 deepwater horizon oil spill bp reaches settlement in 2010 gulf spill disaster. 6 years from the bp deepwater horizon oil spill: what we’ve learned, and what we shouldn’t misunderstand very quickly the disaster became the worst oil spill in the history of the united . Response crews battle fire on bp-operated oil rig deepwater horizon in the gulf of mexico on 21 april 2010 photograph: ho/afp/getty images the 2010 deepwater horizon oil spill disaster may have .
The deepwater horizon oil spill (also referred to as the bp oil spill, the bp oil disaster the gulf of mexico oil spill, and the macondo blowout) is an oil spill in the gulf of mexico which flowed unabated for three months in 2010, and continues to seep. The deepwater horizon disaster the bp oil spill otherwise known as the deepwater horizon oil spill is considered the largest marine related spill in the oil and gas industry and it occurred in the mexican gulf from around the 20th of april back in 2010. The companies involved in the gulf of mexico oil spill made decisions to cut costs and save time that contributed to the disaster, a us panel has concluded in a chapter of its final report, to be . Bp has been fibbing about the size of this mega-disaster, and their ability to stop it appears doubtful it may already be the second largest spill in history, with no end in sight the oil appears to be shooting from multiple vents, moving below as well as on the surface.
The bp disaster was by far the worst oil disaster in us history it spewed as much oil in just days as the entire exxon valdez spill and eclipsed the notorious ixtoc blowout in the gulf of mexico in 1979, which leaked 138 million gallons of crude. Lawmakers divvy up $750 million bp oil disaster settlement the bp oil spill settlement plan that divides up $700 million from the settlement, with most of it going to coastal counties, before . The oil that leaked was a light crude that degrades and dissolves more quickly than the heavy oil that, for example, washed ashore in alaska after the 1989 exxon valdez disaster. Timeline of bp oil spill, disasters linked to the news articles and displayed as icons.
Bp is responsible for close to $40 billion in fines, cleanup costs, and settlements as a result of the oil spill in 2010, with an additional $16 billion due to the clean water act over 30,000 people responded to the spill in the gulf coast working to collect oil, clean up beaches, take care of animals and perform various other duties. Study examines what lives in the gulf of mexico after bp disaster so that may be one of the at-risk areas in case of a future oil spill a disaster like deepwater horizon could more easily . The worst part about bp’s oil-spill cover-up: it worked gunk coating the floor of the “floating hotel” where griffin was feeding hundreds of cleanup workers during the bp oil disaster in . Bp oil spill timeline category entertainment the oil spill by the numbers | time - duration: deepwater horizon disaster, five years later - duration: 10:25.
Here's a look at the largest spills in world history and how the gulf oil spill and the exxon valdez disaster compare the 13 largest oil spills in history 5 years after bp oil spill . Bp to take $17 billion charge over deepwater horizon spill image a controlled burn of spilled oil that was conducted after the deepwater horizon oil rig explosion in 2010 in the gulf of mexico. Bp, the company behind the deadly deepwater horizon oil spill disaster, the biggest in history, has claimed an oil spill off the south australian coast would be a good thing, as the clean up would boost local economies bp made the outlandish claim as part of its bid to drill for oil in the pristine .


This Specimen has been sold.
3.9" Fossil Whale Ear Bone - Miocene
This is a 3.9" fossilized whale inner ear bone (Tympanic Bulla) that is Miocene in age. It was collected in the Southeast United States where they are found associated with Megalodon teeth and other fossil shark teeth. This is a very well preserved specimen. An area of bone is exposed on the proximal end of the bone. The opposite end has a polychaete worm shell that occurred after fossilization.


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There are, in the depths of the oceans, many mysterious and unknown animals, like the chimera.
The chimera is different in many ways from other fish. This strange animal is scattered all over the world, between 100 and 1700 meters deep. In summer, it sometimes rises to the surface but, in winter, it seeks the depths, where the temperature variations are less important.
Its appearance is quite appealing because it has large eyes, a head more prominent than the rest of the body and a fairly long caudal fin. Since it can measure between one and two meters, it has been given the term “underwater monster”.
These strange animals are part of the group of chimeriforms, an order of cartilaginous fish. Their skulls differentiate them from the rest of the abyssal fish, which explains why they constitute a particular subclass: that of the holocephali. In this subclass, chimeras are accompanied by other fishes known as ” ghost sharks “.
Today, only 47 species of chimeriforms survive.
Characteristics of chimeras
As we have already commented, its aspect is extremely curious:
- At first, they have a large protruding head. We detect a grotesque face due to the appearance given to it by the two mucous channels. Their upper mandible blends into the rest of the skull
- Secondly, they have a long spindle-shaped tail, typical of many deep -sea fish.
- Thirdly, their eyes are phosphorescent green, full of photoreceptors to optimize their vision in the depths
Monstrous chimera. By Andy Murch – ELASMODIVER
These characteristics are those which gave it the name of “chimera”, a term which recalls the monsters of Greek mythology made up of parts of different animals.
They can measure up to two meters, the largest part being that of their disproportionate tail. Females are also larger than males. They have a body devoid of scales, compressed laterally, developed lengthwise and very thin towards the tail.
Their skeleton is cartilaginous, like that of the elasmobranchs – sharks and rays. However, it only consists of two gill openings, which brings them closer to bony fish.
Another of their most striking features is the tip it has on the front of the spine. They can, with it, cause deep wounds and even inoculate poison with their predators .
Their bite is very painful; despite everything, it is not fatal for humans, unless they are allergic to it.
The chimeras feed on molluscs and other small animals on the seabed, such as crabs , shrimps or starfish. They have teeth which are real crushers.
Reproduction of the chimera
Chimeras have pterygopods which act as male external sexual organs. And, sometimes, they have a small “pseudo-pterygopod” on the head, like some prehistoric sharks.
The males take advantage of this fleshy protuberance that they have between the eyes to hold the females during copulation.
The female lays her eggs and buries them in the sand. Each egg remains enclosed in a horny capsule and lined with hair.
Chimaera monstrosa : the monstrous chimera of our seas
It is a species of chimera typical of the northwest of the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. It seems to prefer the upper continental platform, between 300 and 500 meters deep.
In the Mediterranean Sea, this species is found from 100 meters deep but is more abundant between 500 and 800 meters. Specimens have been identified 650 meters deep in the Balearic Sea, and 800 meters deep in the Ionian Sea.


✓ Accidental boat groundings damage the reef and seagrass beds. Consult tide and navigational charts and steer clear of shallow areas (shallow, seagrass beds appear brown in color).
✓ Land-based sources of pollution can affect water quality and the coral reef, including excessive use of chemical fertilizers, oil & chemical spills, trash, sewage. Minimize these sources to reduce the stress on the reef system.
Visitors, residents and members of the community who want to be a part of the Florida Reef Resilience program can participate in any of the volunteer programs listed below. Each program has been designed to engage the community in being a part of the early detection of marine events and increase the number of eyes and ears on the reef. Everyone who knows and loves the reef has a role to play in the Florida Reef Resilience program.
What does this program do: The Southeast Florida Action Network (SEAFAN) is a reporting and response system designed to improve the protection and management of southeast Florida’s coral reefs by increasing response to vessel groundings and anchor damage, and providing early detection of potentially harmful biological disturbances.
Who can help: people who spend time on the water, such as divers, snorkelers, commercial and recreational fishermen, boaters, law enforcement personnel, environmental professionals and anyone else who uses the water or visits the coast. Everyone can contribute to the network by being the eyes and ears on the reef.
What can you do: Report any unusual sightings, including marine debris, vessel groundings and anchor damage, invasive species, harmful algal blooms, fish disease and fish kills, discolored water, and coral disease and bleaching. There is no special training needed and no further participation is required; just report what, when, and where the incident was observed
Areas covered: SEAFAN covers the northern third of the Florida Reef Tract, from the northern border of Biscayne National Park in Miami-Dade County to the St. Lucie Inlet in Martin County
How to Report : Call the SEAFAN hotline at 866-770-SEFL (7335) or fill out the online report form.
What does this program do: C-OCEAN is designed to provide early detection and assessment of biological events occurring in the Florida Keys. Such events could be observations of coral disease or bleaching, algal blooms or discolored water, diseased animals or mortality, sick or stranded dolphins and turtles, as well as other “unusual” observations
Who can help: people who spend time on the water, such as divers, snorkelers, commercial and recreational fishermen, boaters, law enforcement personnel, environmental professionals and anyone else who uses the water or visits the coast. Everyone can contribute to the network by being the eyes and ears on the Florida Keys reefs.
What can you do: There is no paperwork involved, no specialized training needed, and no other participation or effort is required. By simply providing what, where, and when something unusual was observed, residents can provide scientists with the information needed to detect potentially large scale events as they develop.
Areas covered: Florida Keys
What does this program do: Coral bleaching, which is the corals’ loss of their symbiotic algae called zooxanthellae, is a natural event that occurs to some extent every year in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary(FKNMS). While records show that coral bleaching events have been occurring for many years in the Florida Keys, indications are that the frequency and severity has steadily increased since the 1980’s. Large-scale mass coral bleaching events are driven by unusually warm sea temperatures. The effects of these mass events are potentially devastating to ecosystems and the people who depend on them. Modeled after the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority’s “BleachWatch” program, specially trained volunteers known as the Florida Keys “BleachWatch” observers collect field observations to monitor for signs of coral bleaching. The data is consolidated with satellite and monitoring data, data with field observations by trained “BleachWatch” observers, and provided to the FKNMS with a summary, or “current conditions report”, throughout the summer.
Who can help: Volunteer divers or snorkelers who can provide reports from the reef on the actual condition of corals throughout the bleaching season
What can you do . Depending on how frequently you visit the reef there are two different ways that you can report coral bleaching: a) Become a BleachWatch Professional The Professional program is for divers who visit a particular reef on a regular schedule. Weekly monitoring of these reefs will help gauge the pre-bleaching coral composition and help determine the susceptibility of your site to bleaching. A short training session is required for this, or b) be part of the BleachWatch Community. The Community program is designed for observers who make occasional reef trips or do not frequent the same reef sites.
Areas covered: Florida Keys
How to Get Started: contact Cory Walter, BleachWatch Coordinator, at Mote Marine Laboratory – (305)395-8730.


Genus: Gramma, Thin-rayed Basslet, Basslets, Grammas
base C - short rays not thickened
LL 2 parts
Elongate, compressed body; eye large, snout short; mouth at front; teeth on jaws, and front and sides of roof of mouth; preopercle serrated; opercle with 2 short, flat spines; gill rakers long, 15-35; dorsal fin XI-XIV, 6-11; anal fin III, 6-10; pectorals rounded, 14-19; pelvics I, 5, with 1st ray elongated, sometimes reaching past anal fin base; short rays on upper and lower base of tail fin not thick and spiny; lateral line in two parts, upper part ending under end of dorsal fin base, lower part on tail base.
A W Atlantic genus with 5 species; 4 endemics in our area.


Articles in regional publications that pertain to a wide range of North Carolina-related topics.
for Waples, Danielle M
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A capture-recapture survey of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncates) was conducted in the sounds, estuaries and near-shore waters of North Carolina in 2000 and 2006. The abundance of dolphins in this area remained relatively stable between the studies.


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Natural La Jolla: Keep your eye out for green sea turtles at the Shores
By Kelly Stewart
Editor’s note: Today the Light welcomes Kelly Stewart, Ph.D., as the author of a new column: Natural La Jolla. She holds a National Research Council Postdoctoral Fellowship
studying sea turtles at NOAA’s Southwest Fisheries Science Center. She is fascinated
by the beauty and diversity of nature in La Jolla and this biweekly column will
highlight some of the natural wonders that may be found along our coastline. Kelly
lives in La Jolla Village.
Sea turtles in San Diego? The International Sea Turtle Society recently held its annual conference in Mission Valley on the biology and conservation of these creatures. More than 1,000 participants representing more than 90 countries gathered to report highlights of their research and conservation projects worldwide, connect with old friends and talk a lot about turtles!
Although it’s not too widely known, we have sea turtles here in San Diego. Southern California represents the northernmost limit for resident East Pacific green turtles, a subpopulation of the pan-tropical green turtle. These hard-shelled air-breathing reptiles, named for their green body fat, have beautiful carapaces (shells), especially when they are younger. They generally eat aquatic vegetation like eelgrass but may consume invertebrates as well.
One population lives in south San Diego Bay near the now-decommissioned South Bay Power Plant in Chula Vista. This annual grouping of about 40 to 90 turtles spends time in the bay foraging on eelgrass and invertebrates, and lounging about — especially during the winter when the water in the bay is warmer than the ocean.Sea turtles make long-distance migrations from nesting beaches to foraging grounds and San Diego’s green turtles are no exception. In the spring, some of the adults head for nesting grounds in Michoacan and the Revillagigedo Islands in Mexico, returning in the fall.
Turtles are also often spotted in the La Jolla Ecological Reserve by swimmers and kayakers. I’ve overheard the long-distance swimmers report seeing them along their swim route from La Jolla Shores to the Cove. If you are out in the South Bay area, or near the Cove, watch for turtles surfacing to breathe. You may even be lucky enough to spot these endangered creatures while swimming or snorkeling in La Jolla’s coastal waters.
Contact Kelly at NaturalLaJolla@gmail.com.
- McMakin’s colorful mural unveiled in La Jolla
- Weather continues to pummel La Jolla
- Mural draws answers to ‘color question’
- La Jolla village shining after volunteers do their part
- Sea lions: New pinniped problem for La Jolla?
Short URL: http://www.lajollalight.com/?p=40618


The Knifetooth dogfish is a harmless shark found in the Atlantic Ocean. Since it is a rare deepwater shark, not much is known about it. Its name comes from its sharp and angular teeth, which are great for cutting into prey.
Knifetooth Dogfish Scientific Classification
|Scientific name||S. ringens|
Knifetooth dogfish can grow up to 1.1 m (3.6 ft). They have a black body, a large, widely arched mouth filled with razor-sharp teeth, and a short, broad snout. The teeth in the upper jaw are shaped like lance heads, and those in the lower jaw are large and triangular. The gill slits are relatively long, the longest being over half the eye length.
The pectoral fins are narrow. Both the dorsal fins have short spines, with the second dorsal fin being bigger than the first. The tail fin is asymmetrical, with a faint notch and a missing lower lobe. The anal fin is absent.
Where do they live
Map Of The Knifetooth Dogfish Shark’s Habitat
This species inhabits the Eastern Atlantic between the latitudes 58°N and 15°N, from Scotland down to Portugal and from Mauritania to Senegal. It is also possibly found in the Southwest Pacific near New Zealand. It dwells on or near the bottom at depths of 200-1600 m (656-5,249 ft).
They follow an ovoviviparous mode of reproduction. The litter size is unknown.
Their large, sharp teeth suggest they are formidable predators capable of taking down large prey. They also have smooth, streamlined bodies and sharp senses to facilitate hunting.
This shark is a common species in the East Atlantic and is often caught off the Spanish coast as a bycatch. It is susceptible to many fishing methods, such as line gear, fixed bottom nets, and trawlers. The meat is usually dried and salted for consumption.
The IUCN has classed this species as “Vulnerable” or “VU.”


How Have Changing El Nino Forecasts Impacted Atlantic Hurricane Forecasts for 2017
A large number of groups, including government agencies (NOAA hurricane forecast), universities, and private sector companies, currently issue Atlantic basin seasonal hurricane forecasts. Dr. William Gray pioneered seasonal hurricane forecasts for the Atlantic in 1984, and our group at Colorado State University has issued predictions every year since that time.
Over 20 publicly available forecasts are displayed on a website that our group co-developed with the Barcelona Supercomputing Centre. In general, the consensus of current predictions is calling for a slightly above-average hurricane season, when considering either the number of storms or integrated seasonal metrics such as Accumulated Cyclone Energy which takes into account the frequency, intensity and duration of all named storms.
While some forecast agencies issue predictions as early as December of the prior year, most groups begin issuing forecasts at some point from the middle of March through the end of May for the upcoming hurricane season. Scientists from Colorado State University, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the University College-London have recently investigated real-time forecast skill of seasonal Atlantic hurricane forecasts issued in April, late May/early June and early August.
Over the period they investigated, 2003-2015, seasonal forecasts showed limited skill in early April, moderate skill in early June and good skill in early August. While the Atlantic hurricane season officially begins on June 1, over 90% of all recorded major hurricanes have occurred after August 1st. Consequently, many groups issuing seasonal Atlantic hurricane forecasts update their predictions after the official start of the hurricane season. For example, NOAA issues their first seasonal hurricane forecast in early May, and updates their seasonal hurricane forecast in early August.
One of the primary reasons for the large increase in skill from April to August is the improvement in skill of ENSO predictions. The peak of the Atlantic hurricane season is from August-October, and ENSO predictions have historically been characterized by a springtime predictability barrier, in that models show limited skill in prediction through this time period. The primary reason for this decrease in skill is due to weaker sea surface temperature (SST) gradients (these are changes in SSTs over a geographic area; weak gradients mean small changes) and associated low-level winds during this time period. Consequently, we often see rapid springtime changes in SST anomalies in the tropical Pacific.
The El Niño effect
ENSO has been known to be one of the primary drivers of seasonal Atlantic hurricane activity since Dr. Gray published his classic papers on El Niño and Atlantic seasonal hurricane prediction in 1984. El Niño can create conditions that are unfavorable for Atlantic hurricanes. When the atmosphere over the tropical Pacific responds to El Niño’s warmer-than-average surface waters, the Walker Circulation weakens and shifts eastward. This increases upper-level westerly winds and levels of vertical wind shear (the change in the wind direction with height) over the Atlantic basin. On the other hand, La Niña conditions are associated with weaker upper-level westerly winds and reduced levels of vertical wind shear over the Atlantic basin.
Vertical wind shear is detrimental for hurricane formation and intensification, since it tilts the hurricane, which spreads the hurricane warm core over a larger area, increasing the central pressure of the storm. It also promotes mixing of dry air into the storm, suppressing the intense thunderstorm formation necessary for hurricane intensification.
El Niño also is associated with warmer temperatures at upper levels in the atmosphere. These warmer temperatures increase the stability of the tropical Atlantic, which also suppresses thunderstorm development. La Niña, on the other hand, is characterized by colder upper-level temperatures in the atmosphere, reducing stability and increasing thunderstorm development.
A change in the forecast
When we issued our early April 2017 forecasts at Colorado State University, many of the numerical models were fairly aggressive at calling for El Niño to develop by the peak of the Atlantic hurricane season.
At that time, waters in the eastern tropical Pacific were quite warm, and several models amplified this warming across the entire basin. Official NOAA forecasts at the time were somewhat more cautious about El Niño development but still gave it a higher chance than either neutral ENSO or La Niña for August—October 2017.
However, the potential El Niño never came to fruition. The necessary atmospheric coupling to the warm sea surface temperatures did not materialize, and over the past few weeks, tropical Pacific sea surface temperatures have cooled considerably.
As the odds of El Niño diminished from April to August, seasonal hurricane forecasters have generally increased the expected number of storms. For example, in early April our group at Colorado State University was predicting 4 hurricanes for the season, but in early June we increased the prediction to 6 hurricanes and with each of our last two outlooks issued in early July and August we have predicted 8 hurricanes. Other groups have also increased their forecasts over the past several months.
The reduced chance of El Niño is likely the primary reason for the increasing seasonal hurricane forecasts. However, anomalous warming of the tropical Atlantic is another contributing factor to the increase in the forecasts, since warm water provides more fuel for developing hurricanes and is associated with a more unstable atmosphere.
Fundamental challenges still exist for El Niño prediction, especially during the Northern Hemisphere springtime. More research is needed to better understand the physics behind El Niño development, and especially what led to some climate models’ failed prediction of an El Niño event that did not occur in 2014 and 2017. If the springtime predictability barrier can be reduced, downstream forecasts of ENSO impacts, including Atlantic basin seasonal hurricane forecasts, should likewise improve.
For WeatherNation: Meteorologist Mace Michaels


It's the first Earth Day since the BP oil spill. People the world over are still angry, Gulf Coast fishing has not quite recovered, and yet BP might actually have banner profits this year. Of course, as any Earth Day activist would tell you, the Gulf Coast will be coping with the BP oil spill for many Earth Days to come. But how long will those effects last?
The closest precedent is the Exxon Valdez spill off the coast of Alaska in 1989. Though the BP oil spill spewed over 200 million gallons of oil, far larger than the 11-32 million gallons of oil from the Exxon Valdez, the latter was still the biggest spill on record until last year. (Ironically, the Valdez spill occurred on March 23rd, just about one month before Earth Day, and many credited the spill with strong attendance at that year's Earth Day festivities.) In a 2008 study in Environmental Science and Technology, researchers from Bowdoin College, University of Louisville, and environmental consulting firms took hundreds of sediment samples from many of the sites most heavily oiled in 1989. All the samples were analyzed for how much oil had survived after nearly two decades in the water.
Fortunately, the study found that "over 90% of the samples from all sites contained light or no [subsurface oil] at all." Most of the oil appears to have weathered--i.e. disappeared via evaporation, biodegradation, or some other natural process--especially in higher elevations along so-called intertidal zones. The researchers conclude that “most of the Exxon Valdez oil in the Prince William Sound has been eliminated due to natural weathering." Some isolated oil residues remain sequestered beneath large boulders and rocks, but those patches are widely separated from areas frequented by wildlife. So, take comfort Gulf Coasters—20 years after a major disaster a fraction the size of the BP spill, the water's nearly fine!


- 1 How deep do ship anchors go?
- 2 What ship has the biggest anchor?
- 3 How big is the biggest anchor?
- 4 Do ship anchors get stuck?
- 5 Do ships drop anchor in a storm?
- 6 What is the largest ship ever built?
- 7 How heavy is a cargo ship anchor?
- 8 How heavy should my boat anchor be?
- 9 How do large ship anchors work?
- 10 How do you free an anchor?
- 11 How big are anchors on navy ships?
- 12 Is Seawise Giant bigger than Titanic?
- 13 Do aircraft carriers use anchors?
How deep do ship anchors go?
In any case, most of the ship’s windlass are able to lift the weight of the anchor and about 3 shackles. Vessels could easily anchor in depths of about 80 meters. If anchoring in depths more than that, you might need to first check the windlass capacity for the particular ship.
What ship has the biggest anchor?
We’re talking about the biggest ship in the world. It’s called the Triple E and it’s a massive container ship: 1,312 feet long, and 194 feet wide, each link in the ship’s gargantuan anchor chain weighs 500 pounds.
How big is the biggest anchor?
With a length of 106m, a beam of 22m, and 9.45m depth, the vessel is large enough to carry all of the equipment, wires, suction piles and necessary fittings to carry out that task. Laney Chouest is powered by four, MAK 6M43, diesel main engines, generating a total of 29,000hp to drive a twin-screw propulsion system.
Do ship anchors get stuck?
While it’s possible that an anchor gets ”stuck” on a very bad anchorage, it is a rather seldom occurrence. Ships are not held by the anchor ”dug in” only, but in combination with the proper length of chain on the ground.
Do ships drop anchor in a storm?
When a storm rises upon a ship at sea, the wind and waves can threaten to sink it. If the storm rises when the ship is in a harbor, an anchor is dropped from the bow (front) to secure it to solid ground below. No matter which direction the wind blows, a sea anchor keeps the vessel afloat until the storm subsides.
What is the largest ship ever built?
Size record. Seawise Giant was the longest ship ever constructed, at 458.45 m (1,504.1 ft), longer than the height of many of the world’s tallest buildings, including the 451.9 m (1,483 ft) Petronas Towers.
How heavy is a cargo ship anchor?
Anchors used on vessels such as aircraft carriers, container ships, and cruise ships will weigh over 60,000 pounds (27,215 kg) each. Made from strong materials such as wrought iron, steel covered in zinc or high-tensile aluminum-magnesium alloy, an anchor is dropped to the bottom of a body of water.
How heavy should my boat anchor be?
Anchors are rated by “holding power”–which is the ability of an anchor to hold a given weight. Keep in mind that a 10,000 pound boat may only require an anchor with a holding power of a few hundred pounds on a calm day, but may need 1,000 pounds of holding power or more on a stormy day.
How do large ship anchors work?
How Anchors Work. When an anchor penetrates the surface of the seabed, suction generates resistance, created by the bottom material plus the weight of the material above the anchor. As the boat pulls on the anchor rode, the anchor digs in deeper, creating additional resistance.
How do you free an anchor?
Snap an anchor-retrieval ring and buoy around the anchor line and drive past the anchor at about 45 degrees. The float and ring, which serve as a pulley, will move down the rode. The ball’s buoyancy combined with the boat’s pull can free a stubborn anchor.
The anchor and chain system aboard the USS Ford is very, very heavy. The anchor itself weighs 30,000 pounds. The chain is 1,440 feet long and each link weighs 136 pounds. Believe it or not, this combination is actually lighter than those fitted to the heavier Nimitz-class carriers.
Is Seawise Giant bigger than Titanic?
Found insideThe world’s largest ever ship, the Seawise Giant, which weighed in at 564,763 DWT Launched in Japan in 1981, and over ten times the size of the Titanic, Actually, the seawise giant is the largest ship symphony of the seas is still in second.
Do aircraft carriers use anchors?
The aircraft carrier has 2 anchors, each weighing 30 tons, and each link in the chain weighs 360 lbs.


March 22 marks International Seal Day, a day the whole world should celebrate in earnest! To mark this momentous occasion – which should really see us all laze about in the sun, feeding on sumptuous sardines – we share 15 Fun Seal Facts.
The clowns of the marine mammal world, seals are a comical bunch of incredibly interesting creatures. For some, like yours truly, they may seem like a ‘spirit animal’. They spend most of their days lazing about, sunbathing in some of our planet’s most incredible places – like Antarctica, the Galapagos Islands and Peru’s Ballestas Islands – they are majority blubber (which helps against the cold, you know) and feed off sumptuous seafood. So, of course they have their own day of celebration on March 22! Here are a few fun facts about seals to help you get into the seal spirit.
Could life get any better, we ask?
The pinniped order of marine mammals also includes sea lions, walruses and fur seals. There are 33 species of pinnipeds in the world and all are believed to have evolved from once terrestrial otter-like creatures.
Cold sea waters are primarily found in the Arctic and Antarctic regions. There are four ice specialized species breeding on the Antarctic ice, the Leopard seals, Ross seals, Weddell seals, and Crabeater seals.
Female seals are boasting a higher life expectancy than male seals. Female seals can get up to 30 years old in the wild, while male seals rarely reach the age of 25.
The smallest seal species is the Galapagos Fur Seal (1m in length and 45kg in weight) whilst the largest is the Southern Elephant Seal which weighs a whopping 3,850kgs and measures up to 5m in length!
Some seal species, like the Leopard Seal, feed off fellow seals! Most, however, feed off crustaceans, fish and seabirds (if they can catch them).
The Crabeater Seal can be spotted on an Antarctic cruise. Estimates put their numbers at between 2 and 75 million individuals, worldwide. As cute and friendly as they may look, seals can actually be fervently territorial and quite aggressive.
Seals usually only come on land to escape predators like whales and sharks, as well as to mate, give birth, feed and moult.
Seal will dive up to 900m in search for food. Some seals can hold their breath underwater for up to 2 hours! The Northern Elephant seals spend the majority of their time at depth. They are only coming to the surface for a few minutes between dives. Before the dive, the Elephant seal first exhales to empty their lungs. During their long migration trek, these creatures dive for food in this manner.
Because of the high fat rate, seal pups can put on 2kgs a DAY. That should make you feel a little better about your Christmas and New Year calorific splurge!
Seals have been hunted throughout history, with their fat and fur being highly coveted. Although a great majority of species are not endangered – the Galapagos Fur Seal is one of the exceptions – seals are still a highly protected mammal in most parts of the world. Over the last century, various species have gone extinct, including the Caribbean Monk Seal and Japanese Sea Lion.
Earless seals are one of the main mammalian groups in the pinniped seal lineage. Other than their name would tell you, earless seals do have ears. Their ears are covered beneath their skin. So they do have ears, but you just can’t see them.
In Gisborne, New Zealand, a resident elephant seal, named Homer, had an infamous reputation for hooliganism. He used to routinely overturn parked cars in town and once even knocked over a restaurant’s power supply box. Experts believed that Homer’s energetic ‘rubbings’ were actually ever-so-slightly misguided sexual advances.
The longest pregnancy in the pinniped family belongs to the walrus, which is pregnant for about 16 months.
One of our really lovely fun facts about seals is that mother and baby seals recognise each other through a familiar call. A study in Alaska found that mum-bub recognition was possible even after a 4-year long separation.
A study in the Falkland Islands proved that alpha-male Elephant Seals are quite the possessive Don Juans In one colony alone, over 92% of pups born at any given time were fathered by the group’s alpha-male alone and up to 72% of all other males in the colony, had NEVER been observed mating at all.
Want to join on a seal-watching mission? Your options are endless! At Chimu Adventures, we run phenomenal tours through all of Laton America’s seeaally good wildlife-watching destinations, like Peru, the Galapagos, and Antarctica, among many many more. Simply give us a holler and let us know you’re on the (photographic) hunt for some seals and we’ll T you up with a whole bunch of blubbery friends


My Ocean Twin aims to tackle the colossal problem of ocean plastic waste. Through the creation of a digital twin of the ocean, My Ocean Twin offers a unique solution that can help save our oceans from pollution. A sophisticated grid system has been implemented, which enables the virtual partitioning of the ocean into geolocated plots. These plots are minted as non-fungible tokens (NFTs), which can be purchased, sold, and traded. The revenue generated from these transactions will be channeled towards a selection of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) that specialize in cleaning up the ocean plastic waste. With My Ocean Twin, every individual can contribute to the preservation of our oceans and the conservation of marine life.


Doug Woodring, an entrepreneur and conservationist who lives in Hong Kong, displays rubbish on May 07, 2009 on a beach on the south side of Hong Kong which has been left uncleaned. (MIKE CLARKE/AFP/Getty Images)
A mystery in the oceans has scientists incredibly concerned.
You've heard of oceanic garbage patches, like the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, which are large floating masses of trash in the world's oceans.
But a new report released this week found that 99 percent of the litter that was once calculated to be floating in the waters is missing. The report was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States.
The unnerving findings were the result of open water voyages by Professor Andres Cozar and his survey team in 2010. As Forbes explains, Cozar's team collected more than 3,000 samples from 141 sites, and eventually calculated the oceans have between 7,000 and 35,000 tons of plastic, about a million times less than what researchers expected.
Missing trash sounds like a reason to celebrate, right? Not so much.
Scientists are now worried fish and other sea creatures are eating the trash, which, according to the journal Science, puts it into the global food supply. As Carlos Duarte, an oceanographer and the lead author on the new report, tells Science, “We are part of this food web.”
The new study isn't questioning whether the trash was there or not. As the New York Times points out, "In 2002, Nature magazine reported that during the 1990s, debris in the waters near Britain doubled; in the Southern Ocean encircling Antarctica the increase was a hundredfold. And depending on where they sample, oceanographers have found that between 60 and 95 percent of today’s marine debris is made of plastic."
(MORE: Teen Says His Invention Will Save the Oceans)
In 2001, researcher and sailor Charles Moore recounted in an essay, “As I gazed from the deck at the surface of what ought to have been a pristine ocean, I was confronted, as far as the eye could see, with the sight of plastic. It seemed unbelievable, but I never found a clear spot."
Moore's account paints an unsettling picture of the depth and breadth of the issue, so it's easy to understand by the new studies' authors write, "Resolving the fate of the missing plastic debris is of fundamental importance to determine the nature and significance of the impacts of plastic pollution in the ocean."
MORE ON WEATHER.COM: 19 Fish To Avoid
Go for farmed white sturgeon over beluga sturgeon (above). (Todd Stailey/Tennessee Aquarium)


NEW Documents for the Second Meeting of an open-ended informal working group of the Council July 2019
News & Announcements
PRESS RELEASE | 12 June 2019
Deep seabed mining has the potential to accelerate progress towards achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development by increasing scientific knowledge of the deep ocean whilst at the same time providing...
PRESS RELEASE | 8 June 2019
The 2019 edition of World Oceans Day 2019 (WOD) was launched in Kingston, Jamaica, on 7 June with the International Seabed Authority (ISA) Open Day, held in partnership with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and...
PRESS RELEASE: 19 May 2019
High-level representatives from African States, international organizations and experts on law of the sea, policy, mining, environment protection and geology convened at a regional workshop from 16 to 18 May,...
The "Mining Code" refers to the whole of the comprehensive set of rules, regulations and procedures issued by the International Seabed Authority to regulate prospecting, exploration and exploitation of marine minerals in the international seabed Area...read more
Documents and Resources
ISA Calendar of Events
A principal function of the Authority is to regulate deep seabed mining and to give special emphasis to ensuring that the marine environment is protected from any harmful effects which may arise from mining activities including exploration and exploitation. Read more
|Exploration Areas||Training Programmes NEW!|
Central Database Repository
The Central Data Repository (CDR) holds centralized data of public and private information on marine mineral resources acquired from various institutions worldwide. The Authority uses this data to standardize and evaluate data for quantitative mineral assessments. Read more


Take a closer look at some of the threatened and endangered species that call the South Carolina Lowcountry home
Dolphin sightings in local waters are always magical, but these enchanting marine mammals face serious challenges. Get...
Activism, art, and a flood of urgency inform and awaken the work of Mary Edna Fraser
Looking back at early Lowcountry hurricanes
An aerial look at our fragile coastline
To commemorate Charleston’s 40th anniversary, we honor 40 influential people and groups whose vision, passion, focus,...
Discoveries, innovation, exploration
The local NOAA marine forensics lab helps bust seafood bad guys around the globe


The weight of such a large predator, like a large white shark, is much harder to measure than the length of its body. Partly, that’s why the weight range of big white sharks is wide enough – from 600 to 3300 kg. The final value is not officially confirmed. The maximum weight that the scientist was able to attest was 1878 kg. This weight was the female of a large white shark, caught in 1986 in the waters near the town of Point Vincent (Norfolk Island, Great Britain). The length of the body of this shark was 5.4 meters.
All the organs of the predator are designed to kill. Thanks to the perfect sense of smell, a large white shark can smell at a distance of about 600 meters. Her eyes are arranged like a cat, so the shark is perfectly oriented in the dark. Lateral line – the sense organ inherent in all fish, allows a shark for 115 meters from its location to catch the slightest fluctuations in water.
Shark begins to engage in killing while still in embryo state, when he absorbs his weak sisters and brothers long before his birth. Therefore, the female of a large white shark is born only 1 or 2 cubs, which grow very slowly and become sexually mature in 12 – 15 years.


During a visit in summer 2013 my sister and I went for a walk around the north coast of Islay, among other places seeing Rhuvaal lighthouse. We also walked through the arch below the lighthouse.
Probably one of the best days out you can get from Islay and Jura, a trip with a RIB to the famous Corryvreckan whirlpool between Jura and Scarba. Here the RIB is approaching some of the currents with Scarba in the background.
A view of contrasts at the Gulf of Corryvreckan, driven by the Corryvreckan whirlpool: “Calm” waters in front of us (although it is still moving with strong currents) with quite choppy waters right behind. This scenery was constantly changing, with calm waters turning into strong eddies and currents and vice versa. An amazing sight, difficult to capture in a picture, much better experienced in person.
The Isle of Mull visible on the horizon.


Dr. Jim Harvey is an adjunct senior associate and marine ecologist with more than 30 years of experience. He has conducted research on foraging ecology and age and growth of blue sharks; foraging ecology, diving behavior, population dynamics, and effects of pollutants of harbor seals; migration and diving in gray and humpback whales, migration and foraging of Sooty shearwaters, diving and feeding of Leatherback turtles, interactions between marine mammals and fisheries; relationship between oceanographic conditions and marine birds and mammals; and assessing health and condition of marine turtles, birds, and mammals. He is fellow of the California Academy of Sciences.
Jim received his B.A. from San Jose State University, an M.S. from Moss Landing Marine Laboratories, and a Ph.D. from Oregon State University.
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The average temperature of the water is increasing across the Chesapeake Bay watershed, placing pressure on an already vulnerable ecosystem. While the changes might seem minor from a human perspective—a roughly 1.2-degree Celsius increase from 1960 to 2010— even the smallest shifts in temperature can cause a waterway to become uninhabitable for certain species and make our pollution reduction and habitat management practices less effective.
The Chesapeake Bay Program's Scientific and Technical Advisory Committee (STAC) sponsored a workshop in 2022, supported by many partners in the Chesapeake Bay Program, to investigate the various impacts of increasing water temperatures. The committee recently released a report that summarizes the major findings from the workshop as well as recommendations for how to reduce and adapt to these changes.
The STAC report is one of the most comprehensive of its kind, synthesizing the causes and effects of rising water temperatures in the Bay watershed and impacts to wildlife and their habitat. It gives everyone who works in Chesapeake Bay restoration a roadmap for not only moderating temperature increases where we can with conservation strategies and best management practices, but also adapting to an ecosystem that’s already begun to change.
What’s causing water temperatures to rise?
In the Chesapeake Bay watershed, there are multiple causes of increased water temperature, and they depend on where you are in the region.
In the tidal Chesapeake Bay, warming air temperatures is playing the biggest role in raising water temperatures. As greenhouse gases are emitted, the air temperature increases, which in turn, warms the water during most months of the year. Increasing ocean temperatures are also believed to contribute significantly to the summer warming of the Bay, between June and October.
To a lesser extent, sea level rise is also warming the Bay’s waters, particularly during the winter months of November through February, though it has a slight cooling effect in the summer. The water flowing into the Bay from streams and rivers also has a slight warming effect in some of the upper tidal tributaries. However, both of these factors are minor compared to increasing air and ocean temperatures.
For the non-tidal portions of the watershed—the thousands of freshwater streams and rivers that flow into the estuary—the report found that water temperatures are rising not only from increases in air temperatures, but also from changes occurring on the land. More of the watershed is covered with roofs, roads and other impervious surfaces that heat the rainwater as it runs off into streams. There are also fewer trees and forest buffers to cool those waterways. Development may also change physical characteristics of a stream that in turn worsen temperature increases. Groundwater features like springs, which would usually cool the water, can be degraded by too much surrounding land development.
How are rising water temperatures impacting the Bay ecosystem?
Rising water temperatures are already threatening many of the Chesapeake’s iconic critters.
Species that depend on cold water habitats in the Bay’s headwaters, such as brook trout and checkered sculpin, will be most immediately affected by higher temperatures due to their exposure and sensitivity to warmer water. These species can only survive in streams under certain temperatures, and their spawning grounds are also limited based on how cool the water is.
Warm water species such as blue crabs
and certain freshwater fishes might be more tolerant to higher temperatures but are still sensitive to extreme temperatures and the indirect effects of warmer waters. The STAC workshop cited various indirect impacts of temperature increase to habitat quality, including algal bloom production, bacteria outbreaks, the distribution and toxicity of other pollutants, an increase in invasive species and decreases in dissolved oxygen.
Species such as striped bass, which were largely restored due to management by the Bay Program partnership in the 1980’s and 90’s, are struggling to adapt to the lower oxygen levels that are magnified by warming waters. Warm water holds less oxygen, which means that fish such as striped bass have to swim lower in the water column where there are still suitable temperature and oxygen levels. However, due to excess nutrients, bottom waters can have low dissolved oxygen. With warming temperatures at the surface and low dissolved oxygen at the bottom, fish are squeezed in the middle and have less suitable habitat. This makes them more vulnerable to predation and requires them to compete more for food with other aquatic life.
The habitats that the Bay critters rely on are also being affected. The submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) species, eelgrass, is particularly sensitive to temperature increases and is significantly declining in the southern region of the Bay due to these changes. SAV is critical habitat for species like blue crabs and juvenile fishes and helps keep nutrients out of the water.
On the bright side, certain species in the Chesapeake Bay may be positively impacted by warming waters. Forage fish such as bay anchovy and menhaden, as well as blue crabs will enjoy a longer growing season as well as an expanded northern range. Certain species of SAV, including widgeon grass, will also likely expand their range throughout the Bay, resulting in a higher overall abundance of seagrass in the estuary. Oysters, which are temperature tolerant, will have more food availability from algae growth, a longer growing season, reduced winter mortality and a lengthened spawning season.
There will even be newer species entering the Bay that will have economic benefits. Southern species, such as white shrimp and red drum, are already moving into the Bay in increasing numbers, so much so that there is the potential to support new commercial fisheries in the future.
However, nearly all the Bay’s marine life will be stressed by a reduction in dissolved oxygen or the drop in suitable habitat that warming waters cause.
What can we do to reduce rising water temperatures?
The authors of the STAC report recommend multiple policies and practices to address the drivers of rising water temperature and their impacts on the ecosystem.
Conserving and expanding forests, streamside buffers and tree canopy in more developed areas emerged as the best practices for moderating water temperature. Trees shade the water, keeping it cool and decrease air temperatures through evaporation. Trees also filter rainwater underground where it won’t heat up from the sun. In urban and other developed areas, tree canopy reduces the temperature of pavement and asphalt, and helps water soak into the ground, which partially cools and reduces the runoff flowing through these areas.
The STAC members stress that decision makers in the Chesapeake Bay watershed not only focus on planting new trees but conserving existing forests, which have been lost at staggering rates due to development and other land uses.
Additionally, the STAC workshop evaluated the ability of different best management practices (BMPs) to reduce water temperatures. BMPs are currently used to reduce sediment and nutrient pollution from entering the Bay, as well as provide a range of additional benefits to people and wildlife.
According to the workshop members, BMPs that are most effective at cooling the water include riparian forest buffers, upstream tree planting, urban stormwater infiltration and wetlands restoration, enhancement and rehabilitation. Improving soil health and infiltration may also help moderate runoff temperatures from farm fields. However, the workshop members also identified BMPs used to improve water quality that can contribute to warmer waters. These “heater” BMPs include stormwater retention ponds, floating treatment wetlands and vegetated open channels.
Because of this, the STAC report recommends that the partnership carefully scrutinize which types of BMPs it promotes. Since 1985, there has been approximately three times as much implementation of heater BMPs as cooler BMPs, suggesting that some of the practices being implemented to improve water quality may be having adverse, unintended consequences for water temperatures.
What’s notable is that as a partnership set up to achieve a variety of restoration goals, the Chesapeake Bay Program is already pursuing the top practices for moderating the effects of rising temperatures. Forest conservation, restoration of forest buffers, conserving and expanding tree canopy in developed areas and wetland conservation and restoration are all areas of focus for the partnership. However, these are some of the most challenging goals for the Bay Program to meet, given the high rates of development and population growth occurring in the Chesapeake region.
Long-term management recommendations
Based on their findings, STAC members also recommended a number of long-term investments to help lessen rising water temperatures effects on living resources and adapt to a changing Chesapeake Bay ecosystem.
Because of its cold-water habitats and importance to cold-water fisheries, the Chesapeake watershed’s headwaters were identified as an important place to accelerate conservation. This includes working with landowners in upstream states to conserve forests, plant additional tree buffers and limit polluted runoff. Downstream, large-scale efforts to protect and restore wetlands, oyster reefs, shorelines and SAV beds will help reduce vulnerabilities to tidal fisheries by potentially creating nearshore habitat with more suitable conditions. The STAC members emphasized developing criteria to help target these nearshore projects where multiple benefits, ranging from shoreline protection to water quality and habitat improvements, can be optimized.
The workshop members also developed recommendations to inform management strategies for the Bay’s recreational and commercial fisheries. It was suggested that fishing guidance is established, such as catch and release protocols, that are based on a fish’s survival threshold related to heat and dissolved oxygen. The workshop members also recommended greater collaboration between resources managers and scientists to ensure that fisheries are being managed in a way that aligns with new research, including integrating social science. These efforts are needed to better communicate future climate conditions and expected scenarios for Bay fisheries and those moving up into the Bay from the south.
Finally, workshop members identified several knowledge gaps that, if filled, could better inform restoration and land-use decisions. The authors of the report recommend an increase in water temperature monitoring, especially in smaller streams, and further analyzing existing data from larger streams and rivers. Biological monitoring of prey and predators in tidal waters was also mentioned as we are currently lacking data to assess population impacts from seasonal temperature changes. It was also recommended that a heat wave alert system be developed to give resources managers a better understanding of when extreme rises in water temperatures occur and how to protect marine life accordingly. Modeling temperature change, the way we model pollution loads, could also be a worthwhile investment.
Chesapeake Bay Program begins tracking water temperature changes
This type of information can be used to guide restoration efforts at the Bay Program and allow conservation groups outside the partnership to influence state and federal policies, such as conserving more forests and investing in implementation of cooling BMPs.
Across the watershed, jurisdictions are united in their concern over rising water temperatures.
Whether it's brook trout in the Bay’s headwaters or striped bass in the mainstem, our natural resources are already being impacted by temperature changes. Improving water quality is poised to become even more challenging in all jurisdictions of the watershed due to warming waters. But we can take action now to lessen vulnerabilities to important habitats and living resources


Game of Life
The goal of this game is to illustrate to the students what happens to a fish stock...
Thu, 09/24/2009 - 17:40
Students will study and replicate a model of the factors affecting fisheries...
Thu, 09/24/2009 - 17:39
Gulf Oil Spill
The Deepwater Horizon oil spill is recognized as the worst oil spill in U.S....


Search our catalog for the subject words oceans, or seashore with juvenile (enter words with a space between them).
Don’t forget to ask the librarian if there are books set aside on school reserve for this topic!
|Center for Coastal Studies
The whales of Cape Cod
|The Electronic Zoo: Animal Resources
Huge number of links to animal information.
|The Marine Mammal Center
Data from a private, non-profit organization that rescues, rehabilitates and releases injured, sick and orphaned marine mammals (seals, sea lions, dolphins, porpoises, whales and sea otters) along a thousand mile stretch of the California coast, from the Oregon border to San Luis Obispo.
|Monterey Bay E-quarium
Visit the E-quarium for a tour of Monterey Bay, fun games, and information about marine conservation.
|Museum of Zoology
From the University of Michigan, information on mollusks, mammals, and fishes.
|NOAA Fisheries: Office of Protected Resources
Information about marine mammals and endangered species, including conservation efforts, current threats, legislation, and publications.
|Ocean Planet from The Smithsonian Museum
A searchable exhibit of facts and pictures.
|SeaWorld/Busch Gardens Detailed Animal Information
Part of the Sea World/Busch Gardens Education Series


Island and Ngai Island is located in the Lanta Archipelago National
Park, Klong Tom, Krabi in the Indian Ocean. Lanta Archipelago is geographically
filled with the overlapping ranges of mountains covered by green forests.
Beaches are right behind the island.
ROK NAI ISLAND
The island is featured by the tall cliffs with reddish reefs which have
long been eroded by the wind. The mountain peak is 208 meters above
the sea level. The out-stretched beach in the east will be uncovered
during low tide.
ROK NOK ISLAND
The island is as large as Rok Nok Island, where its peak is 156 meters
above the sea level. There are two large areas of plain ground in the
valley called Had Talu Valley and Our Marn Prai Valley.
The island is a triangle-like figure. Beaches with the lines of coral
reefs can be found in the east.
Expuisite beaches can be foud in the east of Rok Nai Island and in the
southeast as well as in the south of Rok Nok Island holds a white and
fine sandy beach, while Rok Nai Island has a short and steep beach.
coral reef lines which can be foud amidst the reefs in the eastern channel
of Rok Nai Island. In the south as well as the southeast of Rok Nok
Island lay the under surface coral
reefs. Thong Cape is a small island in the north end of Rok Nai Island.
By standing on the Rok Nok Island opposite Thong Cape, the tourists
can admire the beauty of sunset disappearing from
the arc channel.
Had Talu which is at the back of Rok Nok Island is 40-meter wide, with
the fine and white sandy beach. The forest line along this beach is
covered with 'Terminalia tree'. Wallking through this forest for approximately
180 meters to the other side of Rok Nok Island, the horseshoe-like bay
will be discovered.
beach on Ngai Island is long and tranquil which is ideal for swimming
and for appreciating the scene of the shord lines of Mah Island, Chuak
Island, Waen Island and Mook Island lying one after another and being
surrounded by the sea water. In addition, Ngai Island is another excellent
place for observing the perfect undersurface coral reefs.


This week Blue Planet II looks at Earth's green seas.
This means you can look forward to kelp forests, mangroves, prairies of sea grass and blooms of algae.
These are some of the most competitive places in the ocean to live.
So what exactly are we going to see?
The Great Escape
We will be taken to the tip of Southern Africa where two great oceans, the Atlantic and Indian, meet.
Around a hundred different species of sharks live here - which means one resident, the common octopus, has had to become a great escape artist.
Not only can this octopus change the colour of its skin, it can match the textures around it.
The show features never before filmed footage of a pyjama shark trying to outsmart her opponent - cool right?
Kale forest guards
Off the coast of North America, the Pacific Ocean is home to some of the largest forests of kale, which are are 60 metres high.
The show features sea otters, which are on the comeback after being hunted for their thick coats in the 1800s.
The numbers of sea otters are now recovering, along with the health of kale forests.
In a filming first, the Blue Planet II team reveal floating rafts of sea otters, now numbering in their hundreds.
Heroes of the deep sea
This episode will travel all the way to Western Australia's green seas.
There the crew met turtles who are stalked by tiger sharks!
Tiger sharks keep turtles away from sea grass meadows, which mean the areas don't become too damaged.
This means sharks have become buddies in the fight against climate change - who would've thought sharks would be the good guys?
The sharks aren't the only heroes that help in protecting the kelp forests down in Australia. As soon as winter hits, spider crabs come out to help in the protection.
They march in and pile on top of each other, building 'walls' more than a metre high. They then shed their skin and now the soft-bodied, weakened spider-crabs, try their best to avoid the patrolling four-metre-long stingrays.
It's not always the size that counts...maybe
Staying down-under, a little further along the coast, the most amazing of gatherings of the cuttlefish happens, as the males are on the look-out for a mate.
Remember, though, it's not always size that counts, as the smaller, sneaky males play tricks on the big boys, to confuse them and in the end get the females. With about 10 males to every female, the sneaky cuttlefish use tricks like pretending to be females to get close to the real girl cuttlefish.
Moving over to what many believe to be the best nursery for young fish - the mangrove forest.
The Blue Planet II team also come face to face with deadly shrimp. Yes, shrimp.
The mangrove forest is home to a deadly killer - 40cm long zebra mantis shrimp. These male shrimp can abandon their mate for as long as 20 years in the hunt for a larger female!
The greatest place at sea
In this episode, we are treated to a look at the microscopic algae.
They may not sound too exciting, but they're actually really important organisms.
The microscopic algae flourish into vast blooms, providing a feast for everything from plankton to sea-lions.
In California's Monterey Bay, thousands of dolphins, sea lions and humpback whales all race to claim their share of the feast which the algae provide.


Huntington Beach, Calif. – Seawater spread into several low-lying communities along the California coast Thursday morning as unusually high “king tides” pulled the Pacific Ocean farther ashore than normal.
Causing some damage but mostly just making a nuisance, water flooded Pacific Coast Highway and side streets in Sunset Beach, a sliver of Huntington Beach between the ocean and a yacht harbor. Down the Southern California coast, Newport Bay was brimming, while just north of San Francisco the tide swamped a commuter parking lot in Marin City and seeped into dozens of cars.
Occurring several times a year, king tides happen when the Earth, moon and sun align in a way that increases gravitational pull on the Earth’s oceans, raising water levels several feet above normal high tides.
The event provided organizers of the California King Tides Initiative an opportunity to get California residents thinking about and preparing for the future. The 3-year-old initiative, sponsored by government and nonprofit groups, enlists camera-toting volunteers to photograph the king tides as an illustration of what low-lying coastal areas could look like if predictions about the Earth’s climate come to pass.
Authorities execute arrest of ‘Bad Barbies’
New York – New York City authorities say they have taken down a violent street gang whose female factions went by names including “Bad Barbies.”
Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said Wednesday that at its height, the Trinitarios gang had up to 100 female members. He said one was a 24-year-old involved in a fatal retaliatory shooting and in the shooting of a robbery victim outside a Mexican restaurant.
An investigation of the gang has resulted in arrests of 119 people in the Bronx and Manhattan since 2009.
Kelly and U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara announced the latest arrests on Wednesday at a news conference.


Kroetz, Kailin Sanchirico, James N. Contreras, Elsa Galarza Novoa, David Corderi Collado, Nestor Swiedler, Elaine W.
Year of Publication:
IDB Working Paper Series IDB-WP-749
The implementation of rights-based management programs is increasing worldwide yet there are few ex post evaluations, especially in developing country contexts. In this paper we examine changes following the implementation of a catch share system in the Peruvian anchovy fishery, which is the world's largest commercial fishery by volume. After implementation of the Individual Vessel Quota (IVQ) management system, we observe a shift toward higher-value products and a 97% increase in per-unit revenue from 2008 to 2013. We also find that landings are more spread out over the fishing season, with an increase in the number of fishing days. Additionally, fleet consolidation occurs over time with a shift toward larger vessels in the steel fleet. Finally, using cost estimates from a large fishing firm on the cost of steel vessel operation, we estimate variable harvesting profit increased from 34-41% of the ex-vessel price pre-IVQ to 63-65% post.
Catch shares Peru Individual Vessel Quotas (IVQs) Anchovy


We’ve invited the Vancouver Aquarium’s fantastic Ocean Wise program to join our GOODS section as a recommended local organisation that is worth checking out (look for their sustainable seafood symbol on menus across the city). They’re now proud members of Scout, and as such we’ll be posting their news front and center and hosting a page for them on our curated list of independent goodnesses. We’d like to take this chance to thank them for their support of Scout, and for making Vancouver a more delicious place to live!
About Ocean Wise™
Overfishing is the biggest threat facing our oceans today. The Ocean Wise symbol next to a menu or seafood item is the Vancouver Aquarium’s assurance of an ocean-friendly seafood choice. Vancouver Aquarium’s Ocean Wise program makes it easy for consumers to make sustainable seafood choices that ensure the health of our oceans for generations to come.
The Vancouver Aquarium’s Ocean Wise program works directly with restaurants, markets, food services and suppliers to ensure they have the most current scientific information regarding sustainable seafood and to help them make ocean-friendly buying decisions. The options are highlighted on their menus and display cases with the Ocean Wise symbol, making it easier for consumers to make ocean-friendly seafood choices.
In addition to its website, Ocean Wise also makes available an iPhone application—an easy-to-use app that provides consumers with Ocean Wise restaurants, markets and supplier venues from coast to coast, and a comprehensive list of ocean-friendly seafood options. The Ocean Wise iPhone app is continuously updated with ocean-friendly seafood options and Ocean Wise partners spanning Victoria to Halifax.
Learn more at www.oceanwise.ca.


South East Asia is one of the most species rich areas in the world. Water that hovers around the 25°C mark, a tropical climate that is tempered by sea breezes, more species than most books cover and a wealth of different marine environments, not to mention idyllic sandy shores for surface interval picnics make diving a special pleasure.
Most diving has been centered on the Gulf of Thailand and from Phuket, in the Philippines from Batangas and the Visayas, in Malaysia from the East Coast and Sabah, and in Indonesia from Pulau Seribo, Manado and Flores. While the majority of the diving is from shore to moderately shallow coral gardens, South East Asia does have some good walls to dive. Indonesia has great walls in Manado, Kupang, Komodo and Irian Jaya; Malaysia has fabulous walls in Sipadan and Layang Layang, and a good one at tiny Tenggol.
The Philippines has plenty of good walls at Verde, Anilao, Nsugbu, Apo as well as dozen more places. And while not particularly widespread, South East Asia has its fair share of wrecks. There are numerous war graves and vessels lost during WW II at Pattaya in Thailand, in the bay of Coron in the Philippines and off Manado and Bali in Indonesia. Then there are fishing vessels that met an untimely end and even the odd dive boat or two that took a dive themselves.
When to Visit South East Asia
Avoid the wet monsoon season, generally Dec-mid-Mar. The dry monsoon of southeast winds curtails the diving in Flores during July and August.


Seals and sea lions, along with walruses, belong to a group of marine mammals called “pinnipeds.” Pinniped means fin or flipper-footed in Latin. These animals spend the majority of their time in the ocean, but come on shore for long periods of time. Although seals and sea lions have similarities, they also have several distinct characteristics and adaptations that distinguish them from one another.
What Are the Differences Between Seals and Sea Lions?
“True” seals, also known as “earless” seals or simply “seals,” belong to a group of pinnipeds that have ear holes, but lack an external ear flap. This includes species such as the harbor seal, endangered Hawaiian monk seal, and harp seal.
On land, seals use their bellies to move around because they have small front flippers that are thinly webbed with a claw on each small toe. In the water, seals swim easily, moving their rear flippers back and forth, similar to how a fish uses its caudal fin (tail) to propel itself through the water.
In general, seals tend to be quiet, and vocalize through noises such as soft grunts, growls, or hisses. Many are less social than sea lion species, especially in the water, but seals can be found on land together to avoid predators, rest, mate, and nurse their pups.
Sea lions, such as the California sea lion and Steller sea lion, belong to a group of pinnipeds that have external ear flaps. This group also includes fur seals like the threatened Guadalupe fur seal.
On land, they use their large, elongated front flippers and rear flippers rotated underneath their bodies to “walk.” In the water, sea lions propel themselves by paddling their front flippers and use their rear flippers to help steer, like a boat’s rudder.
Sea lions can be noisy, and recognized by their loud and distinct “bark.” They commonly congregate in large groups called “herds” or “rafts.” They can be seen hauled out together on offshore rocks, sandy beaches, and sometimes human-made structures such as jetties and piers.
All seals and sea lions are protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act and some are also listed under the Endangered Species Act. It is important to view these wild animals from a safe and respectful distance for their safety—and yours. If you see a sick or injured seal or sea lion, please call your nearest marine mammal rescue organization.


Rosenberg Institute Seminar Series at the Romberg Tiburon Center-Abstracts
The Barbara and Richard Rosenberg Institute for Marine Biology and Environmental Science Seminar Series brings leading local, national, and international scientists to a public forum at RTC to speak about the latest advances in science.
See abstracts or brief descriptions for select seminars below.
1/25: Investigating the diet of sea-floor microbes: Clues from isotopic and molecular composition of pore-water dissolved organic matterTomoko Komada, Professor, Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, Romberg Tiburon Center and San Francisco State University
Marine dissolved organic matter (DOM) is a globally significant carbon reservoir, yet the mechanism of DOM accumulation remains unclear. Microbial processes within the seafloor have long been known to produce DOM, but the significance of this flux is not well understood, because of limited knowledge about the composition and reactivity of DOM generated within the sediments. We address this knowledge gap through isotopic and chemical analyses of pore-water DOM in two California Borderland basins with contrasting depositional patterns. At both sites, pore-water DOM consists of a complex mixture of labile to refractory moieties with variable radiocarbon ages. The composition of bulk DOM varies within and across sites, but the refractory component shows striking similarity regardless of site and sediment depth, and has an older radiocarbon age than bulk DOM. These findings suggest that sediments are important sources of pre-aged DOM that accumulates in the deep sea.
2/8: Shedding light on symbioses: lessons from a bioluminescent vertebrate-microbe associationAlison Gould, Postdoctoral Researcher, UC Berkeley
Virtually all organisms are dependent on symbioses with microorganisms for their success, yet the processes by which these essential interactions are established and maintained over time remain largely unknown. I present a pairwise symbiosis between a coral reef cardinalfish and a luminous bacterium as a model association to investigate the ecological mechanisms that help to maintain symbiont specificity over host generations. To do so, I integrate field studies to define key attributes of the host’s behavioral ecology and life history in Okinawa, Japan with recently developed genomic methods (restriction site-associated sequencing, “RAD-Seq”) to test the hypothesis that the fish’s ecology genetically structures populations of its facultative symbiont over time and space, consequently promoting the specificity of the association. Results indicate that resident populations of adult fish enrich the surrounding reef water daily with their excess luminous symbionts and that larval fish disperse significant distances as a cohort to non-natal reefs and acquire a symbiont from the locally enriched water near their settlement site. Ultimately this study highlights the role of a host animal in structuring natural populations of its bacterial symbiont, thereby promoting the specificity of this bioluminescent vertebrate-microbe symbiosis over host generations.
2/15: Linking sensory neuron plasticity to adaptive, injury-induced behavior in cephalopodsRobyn Crook, Assistant Professor of Biology, San Francisco State University
Most animals will experience sub-lethal injury at least once in their lives. Injured animals incur multiple fitness costs, including increased predation risk, decreased foraging efficiency and reduced reproductive success. Behavioral changes that offsets these costs, even partially, are therefore likely to 1) be under strong selection, 2) be highly conserved and 3) produce measurable adaptive benefits. Although injury-induced behaviors are common and widespread, their neural mechanisms remain poorly understood. Work in my laboratory at SF State aims to identify the mechanisms and functions of injury-induced behaviors in cephalopod molluscs. Cephalopods’ soft bodies are vulnerable to injury, their behavior is highly plastic, and their nervous system is comparably complex (but independently evolved and structurally unique) to that of vertebrates. However, many cellular mechanisms of plasticity are conserved among molluscs and vertebrates. Thus cephalopods are uniquely placed to provide novel insights into strongly selected, highly conserved mechanisms of injury-induced behavior that in mammals may include pain, anxiety and other complex affective states. Recent studies combine electrophysiological manipulations of plasticity in nociceptive input, with measurements of changes to neural signal controlling motor circuits. In behavioral studies, we are looking at the duration and context of injury-induced behaviors that alter defense, foraging and reproduction, to measure the fitness costs of injury and the adaptive value of injury-induced neural and behavioral plasticity.
2/22: Sea-level rise and Pacific coast salt marshes: impacts on plant productivity, community structure, and decompositionChristopher Janousek, Research Associate, Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Oregon State University and Western Ecological Research Center, USGS
Salt marshes provide valued ecosystem functions and services including food web support, storm protection, nutrient cycling, and carbon sequestration. These functions and services may be threatened by sea-level rise if vertical marsh accretion cannot keep pace with rising water levels. Through observational, experimental, and modeling approaches we are assessing inundation and salinity effects on plant growth, plant fecundity, vegetation composition, and decomposition of plant organic matter across the Pacific coast. Our on-going work suggests the following general conclusions: (i) Inundation and salinity effects on plant growth vary by species, suggesting that marsh vulnerability likely varies spatially and that local marsh species composition may change with relative sea-level rise. (ii) Increasing salinity may interact with rising seas to lower plant productivity and reduce plant diversity. (iii) The cycling of salt marsh carbon through decomposition may be affected by a suite of abiotic and biotic factors including inundation, salinity, plant abundance, and plant composition. Our results help further understanding of how marsh structure and function may be impacted by climate change at local and regional scales along the Pacific coast. Such information is critical for informed tidal marsh management, habitat restoration, and adaptive responses to coastal climate change.
3/1: Restoration of native species in highly modified estuariesChela Zabin, Smithsonian Enviromental Research Center
Restoration frequently occurs in habitats that have been dramatically altered by human activities, including the introduction of non-indigenous species (NIS). NIS can pose threats to native species as competitors, predators, or ecosystem engineers. When eradication of NIS is not tractable, one potential tool for restoration practitioners is to take advantage of environmental conditions that alter the impacts of NIS on species targeted for restoration. I’ll discuss investigations of this option for native oyster (Ostrea lurida) restoration in three California bays and implications for restoration design.
3/8: Indigenous Knowledge of Marine Systems from Coastal Tribes and Canoe Cultures
Melissa K. Nelson, Ph.D., Associate Professor of American Indian Studies, SFSU
Pacific Ocean Tribes from the Coast of California to the Islands of Hawaii and around the Pacific Rim have long-term ecological knowledge and marine management systems. They harvest fish, seafood, and seaweed for food, navigate their canoes through coastal waters, and hold a deep cultural and spiritual connection to the Ocean through intergenerational practices based in ethical values imbedded in oral traditions. This talk will highlight coastal environmental changes and share tribal responses to climate disruption with particular attention to the iconic abalone, access to seaweed, and revitalization of canoe traditions.
3/15: The economics of sea level rise: A case study in southern Monterey BayPhilip King, Ph.D., Associate Professor in Economics at San Francisco State University
A brief overview of the issues involved in any economic analysis of sea level rise, followed by a specific application in southern Monterey Bay. The study examines the benefits and costs of differing adaptation strategies over four reaches in southern Monterey Bay. The economic benefits include recreation, ecological value and protection of private and public property. Under a wide range of plausible scenarios and assumptions, we find that coastal armoring is not cost effective. In most cases, retreat is the best option.
4/5: Ocean acidification: Science, solutions, and stepping out of our comfort zones
Tessa Hill, UC Davis
Recent work has focused on the potential consequences of reduced ocean pH that result from ongoing influx of anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO2) into seawater (termed 'ocean acidification', or OA). Research along the West Coast has brought into sharp focus the potential local consequences of highly acidified seawater for aquaculture operations and California ecosystems more broadly. In response, states have mobilized in developing policy and science recommendations, with research efforts shifting to defining strategies for coping with this issue. For example, seagrass beds have been highlighted as potential "OA refugia" for their capability to buffer acidified waters. These ecosystem services are based upon the assumption that seagrasses fix carbon through photosynthesis, thereby effectively reducing the CO2 load in seawater, and that seagrass beds can also 'trap' carbon in below-ground sedimentary reservoirs.In this talk, I will review some of the science of OA, potential local solutions including the role of vegetated habitats, and provide a call for marine scientists to step out of our 'comfort zones' in addressing problems of major societal significance.
Sherry Tamone, Professor of Biology, University of Alaska Southeast
4/26: Applications of endocrinology to the management of commercially important crustaceans in Alaska
Commercially important crustaceans in Alaska include but are not limited to red king crab, snow crab, Dungeness crab, Tanner crab and Northern spot shrimp. Crab fisheries are size selected male only fisheries while all sexes of shrimp may be harvested. The Tanner crab (Chionoecetes bairdi) and northern spot shrimp (Pandalus platyceros) both undergo male specific sexual differentiation that is important to their life history and to the fishery, and these life history events can be studied through their endocrinology. Molting hormones (ecdysteroids) regulate growth in all crustaceans. In crabs such as Tanner and snow crabs, these hormones can be used in association with morphometrics to distinguish terminally molted male crabs, a life history stage distinguished by an allometric increase in chelae size. Sexual differentiation of male crustaceans is mediated by the insulin-like androgenic gland hormone (IAG), a product of the androgenic gland (AG). The role of this hormone is to promote the male phenotype during the life history of the animal. For gonochoristic species such as C. bairdi, and protandric species such as P. platyceros, IAG is thought to be the hormone responsible for promoting spermatogenesis and secondary sexual characteristics (such as the large claw morphology of C. bairdi). In protandric shrimp, in which functional males become functional females, the mechanism for transition from male to female is hypothesized to be the degeneration of the AG; thus elimination of IAG. Professor Tamone will present data on our current understanding of the endocrine basis for sexual differentiation in Tanner crab and spot shrimp.
The Seminar Series is supported by generous contributions from the Barbara and Richard M. Rosenberg Institute at the Romberg Tiburon Center, San Francisco State University