Feature Channels: Marine Science

• share
• favorite_border

Human activities account for a substantial amount - anywhere from 20% to more than 60% - of toxic thallium that has entered the Baltic Sea over the past 80 years, according to new research by scientists affiliated with the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and other institutions.

• share
• favorite_border

In a recent study, researchers utilized time-series imagery from Sentinel-2 satellites to map the distribution of the mangrove species Kandelia obovata across China. This study represents a significant advancement in mangrove management and conservation, aligning with sustainable development goals.

• share
• favorite_border

Researchers investigated the influence of ploidy level on mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) copy number and gene expression in fish. They compared mtDNA copy numbers in liver and muscle of red crucian carp, common carp, and two allotriploid fish across different seasons.

• share
• favorite_border

A University of Adelaide study of shallow-water fish communities on rocky reefs in south-eastern Australia has found climate change is helping tropical fish species invade temperate Australian waters.

• share
• favorite_border

Marine communities migrated to Antarctica during the Earth’s warmest period in 66 million years long before a mass-extinction event.

• share
• favorite_border

Newly developed bioadhesive sensors (BIMS) are effective and less invasive than traditional tagging. Scientists can attach them with a thin layer of dried-hydrogel in less than 20 seconds.

• share
• favorite_border

Meandering ocean currents play an important role in the melting of Antarctic ice shelves, threatening a significant rise in sea levels.

• share
• favorite_border

Once Sargassum deluges beaches, removing, disposing and repurposing the seaweed presents many logistical and economic challenges. Cleaning up these huge piles of annoying seaweed while protecting these critical habitats at the same time is a precarious struggle.

• share
• favorite_border

Researchers have introduced an innovative underwater vest equipped with an antioxidant MXene hydrogel for the sensitive recognition of fish locomotion. This novel device aims to deepen our understanding of aquatic life by enabling precise monitoring of fish behavior in their natural habitats.

• share
• favorite_border

Genetic analysis finds evidence suggesting that acoustic fat bodies in the heads of toothed whales were once the muscles and bone marrow of the jaw.

• share
• favorite_border

While climate change has led to an increase in the abundance of octopuses, heat stress from projected ocean warming could impair their vision and impact the survivability of the species.

• share
• favorite_border

By analyzing 42 years worth of canned salmon, University of Washington scientists show that levels a common marine parasite rose in two salmon species in the Gulf of Alaska from 1979 to 2021. The rise may be a sign of ecosystem recovery, possibly influenced by the 1972 Marine Mammal Protection Act.

• share
• favorite_border

UNC Wilmington faculty have been equipped with a cutting-edge instrument from the North Carolina Collaboratory and Thermo Fisher Scientific to advance research on the impact of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination on the environment and public health.

• share
• favorite_border

How coral populations expand into new areas and sustain themselves over time is limited by the scope of modern observations. Going back thousands of years, a study provides geological insights into coral range expansions by reconstructing the composition of a Late Holocene-aged subfossil coral death assemblage in S.E. Florida and comparing it to modern reefs throughout the region.

• share
• favorite_border

Microbes called anaerobic methanotrophic archaea form communities with sulfate reducing bacteria. These communities can consume methane in anaerobic environments. This research found that biological processes in these microbial communities can create silica deposits that appear to entomb the communities.

• share
• favorite_border

Ocean scientists discovered the new deep-sea hydrothermal vent sites on the seafloor at 2,550 meters (8366 feet, or 1.6 miles) depth.

• share
• favorite_border

A study is the first to evaluate substrate recolonization by sponges in the U.S. Virgin Islands after two catastrophic storms using genetic analyses to understand how much clonality verses sexual recruitment occurs on coral reefs post-storms.

• share
• favorite_border

The following announcement was released today by Joe Walston, Executive Vice President of WCS Global: “I am delighted to announce the appointment of Dr. Stacy Jupiter to lead WCS Marine Conservation. Stacy is currently WCS Regional Director for the Melanesia program and was the outstanding candidate after a long and thorough global recruitment effort.