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Author: Brittney G. Borowiec

Brittney is a PhD candidate at McMaster University in Hamilton, ON, Canada, and joined Oceanbites in September 2015. Her research focuses on the physiological mechanisms and evolution of the respiratory and metabolic responses of Fundulus killifish to intermittent (diurnal) patterns of hypoxia.
Sea snakes join the dark side to cope with pollution
Biology

Sea snakes join the dark side to cope with pollution

Black sea snakes are more common in contaminated sites. Why?
August 29, 2017August 29, 2017 Brittney G. Borowiec
Human impacts

Crude oil cripples sandpiper flights

Maggini, I., L.V. Kennedy, A. Macmillan, K.H. Elliott, K. Dean, and C.G. Guglielmo. 2017. Light oiling of feathers increases flight…
July 27, 2017July 30, 2017 Brittney G. Borowiec
Biology

Seaweed antioxidants protect fish too

A new study suggests that feeding fish small amounts of antioxidant-rich seaweed can protected them from environmental challenges.
June 30, 2017June 30, 2017 Brittney G. Borowiec
Biology

Candidate compass genes in fish

A team of American researchers use next-generation sequencing to ask: "magnetoreception, how does it work?"
May 31, 2017May 27, 2017 Brittney G. Borowiec
Biology

Now we got bad blood: Oxygen binding is not affected by haemoglobin subtype in Atlantic cod

Why do northern and southern populations of Atlantic cod have different haemoglobin subtypes? A recent study upsets over 50 years…
March 8, 2017March 4, 2017 Brittney G. Borowiec
Biology

What killer whales tell us about menopause

Killer whales, or orcas (Orcinus orca), are amazingly intelligent and social animals. What can they tell us about the evolution…
February 7, 2017February 4, 2017 Brittney G. Borowiec
Biology

Warm water curtails sea snakes’ dives

Like frogs, sea snakes can uptake oxygen through both their lungs and their skin. How will these “bimodal breathers” cope…
January 10, 2017January 7, 2017 Brittney G. Borowiec
Evolution

Swashbuckling spiders sailed the high seas

Long before the Vikings reached North America, a group of coastal spiders was already sailing around the world using prevailing…
December 19, 2016January 7, 2017 Brittney G. Borowiec
Biology

Long-lived sharks challenge ageing theory

Greenland sharks can live to be over 400 years old. What can they tell us about ageing?
November 9, 2016October 27, 2016 Brittney G. Borowiec
Conservation

Do algal blooms kill whales?

Since 2005, southern right whale calves have been found dead in historic numbers off the Patagonian coast in Argentina. Scientists…
October 5, 2016October 1, 2016 Brittney G. Borowiec
Biology

Pet trout: domestication rapidly alters gene expression

The impact of domestication can be detected within one generation in steelhead trout, and may involve adaptation to highly crowded…
September 20, 2016September 20, 2016 Brittney G. Borowiec
Biology

Young whales build baleen out of ribs

Juvenile bowhead whales put off gaining length and undergo severe bone loss to invest in growing their massive heads and…
August 23, 2016August 23, 2016 Brittney G. Borowiec
Biology

With a little help from my friends: sea turtles hatch together to save energy

Sea turtle hatchlings face long odds when they emerge from their buried nests. But at least they don't have to…
July 25, 2016July 25, 2016 Brittney G. Borowiec
Biology

Why don’t sharks go deep?

Happy Shark Week! Today we examine a persistent and interesting biogeographical puzzle: why are there so few deep sea sharks?
June 29, 2016August 15, 2016 Brittney G. Borowiec
Fisheries

You look like your mom: parental effects in Atlantic salmon

In honour of our Mother's Day theme week, we'll look at how the environment experienced by parents during reproduction and…
May 2, 2016May 17, 2016 Brittney G. Borowiec
Human impacts

Go Green for Earth Day!

Do Mother Nature a solid with these helpful tips & tricks to go green today!
April 22, 2016April 21, 2016 Brittney G. Borowiec
Physiology

Turtles turn heat exchange topsy-turvy

Counter-current heat exchange is a classic example of an elegant anatomical solution to this physiological problem. Leatherback sea turtles do…
March 1, 2016March 15, 2016 Brittney G. Borowiec
Biology

Odd Couples ♥ Tales of Symbiosis in the Ocean

Our Sea of Love theme week kicks off with tales of symbiotic partnerships in the ocean. [Feature image from Wikimedia]
February 8, 2016February 8, 2016 Brittney G. Borowiec
Physiology

Oxygen favours the bold

It takes personality for the African sharptooth catfishes to breathe air. But they also consider their surroundings before visiting the…
January 18, 2016January 18, 2016 Brittney G. Borowiec
Physiology

Trawling selects for faster fish

A new study suggests that differences in exercise performance make some individuals more vulnerable to capture by trawling than others,…
December 12, 2015December 12, 2015 Brittney G. Borowiec

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