Kristin Huizenga

Protections with a bite: Are toothed whales sheltered by South African Marine Protected Areas?

Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are often put into place to protect biodiversity and essential fish stocks, but toothed whales are…

Methodology

Want to know about water? Ask some sea creatures

There are animals that are constantly traversing places we have barely begun to understand. Animals can’t directly tell us what…

Methodology

Sea-sick – Examining ocean diseases through literature

From coral bleaching to sea star wasting disease, stories of an unhealthy ocean have been all over the news. But…

Climate Change

A silver lining: How warming waters in the Gulf of Maine gave lobsters a leg up

Warming coastal waters in New England have been linked to a decline in lobsters in southern New England, but a…

Biology

Clinging, cloning jellyfish: How an old species is coming back with new force

On the fourth of July, 2019, happy beach-goers in Rhode Island escaped the directness of the sun by wading into…

Sea Turtles

Are you jelly? Citizen scientists find jellyfish to help sea turtles

The largest leatherback ever recorded weighed 2,019 pounds, and yet this behemoth lives on a diet composed almost entirely of…

Ecology

On the case: Scientists use many sources to find the culprit in kelp disappearance

The extensive decline of the Great Barrier Reef has received a lot of press attention in recent years, yet reefs…

deep sea

Into the deep: Deep sea mining is upon us, whether you would risk it or not

While we have a lot to discover about the deep sea, we do know that in the depths of the…

Biology

Saving the Blue Bloods: Horseshoe Crab Edition

We use horseshoe crab blood to test every FDA approved drug given to humans. Yet with horseshoe crab populations dropping…

Ecology

Digging Deep: Burrowing Animals are Just One Element of a Healthy Mudflat

Despite mudflats supporting fisheries, providing homes for birds, and serving as a buffer between land and sea, these ecosystems are…

Evolution

The Slow Burn: Slower Metabolisms May Help Mollusks Avoid Extinction

By looking at fossils found in the Western Atlantic, Dr. Luke Strotz and a team of scientists at the University…

Climate Change

Holding fast: kelp in Nova Scotia tries to grow on turf algae after a period of decline

Kelp has had a few rough decades that have led to the decline that threatens not only kelp but the…

Plastic Pollution

Turtles in the Trash: How microplastics are washing up where turtles breed

Like plastic bags and other larger plastic pieces, these insidious micro particles can make their way into animal digestive tracts…

Conservation

Good Neighbors: Why we need to be careful with Piping Plovers, even when they aren’t breeding

A new study has discovered that leaving Piping Plover habitat unprotected when the birds aren't breeding may be hindering conservation…

Behavior

Scaredy Fish: How Timid Fish Could Skew Research

Divers have long suspected that some fish are more afraid of people than others. A recent study has shown that…

Behavior

Bite or Flight: How Seaweed Can Shape Feeding Behavior in Fish

What is a forest without trees or a coral reef without coral? Neither a forest nor a coral reef. Entire…

Behavior Policy

Killing Jaws: Tackling the Idea of the Bloodthirsty Predator

Even though shark attacks are rare, fear of sharks has led people to support laws that kill sharks en masse.…