Lis Henderson
Tracking the movements of a heavily fished Fijian shark
The silvertip is a reef shark targeted for its fins. Scientists tagged a Fijian silvertip to learn more about what depths and temperatures it likes to hang out in.
Tiny plastic pieces accumulate in a huge marine filter-feeder
Scientists find microplastic pieces in the intestines of a baleen whale for the first time.
North Sea fish stick to warming shallows rather than cooling off at depth
Models based on historical survey data indicate that with long term warming trends, fish distributions in the North Sea will remain at nearly the same depths while abundances across species may change considerably.
Offspring inherit trait developed in parents
Damselfish offspring inherit a trait developed by parents raised in warmer temperatures.
Growth of a deep-sea predatory fish is affected by surface current strength
A deep-water predatory fish is found to have faster growth rates when productivity is enhanced by the Leeuwin Current along the Southwestern coast of Australia.
The Antarctic minke whale foraging strategy
Filter feeding whales face a body size and feeding strategy trade-off in foraging efficiency. Researchers from the Marine Mammal Institute at Oregon State University studied the foraging strategy of one of the smallest filter feeding whales, the Antarctic minke whale.
Catfish sharks on catnip? Nope, just ocean acidification
Researchers from the University of Gothenburg in Sweden found that ocean acidification may cause hyperactivity in catfish sharks.
Measuring “Roundup” in the Great Barrier Reef
Scientists estimated the degradation time for glyphosate, an herbicide in “Roundup”, in the Great Barrrier Reef. This is the first study of the persistence of glyphosate in seawater.
Impostor! How mislabeled seafood affects the amount of mercury you ingest
Seafood mislabeling is a big problem for both consumers and fisheries management. Using genetic data and mercury concentrations, scientists figured out how frequently store-bought Chilean sea bass was swapped. Results indicate seafood substitutions can mean very different concentrations of mercury in your meal.
Too much acid in the mahi: Ocean acidification and larval dolphinfish
How will increased atmospheric carbon dioxide affect your dinner? Larval dolphinfish (or, ‘mahi mahi’) are apparently very sensitive to increased ocean acidification, a product of rising atmospheric CO2. This is one of the first studies of the effects of ocean acidification on the early life stage of a pelagic fish species.
How will climate change affect coastal fisheries production?
Forecasted impacts of climate changes on fisheries production in coastal ecosystems suggest modest changes on average with significant increases in primary production in high latitude systems and declines near the equator. Fisheries in developing nations are most at risk. However, declining productivity may be buffered by responsible management practices.
Oceanography in space! Using a satellite to profile an extraterrestrial lake
In 2013, a satellite orbiting Saturn passed by its largest moon, Titan. The satellite track offered a rare opportunity to collect depth-sounding data of an extraterrestrial lake.
Hooded seals of the Greenland Sea
Hooded seals have been hunted for centuries in the North Atlantic. Despite increased regulation over the last three decades, a recent assessment of the Greenland Sea stock suggests that it will remain at unprecedented low abundances for the foreseeable future. Even with a ban on hunting, the stock will likely decline as climate change diminishes breeding habitat and increases susceptibility to predators such as polar bears and killer whales.
Abundant bacterial vesicles found in seawater
An abundant species of photosynthetic bacteria is found to release numerous membrane-bound packets. This is the first evidence of vesicle release by photosynthetic organisms. These tiny vesicles could have big impacts on prior knowledge of marine microbial systems.
Cuttlefish camouflage: A new method for studying the masters of disguise
Squid, octopus, and cuttlefish are considered masters of disguise in the ocean. But how do they do it? A recent study by Goodwin and Tublitz tested a new technique to study cuttlefish camouflage using image analysis software.
Cooked fish: Ocean warming and global fisheries
Global fisheries are expected to change as ocean temperatures warm. A recent study by Cheung et al. uses mean temperature of catch, a metric based on species’ average thermal preferences, to determine whether fisheries are changing to include more warm-water species.
Fish follow climate velocities through space and time
We expect marine species to respond to climate change by either adapting or changing geographical ranges. But observed shifts in marine species distributions are often difficult to decipher, spanning a wide array of directions and rates. Most hypotheses focus on biological differences amongst species to explain changing distributions. The authors of this paper explored climate velocities – or, isotherms moving through space and time – as an explanation for changing species distributions.
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