Aquaculture
Sargassum: An Overlooked Solution
Sargassum, a type of brown seaweed, provides important ecosystem services in the Atlantic. However, this new study explores how sargassum may provide one solution to marine pollution. Ashley MickensI am a senior Environmental Earth Science and Sustainability major at Miami University of Ohio. While my undergraduate research focused on biogeochemical cycles in lakes and streams, […]
To fish or not to fish: Exploring China’s seafood production strategies
China is the world’s largest producer of seafood and uses many different production methods to keep this reputation. These methods differ in their environmental effects. This study surveys the outcomes of China’s marine seafood production strategies and discusses ways China plans to reduce their environmental footprint from fishing. Diana FontaineI am a second year PhD […]
Increasing Warming causes Ecosystem Change along the Northeastern Shelf
Are the tropics coming to the Northeast coast of the US? Freidland and his team seem to think so. A recent study shows how the Northeastern shelf region may experience tropicalization in the near future. Ashley MickensI am a senior Environmental Earth Science and Sustainability major at Miami University of Ohio. While my undergraduate research […]
A floating island: is this where we’re moving to next?
Are floating islands in our future? As many of may know, the sea level is rising and will eventually intrude on the space we have on land. In addition, if the population continues to increase, we may need to look elsewhere to live and grow food. The Horizon 2020 project is an initiative sponsored by […]
Farmed Kelp to the Rescue? Not So Fast, Say Researchers
Kelp farming is on the rise across Europe and North America, and all the headlines say that’s a good thing for fighting climate change. But scientists say we need to make sure kelp farms don’t spawn even more environmental problems. Grebe, Gretchen S., Carrie J. Byron, Adam St. Gelais, Dawn M. Kotowicz, and Tollef […]
Public Perceptions of Aquaculture Show Lack of Ocean Literacy
Article: Froehlich HE, Gentry RR, Rust MB, Grimm D, Halpern BS (2017) Public Perceptions of Aquaculture: Evaluating Spatiotemporal Patterns of Sentiment around the World. PLoS ONE 12(1): e0169281. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0169281 Aquaculture is one of the fastest growing industries in the world. A 2014 report by the UN-FAO estimated global freshwater and marine farming to constitute 44% of all […]
Fisheries and Food Security
Fish have provided sustenance for millions of people, but in a world where stocks are rapidly depleting, what are the consequences of trying to save and rehabilitate their populations? Andrea SchlunkI am a former PhD student from the University of Rhode Island, having discovered my love of teaching and informal science education in part through […]
Why do restaurants join sustainable seafood labelling programs?
Why do some restaurants join sustainable seafood eco-labeling programs? A new study identifies some motivating factors that can help the continued expansion of these programs to enhance their ability to harness consumer demand and encourage positive change in seafood production. Megan ChenI graduated with a Masters of Coastal & Marine Management from the University of […]
Cascading Effects From Geoduck Expansions
An ecosystem model predicts how the Puget Sound ecosystem could be affected as the popular geoduck aquaculture industry increases. Including mediating affects, such as changes in predator refuges, allowed ecosystem-wide changes to be uncovered. For example, a decrease in seabirds was predicted due to shifts in prey populations resulting from the anti-predation guards for geoducks. […]
Dangerous Toxins Threaten Aquaculture on a Global Scale
Mycotoxins in fish feed threaten the health of fish, consumers, and the aquaculture market. The more we learn and understand about these toxins, the more effective regulations can be. Read more to find out how complicated mycotoxin science can be, and how its complexity plays into setting safety standards. Anne M. HartwellHello, welcome to Oceanbites! […]
How is the changing diet of farmed Atlantic salmon affecting their nutritional value?
We eat oily fish to get the health benefits of omega-3 fatty acids. However, the level of omega-3s in farmed salmon is changing. How does this stack up to wild-caught salmon? Read more to find out! Megan ChenI graduated with a Masters of Coastal & Marine Management from the University of Akureyri in Iceland, and […]
When life gives you dead mussels, make…lobsters?
Many industries have been trying to figure out how to make their waste products into useful raw materials for other products. Read on to find out how mussel aquaculture could contribute to your next lobster dinner! Erin McLeanHi and welcome to oceanbites! I recently finished my master’s degree at URI, focusing on lobsters and how […]
What happens to human health when we feed crops to farmed fish?
Feed for farmed seafood is relying on more land-based ingredients. As aquaculture production is projected to increase in response to rising human demand, the consequences for resource use and human health is changing. Read more to find out how! Megan ChenI graduated with a Masters of Coastal & Marine Management from the University of Akureyri […]
Larval Donkey’s ear abalone threatened by climate change
Abalone are an economically and culturally important group of edible sea snails, and a new study demonstrates that they’re at serious risk of decline due to ocean acidification. Dina NavonI am a doctoral candidate in the Organismic and Evolutionary Biology program at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. I’m interested in how an individual’s genes and […]
Highlights from the National Shellfisheries Meeting
Ever wanted to know what it’s like to go to a scientific conference? Here’s a summary of what conferences are all about, plus the four most interesting talks I saw at this year’s National Shellfisheries Association meeting. Erin McLeanHi and welcome to oceanbites! I recently finished my master’s degree at URI, focusing on lobsters and […]
Sunday brunch: Lox with… lice?
Lox and lice. Not a combination of critters you envision when planning your Sunday brunch. Unfortunately, an increase in drug resistant sea lice is threatening both wild and farmed salmonid populations. Sarah FullerWith academic backgrounds in oceanography, geology, and environmental education, Sarah has traveled to far reaches of the planet to learn everything she can […]
Passive Sampling for Antiparasitics near a Chile Salmon Farm
An increase in the number of positive cages and cage-level abundance of sea lice in southern Chile was shown since 2004. The prevalence of sea lice in the fish farms was 53.4%, and the average sea lice abundance was 11.8 per fish (poor salmon)! In order to gain control over parasites, synthetic pyrethoid has been […]
Increasing fiber in your diet… microplastic fibers, that is
Microplastics constitute the large majority of plastic pollution in our global oceans. Microplastic fibers are small fibers that might not be visible to the naked eye, but can be found on virtually every coastline. Researchers in Halifax, Nova Scotia looked for these fibers in beach sediments, worm fecal casts, and both natural and farmed mussels […]
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