deep sea
The Biological Big Bang: Testing the hypothesis that sperm whales use auditory bursts to stun prey and other proposed feeding strategies.
Article Fais, A., Johnson, M., Wilson, M., Soto, N. A., & Madsen, P. T. (2016). Sperm whale predator-prey interactions involve chasing and buzzing, but no acoustic stunning. Scientific reports, 6, 28562. Background Sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) are big. To put it in perspective, an adult or bull sperm whale is longer on average (52 ft.) […]
Growing a Scientist: Undergraduate Research 2018, part 3
Check out these posts by guest authors Deborah Leopo, Mike Miller, Whitney Marshall, and Robert Lewis about deep sea snail species, sea level rise, and tectonic modeling–these students were part of the SURFO program at URI-GSO over Summer 2018, and have some really exciting research to share! Anna RobuckI am a third year PhD student […]
A Gentle (Robotic) Hand
The world of deep-sea environments is fascinating, and there is so much to learn from what we’ve yet to actually see. Scientists are now 3D printing soft manipulators that allow us to study fragile, deep-sea organisms without damaging them, all with the added benefit of real-time problem solving. Rishya NarayananRishya is pursuing an M.S. in […]
Danger in the deep: uncovering the vertical movement patterns of vulnerable deep-sea sharks
Deep-sea sharks are one of the most poorly studied groups of animals on the planet, yet, their populations are highly threatened by fisheries bycatch. Scientists in The Bahamas develop new field approaches to begin unearthing the vertical movements of a vulnerable deep-sea shark, the Cuban dogfish, and their findings from could help significantly reduce fisheries […]
Top 5 Highlights of Deep Sea Exploration in 2017
What have this year’s deep sea exploration expeditions encountered so far? Read more to find out! Megan ChenI graduated with a Masters of Coastal & Marine Management from the University of Akureyri in Iceland, and am currently working at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History in Ocean Education. I am interested in smart […]
Science Behind the Scenes: The Corps of Exploration on the Exploration Vessel Nautilus
What kind of people does it take to do research out at sea? Oceanbites writers Ashley Marranzino and Megan Chen participated in a research cruise aboard the Exploration Vessel Nautilus and asked the Corps of Exploration! Megan ChenI graduated with a Masters of Coastal & Marine Management from the University of Akureyri in Iceland, and […]
Science Behind the Scenes: A Tour of the Exploration Vessel Nautilus
What is it really like to do research out at sea? Last month oceanbites writers Megan Chen and Ashley Marranzino participated in a research cruise aboard the Exploration Vessel Nautilus – watch a special behind the scenes video blog to see a tour of the ship! Ashley MarranzinoI received my Master’s degree from the University […]
2+ Ocean Exploration Expeditions to Join This Year
Ninety-five percent of the ocean is unexplored, but there a few ocean expeditions happening this year that you can join! How? You can explore alongside scientists in real time. Read more to find out! Megan ChenI graduated with a Masters of Coastal & Marine Management from the University of Akureyri in Iceland, and am currently […]
Deep Iron: Good for the Ocean’s Bones
: Iron isn’t just good for your body – it’s good for the ocean, too. While many studies focus on external sources of iron to the global ocean, Fitzsimmons et al. investigated iron sources coming from deep hydrothermal vents along midocean ridges, and how they might disperse iron and other metals vast distances through the […]
Toxic living: finding the right home for sulfur-oxidizing bacteria
Hydrothermal vents are hot, dark, and toxic environments. But to sulfur oxidizing bacteria, they’re home. Michael GrawI’m a 5th year PhD student at Oregon State University researching the microbial ecology of marine sediments – why do we find microbes where they are in the seafloor, and what are they doing there? I spend my non-science […]
Eating bones and building habitats: the life of an ecosystem engineer
Believe it or not, zombies can be…a good thing? Read on to find out how “zombie worms” in the deep ocean contribute to biodiversity! Erin McLeanHi and welcome to oceanbites! I recently finished my master’s degree at URI, focusing on lobsters and how they respond metabolically to ocean acidification projections. I did my undergrad at […]
Under the Sea(floor): Ocean Drilling and Scientific Discovery
Deep, dark, and mysterious, the ocean seafloor contains clues and records of past life and climates on earth. Understanding the subseafloor is critical to understanding our planet. But how do we reach these muds and rocks that lie beneath? Here we explore the history of subseafloor exploration, and find out about some of the technologies […]
Antarctica’s bottom waters freshen up
A team of researchers went back to the same part of Antarctic after a decade to see how the deep ocean had changed, and were surprised to find the deep ocean was fresher than they expected. Veronica TamsittI’m a PhD student at Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla California. My research is focused on […]
First evidence of plastic microfibre consumption by deep-sea animals
For the first time ever, scientists have found evidence that deep sea animals are actually consuming plastic microfibres. Read more about the study and why we should care. Megan ChenI graduated with a Masters of Coastal & Marine Management from the University of Akureyri in Iceland, and am currently working at the Smithsonian Institution’s National […]
Long-lived sharks challenge ageing theory
Greenland sharks can live to be over 400 years old. What can they tell us about ageing? Brittney G. BorowiecBrittney 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 […]
When Pigs Get Crabs: A Story of Symbiosis
Excerpt: The deep sea is not an easy place to live. Cold, dark, and featureless, it doesn’t provide a lot of food or hiding spots for the animals that live there. Read on to find out the odd way one species of crab has evolved to avoid both problems! Erin McLeanHi and welcome to oceanbites! […]
Marine Halloween: Creepiest Looking Critters
In honor of our Marine Halloween theme, this month I’ll be presenting my picks for the creepiest looking marine critters, à la Buzzfeed. Counting down from 5: 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 the […]
How Much Wood Can A Wood Boring Clam Bore?
How much wood could a wood boring clam bore if a wood boring clam was given a lot of different options of wood to bore? Not as catchy as the original, but check this article out to learn about how the type of wood that falls to the deep ocean influences the community of animals […]
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? Brittney G. BorowiecBrittney 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 […]
12,000 feet under the sea, from space
A pair of scientists have figured out how to track deep ocean currents using gravity measurements from space. Veronica TamsittI’m a PhD student at Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla California. My research is focused on the Southern Ocean circulation and it’s role in climate. For my research I sometimes spend months at sea […]
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