This Indigenous Peoples’ Day, consider the role of indigenous and local communities in marine conservation and policy. International governing bodies need to work to include Indigenous peoples and their holistic management practices as part of important discussions on how to conserve marine biodiversity on the high seas. Julia ZehI am a PhD candidate at Syracuse […]
Jones T, Divine LM, Renner H, Knowles S, Lefebvre KA, Burgess HK, et al. (2019) Unusual mortality of Tufted puffins (Fratercula cirrhata) in the eastern Bering Sea. PLoS ONE 14(5): e0216532. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0216532 Mass mortality events (or MMEs) are incidents that kill a vast number of individuals in a short period of time. They’re often caused […]
How do we know where seabirds live and eat? Not such an easy question without special technology! Check out this article to learn how researchers tag seabirds in the Gulf of Maine to learn about their habitat use. Anna RobuckI am a third year PhD student at the University of Rhode Island Graduate School of […]
Tagging seabirds has only been possible with recent developments in technology, but we can learn a ton about their distribution and behavior through tagging studies. Read on to hear how it is done! Anna RobuckI am a third year PhD student at the University of Rhode Island Graduate School of Oceanography in the Lohmann Lab. […]
Plastic pollution is commonly imagined to be an issue that affects the sea surface. However, many small pieces of plastic sink into deeper waters. In this post, we look at research by scientists from Brazil set out along the Brazilian coastline to find out if plastic pollution is only a problem for surface-feeding birds, or […]
Seabirds and invasive species have been a poor mix for centuries, yet new research suggests seabird populations are bouncing back from invasive species damage. Read on to hear about seabird success following invasive predator removal on islands across the globe! Anna RobuckI am a third year PhD student at the University of Rhode Island Graduate […]
How do scientists track fast swimming squid in the remote and vast open waters of the Southern Ocean? Probably not in any way you’d expect. They use squid predators, specifically a seabird—the wandering albatross—to find the squid for them. These albatrosses are outfitted with some very cool technology to bring the researchers information on their […]
Seabirds are switching up their annual winter travels in response to climate change…read on to discover how researchers used museum displays, isotopes, and really expensive GPS tags to piece together this seabird story. Anna RobuckI am a third year PhD student at the University of Rhode Island Graduate School of Oceanography in the Lohmann Lab. […]
Large-scale climate variably is well-known to have impacts on marine ecosystems. However, the response of species over time is not as simple as it seems. This study reveals that the relationships between seabirds and Pacific climate varies over time. Hillary ScannellHillary received her MS in oceanography from the University of Maine in 2014 and works […]