Posts
March 21, 2013
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6:26 PM | 23 Species Giant Squid or Just 1
As I mentioned before, in 1857 Japetus Steenstrup, a Danish biologist scientifically named several squids and octopods in the shortly titled Hectoctyldannelsen hos Octopodslaegterne Argonauta og Tremoctopus, oplyst ved Iagttagelse af lignende Dannelser hos Blacksprutterne i Almindelighed. Among those species Steenstrup named was the Giant Squid or Architeuthis dux. The scientific name comes from the . . . → Read More: 23 Species Giant Squid or Just 1
March 20, 2013
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Your weekly dose of ocean science + comics! Name: Andy Pickering Job: 5th year PhD student, Physical Oceanography, University of Washington. Works with the Wave Chasers Lab at APL Research: Ocean physics, internal waves What lives underwater, is hundreds of meters tall, and can swipe a submarine out of its way like it’s a fly? [...]
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Hello, my name is Shanty the Seagull. Seagulls get a bad rap from humans. They have the nerve to call us rats with wings! That’s unfair not only to us, but to the rats who are at least intelligent to run all the mazes that human scientists set up. One reason we appear filthy is [...]
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Contributed by Nick Higgs, Adrian Glover & Tammy Horton Today sees the launch of Deep Sea ID, a free app that allows offline access to the World Register of Deep-Sea Species and currently stores on your device the taxonomic information for over 20,000 deep-sea species, over 350 high-resolution photographs of deep-sea specimens as well . . . → Read More: The Earth’s Largest Ecosystem – in Your Back Pocket
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9:34 AM | Chalk talk: Coccolithophores
claimtoken-515c33901c53e Follow @esargent184 If you read my previous post on the interesting article about coccolithophore species-specific growth responses to environmental change, you may have been left wanting to know more about coccolithophores in general. I don’t blame you. Coccolithophores are … Continue reading →
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Boring sponges get a bad rap. Their own name betrays them, announcing to the world that they are unexciting, ordinary and quite frankly, boring. However, if ever a misnomer existed, this is it.
More flatteringly referred to as excavating or bioeroding sponges, these animals play the important yet thankless role of breaking down and recycling calcium carbonate (the main component of eggshells, corals and shelled marine organisms). Using a combination of chemical and mechanical erosion, these
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Global ocean conservation society Oceana published its US National Seafood Fraud Report earlier this year and this week released some choice stats from the report in the graphic below. The list of mislabeled fish found in restaurants and supermarkets alone is disturbing but the real concern is: where along the chain from trawler to dockyard [...]
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2:41 AM | Where’s the cream filling?
That’s pretty much the first question I ask myself when starting any sea beastie dissection. Sadly, I have yet to encounter a cream-filled critter, but I guess this is what happens when you shut down Hostess. Yep. I’m still bitter. It leads to a most-intriguing second question though…If not cream filling, what IS inside the . . . → Read More: Where’s the cream filling?
March 19, 2013
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Follow @esargent184 Some of the most progressive and interesting science happens when experts from different fields come together to tackle the same problem. Recently a group of plankton ecologists teamed up with some palaeontologists to assess how climate change impacts … Continue reading →
March 18, 2013
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4:00 PM | UK ocean glider workshop
The British Oceanographic Data Center (BODC) are pleased to announce that we will be hosting a UK ocean glider workshop on Thursday 18 April 2013, in Liverpool.
A deployment of Seaglider 'Talisker' ©
The aim is to bring together UK researchers and technicians to share expertise and experiences acquired through specific involvement with gliders and glider data.
The workshop, endorsed by the UK Integrated Marine Observing Network (UK-IMON) initiative, will
showcase scientific
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1. Plans to extract minerals from areas of #hydrothermalvents, deep on the seabed interactive video by @BBCNews via @MBARI_News 2. Ocean plankton sponge up nearly twice the carbon currently assumed via @UCIrvine 3. Storify-ed the #CITES4sharks tweets! Read them to learn what happened at #CITES! via @WhySharksMatter 4. Learn how some scientists are hitchhiking across [...]
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5:33 AM | More than a planktonic relationship: microbes digest double the carbon previously estimated
Microscopic plankton (of the plant and animal variety) drives global carbon dioxide absorption. While the Amazon rainforest is absorbing nearly 2 billion tonnes of carbon per year, scientists have calculated the global ocean currently absorbs about one-third of carbon emissions but both carbon sinks can also be producers of carbon dioxide. Researchers at the University [...]
March 17, 2013
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10:00 PM | The lack of the Irish!
I love St Paddy’s Day. I’m Scots-Irish-Australian, so I never drink (baddum-tish!), but I do like bangers and mash and all things gaelic. In pondering how to celebrate on DSN, I considered a post of green fish, but that was just too easy. Instead, I thought I’d present some fish with Irish patronyms. So off . . . → Read More: The lack of the Irish!
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12:25 AM | A Pee Shanty
Source: Wikimedia Commons There is an ancient nautical proverb commonly passed down from generation to generation amongst members of the diving community. I do believe it goes a little something like this… “There are those that pee in their wetsuits and there are those that lie about it.” (I would actually even add a third . . . → Read More: A Pee Shanty
March 16, 2013
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I loves me some metrics. That’s why I’m addicted to this new PLoS ONE paper, published by Trevor Branch at the University of Washington. Also, because Figure 1 is a Wordle: “Word clouds showing the relative frequency of words (A) in Worm et al. [7], (B) in the press release associated with Worm et al., . . . → Read More: Media hype gets you more citations? Well, it did for this fisheries paper.
March 13, 2013
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12:31 AM | Behind the picture 5
Reblogged from gavinparsons: The oceanic This week’s ‘behind the picture’ is one from my archives. It was taken in the Red Sea, just off Big Brother Island in the early naughties. The reason I bring it to you today is because the oceanic white tip shark today received CITES protection. This is a bit of [...]
March 12, 2013
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10:59 PM | This is friggin’ awesome
I have a confession….the musical genius that is “Thrift Shop” IS MY JAM. Yes… I turn it up to an ear shattering decibel EVERYTIME it comes on the radio. And yes…I even bust an awkward-car-confined dance move or two. Both actions most usually resulting in questionable side glares stemming from fellow motorists….But let’s be honest…they . . . → Read More: This is friggin’ awesome
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Exciting things have been happening in the Deep-sea community these past few years – we’re gaining online momentum! My bookmarks are filling up with more and more links, fueling my lunchtime and late-night procrastination.. Marine scientists and Deep-sea fanatics alike will be keen to keep tabs on some of these resources, which often fly under . . . → Read More: Extra, Extra! Getcha bookmarks ready and keep track of Deep-sea research!
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4:00 AM | The Search for an Elusive Ribbon Worm
With 1,400 named species of ribbon worms inhabiting every ecosystem on earth, seeking one out should be an easy proposition. But I quickly learned that it can be quite daunting when you’re looking for certain teeny-tiny mud-loving worms. I recently accompanied Dr. Jon Norenburg and postdoctoral fellow Dr. Eduardo Zattara, Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History research scientists in the Department of Invertebrate Zoology, on a research trip to Fort Pierce, Florida. The goal? Find
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March 11, 2013
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March madness came early for ocean conservationists yesterday (9am March 11,2013 local time in Thailand) as the twitterverse was abuzz with the hashtags #CITES #CITES4sharks So what is CITES, and how does it affect sharks and rays worldwide? In short, CITES is a treaty between 178 countries to help regulate the worldwide trade in wildlife, [...]
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4:00 PM | Eavesdropping on dolphins
Please welcome my next science+comics interview victim, Alexis! Name: Alexis Rudd Job: PhD student in Zoology at the University of Hawaii Research: Alexis uses passive acoustic monitoring to study whales and dolphins off Hawaii News Flash!! Whales and dolphins, a.k.a. cetaceans, hang out near the Hawaiian Islands! Okay, not a news flash at all, everyone [...]
March 10, 2013
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1. The amazing NASA video that reveals how salt moves around the Earth’s oceans | Mail Online click here via @DMAILscitech 2. Postcard From Isla Holbox: (Ir)responsible Whale Shark Ecotourism? click here via @outsidemagazine 3. Awesome ocean news: Hong Kong shark fin trade declines through conservation efforts click here #savesharks via @BBCNews 4. Video – [...]
March 09, 2013
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12:00 PM | So you think you know Marine Metagenomics?
Metagenomics is so easy to understand, right? Scientists just go out and get DNA sequences from…stuff…in the environment. And then they answer lots of questions, like….um… Yeah sometimes I’m lost too. In metagenomics, researchers collect ocean water or soil samples and sequence random bits of DNA from whatever blob of gunk they collect–they end up . . . → Read More: So you think you know Marine Metagenomics?
March 07, 2013
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8:08 PM | The Environmental (Dis)Connection
1.01 billion users. Damn…that Zuckerberg guy really hit gold with the whole “Facebook” thing didn’t he? Source: Wikimedia Commons What is it about Facebook though? What makes it so enticing that over one-seventh of the global populace decided to jump on the social media bandwagon? Oddly enough, I think the answer is quite . . . → Read More: The Environmental (Dis)Connection
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What happens when non-scientists continually distort the facts on climate change? Climate scientists fight back with this amazing angry rap video! Featuring real climate scientists talking about real science. They even rap about peer review. And they even call out other scientists for letting others put words in their mouth. I heart this SO HARD. . . . → Read More: Hell yeah! “I’m a climate scientist” An epic rap.
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This hilarious clip has been making the rounds on Facebook and Twitter these past few days – I was dying with laughter when I watched. Getting on the Colbert Report is one of my long-term career goals (not joking), so if there are any writers reading this, we are willing and waiting! Skylar Bayer is . . . → Read More: The Enemy Within – Dr. Skylar Bayer on the Colbert Report
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9:44 AM | IODE Achievement Award
We are proud to announce that Dr Roy Lowry, Technical Director of the British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC), has received a prestigious Achievement Award from the International Oceanographic Data and Information Exchange (IODE), part of the UNESCO Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC).
Sissy Iona, Co-Chair of IODE, presents Roy Lowry with his award. ©
Established in 1961, the IODE programme has grown through the hard work of hundreds of experts from around the world to
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1:38 AM | Butt munchers
Some animals vent their anuses. And, no, I’m not referring to the act of waving a hand around ones posterior to diffuse the gaseous remnants of chilidogs. Some sea stars, sea cucumbers, crinoids, worms, and crustaceans all pump huge volumes of water into and out of their anus. Why would you do this outside of . . . → Read More: Butt munchers
March 06, 2013
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The British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC) are pleased to announce the delivery of near real-time oceanographic measurements from ocean gliders to the climate modelling community.
Surface salinity from the Forecasting Ocean Assimilation Model (FOAM) ©
Ocean gliders are autonomous platforms that travel through the water column by altering their buoyancy and making subtle changes to their internal weight distribution, collecting oceanographic measurements as they go. They are
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3:42 PM | Guest blogging at DSN
A couple of days ago, my very first guest post went up on Deep Sea News. I am pretty excited about it, being a huge fan of DSN and all. The post is about the efforts that have gone into protecting North Atlantic right whales near the busy shipping channel that goes through the Stellwagen [...]
