Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Pygmy Seahorses
"One of the smallest vertebrates in the world lives in the tropical Pacific--the pygmy seahorse. Belonging to the same genus as their larger cousins but reaching a maximum size of about an inch, its no wonder that many of these miniature species have only been discovered within the last decade. Currently there are nine known species but, with scientists and divers exploring more reefs and making better observations, surely there will be more discoveries to come. Jean-Michel Cousteau and his Ocean Futures Society team were extremely fortunate to get an up-close look at this most unlikely of creatures in the waters of Papua New Guinea. They were awed by the miracle of evolution that creates such miniature masterpieces."
MSNBC Marine News for September, 2010
Crisis Situation for New Zealand Whales:
Once again, the Nortwest Alaska's Walruses in trouble:
Attack Survivors Stand Up For Sharks:
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Scientists use hovering zeppelin to film whales - Boston.com
Scientists use hovering zeppelin to film whales - Boston.com
"Scouting boats had tracked the orca pod, as the zeppelin floated aloft. Known as the southern resident killer whales, this group was designated as endangered in 2005. They live permanently in the Puget Sound, hunting salmon and other fish. Scientists for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration mounted high definition cameras on the bottom of the zeppelin. A researcher for the Center for Whale Research also took pictures to calculate body measurements. Whales move at about 3 miles per hour, NOAA biologist Brad Hanson said, which made the zeppelin's hovering pace even more useful for observations. The researchers were able to observe about two dozen whales from the zeppelin. They watched the whales swim in tight groups, roll around each other and "spy hop," moving with their heads above water."
"Scouting boats had tracked the orca pod, as the zeppelin floated aloft. Known as the southern resident killer whales, this group was designated as endangered in 2005. They live permanently in the Puget Sound, hunting salmon and other fish. Scientists for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration mounted high definition cameras on the bottom of the zeppelin. A researcher for the Center for Whale Research also took pictures to calculate body measurements. Whales move at about 3 miles per hour, NOAA biologist Brad Hanson said, which made the zeppelin's hovering pace even more useful for observations. The researchers were able to observe about two dozen whales from the zeppelin. They watched the whales swim in tight groups, roll around each other and "spy hop," moving with their heads above water."
Shark Still Unidentified in Virginia Beach Attack
V.I.M.S.' Dr. Jack Music certain of alleged shark:
Original News Report:
Here is a related video from the Carolina Beaches taken by a father of a family of two children sighting a close encounter from a shark:
Cape Cod Times Story on Great Whites
Cape Cod Online
How about CSI's episode of a shark attack in a swimming pool:
Walruses Swarm Beaches as Ice Melts
Walruses Swarm Beaches as Ice Melts
"Thousands of walruses gathered together in a dangerous "haul out" on the coast of Alaska earlier this month. Scientists say the walruses came ashore in such large numbers because their normal habitats, Arctic ice floes, are melting." © 2010 National Geographic; video courtesy Daniel Zatz & USGS
NPR Story:
All Things Considered
Listen to the Story on NPR's Weekend Edition:
Walrus' Plight
Find our more about the Walrus:
National Geographic Walrus Page
"Thousands of walruses gathered together in a dangerous "haul out" on the coast of Alaska earlier this month. Scientists say the walruses came ashore in such large numbers because their normal habitats, Arctic ice floes, are melting." © 2010 National Geographic; video courtesy Daniel Zatz & USGS
NPR Story:
All Things Considered
Listen to the Story on NPR's Weekend Edition:
Walrus' Plight
National Geographic Walrus Page
"Biologists with the USGS say the situation can be very dangerous because walruses are easily startled, and can stampede. Some walruses, particularly calves and juveniles, can get crushed to death by larger walruses moving about. This aerial video, recorded for the United States Geological Survey, was taken from an altitude of 4,000 feet near Point Lay, Alaska. Because aircraft could prompt a stampede, there’s a no-fly zone: the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service asks aircraft to maintain a lateral distance of a half mile, and minimum altitude of 15-hundred feet. Walruses forage on the sea floor and usually use sea ice as a resting platform between feedings. This is the first time tens of thousands of walruses have been seen crowded together here, though similar sightings have been recorded in Russia and another area of northwestern Alaska in years past. The WWF says Arctic sea ice is at the third lowest level in recorded history. USGS is conducting more research to better understand the effects of the walrus haul-out and other changes related to climate change, and sea ice melt." - National Geographic
Photos: Poison Crab, Glass Shrimp, More Found in Korea
Photos: Poison Crab, Glass Shrimp, More Found in Korea
"Called pen shell shrimps, the tiny crustaceans—previously known in Japan and Australia—were only recently observed in South Korea, scientists announced in early September. Pen shell shrimps live in symbiotic, or dependent, relationships with clams, explained Kim Min-Ha, manager of the Korean indigenous-species project at the South Korean National Institute of Biological Resources. "We think that the clam provides shelter for a shrimp," Min-Ha said in an email interview. The institute's ongoing project to catalog animal and plant diversity on the Korean Peninsula (map) began in 2006 and will run until 2014. In the latest round of expeditions, scientists discovered 117 new species and documented 15 that had never before been found in South Korea."
"Called pen shell shrimps, the tiny crustaceans—previously known in Japan and Australia—were only recently observed in South Korea, scientists announced in early September. Pen shell shrimps live in symbiotic, or dependent, relationships with clams, explained Kim Min-Ha, manager of the Korean indigenous-species project at the South Korean National Institute of Biological Resources. "We think that the clam provides shelter for a shrimp," Min-Ha said in an email interview. The institute's ongoing project to catalog animal and plant diversity on the Korean Peninsula (map) began in 2006 and will run until 2014. In the latest round of expeditions, scientists discovered 117 new species and documented 15 that had never before been found in South Korea."
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Meet Alvin
NY Science Times Blog:
Alvin NY Times
"The most important member of the expedition, however, is the 35,000-pound, egg-shaped submersible named Alvin. Alvin has been the workhorse of the deep-ocean scientific community for more than 45 years, allowing us to explore unseen worlds thousands of meters below the surface of the ocean. To sweeten the deal, Alvin comes equipped with robotic arms and an array of sample boxes, so we can collect promising samples and continue our investigations in the relative comfort of a laboratory. Faded photographs and dusty plaques commemorating the sub’s prolific history adorn the walls of Atlantis’s library. Alvin helped recover an unexploded hydrogen bomb in 1966, took Walter Cronkite to hydrothermal vents in 1982 and explored the Titanic in 1986. It hasn’t all been smooth sailing, however. In 1967, an ambitious swordfish attacked Alvin’s foam outer layer, got stuck and was eventually cooked for dinner by the crew. A couple of years later, the sub sank during deployment and spent 10 months on the seafloor before it could be resurrected."
Deep Sea Methane Vents at Hydrate Ridge
NY TIMES Science Times Methane Ridge
Alvin NY Times
Deep Sea Methane Vents at Hydrate Ridge
NY TIMES Science Times Methane Ridge
Jeffrey Marlow writes on the NY Times blog:
"Over the next 12 days, our contingent of 24 scientists and 30 crew members will be mounting a scientific assault on Hydrate Ridge, a fascinating site 90 kilometers off the Oregon coast where methane gas flows out of the earth’s crust and into the deep ocean. Methane has a P.R. problem: In the atmosphere, the gas is a troublemaker, contributing to climate change with 25 times the heat-trapping power of carbon dioxide. But on the seafloor, it’s a lifeline, as innovative micro-organisms are able to eke out a living converting methane to carbon dioxide and using the resulting energy to grow. Where one type of organism leads, others will follow, and entire ecosystems have grown up around these methane vents: microbes, clams, stringy tube worms and a range of other exotic species. The methane vents at Hydrate Ridge are known as cold seeps, because the temperature hovers around 4 degrees Celsius — typical of the deep ocean. These conditions are in marked contrast to the flashier hydrothermal vents, where superheated water can exceed 100 degrees Celsius and plumes of “black smoke” (which is really composed of metallic minerals) billow out of the rock chimneys."
Sea Turtles Q&A
NY Times Video on Sea Turtles:
NY Times Science Times
Eleaor Sterling studied sea turtles on the Palymra Atoll in 2010:
"The acoustic tags transmit ultrasonic sounds, called “pings,” every few minutes. These ultrasonic frequencies are generally used underwater because, compared with radio frequencies, acoustic frequencies perform much better in water. We have a number of receivers deployed throughout Palmyra that “listen” for the pings when the turtles swim by the receivers. We can use this information to better understand the fine-scale movement and activity patterns of sea turtles. Our acoustic tags are 6 cm long — about the size of a stubby index finger — and weigh only 24 grams. The placement of the tag on the trailing edge of the turtle’s carapace helps minimize drag. And the epoxy we use to fasten the tag to the turtle helps reduce the drag by creating a smooth surface between the carapace and the epoxy. We apply tags only to larger animals, and previous studies suggest there are no long-term consequences in behavior or foraging habits/predation due to tagging."
The article in the NY Times:
Eleanor Sterling in Palmyra Atoll
Earlier July Post on NY Science Times blog about sea turtle work:
Eleanor Sterling in Atoll
NY Times Science Times
Eleaor Sterling studied sea turtles on the Palymra Atoll in 2010:
"The acoustic tags transmit ultrasonic sounds, called “pings,” every few minutes. These ultrasonic frequencies are generally used underwater because, compared with radio frequencies, acoustic frequencies perform much better in water. We have a number of receivers deployed throughout Palmyra that “listen” for the pings when the turtles swim by the receivers. We can use this information to better understand the fine-scale movement and activity patterns of sea turtles. Our acoustic tags are 6 cm long — about the size of a stubby index finger — and weigh only 24 grams. The placement of the tag on the trailing edge of the turtle’s carapace helps minimize drag. And the epoxy we use to fasten the tag to the turtle helps reduce the drag by creating a smooth surface between the carapace and the epoxy. We apply tags only to larger animals, and previous studies suggest there are no long-term consequences in behavior or foraging habits/predation due to tagging."
Eleanor Sterling in Palmyra Atoll
Earlier July Post on NY Science Times blog about sea turtle work:
Eleanor Sterling in Atoll
Eleanor Sterling Writes about the Atoll's Ecosystem:
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)