Oceans

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    Our Ocean Conference Confronts Ocean’s Biggest Threats

    Our Ocean Conference Confronts Ocean’s Biggest Threats

    The third annual Our Ocean Conference kicked off today in Washington, DC, to tackle some of the biggest threats facing our oceans, from plastic waste to climate change. Our Ocean Conference The two-day event is hosted by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry. Hundreds of world leaders, foreign and environment ministers, scientists, philanthropists, heads of […]

    Humans Are Driving ‘Unprecedented’ Mass Extinction in Oceans

    Humans Are Driving ‘Unprecedented’ Mass Extinction in Oceans

    By Nadia Prupis People are driving marine ecosystems to “unprecedented” mass extinction, according to a new study published Wednesday in the journal Science. Large-bodied animals will be the first to go, the study says—blue whales, great white sharks and bluefin tuna, for example. Their size is part of their vulnerability, making them more susceptible to […]

    Closing the High Seas to Fishing Could Save Coastal Fisheries

    Closing the High Seas to Fishing Could Save Coastal Fisheries

    Researchers from the University of British Columbia say that closing the high seas to fishing could help coastal fisheries, increasing catches by 10 percent. But our waters are now more polluted than ever, threatening the entire food chain. © Australian Fisheries Management Authority / WWF Fish have responded to warming ocean waters by moving north […]

    5 Ways to Help Stop the Destruction of Our Oceans

    5 Ways to Help Stop the Destruction of Our Oceans

    By David Pinsky Every day, roughly half of the money Americans spend on food outside of the home is gobbled up by the U.S. foodservice industry. Wait, what’s foodservice? Companies that buy, transport, cook or serve the food you get at Subway, Burger King, a Beyoncé show or the Super Bowl, Walmart corporate cafeterias, the […]

    Warming Atlantic Ocean Leads to Rise in Marine Bacteria

    Warming Atlantic Ocean Leads to Rise in Marine Bacteria

    By Robert McSweeney Rising sea surface temperatures in the North Atlantic are likely to be behind a recent surge in cases of diarrhoeal diseases from marine bacteria in northern Europe and the U.S. East Coast, a new study says. In their analysis that goes back to 1958, the researchers show that levels of Vibrio bacteria—which […]

    Octopus Slips Out of Aquarium, Escapes Down Pipe to Ocean

    Octopus Slips Out of Aquarium, Escapes Down Pipe to Ocean

    The National Aquarium of New Zealand didn’t know it had an escape artist on its hands. When Inky the octopus slipped through a gap in his enclosure—left open by maintenance workers—and made his way across the floor to squeeze into a drain and make a break for it, staff members were surprised and a little […]

    Buddhist Monks Return Hundreds of Lobsters Back to the Sea

    Buddhist Monks Return Hundreds of Lobsters Back to the Sea

    By Alicia Graef Hundreds of lobsters avoided being boiled alive thanks to a group of Buddhist monks from Prince Edward Island. The monks, who are from the Great Enlightenment Buddhist Institute Society, bought the lobsters—600 pounds worth of them—solely with the intention of returning them to their rightful home in the ocean. Hundreds of lobsters […]