Hundreds of dead tufted puffins began washing up in the Bering Sea in October, as unusually warm water may have upended the bird’s food chain. Far out on the remote Pribilof Islands, a few dead puffins were found in early October, but within days volunteers were finding from 20 to 40 birds a day. By […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
Over a decade ago, Bird’s Head Seascape was just another example of the damage overfishing and destructive fishing practices can cause on coral reefs. But, the community stepped in, and the region is now thriving. Diver with Schooling Scads at Arborek Jetty.Photo credit: Jeff Yonover, Bird’s Head Seascape Valen’s Reef, a virtual reality movie shot […]
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 […]
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 […]