The impact of industrial fishing on coastal ecosystems has been studied for many years. But how it affects food webs in the open ocean―a vast region that covers almost half of the Earth's surface―has ...

Biology - Ecology

May 13, 2013 5 / 5 (3) 0 |

The circum-Antarctic Southern Ocean is an important region for global marine food webs and carbon cycling because of sea-ice formation and its unique plankton ecosystem. The origin of its ecosystems can be ...

Space & Earth - Earth Sciences

Apr 18, 2013 not rated yet 0 |

Biologists Jackie Grebmeier and Lee Cooper from the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science's Chesapeake Biological Laboratory have been visiting the chilly area north of Alaska near the Bering ...

Space & Earth - Earth Sciences

Feb 21, 2013 3.7 / 5 (3) 0

The fibrous threads helping mussels stay anchored – in spite of waves that sometimes pound the shore with a force equivalent to a jet liner flying at 600 miles per hour – are more prone to snap when ocean ...

Biology - Ecology

Feb 16, 2013 not rated yet 0

Nitrogen in ocean waters fuels the growth of two tiny but toxic phytoplankton species that are harmful to marine life and human health, warns a new study published in the Journal of Phycology.

Space & Earth - Environment

Feb 06, 2013 3.7 / 5 (3) 0

In the waters off Antarctica, algae grow and live in the sea ice that surrounds the southern continent-a floating habitat sure to change as the planet warms. As with most aquatic ecosystems, microscopic algae form the base ...

Space & Earth - Earth Sciences

Dec 18, 2012 not rated yet 0

(Phys.org)—Food webs needed by young salmon in the Columbia River basin are likely compromised in places, something that should be considered when prioritizing expensive restoration activities aimed at ...

Biology - Ecology

Nov 29, 2012 not rated yet 0 |

Rising acidity is eating away the shells of tiny snails, known as "sea butterflies", that live in the seas around Antarctica, leaving them vulnerable to predators and disease, scientists said Sunday.

Space & Earth - Environment

Nov 25, 2012 2.8 / 5 (10) 6

They may be tiny, but they are mighty. Known as the "insects of the sea," zooplankton may tell the tale about the disruptive effect of climate change on the delicate balance of life that exists in the northwestern ...

Biology - Plants & Animals

Oct 09, 2012 not rated yet 0

(Phys.org)—This month MBARI researchers are conducting a two-week-long, in-depth oceanographic experiment to track the nutrients that fertilize algal blooms off the coast of Central California. This research ...

Space & Earth - Earth Sciences

Sep 18, 2012 not rated yet 0

A just-published study provides a first-time analysis of the value of forage fish, which are small, schooling species such as sardines, herring, and anchovies. Three kinds of contributions of forage fish ...

Biology - Ecology

Sep 10, 2012 5 / 5 (2) 0

Scientists have revealed a key cog in the biochemical machinery that allows marine algae at the base of the oceanic food chain to thrive. They have discovered a previously unknown protein in algae that grabs an essential ...

Biology - Cell & Microbiology

May 31, 2012 5 / 5 (2) 3 |

A task force that conducted one of the most comprehensive analyses of global "forage fish" populations issued its report this week, which strongly recommends implementing more conservative catch limits for these crucial prey ...

Biology - Ecology

Apr 03, 2012 3.7 / 5 (3) 0 |

One of the most comprehensive studies of animals in the Southern Ocean reveals a region that is under threat from the effects of environmental change.

Space & Earth - Environment

Feb 03, 2012 4.5 / 5 (2) 0

Earth may be overdosing on acid - not the "turn on, tune in, drop out" kind, but the "kill fish, kill coral, kill crops" kind. And it's shaping up to be a very bad trip.

Space & Earth - Environment

Oct 03, 2011 5 / 5 (5) 5