Coastal ecosystems are multidisciplinary research topics encompassing the structure, function, and dynamics of biological communities and physical environments at the land–sea interface, including salt marshes, mangroves, seagrass meadows, tidal flats, estuaries, rocky shores, and coastal dunes. Scientific study focuses on biogeochemical cycles, primary productivity, trophic interactions, sediment transport, and hydrodynamic forcing (tides, waves, currents) that shape habitat distribution and resilience. Research also examines nutrient loading, contaminant fate, habitat fragmentation, and climate-driven stressors such as sea-level rise, ocean acidification, and warming, often integrating remote sensing, numerical modeling, and long-term ecological monitoring to quantify ecosystem services and assess vulnerability to anthropogenic impacts.
The ocean has long been treated as boundless—a frontier for extraction and a sink for waste. This perception has driven decades of exploitation and neglect, pushing marine systems toward irreversible decline. Yet with urgent, ...
Environment
Nov 19, 2025
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Logs are a familiar sight on the beaches along the coast of Vancouver Island and Haida Gwaii and are often viewed positively, as they can stabilize the banks, be used for firewood or act as benches by beach-goers. However, ...
Ecology
Nov 15, 2025
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Florida's beaches—particularly those in Palm Beach County—are among the world's most vital nesting grounds for loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta), accounting for 90% of all loggerhead nests in the Southeastern United ...
Plants & Animals
Nov 13, 2025
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New research from the University of St Andrews has found that some coastal areas will become much more acidic than previously anticipated. With added atmospheric CO2, these areas are acidifying more quickly than thought, ...
Earth Sciences
Nov 13, 2025
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The world's oceans are vital for life on Earth. Drifting phytoplankton provide almost half the oxygen released into the atmosphere. Marine and coastal ecosystems provide food and protect communities from storms.
Ecology
Nov 10, 2025
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New research has confirmed that West Coast transient killer whales who live between British Columbia and California are two distinct subpopulations: inner and outer coast transients.
Plants & Animals
Nov 6, 2025
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The coastlines I trace resemble logos and luxury icons: palms, crescents, pixelated grids, surreal ornaments etched into shallow seas. The cartography is striking. The environmental consequences are very concerning.
Environment
Nov 4, 2025
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18
Seagrasses preserve our oceans, offering safe harbor for sea life, calming rough waters, and storing excess carbon dioxide. Dozens of seagrass species protect coastlines around the globe, including the common North American ...
Plants & Animals
Oct 29, 2025
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36
An international team is calling for a US $14 billion investment to protect and restore one of the planet's most valuable and overlooked marine ecosystems, kelp forests.
Environment
Oct 29, 2025
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On Prince of Wales Island, Alaska, gray wolves are doing something unexpected: hunting sea otters. This surprising dietary shift appears to have notable implications for both ecosystems and wolf health, but little is known ...
Plants & Animals
Oct 23, 2025
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