Marine biology is the scientific discipline that investigates the biology of organisms inhabiting marine and brackish environments, encompassing molecular to ecosystem scales. It examines physiological, genetic, and behavioral adaptations to saline conditions, pressure, light regimes, and hydrodynamics, as well as population dynamics, trophic interactions, and biogeochemical roles of marine taxa from microbes to megafauna. Marine biologists employ field surveys, experimental manipulations, remote sensing, and omics-based approaches to quantify biodiversity patterns, primary production, nutrient cycling, and responses to natural and anthropogenic stressors, thereby informing ecosystem modeling, conservation strategies, and management of living marine resources.
They are beautiful, they are everywhere, and they are absurdly unknown: you are entirely forgiven if you've never heard of foraminifera before. But they play a huge role in the functioning of marine ecosystems, and they are ...
Plants & Animals
Sep 23, 2025
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Scientists observing from boats knew little of the underwater behavior of the world's smallest marine dolphin, the Hector's dolphin.
Plants & Animals
Sep 19, 2025
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Underwater cameras around the Isles of Scilly have given scientists a glimpse of how sea life can thrive in well-protected U.K. waters.
Plants & Animals
Sep 12, 2025
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Volunteers are swimming in the sea to help science conserve some of the world's rarest fish. Scuba divers and snorkelers are among those helping to identify endangered species, such as giant guitarfishes, whip-stingrays and ...
Ecology
Sep 9, 2025
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Whale watching is a popular pastime on coastlines around the world. Cetaceans like blue whales, humpbacks, and orcas can be seen in the wild, and their characteristics are well categorized in science and popular culture. ...
Plants & Animals
Sep 9, 2025
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MBARI's advanced underwater technology is revealing the remarkable species that thrive in the deep sea. In 2019, MBARI researchers encountered an unfamiliar pink snailfish swimming just above the seafloor. New research from ...
Plants & Animals
Sep 8, 2025
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When you picture a shark, you probably think of a large, powerful predator cruising the open ocean.
Evolution
Sep 8, 2025
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Every year, sea turtles hatch on Florida's beaches and make their way from the sand to the ocean—a critical journey that determines their chances of survival. As these hatchlings navigate obstacles such as artificial lights, ...
Plants & Animals
Sep 8, 2025
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The movement of genetic material between organisms that aren't directly related is a significant driver of evolution, especially among single-celled organisms like bacteria and archaea. A team led by researchers at Bigelow ...
Evolution
Sep 6, 2025
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167
Researchers at Florida Atlantic University's Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute have released a landmark review tracing four decades of changes in pelagic sargassum—free-floating brown seaweed that plays a vital role in ...
Ecology
Aug 28, 2025
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