In order to develop better methods of treatment, a researcher from the Mote Marine Lab received harmful algal bloom Event Response Program funds to investigate the physiological effects of brevetoxin exposure on manatees. A persistent red tide bloom of algae that produces this substance is responsible for a record number of manatee deaths this spring. Mote is working with [...]
In March, the Puget Sound Alexandrium Harmful Algal Bloom (PS-AHAB) Project (funded by The National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science‘s Ecology and Oceanography of Harmful Algal Blooms (ECOHAB) Program) issued the 2013 preliminary Alexandrium cyst map. This is part of PS-AHAB’s “just-in-time” information dissemination program to Puget Sound stakeholders to increase early warning capabilities for HAB events. Highest cyst [...]
To develop an earlier prediction of the size of the Gulf of Mexico “dead zone” this summer, NOAA’s National Weather Service and National Ocean Service combined data from the National Hydrologic Assessment U.S. Spring Flood Risk Outlook with knowledge of soil saturation and typical weather patterns throughout the Mississippi watershed this year. Based on estimates of flood risk, snow pack, [...]
New England should see a “moderate” red tide this spring and summer, according a report released this week by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Some shellfish harvesting beds might have to be closed in order to prevent people from eating contaminated food and getting sick. Red tide is [...]
The Pew Charitable Trusts organization recently awarded Yimnang Golbuu, CEO and Chief Researcher of the Palau International Coral Reef Center a 2013 Pew Fellowship in Marine Conservation to assess the connectivity of marine protected areas in Palau. PICRC researchers and colleagues developed a hydrodynamic model to track coral and fish larvae as they move through [...]
From the moment they are born, sea turtles fight to survive. Buried alive, they dig themselves out and evade hungry crabs and birds as they crawl to the ocean, where they begin a long and treacherous migration. One out of 1,000 will survive into adulthood. And those that do will bear a toxic burden. Scientists [...]
Science recently declared that new technologies are making remote sensing of the ocean a “new wave” of oceanography. This growing array of lower-cost, high-tech instruments–satellites, robotic gliders, moored sensors, underwater observatories–is transforming the discipline of oceanography, possibly reducing the need for expensive research vessels. A new class of automated biological sensors are nearing readiness and [...]
Coastal areas around New England should prepare for a “moderate” red tide this spring and summer, according to scientists from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. This seasonal forecast is based on samples of algal cysts taken from the ocean floor last year as indicators of this year’s bloom severity. For the first time, the team also used [...]