Invaluable to the medical industry, the horseshoe crab is under threat
The horseshoe crab has survived every period of mass extinction in the last 450-million years, but now faces its greatest threats: wild capture for biomedical testing, together with capture for bait, climate change and habitat destruction. This in turn will detrimentally affect the surrounding ecosystems as well…
As North Sea Oil Wanes, Removing Abandoned Rigs Stirs Controversy
With thousands of North Sea oil wells soon to be shut down, ecologists are warning that removing the gargantuan platforms could be more environmentally harmful than leaving them in place. The rigs, it turns out, have nurtured cold-water corals and other marine life.
Marine mammals most at risk from increased Arctic ship traffic
The first comprehensive survey of Arctic marine mammal populations’ vulnerability to shipping along two main routes finds which face the most risks from heavier traffic in the region.
Heading to the beach? Get ready for thick, slimy seaweed
Thick mats of seaweed have washed up on South Florida beaches in recent weeks, creating a tangled, squishy barrier between swimmers and the ocean.
How one man died so a whale might live
Humans have spent more than 10 centuries emptying the ocean of some of its most extraordinary animals. Today, a coalition of scientists and fishermen are trying to turn the tide – and learning that conservation is much harder than destruction
European fishermen mobilize against electric fishing
Small-scale and traditional fishermen across the European Union are mobilizing in several European ports this Monday to complain against electric fishing and to call on public decision-makers to definitively ban this destructive fishing technique.
Mysterious masses of seaweed assault Caribbean islands
The Caribbean is bracing for what could be the mother of all seaweed invasions, with satellite observations warning of record-setting Sargassum blooms and seaweed already swamping beaches.
Whale found In Thailand dies from eating over 80 plastic bags
Rescuers unsuccessfully tried to nurse the male pilot whale back to health. A necropsy revealed over 17 pounds of plastic, including more than 80 plastic bags, in the whale’s stomach.
Shipping and Industry Threaten Famed Home of the Bengal Tiger
Toxic chemical pollution in the Sundarbans, the largest mangrove forest in the world, is threatening thousands of marine and forest species and has environmentalists deeply concerned about the future of this World Heritage Site.