Large Marine Protected Areas Work for Dolphins

Ecologists in New Zealand have shown for the first time that Marine Protected Areas, long advocated as a way of protecting threatened marine mammals, actually work.
Some Gulf Dolphins Severely Ill After Gulf Oil Spill

Bottlenose dolphins in Barataria Bay, Louisiana, are showing signs of severe ill health, according to NOAA marine mammal biologists and their local, state, federal and other research partners.
Scientists Look Far to the North to Explain Young Whale in San Francisco Bay

Recent sightings of a gray whale and her infant calf swimming near Alcatraz and Sausalito in San Francisco Bay illuminated a likely repercussion of melting polar ice, scientists said.
Mass Dolphin Rescue Witnessed off Rio Coast

A dramatic video showing 30 beached dolphins being successfully rescued by beachgoers in Brazil has become an internet sensation.
Prince Charles Optimistic for Fisheries’ Future

There are reasons for optimism about the future of the world’s fish stocks despite their currently dire state, said the Prince of Wales at the launch of a report from his green think-tank.
Palm Beach County’s new beach erosion fight reignites sea turtle concerns

About two-thirds of Palm Beach County’s 46 miles of beach is considered “critically eroded,” according to state standards, and environmentalists question proposed beach erosion-fighting structures.
Are Jellyfish Increasing in the World’s Oceans? A UCSB Study

Blooms, or proliferation, of jellyfish have shown a substantial, visible impact on coastal populations, clogged nets for fishermen, stinging waters for tourists, even choked intake lines for power plants, and recent media reports have created a perception that the world’s oceans are experiencing increases in jellyfish due to human activities such as global warming and overharvesting of fish.
Accoustic Pollution and Naval Sonar testing

Over the past 40 years, cumulative research across the globe has revealed a coincidence between naval sonar testing events and acute decompression sickness in beached marine mammals. Under a plan announced by the NOAA, marine mammal “hot spots” in areas including Southern California’s coastal waters, may become off limits to testing of a type of Navy sonar linked to the deaths of whales.
Ninety Whales Stranded on New Zealand Beach

A pod of 90 pilot whales beached themselves at the top of New Zealand’s South island Monday in the same area where seven whales died in a mass stranding earlier this month, officials said.