USGS Science at Ecological Society of America
...ites can change seascapes. Bacterial epidemics of sea urchins can push temperate reefs toward kelp forests. Parasites, which can alter predator-prey interactions by altering prey behavior, comprise a surprising fraction of ecosystem biomass. Infectious diseases may keep common species in balance. So...Locusts' built-in 'surface analysis' ability directs them to fly overland
...for example from mirrors or plastic surfaces." The sea reflects polarized light much more than dry land (which reflects mainly diffused, non-polarized light), enabling a distinction to be made between the two. "When the locusts are presented with a situation of choice between surfaces reflecting either p...Carnegie Mellon CyLab researchers work to develop new red tide monitoring
...ermine where red tide is impacting both humans and sea life. "We are pleased to work with Carnegie Mellon researchers to improve our monitoring of red tide," said Richard P. Stumpf, an oceanographer with the NOAA National Ocean Service and a co-investigator for this project. "In fact, a huge, huge pro...Young athletes ignore skin cancer risk
...tered" by the pollution found in the atmosphere at sea level, and it's even intensified by the white snow. Studies have shown that sun exposure at noon in Vail equals that at the same hour on a Florida beach, said Dr. Adams. "Because it's cold on ski slopes, people who typically have their face and hands...Soft body fossils of extinct 'lamp shell' digitally reconstructed
...te with its pedicle, the stalk attaching it to the sea floor, and its lophophore or feeding organ, accord...inary trove of fossil records was buried under the sea in volcanic ash that is 425 million years old. The site is unusual because it yields fossils of the ...Simple sea sponge helps scientists understand tissue rejection
...ound the perfect ally in this quest: the red beard sea sponge, an Atlantic species that grows abundantly from just north of Cape Cod down to Florida. The red beard sponge (Microciona prolifera) has a cell-to-cell recognition system that, on a basic level, is similar to that of humans but much simpler. It...Microbe has huge role in ocean life, carbon cycle
...eplicate in extraordinary numbers a milliliter of sea water off the Oregon coast might contain 500,000 of these cells. "The ocean is a very competitive environment, and these bacteria apparently won the race," said Stephen Giovannoni, an OSU professor of microbiology. "Our analysis of the SAR11 genome ...Anemone armies battle to a standoff
Clashing colonies of sea anemones fight as organized armies with distinct c...ves and other types, according to a new study. The sea anemone Anthopleura elegantissima lives in large colonies of genetically identical clones on boulder...Climate model links higher temperatures to prehistoric extinction
...te Permian, including increased ocean salinity and sea surface temperatures in the high latitudes that paleontologists believe were 14 degrees Fahrenheit (8 degrees Celsius) higher than present. The modeling presented unique challenges because of limited data and significant geographic differences betwee...University of Oregon scientists reveal how coral reefs got the blues
... a cyan (greenish-blue) fluorescent protein from a sea anemone in the report, which completes the Remingt...nveys a deep purple coloration to the tentacles of sea anemones and similar animals." Although the biological function of coral reef coloration is poorly u...New techniques study the brain's chemistry, neuron by neuron
...nal models from mollusks to mammals. "We work with sea slugs, whose simple brains contain 10,000 neurons;...report the subcellular imaging of vitamin E in the sea slug Aplysia californica. The researchers utilized novel sampling protocols and single cell time-of-...Deep-sea exploration beneath Katrina's wake
...d on the expedition to help humans see in the deep sea is the prototype Eye-in-the-Sea camera system, whi...would also illustrate how poorly explored the deep sea remains if such a large animal could have gone undiscovered. The squid appears to have been attracte...Survey discovers potential threat to Maine's fishing
...ng areas has been invaded by an alien tunicate, or sea squirt, that could threaten the commercial fishing... species in Cobscook Bay in August found a type of sea squirt -- Didemnum sp . -- that can damage ocean floor habitats and commercial species that live th......ementary. With the Agassiz-trawl a corridor of the sea floor is swept to catch all the species on the way...Basque Country in Bizkaia, two groups of vermes or sea worms are taxonomically analysed. The aim of this is to identify the species, to find out if they ar...Can ancient rocks yield clues about catastrophes like Hurricane Katrina?
...marine species, such as algae and plankton, at the sea floor, leading to the formation of distinct sediments, "marine black shale", also well known as the world's primary source for oil and gas. Professor Wagner and colleagues uncovered evidence of the mechanisms that drove rapid and repetitive climate c......e legend of an ancient Maori chief who crossed the sea on the backs of whales, and a modern Maori girl in...ntinents. By 5 million or 6 million years ago, the sea between the two continents was so shallow that whales could not swim between the North Pacific and N...UC faculty members break new ground while treading gently on the Alaskan tundra
...," says Cuomo. Another danger is the change in the sea ice. "The ice is thinner, so whaling is much more dangerous, precarious. Whaling teams go out on the ice," Cuomo says. "Now the ice breaks up much earlier. There was an incident where a bunch of hunters a few years ago started drifting after a piece...Marine researcher wins prestigious chemistry prize
...itrite into gaseous nitrogen that escapes from the sea into the atmosphere and is therefore lost from the marine food web....Satellites spot mighty Mississippi - in the Atlantic
...the study. By using MODIS data with information on sea surface currents and sea salt levels (salinity), the scientists estimated that about 20 billion tons of Mississippi River dis...MERIS/AATSR Workshop: Focus on Envisat sensors measuring heat and light
...ths. Working day and night AATSR measures global sea surface temperature (SST) to an accuracy of 0.3 K,...ourful phytoplankton blooms across the face of the sea can be better forecast utilising SST data. And merged optical and thermal infrared views of the sea ...