Small wonders photo contest winners – amazing
Brittle star (8x). Dr Alvaro Migotto; University of Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil /Courtesy of Nikon. see the rest here
Walking on water
My three daughters and one of my dogs, in the sound behind the Outer Banks, in Avon, NC. Dec 2011 by me.
Biodiversity and the battle for Planet Earth: The graphic novel
[Editor's note: It’s been a big month for the science of biodiversity and an exciting time to be a part of it. Last week, Nature came out with its issue commemorating the 20th anniversary of the Rio meeting that first put biodiversity on the world's radar screen and spawned the Convention on Biological Diversity. The [...]
New underwater sculptures from Jason de Caires Taylor
Underwater sculptor Jason deCaries Taylor has unveiled pictures of his latest works at the MUSA (the Museo Subacuático de Arte) in Cancun, Mexico. They include this stunning piece called Phoenix. As Jason says: Constructed from high strength pH-neutral cement and incorporating tensile stainless steel [...]
Going with the flow – on a planetary scale
We tend to think of ocean currents – when we think of them at all — as stately, slow-moving rivers in the sea, as I believe Ben Franklin himself first referred to the Gulf Stream. But in reality the patterns of water movement across the earth’s surface are extraordinarily complex. Nothing gives you a more [...]
Trophic cascade of the purple marsh crab
Don Strong, you are going to love this film. Not only does it animate one of your favorite ecological processes in a habitat you know and love; it even has an animated Dr Mark Bertness! The film is by Brown undergrad Stephanie Yin. It won the best student film competition at last week’s Beneath the Waves [...]
Gloop
This great video won the “peoples choice award” at the recent 2012 beneath the waves film festival. By Gaby Bastyra & Joe Churchman Gloop is a dark fairytale that follows the meteoric rise of plastic from its inception in Leo’s gloomy laboratory 100 years ago. Told like a Brother’s Grimm fable, Gloop offers a poignant [...]
Brian & the Southern Right Whale
I recently chatted with award-winning underwater photojournalist Brian Skerry for the latest edition of the Naked Oceans podcast (which looks at Art and the Oceans). His pictures have appeared in National Geographic Magazine since 1998 and having spent more than 10,000 hours underwater he had heaps of amazing stories and excellent advice to share. But with only [...]
Marine science ink
One of my favorite things about the wonderful Science Online 2012 conference (AKA Burning Man for science journalists) was the field trip to Dog Star Tattoo in Durham. We were accompanied by science journalist Carl Zimmer, who gave a superb and funny talk on the tattoos of scientists, based on his best-selling lovely book Science Ink. Ten [...]
SeaHarmony
This film, a parody of eHarmony by Monika LaPlante, was my favorite at the Cyberscreen film festival I atteneded at last weeks Science Online conference in Raleigh. Other dating sites are just so species specific!
Blue shark wins Ocean in Focus contest
Grand-Prize winner of this year’s Marine Photobank’s Ocean in Focus conservation photo contest is Terry Goss with this image of a blue shark snagged on a longline hook in waters off Rhode Island, US. In an interview with Marine Photobank, Terry said: When I started shooting underwater, it was immediately apparent that every shark image [...]
Still life in oil
“Still life in oil” by Daniel Beltrá, winner of the 2011 Veolia Environnement Wildlife Photographer of the Year award. “Crude oil trickles off the feathers of the rescued brown pelicans, turning the white lining sheets into a sticky, stinking mess. The pelicans are going through the first stage of cleaning at a temporary bird-rescue facility in Fort [...]
Yeti crab – the Movie!
Live from the World Conference on Marine Biodiversity in Aberdeen, it’s . . . Yeti Crab – the Movie! Perhaps a bit of explanation is in order. We’re live (sort of) in Aberdeen with 953 of our closest friends and colleagues, catching up on the cutting edge of research on the wondrous and varied life [...]
Sharks in the Bahamas
From Nat Geo’s Photo of the Day series by Wilfried Niedermayr. The Bahamas wisely banned shark fishing earlier this year.
Fish – a good idea on paper
During a visit to the Suma Aqualife Park in Japan a few months ago, I came across a captivating display of little origami sea creatures arrayed across an entire wall. The lighting was not right for photos at the time but I’ve since found a great collection of these online, most notably — and [...]
Blue sway
Tired of sitting at the computer? If you’re one of the great majority of us who, alas, can’t just toss it all and walk out and plunge right into the real ocean, a passable substitute is the fantastic footage in this inspiring video from award-winning surf filmmaker Jack McCoy. Not Paul McCartney’s finest moment with [...]
Ode to a sea cucumber (Dear Helen)
A friend who knows me well recently sent me this poem. Dear Helen, by Charles Simic There’s a thing in the world Called a sea cucumber. I know nothing about it. It just sounds cold and salty. I think a salad of such cukes Would be fine today. I would have to dive for it, [...]
Crabes et Crevettes (1929) – Part II
Second part of Jean Painlevé’s classic, crustacean-inspired movie.
Graphic arts depiction of shark fin fishing
From photographic artist Chris Jordan: Depicts 270,000 fossilized shark teeth, equal to the estimated number of sharks of all species killed around the world every day for their fins. Zoom in and you see more;
