State of the Oceans — Log 59
YOUR WEEKLY BRIEFING FROM PARLEY
Photo by Rick Miskiv
CORALS
Research, conservation and a novel new underwater photography technique – it’s been a big week in the world of corals. To help us study them better, oceanographer-engineer Derya Akkaynak has developed an algorithm called “Sea-thru,” which digitally erases water from underwater photos, allowing scientists to take more accurate shots of reefs. Check out the amazing results.
Next, Hawaiian researchers became the first to document deep-sea coral growth rates and colonization patterns. With ROVs and submersibles, the team surveyed reefs along lava flow sites to gauge coral’s capacity to recover after disturbances, such as trawling or mining.
Finally, a major new coral conservation plan could soon help protect reefs in the Gulf of Mexico. The law, which now just needs NOAA’s final approval, would safeguard 21 coral hotspots across nearly 500 square miles. Sandra Brooke, a coral expert at Florida State University, emphasized the need to protect these vital ecosystems not soon, but now: “If we continue squandering [time], we are going to end up in a bad place, because we can’t replicate what nature can do.”
PLASTIC POLLUTION
For the first time, researchers have shown that larval fish ingest microplastics – often just days after they are born. Using a variety of techniques, the University of Arizona led team explored surface slicks, which are smooth water features that form on the sea’s uppermost layer. This study found that while surface slicks make up just 10% of the ocean, they are nurseries for 42% of all larval fish and contain 91% of all floating plastics. In these key habitats, pieces of plastic outnumber larval fish 7-to-1. While the full effects of microplastic remain unclear to marine scientists, this news is very distressing. As a marine ecologist from Oregon State noted, “Life for larval fish was a crapshoot even before they met our plastic trash.”
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WHALE SHARKS
Boat strikes, pollution, and overfishing have cut the global whale shark population in half, but a new study could inform management practices to help the species recover. For six years, scientists from King Abdullah University in Saudi Arabia and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute monitored 84 whale sharks who kept returning to Shib Habil reef in the Red Sea. The team identified this site as a nursery for the wider Indian Ocean population. Further study of Shib Habil reef could enhance scientists’ ability to understand and protect whale shark migration and reproduction around the world. The paper concludes that management of critical habitats like Shib Habil will be vital for future whale shark conservation.
CLIMATE CHANGE
According to a new paper, the Arctic only has one area with year-round ice left, and it’s melting twice as fast as the rest of the region. Stretching 1,240 miles from Greenland’s northern coast to Canada’s frigid archipelago, the “Last Ice Area” (LIA) contains the Arctic’s thickest and oldest ice. Despite its fast melting rate, researchers believe the LIA will serve as the final sanctuary for animals when Arctic summers become ice free – which could be as soon as 2030. Kent Moore, the study’s lead author, has called for the LIA’s formal protection: “This area will be a refuge where species can survive and hopefully expand their regions once the ice starts returning.”
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DOLPHINS
New evidence suggests that noisy boat traffic is making it more difficult for dolphins in the Ganges River to communicate. The endangered South Asian river dolphin is effectively blind, having no need to see in the Ganges’ murky water. These porpoises rely on echolocation (clicks) to hear each other, so as the river gets louder the dolphins become stressed—forced to shout or stay silent. These findings, though disturbing, shed light on possible solutions. Researchers cite limiting boat access, raising water levels and modifying propeller designs as feasible options to reduce noise pollution. The latter could also help improve fuel efficiency too – a river win/win.
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