Ecosystems
Where the Food Is in the Sea, and Why
When you’re on a boat 50 miles south of Cape Cod on a calm day, the water around you may look flat and relatively featureless. A few hundred feet below,…
A Hunt for Unusual Seafloor Animals and Vents
The first expedition to search for deep-sea hydrothermal vents along the Mid-Cayman Rise deep in…
What’s Living in the Ocean?
In 2010, as the United States conducted its latest decadal population census, marine scientists completed…
Volunteer Gets an Oceanful of Experience
<!– –> It’s two in the morning, and I’m watching a remotely operated vehicle, or…
A Torrent of Crabs Running to the Sea
Joanna Gyory’s Ph.D. plans changed completely when she saw the crabs. It was her third…
The Mysterious Movements of Deep-Sea Larvae
The marvelous migrations of fish and whales through the deep sea have been hard enough…
The Promise and Perils of Seafloor Mining
A year ago, the Canadian mining company Nautilus Minerals was poised to launch a new…
Eleanor Bors
While her Oberlin classmates were accepting their diplomas at their graduation ceremony back in Ohio,…
Gar Secrist
Gar Secrist says that he spent his summer at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) working…
Jason Meets the Carnivorous Sea Squirt
Tito Collasius, an engineer at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, has witnessed some of oceanography’s more…
Shellfish’s Mysterious Pathways to Adulthood
With a cool ocean breeze under a cloudless sky, children weave small sailboats through the…
One Man’s Swamp Is a Fish’s Nursery
A parade of schoolmaster snapper swims by me, their neon yellow fins directing traffic. Echoing…
Are Sea Squirts Crowding Out Scallops?
Over the last 10 years, Mary Carman has documented how slimy sea squirts have invaded…
Biochemical Warfare on the Reef
Just beneath the tranquil, clear waters of the tropical Caribbean, unseen by all but a…
Will Climate Change Disrupt the Arctic Ecosystem?
After long, dark winters, sunlight returns to the Bering Sea in spring, re-launching a bountiful…
Melting Ice Threatens Polar Bears’ Survival
The Department of Interior’s imminent decision on whether to place polar bears on the federally…
Are Pollutants Disrupting Marine Ecosystems?
Ask people to name some animals—any animals—and they will give you a long list. But…
Still Toxic After All These Years
This is a story about persistence—of oil, and of people. It began in 1969 when…
Would a Hagfish By Any Other Name Smell as Sweet?
It’s not hard to figure out how hagfish got their name, since they aren’t exactly…
Deep-sea Tubeworms Get Versatile ‘Inside’ Help
Cross sections of the tubeworm Riftia pachyptila. (Courtesy of Enduring Resources for Earth Science Education)…
New ‘Eyes’ Size Up Scallop Populations
Part of the fun of fishing is never knowing exactly what might be swimming around…
