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Research Highlights

Oceanus Magazine

The Sound of Sonar and the Fury about Whale Strandings

The Sound of Sonar and the Fury about Whale Strandings

February 15, 2008

Eight years ago, several U.S. Navy destroyers used sonar in the Bahamas during routine training exercises. Within 36 hours, 17 animals—including 14 beaked whales, one of the world’s deepest-diving whale species—were found on three islands nearby. Ten of the animals…

Scientists Investigate Mysterious Duck Die-offs

Scientists Investigate Mysterious Duck Die-offs

February 7, 2008

Andrea Bogomolni was in a skiff near shore when she saw the ducks in October of 2007: “It was surreal,” the biologist remembered. “You could see hundreds of lifeless brown, black, and white lumps on the beach, a foot apart…

Melting Ice Threatens Polar Bears' Survival

Melting Ice Threatens Polar Bears’ Survival

January 23, 2008

The Department of Interior’s imminent decision on whether to place polar bears on the federally protected endangered species list has focused attention on a recent study that documents for the first time the way that Arctic sea ice affects the…

Pilot Study Examines Ciguatera Fish Poisoning

Pilot Study Examines Ciguatera Fish Poisoning

September 21, 2007

It is one of the most common illnesses from eating seafood, sickening more than 50,000 people a year, and it is on the rise around the world. Yet most people in the United States have never heard of it: ciguatera…

Eavesdropping on Whales' Mealtime Conversation

Eavesdropping on Whales’ Mealtime Conversation

August 9, 2007

Like a knife slicing through denim, the black dorsal fin broke the surface of the icy water quickly, and then disappeared into the depths. “Off the port bow,” yelled Ari Shapiro. “Whales!” From his post on a sailboat roughly 300…

News Releases

Jeff Adams

Researchers to map the genome of the invasive European green crab

April 2, 2025

Washington Sea Grant will work with Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution to shed light on a highly invasive species

Mark Hahn March 2025

WHOI’s Mark Hahn named AAAS Fellow

March 27, 2025

American Association for the Advancement of Science welcomes 471 scientists and engineers in the class of 2024

Emperor Penguins

New Study Calls for Uplisting Emperor Penguins to Threatened on IUCN Red List

March 25, 2025

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution among research groups that offer findings to support protection of species

‘Fishial’ Recognition: Neural Network Identifies Coral Reef Sounds

March 11, 2025

Faster identification of fish sounds from acoustic recordings can improve research, conservation efforts

WHOI scientists aim to improve the study of marine heatwaves

February 28, 2025

Researchers call for regional and context-specific approaches to these extreme events

News & Insights

Valentine’s Day Courtship Tips from the Ocean

February 10, 2025

Are you an ocean lover? Go a little deeper with these courtship tips from beneath the waves!

Recognizing Massachusetts Right Whale Day

April 24, 2023

April 24 marks the first-ever Right Whale Day in Massachusetts. WHOI biologist and veterinarian Michael Moore recently met with the resident who brought this special recognition about– and explains why it’s important to raise awareness about the critically endangered North Atlantic right whale.

Critically Endangered North Atlantic Right Whales Getting Smaller, New Research Finds

June 10, 2021

A report out this week in Current Biology reveal that critically endangered North Atlantic right whales are up to three feet shorter than 40 years ago. This startling conclusion reinforces what scientists have suspected: even when entanglements do not lead directly to the death of North Atlantic right whales, they can have lasting effects on the imperiled population that may now number less than 400 animals. Further, females that are entangled while nursing produce smaller calves.

right whales

Rare Drone video shows critically endangered North Atlantic right whales

May 10, 2021

May 10, 2021   During a joint research trip on February 28 in Cape Cod Bay, Mass., WHOI whale trauma specialist Michael Moore, National Geographic photographer Brian Skerry, and scientists from New England Aquarium, witnessed a remarkable biological event: North…

Unicorns of the Arctic face a new potential threat

December 1, 2020

Narwhals and other marine mammals could be vulnerable to a new threat we’ve become all too familiar with: COVID-19