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Research Highlights

Oceanus Magazine

billfish hawaii

Tracking big fish at fine scales

October 9, 2024

Scientists from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution track how shortbill spearfish take advantage of local ocean currents when foraging.

unlikely friendships

5 unlikely ocean friendships

May 24, 2024

How certain marine species keep each other safe, fed, and healthy through symbiosis

wind farm

Are offshore wind farms harming whales?

May 9, 2024

WHOI whale biologist Mark Baumgartner weighs in

scallop and starfish

Is underwater construction noise leaving scallops defenseless?

March 7, 2024

Sea scallops expend a lot of energy reacting to noisy pile drivers

Maria Pachiadaki

Our eyes on the seafloor

February 29, 2024

A Q&A with WHOI marine microbiologist Maria Pachiadaki on sampling the deep ocean with Jason

News Releases

Scientists Test Hearing in Bristol Bay Beluga Whale Population

May 14, 2014

The ocean is an increasingly industrialized space. Shipping, fishing, and recreational vessels, oil and gas exploration and other human activities all increase noise levels in the ocean and make it more difficult for marine mammals to hear and potentially diminish…

New Sensor Array to Monitor Impacts of Changing Gulf of Maine Conditions on New England Red Tide

May 7, 2014

Scientists from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) are kicking off an innovative NOAA-funded pilot program using robotic instruments and computer modeling analysis to shed light on changing ocean conditions in the Gulf of Maine as they relate to the harmful algal bloom (HAB) phenomenon commonly known as the New England red tide.

New Study Finds Extreme Longevity in White Sharks

January 8, 2014

Great white sharks—top predators throughout the world’s ocean—grow much slower and live significantly longer than previously thought, according to a new study led by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI). In the first successful radiocarbon age validation study for adult white sharks, researchers analyzed vertebrae from four females and four males from the northwestern Atlantic Ocean. Age estimates were up to 73 years old for the largest male and 40 years old for the largest female.

Dolphins Assist Scientists Studying Effects of Data-logging Tags

October 23, 2013

For scientists studying marine mammals in the wild, data-logging tags are invaluable tools that allow them to observe animals’ movements and behaviors that are otherwise hidden beneath the waves much of the time. The tags, which temporarily attach to animals…

Establishing World-Class Coral Reef Ecosystem Monitoring in Okinawa

September 13, 2013

Enduring two typhoons over a three-week period in August, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) researchers, working in partnership with the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University (OIST), have successfully deployed an OceanCube Observatory System in waters off Motobu…

News & Insights

Predatory fish could lose 40 percent of habitat by 2100, study finds

August 9, 2023

Shark superpowers, science, and social media

July 27, 2023

MIT-WHOI Joint Program student Jaida Elcock celebrates Shark Week and shark awareness in this Q&A

Life In the Dark: The Polar Night

July 5, 2023

At the northernmost year-round research station in the world, scientists brave frigid temperatures and perpetual night to solve an ocean mystery. The team is trying to figure out how some of the tiniest animals survive at a time of year when their main food source is not available.

Deep Sea Parasites Flourishing in Marine Ecosystems

June 29, 2023

WHOI’s Jaida Elcock and Lauren Dykman explain why parasites may be a sign of ocean health

Dolphin moms use baby talk with their young

June 29, 2023