Category:Ocean
The planet's single biggest biome.
Also see Water.
For information about environmental issues pertaining to the oceans, check out Global Warming, Plastic and Overfishing Page
For information about the oceans' charismatic megafauna, see Marine Mammals.
More useful info: Info on Marine Bio Major, Ocean Research.
Contents
Overviews
Why we should care about the ocean by Her Deepness Sylvia Earle (at the last undersea research facility, which is being defunded. (video) video bio) (see also Eco-heroes)
New video on ocean acidification from NRDC more
New report on coral reefs (and animated overview) 7/12 9/12 Update
Ocean Giants: Epic new 3 hour PBS series on whales and dolphins.
Thank You Ocean, a powerful one minute video about why it matters.
Center for Biological Diversity on status of ocean
New TOPP comprehensive study of hot spots. 5/11
Video overview from National Geographic.
Video overview on ocean health (beware greenwash ad at end).
Ten "gifts" for the ocean, easy actions you can take, includes avoiding sunscreen that bleaches coral.
Mother Jones magazine series The Last Days of the Ocean, articles and videos. 7/11
Census of Marine Life see also (video). New TEDtalk: Paul Snelgrove shares the results of the 10-year Census of Marine Life, and shares amazing photos of some of their surprising undersea finds. Related: Forage fish are important but declining. 11/11. UCSC alum has published an important book which got legal protection.
New Report : A "deadly trio" of carbon-related ocean impacts (ocean acidification, warming, and oxygen depletion) may lead to global marine extinctions on a scale unprecedented in human history. This is one of the main conclusions of a new report by an international panel of marine scientists (see my previous post Ocean of Trouble for more details). The panel's main findings were summarized as follows: The combination of stressors on the ocean is creating the conditions associated with every previous major extinction of species in Earth's history. Further: The speed and rate of degeneration in the ocean is far faster than anyone has predicted. Many of the negative impacts previously identified are greater than the worst predictions. Although difficult to assess because of the unprecedented speed of change, the first steps to globally significant extinction may have begun with a rise in the extinction threat to marine species such as reef-forming corals. More. Related PBS Newshour story. 6/11
TEDtalks on the ocean. New TEDtalk: how we ruined the oceans . See also Mission Blue Voyage 5/10
In Sex, Drugs, and Sea Slime: The Oceans' Oddest Creatures and Why They Matter, (excerpt) Prager describes some of the craziest underwater activities that help ocean creatures stay alive, fight predators, find food and reproduce.audio interview 4/11 6/11 audio interview.
Water: The Big Picture video overview.
National Geographic site, includes Ballard.
UCTV Ocean Science site video includes acidification, wave power, etc. Profiles of three students at Scripps ***
Extensive coverage of the Gulf oil spill is on the Featured Stories news page. PBS News Hour has great coverage: Sample. More on dispersantsSusan Shaw shows evidence it's sparing some beaches only at devastating cost to the health of the deep sea. TEDtalk video. 15 Biggest Oil spills of all time (map). UPDATE: Assessing The Health Of The Gulf, Post-Spill NPR audio 1/11. Oil-eating bacteria
A trawling net that lessens bycatch. Sharks in trouble, ghost nets, as well as lethal ocean noise and other stories from Greenmuze.
The oldest living thing on Earth is a massive "meadow" of sea grass growing in the Mediterranean between Spain and Cyprus. It's somewhere between 100,000 and 200,000 years old and reproduces by cloning itself. Also, it's being killed by climate change.
Various topics from Alert Diver includes Humpback rescue, shark finning and manatees.
News/Articles
Yale's Earth 360 has fine articles on a variety of ocean topics.
News about the ocean. (with video).
Great Barrier Reef Has Seen Major Decline In Past 3 Decades PBS video *** 10/12
The National Ocean Policy is being debated and discussed in Congress. Its issues are explored in a new video Ocean Frontiers: The Dawn of a New Era in Ocean Stewardship.
Seafood Watch's new dirty dozen fish that are bad for you and the planet (and better alternatives and data). Five Fish that are Sustainable and (Almost) Guilt-free.
The Pacific Ocean is becoming caffeinated 7.12
Waveglider collects data in ocean.
The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) has released its annual “Testing the Waters” report, an overview of the nation’s beaches. You’ll want to read this before taking a dip. 7.12
EPA bans sewage from ships. 2/12
Coral reefs as source of medicine.
A ruling by a federal court in California threatens to upset a controversial new fishing management plan embraced by environmental groups, including the Environmental Defense Fund and The Nature Conservancy. 3/12
New report on fish farming 10/11
Shrimp has 10x the carbon footprint of beef 2/12
Mother Jones magazine series The Last Days of the Ocean, articles and videos. 7/11
Alvin, the venerable deep dive research sub, is the ultimate DIY project. Some video. Filmed Titanic and discovered new kinds of life around hot vents nearly 3 miles down. audio.
How Factory Farms Are Killing Seals 2/12
Shark Fin soup contains neurotoxin (also shark images). 2/12.
James Cameron will ride this submersible to the deepest point in the ocean 3/12
Graham Hawkes takes us aboard his graceful, winged submarines to the depths of planet Ocean (a.k.a. "Earth"). It's a deep blue world we landlubbers rarely see in 3D. TEDtalk video.
Interactive Websites/Maps/Apps
(see also Maps Page)
Rippl (recently released for iPhone) helps you build "green habits" by sending you helpful tips and reminders on how your actions impact the oceans. The app, which was created by the Ocean Conservancy, uses technology to bring ocean awareness into our daily routines.
Interactive map of marine dead zones and more on eutrophication
Rising Ocean Levels interactive maps.
EcoTrust is a web-based environment for making decisions about the best economic and ecological uses of the ocean.
Sylvia Earle on Google Earth 5 mapping the oceans. Interview here's a sample.
Best and worst places to be a sea turtle 9/11
Coral Reef research. Some copes better with climate change than others.
Ocean 2012 has nice map of fish stocks animated version.
Help explore the ocean floor. The HabCam team and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution need your help! 9/12.
Images
Seafloor Explorer: Underwater Images Project Opens To The Public
What Oceans Provide slideshow of 10 things that may surprise you.
Octopus sunning is one from Nat. Geo. Picture of the Day.
Five Gyres project is sailing to all major subtropical oceanic gyres (North and South Pacific, North and South Atlantic, and Indian Ocean) in order to study the every growing problem of marine plastic pollution. See slideshow.
David de Rothschild Sets Sail on Plastic Ship Plastiki to Pacific Gyre "Great Garbage Patch" Gyre slideshow. recent local audio interview and links. See also Solid Waste page. UCSC video of deep sea plastic. Capt. Moore video. Sea Scavenger is a Bay Area group you can work with.
New images of strange tiny sea creatures. More Bizarre deep sea critters.
Deep ocean mysteries and wonders TEDtalk 3/12 (see his earlier talk too).
A shark eating another shark (on the Great Barrier Reef, which is in trouble). Whale shark hoovers a net.
Websites
Live Cam The Kelp Forest at Monterey Bay Aquarium
Environmental Defense Fund research
Marine Mammal Rescue Center Here is info on rescue volunteering.
Smithsonian Marine Invasive Species
Audio
How the oceans are changing with changes in climate. NPR SciFri panel discussion.
Global Warming effect on oceans (e.g., acidification) Panel discussion on Science Friday on NPR. 1/21/11.
Mark Kurlansky , Author, Cod, Salt and The World Without Fish. Link to talk5/11 Former commercial fisherman and best-selling author Kurlansky examines the devastating effects of industrialized fishing and shares simple rules that families can use to help support sustainable fishing.
CA toxic algae blooms (includes UCSC's Kudela). 4/11
Forecasting ‘Dead Zone’ Conditions in the Gulf NPR audio 5/11.
Salmon Odyssey Phil Isenberg, Chair, Delta Vision Task Force James Norton, Filmmaker, Salmon: Running the Gauntlet. Jonathan Rosenfield, Ph.D., Conservation Biologist, The Bay Institute (6/11).
SF Bay invasive species. KQED Quest 4/11.
Paul Greenberg, author of "Four Fish: the Future of the Last Wild Food," interview 8/10
Sylvia Earle on Google Earth 5 mapping the oceans. Interview here's a sample
Monster Waves: Susan Casey, whose book The Wave (trailer) tells the story of great waves and those who seek to solve and ride them, says people were skeptical of 100-foot waves because weather patterns don't seem to predict them; she first became interested in learning about monster waves after hearing a story about the British research vessel Discovery, a 230-meter-long ship that became trapped in a vortex of giant waves for several days. Interview with Laird Hamilton.
Paul Greenberg: The Future Of 'Wild Fish', interview with author of Four Fish: The Future of the Last Wild Food (also links to related stories) excerpt
Farallon Island discussion KQED NPR radio /10
Dumping of military toxic waste/weapons off California Coast. 2009
Sperm Whales in trouble in the Gulf of Mexico. 7/10 LOE.org
Dwindling Stocks of Wild Fish Put Fish Farms on the Table San Diego promoters say an open-ocean fish farm could satisfy our demand for seafood and help protect dwindling species. A small pilot version could be operating in a couple of years. But skeptics say the proposed farm would cause more harm than good.
Cleaning Up the Ghost Fleet. For decades, dozens of retired Navy and merchant ships have been slowly decaying in Suisun Bay, leaking pollution into the waters northeast of San Francisco. After years of trying to get the federal government to address the situation, environmental groups sued in 2007, and yesterday they announced a settlement NPR CA Report. 4/10
An amazing whale story (Realplayer required)***
'Journey of the Pink Dolphins: An Amazon Quest' by Sy Montgomery (several chapters on audio)
Video
Blue Ocean Film festival Monterey 9/24-30.
UCTV Series "Perspectives on Ocean Science" has 150 and counting, including coral reefs, Gulf of California, sharks, algae (the most important plant), and adventures in oceanography.
Sylvia Earle is an American oceanographer. She was chief scientist for the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration from 1990-1992. She is a National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence, sometimes called "Her Deepness" or "The Sturgeon General." video TEDtalk Prize also 2011Smith College talk. She spoke at UCSC 2/12. Mission Blue. video bio) (see also Eco-heroes)
Deep ocean mysteries and wonders TEDtalk 3/12 (see his earlier talk too)
TEDtalks on the ocean. New TEDtalk: how we ruined the oceans . See also Mission Blue Voyage 5/10
More TED videos: The ocean has degraded within our lifetimes, says Daniel Pauly, as shown in the decreasing average size of fish. Can we stop the baseline drop? Also, Paul Snelgrove shares the results of the 10-year Census of Marine Life, and shares amazing photos of some of their surprising undersea finds 3/12.
New video on ocean acidification from NRDC more.
Hope for the Ocean on Monterey Bay (TEDtalk) by Steve Palumbi , see also The Death and Life of Monterey Bay
The Secret Life of Plankton by Tierney Thys 4/12
At TEDxMonterey, Melissa Garren sheds light on marine microbes that provide half the oxygen we breathe, maintain underwater ecosystems, and demonstrate surprising hunting skills.
Octopuses have been discovered tip-toeing with coconut-shell halves suctioned to their undersides, then reassembling the halves and disappearing inside for protection or deception, a new study says. Not only are they incredibly smart, they can control the color and even texture of their skins and "morph." Another example. This once can open a glass jar. How they do it.
Greg Stone was a key driver in the establishment of the Phoenix Island Protected Area in the island nation of Kiribati. The second-largest marine protected area in the world. TEDtalk
UCSC's Mark Carr is featured in PBS NewsHour video segment on new marine reserves 3/11
One Fish Two Fish: Monitoring Marine Protected Areas KQED Quest 9/11.
Amber Mace, a leading expert on ocean protection policy, a UC alum, (bio) explains the problems but also why there's great hope because of the scientific work (including at UC) is informing policy here and in the White House (fifth Fred Keeley Lecture on Environmental Policy UCSC 2010).
James Cameron in conversation with Eric Schmidt talking about 3D, Avatar 2 & 3, ocean exploration and more! Video
Marine biologist Barbara Block fits tuna with tracking tags (complete with transponders) that record unprecedented amounts of data about these gorgeous, threatened fish and the ocean habitats they move through. TEDtalk
California Salmon QUEST KQED.
Kristina Gjerde studies the law of the high seas -- the 64 percent of our ocean that isn't protected by any national law at all. Gorgeous photos show the hidden worlds that Gjerde and other lawyers are working to protect from trawling and trash-dumping TEDtalk video
Dee Boersma considers penguins ocean sentinels, helping us understand the effects of pollution, overfishing and climate change on the marine environment. TEDtalk
Brian Skerry is a photojournalist who captures images that not only celebrate the mystery and beauty of the sea but also bring attention to the pressing issue which endanger our oceans. TEDtalk.
Ocean BlueOn April 6-10, 2010, inspired by Sylvia Earle's TED Prize wish, a group of 100 scientists, activists and philanthropists set sail on an epic adventure into the blue. During five days of cruising the Galapagos Islands, we developed a new model of radical collaboration that could significantly impact the way we protect our oceans.
Great overview of sharks: Sharks have inhabited the oceans for more than 400 million years. Jeffrey Graham describes the adaptations that have allowed these magnificent creatures to thrive over the millennia. Learn how shark biologists study shark physiology, life history, and behavior for insight into what allows these animals to rank among the worlds most efficient predators.
Check out Vampyroteuthis infernalis, otherwise known as "the vampire squid from hell." Thankfully it just eats detritus.
Specific Topics
Algae Blooms
Algae blooms info from NOAA including work by UCSC
Dead Zone in Gulf of Mexico from fertilizer.
Interactive map of marine dead zones and more on eutrophication
Microbe that can clean up dead zones includes map.
Excellent article on plastic in the Pacific Gyre
Sharks off Santa Cruz City on a Hill.
Dolphin Attack from City on a Hill
Stormwater pollution in SF Bay (good overview)
Overfishing 2/11.
== Overfishing == (See also Overfishing Page)
Strange Days on Planet Earth from National Geographic. Overfishing
The End of the Line documentary on fishing.
Sea Change imagines a world without fish.
Graham Hawkes takes us aboard his graceful, winged submarines to the depths of planet Ocean (a.k.a. "Earth"). It's a deep blue world we landlubbers rarely see in 3D. TEDtalk video.
Overfishing by trawlers depletes stocks and endanger poor fishermen Link 3/09
Daniel Pauly shows us onstage at Mission Blue, each time the baseline drops, we call it the new "normal." Pauly is the principal investigator at the Sea Around Us Project, which studies the impact of the world's fisheries on marine ecosystems.
Several efforts are being made to eat invasive species, including Asian carp.
== Marine Mammals == (see also Marine Mammals Page)
UCSC Prof. Dan Costa and his students are tagging marine life to send back realtime information never before available. You can follow activities at TOPP and see Video from KQED's Quest. Video update 5/11. New TOPP comprehensive study of hot spots. 5/11
"Surfer nearly swallowed by whale"(video) near shore in Santa Cruz. article"A pod of humpback whales has been hanging out off the Santa Cruz coast, noshing on anchovies that flock to the area to feed on plankton. The woman found herself in the middle of a feeding frenzy called lunge feeding, which occurs when whales herd anchovies and shoot straight up out of the water with their mouth wide open to catch the fish." 11/11 More alarming, is the forage fish the whales were going for are getting scarce.
Rescued whale dances (video).
Humpback whale video off California coast.
Dolphins playing with bubbles
Ocean Animal Emergency Features UCSC folks. You can volunteer to help at Marine Mammal Center (see volunteer page).
The Cove is a documentary about the annual slaughter of dolphins in Japan. audio and videoText and audio. trailer. Short overview in Scientific American and Oprah interview with filmmakers. On a happier note, a dolphin rescue. More dolphin videos from Nature.
Robert Ballard on ocean exploration. Crittercam is a videocamera attached to ocean animals to observe their behavior. UCSC alum will showed this work April 5th at UCSC. See Costa and Fowler below. 60 Minutes profile part II 11/09.
Whale rescued from fishing net in Mexico. Dolphins save dog.
Peter Tyack studies the the social behavior and acoustic communication in whales and dolphins, learning how these animals use sound to perform critical activities, such as mating and locating food. TEDtalk
Sharks
UCSC alum Sora Kim, now at the University of Wyoming, did a study that shows surprising variability in the dietary preferences of individual white sharks.
Shark Mountain PBS Nature documentary.
slideshow and Great White news 9/12.
How do you save a shark you know nothing about? basking sharks, TEDtalk.
Juliet Eilperin's brand new book Demon Fish: Travels Through the Hidden World of Sharks (audio interview and excerpt) says that in reality, it's the sharks that should be afraid of human predators.
Various topics from Alert Diver includes Humpback rescue, shark finning. Shark Fin soup contains neurotoxin (also shark images). 2/12.
Sharks off Santa Cruz City on a Hill.
A shark eating another shark (on the Great Barrier Reef, which is in trouble). Whale shark hoovers a net. Images
Octopi
Watch an octopus take apart a camera while punching a shark video.
Octopus sunning is one from Nat. Geo. Picture of the Day.
Octopuses have been discovered tip-toeing with coconut-shell halves suctioned to their undersides, then reassembling the halves and disappearing inside for protection or deception, a new study says. Not only are they incredibly smart, they can control the color and even texture of their skins and "morph." Another example. This once can open a glass jar. How they do it.
The human, the orchid, and the octopus : exploring and conserving our natural world Cousteau, Jacques Yves New York : Bloomsbury S&E Stacks - GC30.C68 A3 2007
Pollution/Litter
Capt. Charles Moore of the Algalita Marine Research Foundation first discovered the Great Pacific Garbage Patch -- an endless floating waste of plastic trash.
UCSC's Finkelstein on PBS NewsHour on plastic text and video 11/08
UCSC video of deep sea plastic.
Stephen Palumbi. He shows how toxins such as mercury at the bottom of the ocean food chain find their way into our bodies, with a shocking story of toxic contamination from a Japanese fish market. Mission Blue Voyage TEDtalk video. (Bio-magnification).
UCTV Ocean Science site video, example Pacific Garbage Patch.
Strange Days on Planet Earth from National Geographic onchemical runoff.
== Acidification/Coral Reefs == (see also Global Warming)
Great Barrier Reef Has Seen Major Decline In Past 3 Decades PBS video *** 10/12
New report on coral reefs (and animated overview) 7/12 9/12 UPDATE
Great Barrier Reef in trouble. 6/12.
Coral reefs Scripps Oceanography marine ecologist Stuart Sandi describes his travels to untouched parts of the globe to conduct scientific research aimed at understanding and protecting these fragile ecosystems. See also Microbial seas and coral. 12/11.
California (audio) 9/12.
Coral Reef research. Some copes better with climate change than others.
Ocean Acidification discussion on PBS NewsHour 11/10.
New Report : A "deadly trio" of carbon-related ocean impacts (ocean acidification, warming, and oxygen depletion) may lead to global marine extinctions on a scale unprecedented in human history. This is one of the main conclusions of a new report by an international panel of marine scientists (see my previous post Ocean of Trouble for more details). The panel's main findings were summarized as follows: The combination of stressors on the ocean is creating the conditions associated with every previous major extinction of species in Earth's history. Further: The speed and rate of degeneration in the ocean is far faster than anyone has predicted. Many of the negative impacts previously identified are greater than the worst predictions. Although difficult to assess because of the unprecedented speed of change, the first steps to globally significant extinction may have begun with a rise in the extinction threat to marine species such as reef-forming corals. More. Related PBS Newshour story. 6/11
Short Attention Span Science Theater video has good coverage of ocean acidification and its effect on coral reefs, the "rainforests of the ocean." Here's a plan to use ocean pumps to cool reefs, boost their food and generate electricity.
Short Attention Span Science Theater video has good coverage of ocean acidification and its effect on coral reefs, the "rainforests of the ocean."
Richard Pyle shows us thriving life on the cliffs of coral reefs and groundbreaking diving technologies he has pioneered to explore it. He and his team risk everything to reveal the secrets of undiscovered species. TEDtalk.
Coral reefs as source of medicine.
Rob Dunbar hunts for data on our climate from 12,000 years ago, finding clues inside ancient seabeds and corals and inside ice sheets. His work is vital in setting baselines for fixing our current climate -- and in tracking the rise of deadly ocean acidification. TEDtalk
avoiding sunscreen that bleaches coral.
BP Gulf Oil Spill
The Spill A joint investigation by FRONTLINE and ProPublica into the trail of problems -- deadly accidents, disastrous spills, countless safety violations -- which long troubled the oil giant, BP. Could the disaster in the Gulf of Mexico have been prevented?
Black Tide: the Devastating Impact of the Gulf Oil Spill audio interviews.
Carl Safina: The Gulf oil spill's unseen culprits, victims TEDtalk6/10. The Gulf oil spill dwarfs comprehension, but we know this much: it's bad. Carl Safina scrapes out the facts in this blood-boiling cross-examination, arguing that the consequences will stretch far beyond the Gulf -- and many so-called solutions are making the situation worse.
Other
David Gallo shows jaw-dropping footage of amazing sea creatures, including a color-shifting cuttlefish, a perfectly camouflaged octopus, and a Times Square's worth of neon light displays from fish who live in the blackest depths of the ocean. See also longer video TEDtalk. Newer video on deep ocean 4/12.
Climate has enormous impacts on the marine life off California, influencing its major fisheries and the abundance of krill, seabirds and mammals. Join Tony Koslow as he shows how a 60-year ocean observation program, the California Cooperative Oceanic Fisheries Investigations (or CalCOFI) is unraveling the impacts of the El Niño/La Niña cycle and human-induced climate. UCTV First Aired: 3/15/2010 52 minutes.
Green Turtle recovery program PBS Nature. See Sea Turtles.org and UCSC folk below.
Students Saving the Ocean. Meet students in the Bay Area who are finding ways to improve the health of our seas based on the book "50 Ways to Save the Ocean." This documentary was sponsored by Oracle on behalf of the DigitalOcean project out of University of California, Santa Barbara, and was produced by Outhink Media. The DigitalOcean Network connects scientists and enthusiasts around the sustainability of our Oceans.� (#18010) UCTV 2/15/2010. 23 minutes
The Short Attention Span Science Video on Ecological Sustainability. Example: resilience Lots of info on coral reefs and whales.
Octopuses have been discovered tip-toeing with coconut-shell halves suctioned to their undersides, then reassembling the halves and disappearing inside for protection or deception, a new study says. Not only are they incredibly smart, the can control the color and even texture of their skins and "morph." Another example. This once can open a glass jar and cuttlefish.
Mike deGruy has been filming in and on the ocean for three decades. "Hooked by an Octopus" TEDtalk 2010.
Architect Kate Orff sees the oyster as an agent of change. She shares her vision for an urban landscape that links nature and humanity for mutual benefit. (Video TEDtalk)
Bioluminescence expert Edith Widder explores this glowing, sparkling, luminous world, sharing glorious images and insight into the unseen depths (and brights) of the ocean. Some 80 to 90 percent of undersea creatures make light -- and we know very little about how or why. TEDtalk 2010
Marine biologist Tierney Thys (Monterey Bay Aquarium) tags the Mola mola, or giant ocean sunfish. TEDtalk
Chef Dan Barber squares off with a dilemma facing many chefs today: how to keep fish on the menu. With impeccable research and deadpan humor, he chronicles his pursuit of a sustainable fish he could love, and the foodie's honeymoon he's enjoyed since discovering an outrageously delicious fish raised using a revolutionary farming method in Spain. TEDtalk.
Books
The Death and Life of Monterey Bay by Steve Palumbi and Carolyn Sotka, see also TEDtalk
Oceans : the threats to our seas and what you can do to turn the tide : a participant media guide / edited by Jon Bowermaster UCSC S&E Stacks GC1018 .O26 2010 excerpt
In her new book, Deep Blue Home: An Intimate Ecology of Our Wild Ocean, veteran journalist Julia Whitty (many articles here) reaches back over a 30-year career devoted to the oceans and synthesizes her experiences into a work that is equal parts personal memoir and environmental history book. Deep Blue Home (excerpt) delves into the influence of oceans in human culture and spirit, while at the same time documenting how human technological ingenuity, fueled by greed and accompanied by a lack of foresight, is devastating the undersea world. Whitty, an environmental correspondent for Mother Jones, is first a documentary filmmaker, with more than 70 nature documentaries to her credit. She also wrote The Fragile Edge, a book on coral reefs, winner of numerous awards.
Let Them Eat Shrimp: The Tragic Disappearance of the Rainforests of the Sea, Kennedy Warne (published by Island Press, a Slug) excerpt. audio interview.
The Most Important Fish in the Sea :Menhaden and America by H. Bruce Franklin Forage fish are important but declining. UCSC alum has published this important book which got legal protection. Related: The Empty Ocean by Richard Ellis, Cod: A Biography of the Fish that Changed the World by Mark Kurlansky, Four Fish: The Future of the Last Wild Food by Paul Greenberg, The End of the Line: How Overfishing Is Changing the World and What We Eat by Charles Clover Link.
Black Tide: the Devastating Impact of the Gulf Oil Spill audio interviews.
Juliet Eilperin's brand new book Demon Fish: Travels Through the Hidden World of Sharks (audio interview and excerpt) says that in reality, it's the sharks that should be afraid of human predators.
Bottomfeeder: How to Eat Ethically in a World of Vanishing Seafood, the Canadian journalist Taras Grescoe takes a hard look at the Asian operations that supply our shrimp. His conclusion: "The simple fact is, if you're eating cheap shrimp today, it almost certainly comes from a turbid, pesticide- and antibiotic-filled, virus-laden pond in the tropical climes of one of the world's poorest nations."
Report on Bycatch 2002 27 pp.
The human, the orchid, and the octopus : exploring and conserving our natural world Cousteau, Jacques Yves New York : Bloomsbury S&E Stacks - GC30.C68 A3 2007
People
Sylvia Earle discusses this and other topics in her book The World is Blue: How Our Fate and the Ocean's Are One. Her amazing TEDtalk video. 2009 interview addresses many issues, including fish farms. Colbert Report.
William Beebe was one of our great American naturalists of the early twentieth century. From early on, he possessed an intense, curious scientific mind, and over the course of his lifetime advanced knowledge in not just one but numerous fields of sciences: ornithology, marine biology, tropical ecology, entomology, and ichthyology, traveling the world to study organisms and ecosystems directly in their natural settings in a way that no one (or few) had done before. Chapter 30 of his bio, “Half Mile Down” is a riveting description of his first-ever descent in a bathysphere to explore depths of the ocean unknown to humans at the time. This was in 1932 and at the time the expedition made headlines around the world
Local hero Julia Platt How Monterey Bay Was Saved from the Brink see The Death and Life of Monterey Bay by Steve Palumbi and Carolyn Sotka, see also TEDtalk.
Sea Scavenger is a Bay Area group you can work with on ocean pollution, especially plastics.
Sea Slugs
(See Slugs in Action for more complete list.
List of UCSC departments involved in researching the ocean.
Some current UCSC ocean research 9/10
UCSC Alumni
UCSC alum Sora Kim, now at the University of Wyoming, did a study that shows surprising variability in the dietary preferences of individual white sharks.
Kathryn Sullivan--oceanographer, astronaut, educator wins Global Oceans Award, which recognizes Sullivan for her outstanding contributions to the understanding and conservation of the oceans. The primary goal of the first of her three shuttle missions was to survey the Earth, the atmosphere, and the oceans. She worked on the 2003 Pew report on the oceans.
Teresa Ish helps consumers find sustainable fish.
Brock Dolman (College Eight '92, Environmental Studies/Biology), Director of The WATER Institute Ecologist Permaculture Program
John Francis, vice president of research, conservation, and exploration for the National Geographic Society works with Crittercam
Current Students
Melinda Fowler tags very large elephant seals
Hoyt Peckham studies endangered turtles.
Allison Luengenstudies toxins in the ocean
Engineering students develop a coral reef monitoring system.
Faculty (not complete, see also Slugs in Action)
Rachel Barnett-Johnson, a fisheries biologist, investigates salmon population.
Giacomo Bernardi is in Evolutionary Biology. His Post Doc was at Stanford University’s Hopkins Marine Station at Pacific Grove. His research focus is on the molecular ecology and evolution of coral reef fishes. He does his research in California, the Sea of Cortez, French Polynesia, the Caribbean, the Philippines, Indonesia, South Africa and the Mozambique Channel. His research areas include speciation, population genetics, and ecology of coral reef fishes. (video of fish tool use).
Mark Carr and Peter Raimondi, professors of ecology and evolutionary biology, lead ocean monitoring effort. PBS NewsHour video segment on new marine reserves 3/11
Dan Costa and his students are tagging marine life to send back realtime information never before available. You can follow activities at TOPP and see Video from KQED's Quest. Video update 5/11. New TOPP comprehensive study of hot spots. 5/11
Christina Diaz is one of a handful of experts in the world specializing in studying, identifying and classifying intertidal and tropical sponges. (video).
Global Warming research is being done by Christina Ravelo, a professor of ocean sciences and James Zachos, professor of Earth and planetary sciences.
Raphael Kudela, professor of ocean sciences, participated in a study that links seabird deaths to soap-like foam produced by red-tide algae. His team is trying to predict when toxin-producing algae will strike again with computer models. 9/10 update
John Pearse, a pioneer in ocean research, studies temporal patterns of reproduction in marine invertebrate. Works with NOAA Limpets, high school monitoring program link. More, including his role as President of the California Academy of Sciences. UCSC and the Academy recently established links which allow graduate students with interests in systematic biology to be co-sponsored by Academy scientists.
Take Action
See also Volunteer Opportunities and Online Campaigns
Local internships: Ecology Action California Dept. of Fish and Game National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) [Link
Long Marine Lab docent Link}}
Baykeeper Program Fellow, rosalind@baykeeper.org. weblink.
CalPIRG ongoing campaigns: Global Warming Solutions, 21st Century Transportation, Health Care Work, Getting to Graduation Campaigns,High-Speed Rail Campaigns, New Voters Project , Higher Education Campaigns, Textbooks, Hunger & Homelessness, Save Our Otters/Oceans. Interested in internships, volunteering? Contact by e-mail/phone, or drop by our office: 3rd Floor Student Union 459-4649 Campus Organizer: Carolina Van Horn [1]Link
Help build a kelp database 8/12.
Surfrider Monthly Cleanup. Register now at: link}}
The Reef Environmental Education Foundation is a grass-roots organization that seeks to conserve marine ecosystems by educating, enlisting and enabling divers and other marine enthusiasts to become active ocean stewards and citizen scientists. They do annual fish counts and trips. They have several stations in the area. Other groups.
Friends of the Sea Otter has some new and exciting programs: Program 1: Marine Water Monitoring Water quality plays a significant role in sea otter health, which is why FSO is teaming up with the California Department of Public Health and asking volunteers to collect water samples all along the coast of California. The data from the water samples will ultimately be received and used by researchers working with otters and other sea mammals. Volunteers are needed to collect samples at locations along the coast where the southern sea otter call home (San Francisco to Santa Barbara). Sampling takes only about 15 minutes and must be done weekly; if we get enough interest, teams can be created so that individuals can take turns with sampling throughout the month.
Program 2: Otter Recovery The California Sea Otter Research Group needs help with otter recovery on Friday afternoons and weekends. This job would entail removing dead or hurt otters from the shoreline. Volunteers would need to walk along the shoreline and then take care of any otters that are found.
Program 3: Data Compilation and Organization. People with a scientific background are needed to help the California Sea Otter Research Group in Santa Cruz compile data. A great deal of sea otter data has already been collected and is in desperate need of organization. This work would be done in their laboratories located in Santa Cruz.Link.
Marine Mammal Rescue Center: Various opportunities including rescuing stranded animals at the Marine Mammal Rescue Center Here is info on local rescue volunteering. Video.
See also Marine Mammal Physiology Project (MMPP) at UCSC's Long Marine Laboratory.
Earthwatch recruits close to 4,000 volunteers every year to collect field data in the areas of rainforest ecology, wildlife conservation, marine science, archaeology, and more. Through this process, we educate, inspire, and involve a diversity of people, who actively contribute to conserving our planet [participants help fund expeditions]. Link}}
O'Neill Sea Odyssey|ongoing|O'Neill Sea Odyssey (OSO) was founded in 1996 by wetsuit innovator and surfer Jack O'Neill. A living classroom was created on board a 65-foot catamaran sailing the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary where 4th - 6th grade students from schools throughout Central California receive hands-on lessons about the marine habitat and the importance of the relationship between the living sea and the environment. The program is conducted on board the catamaran with follow-up lessons at the shore-side Education Center at the Santa Cruz Harbor. It is free of charge, but students earn their way into the program by designing and performing a project to benefit their community. Link.
Help explore the ocean floor. The HabCam team and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution need your help! 9/12.
Save Our Shores|ongoing|Save Our Shores is a non-profit marine conservation organization in Santa Cruz, California. Our mission is marine conservation through policy research, education and citizen involvement (see calendar for frequent activities such as beach cleanup) Internships available. Link
Institute of Marine Sciences UCSC|ongoing|Many opportunities to do hands-on science Link
National River Cleanup Day (and creeks) May 12, 2012.
PISCO, the Partnership for Interdisciplinary Studies of Coastal Oceans is a long-term ecosystem research and monitoring program established with the goals of understanding dynamics of the coastal ocean ecosystem along the U.S. west coast (internships).
Pinniped Cognition & Sensory Systems Laboratory. |ongoing| Our program is powered by a group of hard working volunteer research assistants. These individuals typically work 12-15 hours per week in the laboratory and receive comprehensive training in all areas of the research program. Preference is generally given to UCSC students in the natural, behavioral, or physical sciences, or to individuals with a background in computer sciences/engineering. For more information about the program, including instructions on how to apply for a volunteer research position, please contact us at akbernar@ucsc.edu.
Intern. We offer 3-4 month internships to individuals that are recent college graduates with an interest in marine mammalogy, bioacoustics, comparative cognition, and/or animal husbandry. Interns complete an intensive training program followed by participation in all aspects of the program, including specialized roles in upcoming and ongoing research projects. Interns typically work five full days per week, mainly in the laboratory and occasionally in field research settings. Internships are not paid positions, and applicants are responsible for their own housing arrangements. For more information about the program, including instructions on how to apply for an internship, please contact us at akbernar@ucsc.edu. Link
Scripps Institution of Oceanography, founded in 1903 and joined the University of California in 1912. The Innovative Marine Technology Laboratory (IMT Laboratory) is a research group of the Marine Physical Laboratory. As part of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla. A talk by research oceanographer and photographer Dale Stokes for a global photographic journey featuring ships, submarines, underwater habitats, and both poles. This presentation includes a decade of images documenting exotic locations underwater and topside and a variety of unusual vessels and research instruments.
Subcategories
This category has the following 2 subcategories, out of 2 total.
Articles in category "Ocean"
The following 6 pages are in this category, out of 6 total.
