Starting in the 18th century and gaining popularity in the 19th century, the Industrial Revolution brought about drastic changes in the social and economic lives of humans. The benefits of the revolution are felt even today, but so are the adverse effects. The introduction of industrialization brought about industrial pollution.
During the revolution, technology, manufacturing, and science all began rapidly...
If you're like me, you love being right. Nothing makes me happier than listening to a friend or coworker say something wrong, then stepping up to rub your expanse of knowledge right in their uneducated face! This article is devoted to that feeling. Whether you have a true interest in the identity of misidentified animals, or you just want...
Sharks off the east coast of North America have declined precipitously in the last 15 years. The number of hammerhead sharks has dropped by 89%, threshers by 80%, great whites by 79%, oceanic whitetips by 70%, tigers by 65%, blues by 60% and makos by 40% (Baum et al. 2002). Canadian scientists estimate the population of oceanic whitetip sharks...
Many pollution-related mechanisms degrade ecosystems and maintain them at degraded states. Some of the pollution topics are addressed below.Oil PollutionPersistent Organic Pollutants (POPs)Dead ZonesMarine DebrisNoise Pollution
Information suggests that Pacific sleeper shark abundance is increasing. Pacific sleeper shark data was analyzed from fishery independent longline surveys in the Gulf of Alaska and the Bering Sea to determine the trend in abundance and whether any change was statistically significant. Relative population numbers of Pacific sleeper sharks captured in the NOAA Fisheries domestic sablefish longline surveys increased...
More than 70% of out planets surface is covered by ocean. We rely on it for many things including food, transport and pleasure. However, in recent years it has undergone many changes, most of which we have influenced. Below we explore some of the aspects of ocean change.
Understanding Change
A marine biological community is the assemblage of species that co-occur...
Predators can impact ecosystems through the process of 'top-down' control, at times resulting in changes in species composition, changes in species diversity, and regime shifts. Top predators can also help stabilize ecosystems by keeping under control the effects of more abundant smaller predators. Accordingly, understanding predators is essential to understanding how ecosystems function. The Conservation Science Institute's Ocean Initiative's...
Ecosystem-based management is dependent upon scientific research to determine the ecological interactions and processes necessary to sustain ecosystem composition, structure and function in the environments in which fish and fisheries exist. Understanding the factors that sustain the ecosystem will provide the scientific underpinnings needed to inform ecosystem-based management decision. Ecosystem-based management can be an important complement to existing approaches...
The following article was published in the May-June 2000 issue of E-Magazine:
March of 1989 was the first time I laid my eyes on Prince William Sound, Alaska. Our research team, including myself and three other marine ecologists, had arrived a few days after the Exxon Valdez supertanker ran aground on Bligh Reef, from where it spilled 11 million gallons...
ORDER MYXINIFORMES
MYXINIDAE (hagfishes)
Myxininae
Eptatretinae
CLASS CEPHALASPIDOMORPHI
ORDER PETROMYZONTIFORMES
PETROMYZONTIDAE (lampreys)
Petromyzontinae
Geotriinae
Mordaciinae
CLASS ELASMOBRANCHII
ORDER HEXANCHIFORMES
HEXANCHIDAE (cow sharks)
CHLAMYDOSELACHIDAE (frill sharks)
ORDER HETERODONTIFORMES
HETERODONTIDAE (bullhead and horn sharks)
ORDER ORECTOLOBIFORMES
RHINCODONTIDAE (whale sharks)
PARASCYLLIIDAE (collared carpet sharks)
BRACHAELURIDAE (blind sharks)
ORECTOLOBIDAE (wobbegons)
HEMISCYLLIIDAE (bamboo sharks)
STEGOSTOMATIDAE (zebra sharks)
GINGLYMOSTOMATIDAE (nurse sharks)
ORDER LAMNIFORMES
ODONTASPIDIDAE (sand tiger sharks)
MITSUKURINIDAE (goblin sharks)
PSEUDOCARCHARIIDAE (crocodile...