Fish
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Unraveling the Mysteries of the Ocean Sunfish
Marine biologist Tierney Thys and researchers at the Monterey Bay Aquarium are learning more about one of the largest jellyfish eaters in the sea
June 07, 2012 |
By Megan Gambino
The Sawfish is a Great Slasher
This ray uses its toothed rostrum not only to detect its next meal, but also to attack and impale its prey
March 23, 2012 |
By K. Annabelle Smith
Fish “Scary Stuff” Alarm Call Deciphered
A newly identified brain circuit could be responsible for driving innate fear responses in many species
February 24, 2012 |
By Virginia Hughes
What Robot Fish Can Tell Us About Parallel Evolution
When housed in an aquarium with a swirling robotic school, what determines whether a fish will join the crowd?
January 31, 2012 |
By Greg Laden
Fish Mimics Fish-Mimicking Octopus
The black-marble jawfish takes advantage of its coloring to blend in with an octopus and stay safe from predators
January 06, 2012 |
By Sarah Zielinski
The Secrets of a Shark Attack
In an attack against a Cape fur seal, a great white shark's advantage comes down to physics
December 12, 2011 |
By Sarah Zielinski
The Fish That Hunt Like Lions
Yellow saddle goatfish collaborate when one finds prey to chase
November 21, 2011 |
By Sarah Zielinski
Where the Pacific’s Predators Go
Scientists have found that predator species trade off between prey availability and water temperature in their travels
July 21, 2011 |
By Sarah Zielinski
Find Your Fishy Metaphor
We've all used a fishy metaphor in the past, but use the wrong one and you can look pretty stupid
June 28, 2011 |
By Sarah Zielinski
Swimming With Whale Sharks
Wildlife researchers and tourists are heading to a tiny Mexican village to learn about the mystery of the largest fish in the sea
June 2011 |
By Juliet Eilperin
Making the Best of Invasive Species
Garlic mustard and Asian carp can wreak havoc on their ecosystems, but do they have a future on your dinner plate?
May 25, 2011 |
By Kristin Ohlson
North America’s Most Endangered Animals
Snails, marmots, condors and coral reef are among the many species on the continent that are close to extinction
May 19, 2011 |
By Megan Gambino, Erin Wayman and Sarah Zielinski
The Shark That Will Give You More Nightmares Than Jaws
If the movie Jaws scared you away from swimming, perhaps you should avoid the "Journey through Time" section of the Sant Ocean Hall at the National Museum of Natural History. There you'll find a collection of fossil marine life dating back as far as 500 million years ago. In one case is possibly th...
January 26, 2011 |
By Sarah Zielinski
A Colorful Zebrafish
Each summer, scientists gather in Woods Hole, Massachusetts to conduct research and take courses at the Marine Biological Laboratory. Last year, MBL held a scientific photography contest that anyone involved with the institution was allowed to enter. The winner, Albert Pan, a post-doc at Harvard Un...
January 14, 2011 |
By Sarah Zielinski
The Mimic Octopus
The mimic octopus (Thaumoctopus mimicus) has some interesting ways to keep from being eaten. The brown-and-white stripes on its arms resemble the patterning on venomous sea snakes and the coloring of spiny lionfish. And it can vary its shape and positioning to look like a variety of different under...
August 27, 2010 |
By Sarah Zielinski
How Sharks Sniff Out a Meal
A shark's sharp teeth aren't the only reason we find them so scary---their ability to smell blood in the water, even from a long distance, is also a big factor. We know they'll find us. But how do they know what direction to swim in order to find a wounded fish (or person)? Conventional wisdom says...
June 10, 2010 |
By Sarah Zielinski
Photo Contest Finalist—A Chorus of Mackerel
Can fish sing? Yes, they can, though I'm not sure about mackerel like the ones above. And they probably don't sound like anything you'd put on your iPod. But that wasn't what Alex Tattersall of Charminster, England, was searching for when we went on a dive last September in the Red Sea off Egypt. H...
March 19, 2010 |
By Sarah Zielinski
Picture of the Week—Young Fish Dart by a Jellyfish
Thomas Vignaud of Marseille, France took this photograph, labeled Young fish dart by a jellyfish in the sea, in the Mediterranean Sea in September 2007. With it, he won the Natural World Category of Smithsonian magazine's 5th Annual Photo Contest.Have you taken an amazing photograph? Hurry up and e...
November 06, 2009 |
By Sarah Zielinski
Evolution in the Deepest River in the World
New species are born in the turbulence of the Congo River
November 03, 2009 |
By Kyle Dickman
The Eastern Pacific Black Ghost Shark
I'm Greg Laden, and I usually blog at here at Scienceblogs.com and Quiche Moraine. I'm a biological anthropologist interested in human evolution, the biologies of race and gender, human hunter-gatherers, science education and African prehistory. I've been asked to fill in here at Surprising Scien...
September 28, 2009 |
By Greg Laden
