Oceans

Manx shearwaters breed on islands in the North Atlantic where they make nests in underground burrows.

This Seabird Species Dives Deeper When the Water is Clearer

Scientists suggest that cloudier waters, caused in part by climate change, could make it harder for Manx shearwaters to catch fish

Brooding requires a significant sacrifice for a mother Bathyteuthis berryi. Though she can't feed or quickly escape from predators while carrying her eggs, she can ensure her young stay in water that has the right temperature, salinity and oxygen levels.

Watch a Deep-Sea Squid Carry Hundreds of Pearl-Like Eggs

Footage taken 56 miles off California's coast documents rarely-observed brooding behavior

A model of an oarfish

Rare Oarfish Caught on Video on Great Barrier Reef

This is the first record of the species on the eastern seaboard of Australia

Researchers say photo recognition could help scientists learn more about how seals move around.

Introducing Facial Recognition Software for Seals

A neural network, trained using thousands of photos of harbor seals, offers a noninvasive way of telling the pinnipeds apart

Struvite is a nuisance for wastewater treatment plants, as it can clog pipes and lines. But the crystal, which is high in phosphorous, nitrogen, and magnesium, makes an excellent slow-release fertilizer for seagrass.

Human Pee Might Just Be the Key to Saving Seagrass

Treating wastewater creates struvite—a nutrient-rich crystal that bolsters struggling seagrass beds

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Mary Sears' Pioneering Ocean Research Saved Countless Lives in WWII

Allied victory in the Pacific depended on strategy, bravery and military might. It also depended on a brilliant marine scientist from Massachusetts

Glowing green waters surrounded a boat in the Arabian Sea.

What Causes Swaths of the Ocean to Glow a Magnificent Milky Green?

A sailor who witnessed the rare phenomenon in person and a scientist who saw it from the sky team up to learn about the ghostly light

The bacterium, roughly the shape and size of an eyelash, was first discovered in 2009 in the mangrove swamps of Guadeloupe, an island in the Lesser Antilles. The bacteria appeared as long translucent centimeter-long strings on decaying leaf matter in the water.

World’s Largest Bacterium Discovered in Caribbean Mangrove Swamps

The bacterium is the size of an eyelash and visible to the naked eye

A skeleton of the giant Triassic ichthyosaur Shonisaurus popularis hangs in the Nevada State Museum.

Whale-Sized Marine Reptiles Once Ruled the Seas

Paleontologists are beginning to learn how and why ichthyosaurs evolved into giants

Royal kombu (aka sugar kelp) harvested from the Netherlands’ first organic seaweed farm enriches and flavors the Dutch Weed Burger’s soy-chip-based patty.

Is Seaweed the Next Big Alternative to Meat?

From kelp burgers to bacon of the sea, sustainable food entrepreneurs are innovating to charm hungry omnivores

Fish like Epinephelides armatus, also known as breaksea cod, tend to be rated as uglier than fish like Holacanthus ciliaris, or queen angelfish.

Ugly Fish Need Love, Too

New research finds that less attractive reef fish are more likely to be threatened

The Thwaites Glacier in Antarctica

Antarctica’s 'Doomsday Glacier' Melting at Fastest Rate in 5,500 Years

Researchers used penguin bones and shells to track ice loss in the Thwaites and Pine Island glaciers

The Earth’s oceans have risen and fallen over the millennia. But they have, on average, been relatively stable over billions of years. The balance of the deep water cycle—the exchange of water between the Earth’s surface and its interior—has an important role to play in maintaining that stability.

How the Earth's Mantle Sends Water Up Toward the Surface

A new model suggests "mantle rain" ensures we will always have a surface ocean

Korora, the world’s smallest living penguin

Hundreds of Little Blue Penguins Are Turning Up Dead in New Zealand

Rising ocean temperatures are likely causing the flightless birds to starve to death

New research shows how seals use their whiskers to aid them as they hunt. 

Seals Use Their Whiskers to Help Hunt in the Deep Ocean

New video footage shows rhythmic whisker movements that have never been observed before in seals in the wild

After the researchers identified it as a subterranean river and gathered at the site in Antarctica, they drilled down 1640 feet below the ice's surface using a hot water hose to melt the ice.

Hidden Life Found Far Beneath World's Largest Ice Shelf

Hundreds of shrimp-like creatures were found living 1640 feet beneath Antarctica's Ross Ice Shelf

Las Salinas in Cabo Rojo National Wildlife Refuge

These Salt Flats in Puerto Rico Are Cotton-Candy Pink

The distinct color of Las Salinas comes from a combination of algae, bacteria, salt and water

Blue holes, like the Great Blue Hole in Belize, are vast caverns that descend into the seafloor. Sediment accumulates at the bottom of a blue hole, giving researchers a way to gauge historical hurricane activity.

Blue Holes Show Hurricane Activity in the Bahamas Is at a Centuries-Long Low

Many more powerful storms battered the region in the past

Chilean devil rays swim in the Atlantic Ocean near the Azores. 

What Are Scientists Learning About the Deepest Diving Creatures in the Ocean?

Animals-turned-oceanographers are helping biologists find out what they do when they get to the cold, dark depths

The seagrass Posidonia australis.

World’s Largest Plant Is a Seagrass That Clones Itself

The 4,500-year-old plant lives off the coast of Australia

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