DOLPHIN WATCH in WA gathers community observations of one of the Swan Canning Riverpark’s most iconic species: the Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops aduncus). Read about this fantastic citizen science project at Science Network WA.
An Amberjack (Seriolal dumerili) was recently caught by Ron Walker in Ansons Bay, Tasmania. As far as we can tell this is the southernmost sighting of this species in Australia! Check out the sighting here.
The sensitivity of marine communities to ocean warming rather than rising ocean temperatures will have strong short-term impacts on biodiversity changes associated with global warming, according to new research. Read the full story at Science Daily.
Ocean acidification may well be helping invasive species of algae, jellyfish, crabs and shellfish to move to new areas of the planet with damaging consequences, according to the findings of a new report. Read the full story in Science Daily.
Since the discovery of the Speartooth shark in 1982 there has never been a live adult specimen found anywhere - until now. Actually make that two. Researchers have captured a 2.2m female and a 2.3m male in the waters near Cape York, QLD and fitted them with satellite tags. The tags will last for about 2 months and record where the sharks travel, plus collecting data on depth and temperature …
A new study by University of Tasmania researchers and international collaborators has found that a key element of future changes in the distribution of marine biodiversity resulting from ocean warming is not as closely related to local warming rates as previously assumed. Read more in the University of Tasmania News.
Ocean acidification – the rise in ocean acidity due to the increased absorption of carbon dioxide (CO?) – is often thought of as consequence of climate change. However, it is actually a separate, albeit very closely-related problem. Read the full story in The Conversation.
Hundreds of divers and snorkelers will hit the water in their metaphorical lab coats this summer as part of the biggest citizen science event on Victoria’s marine calendar, the Great Victorian Fish Count. Read more about this event that runs from November 21 to Dec 6 in the Mornington Peninsula News (Redmap gets a mention too!).
FOR the first time since the early 1970s, a highly venomous sea snake has turned up on a southern California beach—the latest in a string of unusual wildlife sightings, including hammerhead sharks and red-footed boobies, writes The Economist. This snake, which typically lives in tropical waters, has never before turned up so far north (in this hemisphere at least). While it is not clear what has brought it to Ventura County, experts …
Defined as engagement of non-professionals in scientific investigation, citizen science involves volunteers asking questions, collecting data, or interpreting results. While people such as Thoreau, with his field observations at Walden Pond, have been doing citizen science for centuries, as a formal discipline this field is less than 45-years-old. Read the full story in the Huffington Post.
