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Puffins and Pufflings, and how the New England Seamounts Could Save Them

Featured Image: An Atlantic puffin (Fratercula arctica) displays its colorful beak and feet. Courtesy of Ray Hennessy. By Samuel Georgian, Marine Biogeographer at Marine Conservation Institute The Atlantic puffin (Fratercula arctica) is a striking bird, at times referred to as the clown of the sea due to its unusual facial appearance. These seabird’s boldly-colored beaks serve…

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A Glimmer of Hope for Ailing Seas; Scientists publish a timeline for turning the tide on marine ecosystem degradation

By Sebastian Nicholls, Blue Parks Ambassador.   “What we do in the next ten years will profoundly impact the next few thousand.” – Sir David Attenborough   Since 1956, scientists have provided evidence of mounting anthropogenic climate change.[1] The mounting evidence tells a clear and scientifically certain story: human actions are degrading the planet’s living…

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The California Seamount Series!

Featured Picture: A Dumbo octopus (Grimpoteuthis sp.) swimming in the Gulf of Mexico. Photo credit: NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research.   Today, we release the first in a series of short videos and multi-media stories about a unique place in U.S. oceans — huge underwater mountains, called seamounts. Rising from the deep, dark seafloor…

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Calling on Marine Scientists to Support Protecting at least 30% of the Ocean by 2030 (30×30)

By Lance Morgan, President at Marine Conservation Institute   There is growing scientific evidence and support for protecting at least 30% of the planet. The 2019 report from the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) highlights the dire future of biodiversity on our planet if we do not act decisively now.  Seagrass beds,…

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Perverse Incentives

By Sebastian Nicholls, Blue Parks Ambassador.   This year, the global community faces a deadline to correct a perverse dynamic in an industry that reaches into the world’s most remote and untouched frontiers—the far reaches of the ocean. Fishing subsidies that benefit the largest ships, fleets and companies are leaving the livelihoods and food security…

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Mystery in The Deep: How Models Can Help Us Understand the Full Impact of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill

Featured Picture: A host of squat lobsters and brittle stars adorn a large pair of Paramuricea corals at a depth of 3,200 feet in the Gulf of Mexico. Photo courtesy of Ocean Exploration Trust and ECOGIG. By Samuel Georgian, Marine Biogeographer at Marine Conservation Institute   Given the depth of the spill, it should not be surprising…

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Who Needs the Deep-Sea, Anyway?

Featured Picture: Life is both weird and beautiful in the deep ocean. Here, a Schaefer’s Anglerfish (Sladenia shaefersi) uses modified fins to walk along the seafloor in search of prey. Photo courtesy of NOAA. By Samuel Georgian, Marine Biogeographer at Marine Conservation Institute   The deep sea is so remote that many people are completely unaware of…

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Malpelo: A Blue Park Exploding with Life

Featured Picture: Malpelo Fauna and Flora Sanctuary. Photo courtesy of Ramón Pulido. By Sebastian Nicholls, Blue Parks Ambassador.   Surrounded by mangroves that grow on low-lying islands and the mainland coast, the Port of Buenaventura bustles with activity—it’s a gateway to that largest of oceans, the Pacific, and the diverse wildlife that calls the Colombian Pacific…

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Let Them Eat Fish?

Featured Picture: A rockfish searches for a place to hide off the coast of Southern California. Photo courtesy of NOAA. By Samuel Georgian, Marine Biogeographer at Marine Conservation Institute   The next time you order fish at a restaurant, pull out your phone for a second and research where it might have come from (Monterey Bay Aquarium’s…

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