Coral Reef Fact: Every Whale Shark (Rhincodon typus) has a unique, pattern of light pigmented spots along the forward flanks which have proved to be effective in differentiating individual sharks, as have scars and injuries to the first dorsal fin. You can take part in the International Whale Shark Photo-Identification program. Learn more at http://www.whaleshark.org/index.jsp?langCode=en
Coral Reef Fact Mantis shrimp or stomatopods are marine crustaceans. Mantids have the strongest strike of any animal, relative to their size and the fastest of any animal. Their strike is so fast that they vaporize the water at the point of impact, causing a small implosion that stuns their prey. Watch (and hear!) a […]
The Guardian, Wednesday 5 January 2011 Researchers have tracked ‘nature’s ancient mariners’ as they spend several months traveling from Africa to South America On 2 February 2009, at 4am, a turtle known as Tika set off from the coast of Gabon, west Africa. She spent almost six months swimming across the Atlantic, a 5,000-mile (8,000km) […]
By Morgan Erickson-Davis, mongabay.com January 05, 2011 A new study investigating the ability of coral to record sea temperatures indicates that the Northwestern Atlantic has experienced unprecedented warming during the past 150 years Read the full article
Commission report warns disaster ‘might well recur’ without significant reform A request by BP to set an “unusually deep cement plug” on the Gulf oil well that subsequently exploded killing 11 people was approved by the then-Minerals Management Service in just 90 minutes, according to a presidential commission report on the disaster. Read the full […]
Reef Fact: Sawfishes are actually a type of ray. They belong to a group of fishes called elasmobranchs that includes sharks, rays, and skates. Two species of sawfish are found in FL waters; largetooth sawfish (Pristis perotteti) and the smalltooth sawfish (Pristis pectinata) both species are officially endangered in the US. Learn more http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/fish/sharks/sawfish Click […]
Reef Fact: The queen triggerfish (Balistes vetula) uses special tricks to get to its favorite food – the sea urchin – to avoid the prickly spines. The triggerfish will grasp a spine in its mouth, lift the urchin up off of the seafloor, and drop it so the vulnerable underside will be exposed. They, also, […]
Sunday Jan. 8th, doors open 1pm. 2pm The Great Squeeze, An award winning film on sustainability (http://www.thegreatsqueeze.com/ ) Our dependence on cheap and abundant fossil fuels has been feeding the engine of our economic system for the past 200 years. Although it has lifted modern civilizations to new heights, prosperity has come at a tremendous […]
Reef Fact: The Flying Gunard (Dactylopterus volitans) has prominent front sections of their “wing” that are shaped much like the foot of an amphibian, and can be found “walking” along the sea floor in search of food. Flying Gunard (video)
Thanks to the generous contributions of all our friends and supporters we hit our 50k goal for the 2010 Fall Fundraiser!!! Thank you all so much. Please take the time to invite your friends to join us and be part of our network on Facebook, Twitter and our online community. Thanks again!