WARNING! Some coral reef systems could face irreversible damage if the world is warmed up by more than 1.5°C. This is what a recent UN Report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) said. In 2018, they reported that a 2ºC or more increase would mean...
All animals have some form of warning system that helps them regulate their speed and judge their distance from objects. This prevents collisions. Flying and swimming creatures have an extra challenge though; they have to deal with winds and currents that affect...
Most people have hobbies: knitting, gardening, woodwork, crochet, leatherwork, metalwork, 3D printing…there are endless options. Nobody beats an aquarium nerd though! Look at these items you can buy to show others how much you love your aquarium. First, you have the...
Coral bleaching is the process when stressed corals get rid of the symbiotic algae living in their tissues and turn white. Stressors such as changes in temperature, light or nutrients can cause this color change. So why use black and white photos to determine coral...
In the past 30 years, marine heatwaves are estimated to have increased by more than 50%. Ocean temperatures are predicted to increase by 1 - 4° C by 2100. These changes cause the loss of marine habitats and species and change the structure of ecosystems. Luckily, the...
Marine Science Day, 4 June 2022 This FREE family event at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) in Gloucester Point, VA, has something for everyone. Events and activities are in person and online so that nobody is left out! There will be science talks, lab...
Snapshot of a reef survey from YouTube: https://youtu.be/_saAgo2OmXg?t=2 Artificial intelligence (AI) is the ability of a computer or a robot to do tasks that are usually done by humans. A few decades ago, it may have seemed like a sci-fi movie, but these days, we...
Coral reef photo by Petr Kratochvil Biodiversity is the green word of the decade. It’s not something new, it’s just something that someone gave a catchy name to. Bio- for biological (fauna and flora) and “diversity” is the variety… of plant and animal life. Simple,...
Snapshot from YouTube: https://youtu.be/ulE6cxjB9hI Only 20% of the entire seabed has been mapped, which means there is a lot of room for discovery. A UNESCO research mission has just made an amazing discovery. A large, pristine coral reef was discovered in the depths...
Before being put on display, new animals arriving at public aquariums have to go through a quarantine process. This allows the curatorial staff to observe and treat the newcomers for any potential risks to the resident animals. But last year at Shedd Aquarium, their...