SUNFISH HAS TRUNCATED TAIL - TOPS OUT AT 5000 POUNDS - BUT VULNERABLE TO EATING PLASTIC BAGS BECAUSE THEY MAY SEEM TO BE JELLIES

MONTEREY BAY AQUARIUM on THE SUNFISH

Excerpt: Because molas spend so much time drifting near the ocean surface, they are vulnerable to fishing boats that use drift gillnets. Gillnets usually don't kill molas immediately, but they cut into their skin, scrape off their protective mucus and flood their gills with air.

Another hazard to the mola are discarded plastic bags. When these wind up in the ocean, they float at the surface and look a lot like a jelly — a mola's favorite meal. If the mola doesn't choke as it sucks the bag in, the plastic can clog the fish's stomach, slowly starving the animal. Helping the mola is one more reason to carry your own shopping bags with you to the store — and make sure any plastic bags you use are properly disposed of.

The mola is listed as “vulnerable” by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN).

ROBERT E. FULLER COMBINES ACTIVISM WITH ART : HUMPBACK WHALES IN ALASKAN WATERS

A few months ago I started watching Robert. E. Fullers YouTube channel.  What an amazing person! This short video on humpback whales is just one of his very many.  If you follow his channel you'll learn how to help birds survive by building safe nesting spots for them, and so much more.  Robert is also fine artist who sells his work.

BRINE POOLS IN THE RED SEA : HYPER SALINITY and MICROBES : ANTI CANCER PROPERTIES

NATURE COM : BRINE POOLS IN THE RED SEA 

Excerpt: Despite their rarity and diminutive size, brine pools present intense oases of macrofaunal and microbial biodiversity in a deep-sea benthic environment that otherwise lacks in number and variety of species. Deep-sea brine pools are of intense scientific interest since their pervasive anoxia, low pH, and hypersalinity represent one of the most extreme habitable environments on Earth, perhaps offering clues to first life on our planet, and guiding the search for life beyond it. The significance of Red Sea brine pools has been further amplified with the discovery that the extremophile microbes that inhabit them can yield bioactive molecules with therapeutic potential, including antibacterial and anticancer properties

HAPPY SPERM WHALE

 

SCHMIDT OCEAN INSTITUTE : WOULD YOU LIKE TO APPLY TO TRAVEL ON A RESEARCH VESSEL?

SCHMIDT OCEAN ORG 

SCHMIDT OCEAN ORG : THRIVING ECOSYSTEM ON DETACHED ICEBERG

The ICEBERG was as big as CHICAGO... and on the sea floor...

Excerpt: An international team on board Schmidt Ocean Institute’s R/V Falkor (too) working in the Bellingshausen Sea rapidly pivoted their research plans to study an area that was, until last month, covered by ice. On January 13, 2025, an iceberg the size of Chicago, named A-84, broke away from the George VI Ice Shelf, one of the massive floating glaciers attached to the Antarctic Peninsula ice sheet. The team reached the newly exposed seafloor on January 25 and became the first to investigate an area that had never before been accessible to humans.

SEE THE PICTURES!

A large sponge, a cluster of anemones, and other life is seen nearly 230 meters deep at an area of the seabed that was very recently covered by the George VI Ice Shelf, a floating glacier in Antarctica. Sponges can grow very slowly, sometimes less than two centimeters a year. Therefore, the size of this specimen suggests this community has been active for decades, perhaps even hundreds of years.

FIRST TIME COLOSSAL SQUID SEEN BUT IT'S A TEENAGER!

DAILY MAIL SCIENCE COLOSSAL SQUID IN SOUTH ATLANTIC OCEAN 

EXCERPT: 

The stunning 4K video film, captured in the deep sea by California's Schmidt Ocean Institute, shows the rare creature's transparent body and eight pink tentacles.

Colossal squid can grow up to 23 feet (7 metres) and weigh as much as 500kg, making them the heaviest invertebrate on the planet.

But this specimen, which looks like a delicate glass sculpture, is just a 'teenager' – measuring 11 inches (30cm).

Dying colossal squid adults have previously been filmed by fishermen, but the species has never been seen alive at depth before.

Expedition chief scientist, Dr Michelle Taylor at the University of Essex, called the footage 'stunning' and 'beautiful'.

Siren here!  Check out the video on the website I linked to....  I wonder if the scientists will be able to find this particular creature again when it is more grown!

THE LIFE AND LOVE OF THE SEA by LEWIS BLACKWELL : FANTASTIC PHOTOGRAPHY

 

Fantastic photography and important text, Lewis Blackwell is the photographer.

Loved this book!

RED LOBSTER

 

WHEN THE OCEAN SENDS A CRY FOR HELP : SAN PEDRO'S MARINE MAMMAL CARE CENTER THE FOCUS OF THIS PERSONAL EXPERIENCE STORY

Random Length News : When the Ocean Sends a Cry for Help

Excerpt: An unusually early and toxic algae bloom has caused a massive domoic acid poisoning event affecting pinnipeds, dolphins and seabirds all along the Southern California coast. While there have been other serious outbreaks in the 24 years since DA was first identified on the West Coast — the summer of 2023 was also harrowing — the early arrival and the morbid intensity of this event are straining local resources. Ash and runoff from the fires may be exacerbating the natural phenomenon, leading to heartbreaking scenes of dolphins stranding on public beaches, gasping for breath.

HILTON HEAD BEACHED SPERM WHALE : WHALE HELP

ISLAND PACKET :HILTON HEAD BEACHED SPERM WHALE

Excerpt: Like the beached whale on Hilton Head Island, live whales usually only beached themselves if they’re sick, injured, or in otherwise poor health. One common cause of sickness is when the whale ingests marine debris, especially plastic. Whales can get entangled in fishing gear or get struck by boats. Sperm whales are an endangered species, and about four of them strand themselves on beaches across the Atlantic coast per year. George said there has been some increase in the number of whales washing up over the years, but it’s not known whether that’s due to an increase in sperm whale populations or an increase to the threats they face. Lentz said the average person can help endangered whales by making conscientious choices about the food they eat and the products the buy, and picking up their garbage on the beach.

If you see a stranded or injured marine animal, do not push it back into the ocean, as biologists say it will likely wash up again somewhere else. Instead, call (877) WHALE-HELP to report the animal to the National Marine Fisheries Service.

DRONES RECORD HUNDREDS OF WHALES : CHANGES IN SIZE OF FEMALES AND CALVES : DROP IN BIRTHRATE : HEATWAVES EFFECT

SEATTLE TIMES : DRONES RECORD HUNDREDS OF WHALES by Brendan Rascius  of McClatchy News 

EXCERPT: ... scientists documented dramatic changes in the size of the mothers and calves and in humpback birthrates.
Changes in size

Between 2018 and 2022, “a total of 2,410 measurements were taken from 1,659 individuals, with 405 repeat measurements from 137 lactating females used to track changes in maternal body volume over migration,” Martin van Aswegen, one of the study authors, said in a news release from the University of Hawaii at Manoa.

In six months, they decreased in body volume by 17% on average. Specifically, the mothers off Hawaii — where the whales breed — lost about 214 pounds of blubber each day.

Comparatively, nonpregnant and pregnant females off Alaska — where the whales feed — gained size much faster than new mothers, putting on weight between two and six times the rate of lactating females.

Calves, in contrast, rapidly put on weight. They increased their body volume by about 395%, and their length increased by nearly 60%.

***

KEEP READING! 

OCEAN CURRANTS STALLING? CHANGING? WEATHER MOVING TOWARDS AN ICE AGE?

DAILY MAIL SCIENCE : CLIMATE CHANGE by Jonathan Chadwick - Assistant Science and Technology Editor.

 
Excerpt: A new study by experts at University of Gothenburg and the German Alfred Wegener Institute reveals that rapidly melting freshwater ice in the Arctic could be one cause. This melted ice could weaken or even cause a collapse of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) – Earth's vast system of ocean currents.

Described as 'the conveyor belt of the ocean', AMOC transports warm water near the ocean's surface northwards from the tropics up to the northern hemisphere, keeping Europe, the UK and the US east coast temperate.

If and when AMOC does collapse, much of the northern hemisphere, including Europe and North America, could experience harsh, freezing cold winters.

But study author Dr Céline Heuzé, senior lecturer in climatology at the University of Gothenburg, said it's 'scary' that the exact effects of weaker global ocean circulation are as yet unknown.

SWIRL

 

THE SECRET OF THE SEA : A POEM BY HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW

SIMPLE POETRY : HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW  (And lots of other sea inspired poetry!)

OCEAN ACIDIFICATION TICKING TIME BOMB : SEA LIFE CRISIS

THE GUARDIAN : SEA ACIDITY CRISIS TICKING TIMEBOMB 

Excerpt: It found that by 2020 the average ocean condition worldwide was already very close to – and in some regions beyond – the planetary boundary for ocean acidification. This is defined as when the concentration of calcium carbonate in seawater is more than 20% below preindustrial levels.

The deeper in the ocean they looked, the worse the findings were, the scientists said. At 200 metres below the surface, 60% of global waters had breached the “safe” limit for acidification.

“Most ocean life doesn’t just live at the surface,” said PML’s Prof Helen Findlay. “The waters below are home to many more different types of plants and animals. Since these deeper waters are changing so much, the impacts of ocean acidification could be far worse than we thought.”

Siren here: Animals and plants cannot live in acidic waters.

2025 UNITED NATIONS OCEAN CONFERENCE TAKING PLACE NOW

WMO INTERNATIONAL : UNITED NATIONS OCEAN CONFERENCE 2025 NOW 

Excerpts: The UN Ocean Conference from 9 to 13 June, is co-hosted by the governments of France and Costa Rica. It is expected to adopt a political declaration and registry of voluntary commitments – called the Nice Ocean Action Plan to conserve and sustainably use the ocean” in support of Sustainable Development Goal 14 on life above and below the water.

French President Emmanuel Macron and Costa Rican President Rodrigo Chaves Robles of Costa Rica joined UN secretary-General Antonio Guterres in calling for more science-based action to protect ocean health which is so vital to planetary health.

The ocean absorbs more than 90 percent of excess heat from human activities. Ocean warming and glacier melt is accelerating sea-level rise. Record ocean temperatures and acidification are inflicting severe and long-lasting damage.

This is having a tsunami-like impact on sustainable development of the ocean and resulting in billions of dollars of damage to the Blue Economy.

HOW RICH NATIONS DUMP TOXIC OLD SHIPS IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

BUSINESS INSIDERS : HOW RICH NATIONS DUMP OLD CRUISE SHIPS and OIL TANKERS

There's a video at this website to watch.....

This tweaks my concerns about ocean pollution...  Siren

WHAT'S THE CAL STATE LONG BEACH AQUATIC TOX LAB?

Calcium Signaling Disruption.... 

These students focus on aquatic pollution....

CAL STATE LONG BEACH HOLLAND TOXLAB

SMILE

 

CAL STATE LONG BEACH SHARK LAB : WHITE SHARKS LURK IN THE MUCK

A species older than the dinosaurs.

CSU LONG BEACH SHARK LAB

Sharks are not interested in humans as food...

SAVE OUR SEAS FOUNDATION FOCUSING ON SHARKS AND RAYS : SIGN UP FOR OCEAN WEEK IN REVIEW

SAVE OUR SEAS FOUNDATION 

Sharks, rays and chimaeras are overfished and heading for extinction. More than 300 scientists have published 20 years of data in a landmark global report that details the biology, fisheries, trade, conservation efforts and policy reforms for these marine animals across 158 countries and jurisdictions. It’s a global wake-up call: we need to address overfishing and bycatch – and urgently. But there is also hope. We have the information to hand, and the dedication of so many has brought us to a historic moment when we can steer towards sustainability.

YOU Can link to three blogs at this website :   OCEAN WEEK IN REVIEW, THE VOICE OF COCOS, and It's Your Ocean...

OCEAN WEEK IN REVIEW

Excerpt:

Sea Save Foundation’s publication, “The Ocean Week in Review,” is a crucial weekly digest that encapsulates vital oceanic news for its ever-growing readership. Having published over 520 editions with 15,000 story summaries, each edition offers succinct, four-sentence narratives accompanied by illustrative photographs and further reading hyperlinks, making it easily consumable during daily commutes. Released every Friday on its dedicated blog and across multiple social media platforms, the content is meticulously researched and vetted, drawing from reliable news sources and translating often complex scientific jargon into captivating, layman-friendly language. This initiative not only keeps its audience informed about the latest in oceanic breakthroughs, challenges, and advocacy but also empowers them with the knowledge to support and champion the cause of preserving our oceans.

DIVER SWIMS IN SEA FULL OF PLASTIC POLLUTION

Diver Rich Horner  Excerpt: Diver Rich Horner has captured video of himself swimming through water densely strewn with plastic waste and yellowing food wrappers, with the occasional tropical fish darting around.

The footage was shot at a dive site called Manta Point, a cleaning station for the large rays on the island of Nusa Penida, about 20km from the popular Indonesian holiday island of Bali. 'Plastic, plastic, plastic': British diver films sea of rubbish off Bali

NASA REVEALS GLOBAL SEA LEVELS ROSE BY UNEXEPECTED HIGHER LEVELS : HUNDREDS OF CITIES MAY BE OVERWHELMED

DAILY MAIL : NASA ...GLOBAL SEA LEVEL RISE UNEXPECTEDLY HIGH AMOUNT 

The rise we saw in 2024 was higher than we expected,' said Josh Willis, a sea level researcher at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California.

'Every year is a little bit different, but what's clear is that the ocean continues to rise, and the rate of rise is getting faster and faster.'

Since 1993, global sea levels have risen by a staggering 3.97-inches (10.1cm).

And if they continue to climb at this rate, hundreds of densely populated cities around the world could be plunged underwater. Excerpt: According to NASA, this 'unexpected' increase was due to an unusual amount of ocean warming, combined with meltwater from land-based ice such as glaciers.

Siren here! Check out those charts!

HEALTH TO THE OCEAN MEANS ... QUOTATION FROM SYLVIA EARLE

"HEALTH TO THE OCEANS MEANS HEALTH FOR US" 

- Sylvia Earle

Sylvia is a Marine Biologist who was named Time magazine's first Hero for the Planet in 1998

WE KNOW MORE ABOUT THE SURFACE OF THE MOON ... QUOTATION FROM PAUL SNELGROVE

"WE KNOW MORE ABOUT THE SURFACE OF THE MOON AND ABOUT MARS THAN WE DO ABOUT THE DEEP SEA FLOOR." - Paul Snelgrove

He worked on the Census of Marine Life which ran from 2000 to 2010. 2700 scientists participated in trying to count all the marine species known.  They made 540 expeditions and discovered 6000 new species.

Here's a link to check out! OCEAN FRONTIER INSTITUTE - PAUL SNELGROVE

LOVELY GIRL WITH A SHELL

 

JAPANESE SARDINES IN CALIFORNIA? NOAA FISHERIES REPORTS : LINK TO PODCAST

FISHERIES NOAA : PODCAST JAPANESE SARDINES IN CALIFORNIA

Excerpt: In 2022, Dr. Gary Longo detected Japanese sardines swimming in the eastern Pacific, off the coast of California. This was the first time they’d ever been seen here—their normal range is in the western Pacific from Korea to Russia, thousands and thousands of miles away. It was a shocking discovery. Sardines are incredibly important to the California current ecosystem and are a key forage fish across the globe.

On this episode of Dive In with NOAA Fisheries, we scratch at this mystery of Japanese sardine appearing in U.S. waters. How did they get here? What does it mean for the native Pacific sardine? Are they staying? (Spoiler alert: so far, yes.)

We hear from Dr. Longo, a research scientist at NOAA’s Southwest Fisheries Science Center and one of the authors of a new study documenting this discovery. The authors suggest marine heatwaves that warmed the North Pacific over the last decade might have opened a corridor of favorable habitat, which the Japanese sardines followed across the ocean.

NARWHALE

 

PREHISTORIC OCEAN FLOOR - 250 MILLION YEARS OLD - BELOW TODAY'S OCEAN FLOOR

 SCITECH DAILY : DISCOVERY OF ANCIENT SEA FLOOR 

Excerpt: Scientists from the University of Maryland have identified remnants of a prehistoric seafloor that plunged into the Earth’s depths during the age of dinosaurs, calling into question prevailing views on the Earth’s interior structure. Found at the East Pacific Rise, a tectonic boundary on the floor of the southeastern Pacific Ocean, this previously unexplored segment of seafloor reveals new aspects of our planet’s inner processes and its transformative history over millions of years. The team’s findings were published on September 27, 2024, in the journal Science Advances.

WRECKAGE OF THE WESTERN RESERVE FOUND IN LAKE SUPERIOR BY MARINE SONIC TECHNOLOGY : UNDISCOVERED FOR 132 YEARS

There was one survivor...

Excerpt:
The Great Lakes can be more dangerous than the oceans

The Great Lakes have claimed thousands of ships since the 1700s. Perhaps the most famous is the Edmund Fitzgerald, an ore carrier that got caught in a storm in November 1975 and went down off Whitefish Point within 100 miles of the Western Reserve. All hands were killed. The incident was immortalized in the Gordon Lightfoot song, “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.”

Assistant Wisconsin State Climatologist Ed Hopkins said that storm season on the lakes begins in November, when warm water meets cold air and winds blow unimpeded across open water, generating waves as high as 30 feet. The lakes at that time can be more dangerous than the oceans because they’re smaller, making it harder for ships to out-maneuver the storms, he said.

NBC NEWS : EXPLORERS FIND WRECKAGE OF SHIP "WESTERN RESERVE"

Excerpt: The brothers towed a side-scanning sonar array behind their ship. Side sonar scans starboard and port, providing a more expansive picture of the bottom than sonar mounted beneath a ship. About 60 miles northwest of Whitefish Point on the Upper Peninsula, they picked up a line with a shadow behind it in 600 feet of water. They dialed up the resolution and spotted a large ship broken in two with the bow resting on the stern.

LAKE SUPERIOR IS THE RESTING PLACE OF OVER 350 SHIPS

MINNESOTA HISTORICAL SOCIETY - LAKE SUPERIOR SHIP WRECKS 

Excerpt:  Of the estimated 10,000 shipwrecks in the Great Lakes region, only about 350 of them are located in Lake Superior. Of those, about 50 wrecks are presumed to be within Minnesota waters. Most of Minnesota's shipwreck history can be found in Lake Superior.

Many wrecks have been located, but at least half lay undiscovered.

In an effort to aid in the safe navigation of the often-treacherous waters, the U.S. Lighthouse Service erected lighthouses in key locations throughout the Great Lakes region. Split Rock Lighthouse was built in response to the great winter gale of November 1905 that claimed 36 lives and disabled or destroyed 29 ships.

Siren here!  The SS Edmund Fitzgerald, which sank in 1975 - recent history - may be the most famous.  Read this site and learn about some of the ships that sank during the Industrial Revolution.  Many sunken ships have never been located!

NO AQUARIUM, NO TANK ... A QUOTE FROM JACQUES-YVES COUSTEAU

"NO AQUARIUM, NO TANK IN A MARINE LAND, HOWEVER SPACIOUS IT MAY BE, CAN BEGIN TO DUPLICATE THE CONDITIONS OF THE SEA."

Jacques-Yves Cousteau (1910-1997)

He made 120 documentaries and published 50 books

ENTWINNED

 

S.S UNITED STATES WILL BE SUNK TO BECOME ARTIFICIAL REEF : MORE THAN 4,300 ARTIFICIAL REEFS OFF THE COAST OF FLORIDA

SCIENCE FRIDAY : S.S. UNITED STATES TO BE ARTIFICIAL REEF 

Excerpt:  This week, after a notable career, the SS United States, a 1950s ocean liner, took her sunset cruise. Like many retirees, the ship is heading south—from Philadelphia to Florida—where she’ll be reinventing herself. In this next chapter, the SS United States will have new passengers: fish and other marine creatures. The ship will be sunk to the bottom of the sea and turned into an artificial reef, joining more than 4300 artificial reefs off the coast of Florida.

NBCPHILADELPHIA : S.S.UNITED STATES ARRIVES IN ALABAMA (DETAILED REPORT ON THE PLAN)

Excerpt:  “In the spirit of her record-breaking history, America’s Flagship concluded her journey from Philadelphia to Mobile faster than anticipated. As she moved through the waves for the first time in 28 years, countless onlookers and admirers along the country’s eastern seaboard were inspired by her majesty and beauty," said SS United States Conservancy president Susan Gibbs in a statement on the ship's 401st voyage.

\

OARFISH : LEGENDARY FISH THAT ANNOUNCES TSUNAMIS

You can find past posts about OARFISH by clicking on the label below.  This is a documentary by YouTube Station Best Documentary about this fish...  Because I dislike unasked for advertising, I'm linking to this video rather than embedding it. It's an interesting and well made video.  Siren

BEST DOCUMENTARY : OARFISH LEGENDARY ANNOUNCES TSUNAMIS

WATCHING A SMALL AQUARIUM TANK FISH DIE : AN UNNATURAL AND IMPRISONED LIFE ALONE

Over the years I've become increasingly against home aquariums for fish that grow bigger.  I recently saw a fish that had lived alone in an aquarium die.  It was horrible.  This fish had lived alone for the amusement of the few people who actually even bothered to notice it.  It swum around a background, plastic made-for-aquarium sea weeds and fake castles and such, and awaited feeding.  I would walk by and go eye to eye with it and sometimes move my fingers as if they were fins and the fish would follow.

I heard that this fish had been in the tank for ELEVEN YEARS and was ALONE because he "ATE ALL THE OTHER FISH IN THE TANK." Well in the sea, fish eat fish, but I wondered if perhaps this was because he had not been fed properly.... And was also in a tank TOO SMALL FOR HIM.

HIM ... it could have been a HER.

The fish started laying low to the bottom of the tank, barely upright.

It's eyes were covered in some sort of white film. 

I immediately informed the owner I thought the fish was dying and to contact their aquarium service.

A week later the fish was clearly having trouble fish-breathing, it's gills working hard.

I had not seen air being pumped into the tank.

The walls of the tank had a green-black film on them.

As a result I'm clearly anti-aquarium tank.

Perhaps the small fish that never get too big can have a better tank life than this?

Other fish in the tank.

Real sea weed.

Proper cleaning and feeding and light cycles....

Siren

LEAVE A COMMENT! ANY IDEAS?

Do you have an idea you'd like to share?  Is there a topic I need to cover here at SIRENS LINK TO SEA?

I do check comments!

If you would like to comment but do not want your comment published, just tell me DO NOT PUBLISH.

THANKS!

Siren

FUNNY

 

CRABS AND LOBSTERS FEEL PAIN UPON BEING BOILED ALIVE : SCIENTISTS CALL FOR A BAN

I have this idea that creatures of the sea have only recently been understood to be animals.  What I almost never eat is sea food.  Siren

EARTH COM : SCIENTISTS CALL FOR IMMEDIATE BAN ON BOILING THEM ALIVE

Excerpt: Dr. Lynne Sneddon, a zoophysiologist at the University of Gothenburg, believes it’s time we reconsider how we treat these animals.

“We need to find less painful ways to kill shellfish if we are to continue eating them. Because now we have scientific evidence that they both experience and react to pain,” she says.

Excerpt:  Until now, the idea that crustaceans feel pain was mostly based on observational studies.

Researchers noticed that when crabs and lobsters were exposed to potentially harmful stimuli — like electric shocks or acids — they would touch the affected area or try to avoid the danger in subsequent encounters.

This behavior led many to believe they might be experiencing pain.

But the team at the University of Gothenburg took it a step further. PhD student Eleftherios Kasiouras led a study where they measured the activity in a shore crab’s brain using EEG-style recordings.

SHARK ATTACK HOT SPOTS? THE INTERNATIONAL SHARK ATTACK FILE!

 FLORIDA MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY - SHARK ATTACK FILE

Siren here! This is a new one for me!  Maps and Data!  

This is the world's ONLY scientifically documented and comprehensive database of all known shark attacks.  Beginning in 1958, but going back too, there are now close to 7000 investigations...

CHECK OUT THE INTERACTIVE MAPS...

What are the chances?

INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR THE CONSERVATION OF NATURE AND NATURAL RESOURCES MEETING 2025 DUBAI

IUCN ORG

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is a membership Union uniquely composed of both government and civil society organisations. By harnessing the experience, resources and reach of its more than 1,400 Member organisations and the input of some 17,000 experts, IUCN is the global authority on the status of the natural world and the measures needed to safeguard it.

Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
|
9-15 October, 2025
Description


The IUCN World Conservation Congress is a once-every-four-years, diverse gathering of nature conservation experts, leaders and decision-makers from around the world. It will help shape global priorities for nature conservation and climate change for the coming decade and beyond.

WHEN ONE HAS BEEN LONG AT SEA .... QUOTED FROM JOHN STEINBECK

"WHEN ONE HAS LONG BEEN AT SEA, THE SMELL OF LAND REACHES FAR OUT TO GREET ONE.  AND THE SAME IS TRUE WHEN ONE HAS BEEN LONG INLAND."

from Travels With Charley: In Search Of America, a book about his 1960 road trip with his dog.

ICEBERG THE SIZE OF CHICAGO LET GO FROM ANTARTICA

NASA EARTH OBSERVATORY - ICEBERG SPEEDS AWAY

Excerpt: Named A-84 by the U.S. National Ice Center, the berg measures about 30 kilometers (19 miles) long and 17 kilometers (11 miles) wide. It has an area approaching the size of Chicago, Illinois.

Iceberg calving is a normal occurrence  for ice shelves. However, factors such as warming air and water along with decreasing protective sea ice can accelerate calving and lead to collapse, as has happened to several ice shelves along the Antarctic Peninsula.

Observations made by explorers beginning in the early 1940s, and later by remote sensing, show that the George VI has been losing shelf ice. For now, the retreat has been gradual, aided by the stability provided by its unique location, sandwiched between the Antarctic Peninsula and Alexander Island. *** Siren here! As we know, iceberg melt can raise the sea level. Other, larger bergs have broken off and gone to sea...

REDUCE REUSE RECYCLE

 

NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION REPORTS ON WARMEST FEBRUARY ON RECORD ADMIST FEDERAL FUNDING CUTS EFFECTING HUNDREDS OF EMPLOYEES

NCEI NOAA : GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE REPORT  

Siren here!  Look at those maps.  Is your city going to be under water within your lifetime?

If you took your umbrella today, it may just be because of a scientific report from NOAA.

TIME MAGAZINE : THE TRUE COST OF NOAA CUTS - CLIMATE CHANGE

Excerpt: If you’ve ever avoided a hurricane, ducked a tornado, evacuated ahead of a wildfire, or merely relied on a weather forecast to take an umbrella to work, you likely have the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to thank. As America’s—and indeed the world’s—leading weather and climate watchdog and the parent organization of the National Weather Service (NWS), NOAA runs a standing army of personnel and hardware on and off the planet to keep an eye on the Earth’s often stormy temperament. The agency owns or operates 13 weather satellites; manages more than 200 deep-water buoys: and gathers weather and climate information from a storm of data provided by no fewer than 10,600 state, local, and federal governments, as well as universities and private companies nationwide.

Excerpt: But NOAA is now threatened. As the Associated Press and others have reported, the agency’s already stretched workforce of 13,000 people is facing a deep cut of more than 1,000 of those employees mandated by the Trump Administration—a move that follows an earlier purge of about 1,300 in late February. The personnel reductions not only imperil NOAA’s ability to carry out its core chore of tracking and warning about upcoming severe weather events, they also hamper its ability to conduct basic research into climate change—carried out to help humanity better prepare for the sweeping environmental upheaval already evident in a steadily warming world.

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION CUTS THREATEN SCIENCE RESEARCH : UCLA and USC SCIENCE PROTESTS : STAND UP FOR SCIENCE MOVEMENT

STAND UP FOR SCIENCE 2025

WHY DO YOU STAND UP FOR SCIENCE ? :  ESSAYS WANTED

Graduate Admissions cut...  PhD Grad's delayed... 

ANNENEBERG MEDIA : SCIENTISTS UCLA USC PROTEST

Excerpt:  

Margarid Turnamian, a clinical psychology graduate student at USC and organizer of the event, emphasized that funding cuts could be far-reaching because science is critical to everyday life. 

“Science affects every single person’s life on a daily basis,” she said. “Everything that we use: from our cell phones to the roads that we drive on, to the foods that we eat, to the way that we communicate, is based in science.” 

With the threat of federal funding cuts, Turnamian said she fears many people underestimate just how much they rely on scientific advancements. She pointed out that the economic argument against science funding — that it is not worth investing in — is misleading. 

“At the rally on Friday, one of the speakers, Duke Kahn, who’s a professor of psychology at USC, brought up a great statistic that every $1 that goes to NIH funding is returned into the economy at like $2.50,” she said.

SURFERS AGAINST SEWAGE : ONE IN THREE FISH FOR HUMAN FOOD HAS PLASTIC IN IT AND OTHER STATS!

SAS ORG : PLASTIC STATS  For wildlife such as fish, dolphins, seabirds, and seals it can be fatal..  A whale with thirty plastic bags in its stomach....Immerse yourself in plastic trash and its shocking impact on our blue planet to better understand the big issues at play.

OCEAN PLASTICS POLLUTION : BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY ORG

BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY ORG : OCEAN PLASTICS POLLUTION 

Excerpt: We're surrounded by plastic. It’s in the single-use packaging we discard, the consumer goods that fill our stores, and in our clothing, which sheds microplastic fibers in the wash.

In the first decade of this century, we made more plastic than all the plastic in history up to the year 2000. And every year, billions of pounds of more plastic end up in the world's oceans. Studies estimate there are now 15–51 trillion pieces of plastic in the world's oceans — from the equator to the poles, from Arctic ice sheets to the sea floor. Not one square mile of surface ocean anywhere on earth is free of plastic pollution.

The problem is growing into a crisis. The fossil fuel industry plans to increase plastic production by 40 percent over the next decade. These oil giants are rapidly building petrochemical plants across the United States to turn fracked gas into plastic. This means more toxic air pollution and plastic in our oceans.

We need urgent action to address the global plastic pollution epidemic.

Unfortunately, plastic is so durable that the EPA reports “every bit of plastic ever made still exists.” All five of the Earth's major ocean gyres are inundated with plastic pollution. The largest one has been dubbed the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

BOOKMARKING IS COOL - NOT OLD SCHOOL : SIXTEEN YEARS OF PUBLISHING SIRENS LINK TO SEA!

Come back  easily.... just bookmark it!

SIREN IS WAITING FOR YOU!

I created this image years ago when I first began this blog!

Feb 2 2025 was this blogs sixteenth birthday!

PBS BRINGS US "THE MYSTERIES OF THE EARTH'S LARGEST OCEAN - THE PACIFIC : GATEWAY TO THE FULL SERIES

PBS Passport: https://to.pbs.org/2rxTvJS | #BigPacificPBS

Settle in and watch an episode at a time or the whole series! 

SEA HORSE

 

WHALES BODY WAS COVERED WITH THOUSANDS OF BARNACLES - A SCIENCE ADVENTURE

Paws and Hearts YouTube brings us this beautiful video... But is this a Delicious Fiction?

LOST WORLD UNDER THE PACIFIC?

THE DEBRIEF : LOST WORLD UNDER THE PACIFIC? 

Excerpt: An international team of geophysicists using a new imaging technique that measures the speed of seismic waves caused by earthquakes to locate the juncture of tectonic plates in the Earth’s mantle say they have discovered the remnants of what appears to be a “lost world” beneath the Pacific Ocean.

... According to the published study, the team was particularly intrigued by one zone discovered beneath the western Pacific Ocean. That’s because there should be no material from subducted plates there “because it is impossible that there were subduction zones nearby in the recent geological history.”

***

You'll want to read this article to learn exactly what they mean when they say "lost worlds" and how the new technology has made a difference in understanding what's beneath the earth's surface!

CAL TECH : NEW TECHNOLOGY TO DETECT EARTH'S PLATES BELOW THE SURFACE

CAL TECH : NEW TECHNOLOGY - EARTH'S PLATES 

Excerpts: Caltech researchers have developed a new method to study the earth's structure deep beneath the surface, at the boundary between Earth's brittle crust and the underlying mantle, a region called the Mohorovičić discontinuity—Moho for short.

.....On continents, the Moho can be found at depths ranging between 20 and 70 kilometers beneath the surface; in Southern California, the Moho is around 45 kilometers belowground. Attempts had been made to image it using conventional seismometers, but these efforts either yield low-resolution results, on the scale of tens of kilometers, or were prohibitively expensive. With the DAS method, researchers can easily observe the structure of the Moho over large regions at a resolution of a kilometer, providing a far more detailed look at this geologically important region.

CHOOSE A SEA CREATURE THAT FASCINATES YOU! THIS YEAR LEARN AS MUCH AS YOU CAN ABOUT THAT SEA CREATURE!

Fish, whales, dolphins, turtles, worms....

Choose one and learn all you can about it!

What is it's range?  What temperatures does it like to live in? What does it like to eat?  How does it eat?  How long does it usually live? 

So very many things to know!

Siren

MERMAID WEARS BRAIDS

 

DOLPHINS FOUND TO HAVE FENTANYL IN THEIR BODIES and OTHER DRUGS

SCIENCE ALERT : DOLPHINS WITH FENTANYL IN THEIR BODIES

Excerpts: The researchers found fentanyl — a painkiller 100 times more powerful than morphine – in 24 of the samples, including all post-mortem specimens taken from the six dolphins that had died. The sedative meprobamate and the skeletal muscle relaxant carisoprodol were also found in the marine mammals' blubber.

More than a quarter of Earth's rivers have also been found to contain pharmaceuticals at levels higher than what's considered safe for aquatic organisms, with their waters contributing to concentrations of pollutants in marine environments.

Siren here! I feel sick!

MONTEREY BAY WHALE WATCHERS AMAZED AND WORRIED AFTER SIGHTING OF OLIVE RIDLEY SEA TURTLE

SACRAMENTO BEE : RARE SIGHTING OF OLIVE RIDLEY SEA TURTLE 

It hasn't been seen in the bay since 2013 and it's usually in need of warmer waters.

ROAD TO ATLANTIS NORTH OF THE HAWAIIAN ISLANDS? YELLOW BRICK ROAD

Excerpts: PMNM is one of the largest marine conservation areas in the world, larger than all the national parks in the United States combined, and we've only explored about 3 percent of its seafloor. 

SCIENCE ALERT : YELLOW BRICK ROAD

Go to the website to find out about the fractured rock.

CANADIAN GULLY IS HOME TO NEWLY DISCOVERED FISH WITHOUT A DNA MATCH : ALMOST BLACK WITH BULBOUS HEAD

It’s called the Gully, and it’s a marine protected area under Fisheries and Oceans Canada. More than 9 miles wide, the Gully is “the largest underwater canyon in the western North Atlantic,” the department says, and is filled with endangered and rare species. It was here that in 2009 researchers caught and brought to the surface a mysterious looking fish. The animal had a bulbous head, sleek body and gaping mouth, and was a dark brown, nearly black color, according to a July 24 Facebook post from Fisheries and Oceans Canada. “They sampled and analyzed its DNA,” the department said. “Back then, it did not match any known species and was left without a name.”

MIAMI HERALD : DNA MYSTERY FISH CANADA

IT'S A TYPE OF WHALEFISH (check out the videos)

INTELLIGENCE

 

MYSTERY MOLLUSK APPEARS IN MONTEREY BAY DEEP SEA CANYON

SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE DEEP SEA MYSTERY CREATURE  

"It is the first nudibranch, a type of sea slug, known to live in the unlit “midnight zone” of the ocean between 3,300 and 13,100 feet.

Watch that video!

RARE NAUTILOIDS FOUND (FOSSILS MIGHT BE EASIER!) IN PALAU

ROVPLANET : AMAZING NAUTILOIDS 

Excerpt:  During a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) dive in the German Channel in Palau, the Ocean Exploration Trust (OET) witnessed four Palau nautilus individuals (Nautilus belauensis). These are the first sightings of nautiloids — the most primitive cephalopods — from E/V Nautilus after 1000+ ROV dives over the last 15 years of operations. This marine mollusk found in the Indo-Pacific is rarely photographed- let alone caught on video -and 2024’s expeditions represent the first of OET’s adventures within the nautilus’s expected distribution range. This expedition (NA169) was funded by NOAA Ocean Exploration via the Ocean Exploration Cooperative Institute.

Rare!  

"Whenever you see a rare animal in the ocean, there is always a sense of awe. The nautilus isn't a new species, but there is still a certain magic to seeing it move in real-time across the ocean floor and respond to the ROV. And it has no idea that hundreds of humans are staring at it!" says Alice Chou, onboard Science Communication Fellow.

LEAVE THAT SHELL ON THE BEACH AND TAKE A PHOTO INSTEAD : ETHICAL SEA SHELL COLLECTING

Ethical sea shell collecting means:

Leaving any shell that has a living animal alone.

And you may not be able to tell so leave it alone.

Even broken and partial shells are part of the ecosystem.

Some sea creatures will borrow the empty shell of another.

Small fish hide in shells.

Do not buy sea shells by the bag in shops: They have been dredged from the ocean floor which destroys an eco-system. 

It's best not to buy sea shells at all.  You may find some collections for sale or find shells at garage sales and thrift shops, which were found or purchased in the past...

Do not buy plastic reproductions of shells.  Plastic is an overall problem for our environment.

Consider: 

Taking photos of shells to document them.

Draw, paint, or sculpt sea shells.

Pick up sea-polished glass off the beach instead. 

Take anything you bring to the beach back out, recycling bottles and cans and anything else you can.

Join a beach clean-up team for a morning or take some bags with you and fill them up with refuse that other people left behind.

Siren.

THINKING

 

CAN WILDFIRE ASH BE A POSITIVE FOR THE ENVIRONMENT ? : HERE'S AN ALTERNATIVE OPINION BASED ON RESEARCH

KCLU ORG : WILDFIRE ASH PROVIDES NUTRIENTS 

Excerpt: Debris and ash created issues for many of the region’s waterways. The first instinct is that it might also be a major form of toxic pollution for the ocean. But, researchers say they’ve discovered ash could actually be beneficial.

"There were metals, which can be good or bad, toxic or beneficial for organisms, and then there were a bunch of nutrients that phytoplankton use to grow," said Tanika Ladd.

In this UC Santa Barbara Current  article it's revealed that the ash and debris could be a positive for the ocean's tiniest creatures but negative for fresh waterways....

NEWS UCSB THOMAS FIRE RESEARCH RESULTS

WRITE A FICTION STORY OR A POEM THAT IS ABOUT THE OCEAN OR INCLUDES THE SEA CREATURES FROM A PARTICULAR PART OF THE OCEAN!

Since it's fictions, you may create a sea creature that may not actually exist!  Maybe there are mermaids.

Yes this writing can be Delicious Fiction!

Be creative!

But perhaps you could do the Science Fact research first and then follow your creativity!

Will you write a graphic novel?

What about illustrating your book!

Add to the extensive literature and poetry that includes the sea!

Siren

CALIFORNIA FIRES : SMOKE HUNDREDS OF MILES OUT OVER THE PACIFIC : IMPACT ON WHALES AND OTHER SEA CREATURES

Yes the smoke and debris in the air eventually settle down onto the earth and into the ocean waters. Here's am article on the impact from the PACIFIC WHALE FOUNDATION: PACIFIC WHALE FOUNDATION : WILDFIRE IMPACTS ON OCEAN AND SEA CREATURES

Excerpt:  OCEAN - A large influx of ash and debris, including metals and chemicals, enters waterways, especially following precipitation.  This massive sediment load smothers the coastal ecosystem, covering coral reefs, resulting in significant habitat loss and, eventually, fish and invertebrate mortality.  The resulting water cloudiness reduces light penetration necessary for plants to conduct photosynthesis.  The influx of run-off, which includes nutrients, and sedimentation can induce harmful algae blooms that deplete oxygen levels and cause fish and other animal die-offs.  Subsequently, ash and debris loads are spread wide by tides, currents, and winds, magnifying their effects though nearshore environments.

CAN FIREFIGHTERS USE OCEAN SALT WATER TO FIGHT THE CALIFORNIA FIRES?

The answer is that they do so, but in desperation, because the salt water is corrosive to equipment and the soil in which the salt water has been dumped is not friendly to plant life.  Some areas where ocean water has been dumped to put out a fire remain barren of plant life for years.  When urban sources for water are used up, fire fighters will use ocean water. 

-Siren

FIND A NONPROFIT IN THIS BLOG - SIREN'S LINK TO SEA - AND GET INVOLVED OR DONATE YOUR TIME OR MONEY

Beach clean-ups, whale counts...

There are dozens of non-profits who are linked to from this blog. 

Read through and find one that you would like to participate in.... do more research to be sure it's the best fit for you!

Do your part as a citizen-activist to be for ocean-ecology and marine environments that support sea creatures!

Siren

SMITHSONIAN'S PICK TEN MOST AWE-INSPIRING SEA CREATURES OF 2024! NEW DISCOVERIES

 What a contest!  Truly unique individuals! An awesome list.

SMITHSONIAN MAGAZINE : 10 MOST AWE-INSPIRING SEA CREATURE MOMENTS OF 2024

Orcas with salmon hats?  300 year old coral?  Whale in the wrong ocean?  Which of these will awe-inspire YOU?

HAPPY NEW YEAR and WELCOME

HAPPY NEW YEAR and WELCOME 

SIREN'S LINK TO SEA!

is a blog all about the oceans and the creatures who make the ocean home!