Category: News

As COVID-19 Batters Fishery, Indonesia’s Sharks Get a Respite

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May 4, 2020 By Basten Gokkon Mongabay
Conservationists see an opportunity to strengthen oversight of the shark trade in Indonesia as fishing activity grinds to a halt amid the COVID-19 outbreak. West Nusa Tenggara province, home to one of the world’s biggest shark and ray markets, saw its trade in the species in the first quarter of 2020 drop by 68% from a year earlier, to less than 1,900 kilograms (4,200 pounds). Much of the shark and ray products from the province are exported to China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, the U.S. and elsewhere.

Ocean Ecosystems Are More Sensitive to Climate Change

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May 4, 2020 By Katie Pavid Natural History Museum
Climate change is having a bigger impact on animals and plants in the ocean than those on land, according to new research. This could be because organisms that live on land are better able to avoid the negative consequences of global warming than their ocean counterparts.

Coronavirus is Causing a Flurry of Plastic Waste. Campaigners Fear It May Be Permanent

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May 4, 2020 By Rob Picheta CNN
All of the defining images of the coronavirus pandemic seem to feature one thing: plastic. Surgical masks, gloves, protective equipment, body bags — the Covid-19 crisis has spurred a rapid expansion in the production of desperately-needed plastic products, with governments racing to boost their stockpiles and regular citizens clamoring for their share of supplies.

A Whale’s Death Shows Us the Way Marine Giants Live

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May 2, 2020 By Kaitlyn Kraybill-Voth Bay Nature
Gray whales are experiencing what scientists have labeled an “unusual mortality event” on the West Coast of North and Central America, while humpback whales are experiencing an unusual mortality event on the East Coast. Scientists want to understand the lives and deaths of these whales to eventually piece together what’s happening to our oceans.

Deep-Sea Mining’s Environmental Toll Could Last Decades

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May 1, 2020 By Alex Fox Smithsonian Magazine
Deep-sea mining, which requires extracting minerals and metals from the seafloor, has scientists and environmentalists worried because a growing body of research suggests its environmental damages are likely to be long-lasting and severe. New research published this week underscores these risks, finding that deep-sea microbes may take half a century to recover from the disturbance of mining