Colombia has some of the strictest illegal fishing laws in the world, but people still need to stand up and enforce them. Erika Lopez has taken on the role of guardian of Malpelo, an island 314 miles (506 kilometers) west of Colombia.
Sometimes the tiniest critters can pack the greatest punch. Phytoplankton, which are unicellular microalgae, can cause mass mortalities of animals such as dolphins and manatees and be the source of serious human illness.
Maintaining a respectful distance from potentially harmful species underwater is a tenet of good recreational diving and a frequent topic of charter boat predive briefs. But those venomous fish you have learned to avoid might save your life someday.
Rewilding is a popular term in conservation circles, but what does it mean, and is it appropriate for coral reefs? Should divers be clamoring for reef rewilding? Does it represent […]
Many divers top off a trip to the Southern Red Sea by watching a rotund dugong snuffle through seagrass meadows in about 25 feet (7.6 meters) of water.
For more than five years, divers and scientists along the U.S. West Coast have watched a disaster play out before their eyes. Sunflower sea stars fell victim to a wasting disease, which wiped out roughly 90 percent of the global population in 2013. Seven years later, scientists see no signs of recovery. Without the sea stars, the population of purple urchins that sea stars eat has exploded and mowed down entire forests of bull kelp. The West Coast experienced intense ocean warming from 2014 to 2017, and by 2015 divers began seeing urchin barrens ā vast swaths covered in piles of spiny creatures and little else.
Coral reefs are facing many environmental challenges, and cruise ships are a major contributor. One of these shipsā greatest impacts is starting to muddy the water.
Manfaat melindungi lamun tidak dapat dilebih-lebihkan. Lamun memurnikan air, membantu melindungi dari erosi pantai, membantu mempertahankan perikanan skala kecil yang mendukung masyarakat, serta meningkatkan populasi ikan dan keanekaragaman hayati. Lamun menyerap lebih banyak karbon per area daripada hutan darat dan mengurangi pengasaman laut. Lamun yang sehat berarti laut yang lebih sehat.
Our oceans are under siege. Destructive industrial-scale fishing is causing widespread species decline. Ocean warming due to human-induced climate change is triggering episodes of mass coral bleaching with increased vigor and frequency.
How many times have you noticed the line of weeds out of the corner of your eye and driven past, around, or through it without a second glance on your way to a dive? In our case, most of the time. On a calm day off Jupiter, Florida, a wide weed line at the edge [ā¦]
