News about PaperPanda, Open Access, and Research
Human waste has become so ubiquitous in the ocean, it’s becoming easier for octopuses to shelter in our trash than in seashells or coral. A systematic review of underwater photographs and videos from around the world has tallied 24 cephalopod species making their homes in marine litter. For years, divers and scientists have observed … Read more
A thorough review of 300 years of research, and an exceptionally preserved fossil, have given us what paleontologists say is the most up-to-date reconstruction yet of an ancient beast. Living alongside dinosaurs during the Mesozoic Era, ichthyosaurs were marine reptiles that swam and hunted in Earth’s oceans. Resembling reptilian dolphins, these fascinating animals thrived … Read more
Vast mounds of sponges stretching for hundreds of metres have been discovered 600 metres down near the Channel Islands off California Environment 3 March 2022 By Michael Le Page Vast mounds made of the skeletons of glass sponges have been discovered 600 metres down on the seabed of the Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary off … Read more
In November of 2020, a freak wave came out of the blue, lifting a lonesome buoy off the coast of British Columbia 17.6 meters high (58 feet). The four-story wall of water has now been confirmed as the most extreme rogue wave ever recorded. Such an exceptional event is thought to occur only once … Read more
The bottom of the Arctic Ocean, below the permanent sea ice, is not a friendly place for life. Down there in the cold dark, nutrients and vegetation are sparse; it’s expected that any life that does manage to eke out an existence under these conditions would be likewise thin on the ground. Scientists were … Read more
As we battle against our own pandemic, sea stars are being killed in the millions by a horrible condition that melts them into a sickly goo. Sadly, there’s no straightforward way to help these animals, such as protecting them with a vaccine, so conservation biologists have been desperately trying to find another way. In … Read more
Sweeping the ocean floor at hundreds of points throughout the world, researchers have revealed an astonishing diversity of microscopic life thriving in the deepest and darkest parts of our planet. The sediment collected at each spot was analyzed for environmental DNA (eDNA), which marine animals shed as they go about their lives. While sea … Read more
Since 2014, more than half of the ocean surface across the globe has recorded temperatures considered extreme compared with a historical average Environment 1 February 2022 By Adam Vaughan Map of the northern Pacific Ocean for May 2015, with red, pink and yellow colours indicating sea surface temperatures up to 3°C higher than average NASA … Read more
In a first for paleontology, scientists have found hundreds of tiny, fossilized fecal pellets crammed inside a fish braincase dating to about 9 million years ago. The wee fossil poops, also known as coprolites, were deposited by scavengers – probably worms – that devoured the fish’s decaying head, including its brain. As they munched the flesh … Read more
For the first time, a pack of orcas – also known as killer whales – have been observed hunting and killing blue whales, the largest animal on the planet. According to a report published in Marine Mammal Science, the scientific community has long debated if orcas can hunt the massive blue whales. But this question … Read more