Year: 2011
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Cuba journal: Day 7 – The Wall of Mouths
Day 7: Thursday 2 June Done. All over now but the last dregs of clean-up and packing. Five days in the “Gardens of the Queen”, and what a time it’s been. A journey back in time in both the state of society and of the Sea. In the last five days we’ve become accustomed to…
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Why pufferfish puff
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OkXhC7yzISI&feature=player_embedded[/youtube] Okay, so I admit this is a river story but I can only imagine similar things go on in the sea. And it just goes to show how blowing up like a beach ball is a really effective way of seeing off predators. HT to Practical Fishkeeping for the link.
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Super tough corals of American Samoa
One of Dr. Steve Palumbi‘s Microdocs videos about his lab’s work with corals from Ofu Island reef in American Samoa that seem highly resistant to thermal stress. [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R38NBEQGF_s&[/youtube]
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Antarctic Oceanography: Then & Now
THEN: …and NOW: These days, the plankton nets are a little larger. There are satellite phones and internet connections. We have GPS technology, hot tubs, and widescreen TVs. And the ships’ hulls are a little more, uh… reinforced? Life on an Antarctic research vessel may be less unpredictable, but it is no less magical in…
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Underwater beetle – but not the insect variety
I’m not a great car fan, but I’ve been in love with the cute curves of VW beetles for a long time (and perhaps one day I’ll get one). And I’m completely in love with this new art installation by Jason de Caires Taylor. It’s called Anthropocene, it’s installed on the sea bed 8 m…
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Surfing with the enemy
In honor of international surfing day 2011, here is a great video about surfing in Cuba. [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQO2FCepgTE[/youtube]
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Cuba Journal: Day 6 – The hunt
Day 6: Wednesday 1 June Sometime in the afternoon. Siesta time actually—all quiet at the Avalon compound. But no siesta for us. James and I are back at the “lab” after a largely fruitless search among the shallow Porites coral patches of the backreef for the particular sponge we know to harbor social shrimp here,…
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Demon Fish by Juliet Eilperin
WaPost environmental reporter Juliet Eilperin was on the Diane Rehm Show Wednesday talking about her new book “Demon Fish”. I haven’t read the book, but she did a nice job talking about sharks, their value and shark conservation. And her video below is really good. Listen to the show here. [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LekzVpcAoMU&[/youtube]
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Cuba journal: Day 5 – Quiet
Day 5: Tuesday 31 May Quarter past midnight, end of a long day on the water and in the lab that started at 0600. Sitting in the quiet breezy night on the narrow concrete back deck of the dorm (not a proper lab as this is really a dive and fishing operation), creaking boat ropes…
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Cuba Journal: Day 4 – Pipin reef
Day 4: Monday 30 May This morning we dive at a site known as “Pipin” after the famous Cuban free diver. I am snorkeling and the day begins disappointingly since the buoy is in 15 m of water and overcast skies and somewhat murky water mean I can barely make out the bottom. But a…