Finding Endangered Life on eBay
Finding Endangered Life on eBay avatar

eBay’s history is dotted with carcasses of endangered and vulnerable species.  In 2000, the Sea Turtle Conservancy announced that a large selection of illegal hawksbill turtle shell products were available on the online auction site. “On Jan. 6, about about 50 genuine tortoise shell items were listed for sale through ebay, said Gary Appelson, advocacy . . . → Read More: Finding Endangered Life on eBay

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TGIF – Pretty pictures from Okeanos Explorer
TGIF – Pretty pictures from Okeanos Explorer avatar

This week the NOAA ship Okeanos Explorer has been dropping its ROV Little Hercules onto various features in the northern Gulf of Mexico, including an old wood/iron wreck, salt domes and man-made seismic trenches.  Okeanos has an interesting remote arrangement where folks back on the continent can direct the ROV pilots in real time by . . . → Read More: TGIF – Pretty pictures from Okeanos Explorer

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TGIF – the coral triangle, a-capella style!
TGIF – the coral triangle, a-capella style! avatar

From the Barber lab at UCLA comes this awesome video.  Not only can they sing better than most biologists, but the lyrics are great!  I especially liked the line about not caring about income, just wanting to discover stuff.  I feel ya… Hat tip to @neillosin on Twitter Broadcast Spawn!Tweet#call_to_action h4{padding:0px 5px;}From the Barber lab . . . → Read More: TGIF – the coral triangle, a-capella style!

TGIF – the coral triangle, a-capella style! avatar

TGIF – 100% live coral cover
TGIF – 100% live coral cover avatar

Right now our own @rmacpherson is in the Pacific, talking coral and shark conservation Fiji.  In honour of his trip, here is a beautiful video of 100% live acroporid coral cover in the nearby Solomon Islands, shot by Bruce Carlson.  I offer it as evidence for this TGIF that there are still many beautiful and . . . → Read More: TGIF – 100% live coral cover

TGIF – 100% live coral cover avatar

Will marine conservation miss out at the next CITES meeting?
Will marine conservation miss out at the next CITES meeting? avatar

CITES is the 1973 Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, to which 175 nations are signatories.  Along with the IUCN Red List, it’s one of the main ways that the international conservation status of a species is recognised (IUCN) and regulated (CITES).  The main mechanism for this at CITES is through listing of a . . . → Read More: Will marine conservation miss out at the next CITES meeting?

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TGIF – Exallias brevis, a very special fish
TGIF – Exallias brevis, a very special fish avatar

Exallias brevis male My good colleague Dr. Bruce Carlson just uploaded a very nice short YouTube video about a reef blenny called Exallias brevis.  Exallias is fairly special (but by no means unique) not just because it’s quite the looker, but because it is a coral predator.  Like many blennies it has a mouth that . . . → Read More: TGIF – Exallias brevis, a very special fish

TGIF – Exallias brevis, a very special fish avatar

For sale?: one reef, well-loved
For sale?: one reef, well-loved avatar

I think it’s fair to say that when most folks think about conservation, or biology in general, money is not the first thing that pops into their heads.  Indeed, many people I know in those fields consider money, commerce and economics to be somewhat foreign, a necessary evil perhaps, to keep society going and keep . . . → Read More: For sale?: one reef, well-loved

For sale?: one reef, well-loved avatar

TGIF – Underwater Fluorescent Disco
TGIF – Underwater Fluorescent Disco avatar

From BBC Earth Youtube page: Phillipe Coustaeau and the team dive in the Red Sea, one of the warmest seas in the world. Despite the warm temperatures, coral reefs flourish with their flourescent pigmentation putting on an amazing show of technicolour. Fantastic clip taken from the BBC Oceans series. Visit http://www.bbcearth.com for all the latest animal . . . → Read More: TGIF – Underwater Fluorescent Disco

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A conversation with Mark Hay aboard the Aquarius habitat
A conversation with Mark Hay aboard the Aquarius habitat avatar

Ten days ago I had a conversation with Dr. Mark Hay from Georgia Tech where he was at the Aquarius ReefBase habitat on the bottom of the Florida Keys and I was at the ice breaker for the annual Association of Zoos and Aquariums meeting hosted at Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta.  We were talking about . . . → Read More: A conversation with Mark Hay aboard the Aquarius habitat

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Your Friday Cuttlefish
Your Friday Cuttlefish avatar

A friend of CORAL, Dr Steve Cohen, passed along this great footage he captured of some randy cuttlefish on the reefs at the Wakatobi Dive Resort in Southeast Sulawesi, Indonesia. No lascivious copulation, sneaker males, or sperm displacement observed, but cool nonetheless. Thanks Steve! Broadcast Spawn!Tweet#call_to_action h4{padding:0px 5px;}A friend of CORAL, Dr Steve Cohen, . . . → Read More: Your Friday Cuttlefish

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