Presentation on Independent Plum Island Sand Migration Study, September 24th
September 19, 2008
When: Wednesday, September 24th, from 6:00 to 8:00 pmWhere: Newbury Elementary School Auditorium, Hanover Street, Newbury
A local Plum Island resident, Michael Morris, will give a public presentation on the results of his independent, five month long study of the sand migration patterns on Plum Island this Wednesday, September 24th, from 6:00 to 8:00 pm at the Newbury Elementary School Auditorium.
Wednesday’s presentation, called “Unlocking the Mystery to Beach Erosion at Plum Island,” will be divided into two segments with a 15-minute break in between. Refreshments will also be served.
An article by Victor Tine in the Daily News of Newburyport provides an overview the study undertaken by Mr. Morris.
Some of the interesting findings of the study by Mr. Morris are:
- He believes that the net migration of sand along Plum Island’s shoreline is in a northerly direction, a departure from the conventional wisdom that it flows southward.
- He believes that two separate streams of sand are migrating toward Plum Island Center. One stream is moving south from the mouth of the Merrimack River along a submerged offshore sand bar, while another stream is flowing north from the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge’s dune system.
The Ecology of Rocky Shores - Schooner Adventure Lecture Series, September 17th
September 11, 2008
When: Wednesday, September 17th at 7:00 p.mWhere: Sawyer Free Library, Friend Room, 2 Dale Ave, Gloucester
If you want to learn more about the flora and fauna associated with rocky shore lines, such as those found along Cape Ann, then you may want to attend the “The Ecology of Rocky Shores” lecture that is being presented by the Schooner Adventure Lecture Series on Wednesday, September 17th.
“The Ecology of Rocky Shores,” is the title of a program to be presented by Scott Shumway, a Ph.D. professor of Biology at Wheaton College, and author of “A Naturalist’s Guide to the Atlantic Seashore.”
He will present an introduction to one of the most stressful habitats on earth and the species that live there. A book signing will follow the lecture on Wednesday, September 17 at 7:00 p.m. at the Sawyer Free Library, Friend Room, 2 Dale Ave, Gloucester.
Read more
Lecture: The Annual 1500-Mile Long Triangular Migration Of Wild Atlantic Stripers
July 14, 2008
When: Wednesday, July 16, 2008 at 7:00 p.m.Where: Sawyer Free Library, Friend’s Room, 2 Dale Avenue, Gloucester, MA
On Wednesday, July 16 at 7:00 p.m., the Schoooner Adventure Series is holding a free lecture by inveterate fly-fisherman Richard Murphy for an on wild-spawning Striped Bass that roam coastal beaches, bays, and estuaries from the Carolinas to Maine.
The lecture is being held at Sawyer Free Library, Friend’s Room
2 Dale Avenue, Gloucester, MA. Richard Murphy is a Civil Engineer for the State of Massachusetts and the author of Fly-Fishing for Striped Bass.
For more information, visit the Schooner Adventure website.
Latest News From Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI)
June 29, 2008
WHOI - Top Stories
Study Reveals Microbes Dine on Thousands of Compounds in Oil
Thousands of feet below the bottom of the sea, off the shores of Santa Barbara, CA, single-celled organisms are busy feasting on oil. Until now, nobody knew how many oily compounds were being devoured by the microscopic creatures, but new research has shed new light on just how extensive their diet can be.
New Marine Mammal Center Formed at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
The center combines scientific expertise, state-of-the-art facilities, and technological innovations to address both basic questions about marine mammal behavior, physiology and health as well as potential effects of human activities on marine mammals and the ecosystems on which they depend.
Corralling the Wild and Wooly Southern Ocean
Graduate student creates supercomputer model to tame a vast, remote ocean.
Sea Life Is Accumulating Pathogens
A wide range of marine animals also contains microbes that are resistant to antibiotics.
May 2008 Earthquake in China Could Be Followed by Another Significant Rupture
Scientists say nearby faults now twice as likely to produce strong quakes.
Testing the Waters and Closing Beaches
Researchers seek faster, better ways to detect harmful bacteria.
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Do You Want The Naming Rights To An Ocean Species?
April 11, 2008
In another sign of just how tough the times are financially, the Scripps Institution of Oceanography is inviting donors to name an ocean species. This world class oceanographic institution, like several of its peers in the oceanographic community, has experienced significant budget cuts over the past several years and is introducing this new program as a novel way for donors to show their support for these valuable and irreplaceable science and teaching resources: by naming a newly discovered marine species.
Naming rights have proved to be very successful in the world of professional sports for branding stadiums and arenas. The Scripps Institution of Oceanography (based at the University of California/San Diego recently announced that it will be offering for sale the naming rights to several new marine species that are held in the Scripps Oceanographic Collections.
For $50,000.00 you can have the naming rights to a rare hydrothermal vent worm. Too pricey, then how about $25,000 for two types of worms found living on deep-sea whale bones? Or you can always go for the orange speckled nudibranch for only $15,000.
The cost to name Scripps’ newly discovered creatures’ starts at $5,000. Donors who name a species will receive a framed print of their named organism, as well as a copy of the scientific publication in which it is first described.
Currently, the Scripps Oceanographic Collections hold several new marine species that are available for naming. They include a rare hydrothermal vent worm ($50,000), two types of worms found living on deep-sea whale bones ($25,000), an orange, speckled nudibranch ($15,000), and a spiny worm found in the kelp forests of La Jolla cove( $10,000). Several fishes from the Gulf of California as well as several new species discovered in local La Jolla waters are also available to be named.
This newly discovered nudibranch, housed in the Scripps Oceanographic Collections, is available to be named by a donor. (Note: Photograph courtesy of Scripps Oceanographic Collections.
“By supporting the collections through species naming, donors have an opportunity for their name, or the name of a person they love or respect, to be immortalized forever,” said Greg Rouse, curator of the Scripps Benthic Invertebrate Collection. “This type of unique gift highlights the vast unknown diversity in the sea that Scripps scientists are working to document and describe.”
While offering the rights to name species may be a relatively new trend, naming species after people is not. For example, a feather-duster worm from Australia was named in honor of Rouse, Pseudofabriciola rousei.
Funds raised through this new naming opportunity will be used to help maintain and build upon the Scripps Oceanographic Collections for future generations of scientists.
Related Website: Scripps Institution of Oceanography
Over 3,000 Robotic Floats Now Monitoring The World’s Oceans
April 3, 2008
Oceanographic research has always been an expensive endeavor to carry out and support on a long term basis. The day-to-day operational costs for ships, manpower, fuel, supplies, etc., can drain the research budgets of even the largest institutions.
Advances in technology, however, have provided oceanographers with tools enabling them to do a lot more with a lot less. Sandi Doughton has a fascinating article in the Seattle Times that describes how the success of the Argo program, an international collaboration that collects high-quality temperature and salinity profiles from the oceans of the world, has been due to in large part to the use of torpedo-shaped robotic floats (buoys) that are deployed throughout the oceans of the world.
As of the posting of this article, over 3100 of these compact, automated robotic floats are now deployed. Each of these floats is approximately 5-feet tall and weighs less than 60 pounds.
These robotic floats are programmed to sink to a depth of more than a mile and then drift in total darkness for nine days in water depths that are deeper than those submarines operate in. Every 10 days, the floats ascend to the surface, collecting temperature and salinity measurements as they go. When at the surface, they transmit their data and then descend to re-start the cycle.
Related Links:
Volunteers Needed for Parker River Clean Water Association’s 12th Annual Fish Count
March 30, 2008
The Parker River Clean Water Association (PRCWA) is looking for volunteers to help them conduct their 12th Annual Fish Count from mid-April to mid-May. No experience is necessary to assist with the count.
To assess the ecological health of the Parker River, the PRCWA and local citizens are organizing a volunteer effort to count alewives swimming upstream to spawn this spring. The count will compare numbers of fish to those from a similar study in the 1970s. Average counts of the past five years were only 510 fish, whereas in the 1970s there were more than 30,000.
When: Monday, April 7, from 6:30 to 8 p.m
Where: AT the Newbury Town Library in Byfield Center
“We are concerned, because the past five years’ counts have shown a sharp reduction in the number of fish spawning in the Parker River,” according to Parker River Clean Water Association President Don Bade. “Counting the fish helps us to measure the extent of the decline, instead of relying on anecdotal evidence.”
Alewives, like salmon, begin their lives in freshwater. The fry swim downstream from headwater ponds in the fall. Three or four years later, the adult fish have grown to be 10 to 13 inches long. They return from the ocean to spawn in April and May, when freshwater temperatures reach the mid-50s.
Local fishermen and women will also be active volunteers in the fish count. The Essex County Sportsmen Association is joining the Parker River Clean Water Association and the Massachusetts Audubon Society in conducting the effort. A corps of volunteers will count fish for 10 minutes out of each hour between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m., seven days a week, from mid-April to mid-May.
Persons interested in assisting with the count should attend the volunteer training, which will include a presentation about the alewife migration and instruction on how to count and take water temperature measurements. At the training, volunteers can sign up for one or more of the 10-minute time slots. Families are welcome to participate, as long as children are at least 8 years old.
For more information, call the Parker River Clean Water Association office at 978-462-2551 or e-mail parker.river@verizon.net.
New Research Vessel for Gloucester-based Whale Center of New England
March 29, 2008
The Whale Center’s research vessel allows researchers to collect a variety of data unavailable from other platforms. Long-term studies of endangered humpback, right, and fin whales involve identifying individual whales by photographing natural markings.
While some of this information can be collected from local whale watch vessels, the research boat allows longer times at sea and access to areas that take too long for whale watch boats to reach.
The Whale Center of New England is a not-for-profit organization founded in 1980 to study the whales frequenting waters off the Massachusetts coast, especially on Stellwagen Bank and Jeffreys Ledge. The Center’s mission is to conduct research on whales and their habitat and to actively engage in marine conservation and education.
Name the Boat Contest
The Whale Center of New England is holding a naming contest for the new research boat. Submit your idea for the best whale-related boat name to 24 Harbor Loop, Gloucester MA 01930 or to info@whalecenter.org.
The winner will receive a free whale adoption, a Whale Center T-shirt, a whale photo, and a ride on the boat.
The deadline for receiving all entries is April 16, 2008.
Related Websites
Assessing Impact Of Sonar Technology On Marine Mammals
March 21, 2008
Mr. Watson provides a concise and information packed overview of current sonar concerns expressed at a recent public hearing held by the United States Navy in Boston at which they discussed their plans for future sonar use.
Sonar use does have an impact on marine mammals and, as stated in Mr. Watson’s column, the Navy admits that sonar use harms the hearing of marine mammals and adversely affects their behavior.
One of the more alarming facts Mr. Watson reports from the public hearing is that the Navy estimates that, just along the Gulf and East coasts, approximately three million marine mammals annually receive sonar exposure that induces behavioral changes.
Here is a link to Mr. Watson’s article on the Salem News website.
Smarter Sharks - Are They Wising Up To Our Tagging Techniques?
March 18, 2008
Mr. Kessel has spent the past three years working at the world-renowned Bimini Biological Field Station, also known as Shark Lab, in the Bahamas studying population trends among lemon sharks and believes current research techniques may underestimate numbers - because sharks are getting wise to human methods of counting.
Mr. Kessel’s theory is that sharks (at least for the lemon shark population he is working with) appear to be catching on to human techniques for tagging them, and are learning how to avoid them.
Traditional methods of tagging sharks have involved putting bait on a long line, then implanting a transmitter once it bites. Steve Kessel is now using other techniques to tag sharks, including using skiffs to corral them into shallow water where they can be netted, and aerial surveys for abundance counts.
If this research proves to be accurate, it just illustrates how adaptable these creatures are and how they can adjust to subtle changes in their environment.
As I read the article, I was wondering how to quantify this type of research as it seems far more qualitative than quantitative. Mr. Kessel’s perspective on shark tagging and the shark’s recognition of tagging techniques were excellent observations from his ongoing research. His theory raises interesting questions about how sharks recognize what is going on in their surrounding environment.
You can read the complete article, and see an accompanying video, at the Cardiff University website.
Situated on the ocean, Newburyport holds a host of opportunity for the visitor. But instead of traditional hotels, consider Massachusetts timeshares. Resorts offer sumptuous ensuite appointments and amenities not available in hotels. Rent timeshare for an unforgettable vacation experience.
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