Marine News Roundup

Welcome to this week's Marine News Roundup. From now on we will be posting the Roundup every fortnight, but don't worry, we'll make sure we include even more fantastic stories in each edition!

What's more dangerous than diving with 100 sharks?
When the BBC Earth Deadly 60 crew travelled to South Africa to film blacktip sharks they were prepared for a frightening dive. Little did they know that just getting themselves to the right place, at the right time with all their kit working would pose the biggest challenge of all. Read the full blog for more on this fascinating story!

Can piranhas eat a human being alive?
Legend has it that piranhas gather in predatory shoals and can strip human beings to the bone and eat them alive. In the last of the Deadly 60 blogs for BBC Earth, the team have taken to the water to find out exactly why the piranha has developed such a fearsome reputation. They can also detect a drop of blood in 200 litres of water and shoals can clean off meat from a carcass with alarming effectiveness. Getting in the water to lure them in with a piece of steak had frightening results for one member of the Deadly 60 Team.... Read on to find out more!

New Dolphin Slaughter of Striped Dolphins
Save Japan Dolphins is a campaign conducted by the International Marine Mammal Project of Earth Island Institute. SaveJapanDolphins.org was formed to put an end to the Japanese drive fishery slaughter of dolphins and stop the capture and live trade of dolphins to zoos and aquariums around the world. The slaughter of dolphins in the small fishing village of Taiji at The Cove is carried out by about 26 fishermen. They kill the dolphins with a permit from their government. Tia Butt, volunteer Cove Monitor in Taiji, filmed the slaughter of a large pod of striped dolphins and the capture of a live dolphin on Tuesday 4th October.

A Growing Movement to Save Sharks
More than 70 million sharks die each year, killed for their fins, which end up in soup. At that rate, nearly a third of all shark species may soon be threatened with extinction. The loss of those predators would have an enormous effect all the way down the marine food chain. One country at a time, there are growing restrictions on finning - cutting the fin off a shark and leaving it to die - and, increasingly, shark fishing. Last month, Mexico announced that it would ban shark and stingray fishing beginning next year. Several island nations - Micronesia, the Maldives, Palau, and the Marshall Islands - have already created shark sanctuaries. There is hope that Honduras and Colombia will follow suit, perhaps creating a protective corridor reaching to the Galapagos Islands. The United States has not banned shark fishing, but it has banned finning since 2000 and, in January, President Obama signed a law requiring that sharks be brought to port intact, with their fins in place. Several states, including California, Washington, Oregon and Hawaii, have also banned the sale of shark fins. These are welcome steps toward keeping the ocean in balance by leaving its top predator in place. The Marshall Islands government has created the world's largest shark sanctuary, covering nearly two million sq km (750,000 sq miles) of ocean. Other countries cannot control the growing passion for shark-fin soup in newly affluent China and East Asia - but they can deny them the raw material.

Fish That "Walks"
Scientists have discovered that the Pacific Leaping Blenny can walk on land, using a tail-twisting movement. It could give scientists a clue as to how life evolved to live on land. Watch the video for more details of this little-known fish!

New technology may revolutionize shrimp farming
A Texas AgriLife Research scientist has created new shrimp production technology that produces record-setting amounts of shrimp. The patent-pending technology, known as super-intensive stacked raceways, yields jumbo-size shrimp weighing 1.1 oz each. These are known as U15 shrimp and give world-record production of up to 25kg of shrimp per m3 of water using zero water exchange and/or recirculating water. The indoor system will lower US dependence on foreign shrimp - the US imports about 90% of the shrimp it consumes - and could help address world hunger. The shrimp are grown in four columns of piled raceways; raceways are long tubs with circulating water of a depth measuring just 5-7in. As shrimp develop, they are moved to a raceway below; baby shrimp are added to the top while the mature shrimp below are harvested. Economic data shows an estimated rate of return of 25-60%.

Nine bags of beach litter
We previously mentioned our involvement with the Marine Conservation Society's Adopt-a-Beach initiative and that we were running a cleanup on a local beach for their Beachwatch campaign. The cleanup was reported on by The Herald and they mentioned that we removed nine bags of rubbish from the beach, the majority of which was plastic. We also found half an anchor and the remains of of Conger eel. For more information on how you can get involved in this sort of activity, please see our previous blog post on the Marine Conservation Society.

Government ends all turtle hunting
The Trinidad and Tobago Government is moving steadily in its effort to cease the slaughtering of turtles after Cabinet approved an amendment of the Fisheries Act earlier this week. The amendment seeks to protect Turtles and Turtle eggs under Section 4 Chapter 67:51 of the Act. The amendment is a landmark piece of legislation which prohibits the killing, harpooning and sale of turtles. The Act states, “No person shall, at any time, kill, harpoon, catch or otherwise take possession of any turtle, or purchase, sell, offer or expose for sale or cause to be sold or offered for sale any turtle or turtle meat”. All turtles are regarded as critically endangered worldwide according to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Fauna and Flora (CITES) and turtles can no longer now be considered a by-catch.

Humboldt squid make surprise return off Orange County
Humboldt squid are deep-water denizens that can measure 7 feet and weigh up to 100 pounds. Their historic range is off South America but they've been expanding their territory for many years. They show off Southern California every 4-5 years. Their appearance off Orange County, California, has prompted sport-fishing landings to schedule more night trips in search of the mysterious cephalopods.

Big catches mask dwindling numbers of sea bass
A study has found that the populations of kelp bass and barred sand bass have plummeted 90% since 1980. Overfishing and warmer ocean temperatures are blamed for the decline. However, sport-fishing boats have been able to keep their catch rates high in part because they have targeted bustling spawning grounds. As reliably as masses of sea bass gather off the Southern California coast each summer, boatloads of anglers arrive to reel them in. But their bountiful catches are an illusion, scientists say. Each summer, when sand bass migrate to half a dozen hot spots from Ventura to San Diego, half-day trips on sport-fishing vessels, commonly known as party boats, typically fill up with paying customers who bring back loads of the fish. Some 80% of the year's sand bass are hooked at those six sites in a matter of weeks. Even so, Southern California sport-fishing groups said they have seen a noticeable decline in sand bass in recent years, with lackluster catches even during the summer boom time. Fishermen who work kelp forests that rise up from rocky reefs in places like Point Dume in Malibu say they haven't noticed a decline in the kelp bass. Many fishing groups suggest that even such dramatic drops are cyclical, and they resist the notion of a collapse. The explanation may not be as simple as overfishing, they say; the sea bass could also be responding to changing water temperatures, dwindling food supplies or increased predation. To determine the health of Southern California's sea bass stocks, researchers went beyond traditional catch rates, using fish reports published in The Times, logs of the number of fish sucked up by ocean-cooled power plants and an underwater visual census conducted by Occidental College since 1974. The downward trend it revealed for sand bass was particularly startling. The plunge of both species mirrors some of the most famous examples of fisheries in peril, such as the North Atlantic cod in the 1990s. However, the collapse does not mean extinction; if measures are taken to protect the fish, they could rebound. The solution could be as simple as asking wildlife officials to reduce catch limits and tighten size limitations so the very smallest and the largest fish would have to be released, changes some fishing groups have been backing for years.

That's all for this week - and don't forget, the next Marine News Roundup will be published in two week's time. In the meantime you can keep up-to-date with us on Twitter and Facebook.

Marine News Roundup

Welcome to our second edition of the Marine News Roundup; hand-picked stories we feel you will find interesting! Please feel free to comment and tell us which stories you liked best, as well as any feedback.

"Shell North Sea Oil Spill Worst in a Decade"
Last week, Shell's Gannet Alpha production platform, 112 miles off Aberdeen, began to leak oil into the North Sea. So far it has discharged around 218 tonnes (1,300 barrels) of oil, making it the biggest spill on the UK continental shelf since the spill in the Hutton field in 2000, when around 350 tonnes of oil were released. An enquiry has been launched by inspectors from the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) and it is already known that the oil is not originating from the well, which has been shut off, but from the network of pipes on the seabed 300ft below the platform. Shell have said that the initial leak point was sealed off last Thursday, but a smaller "residual" flow was still leaking from another source, as yet unidentified but believed to be a relief valve within the same area of piping. Conservationists have expressed fears about potential harm to seabirds and other marine life. The oil spill has received national news coverage, for example from The Independent and The Telegraph. With reports of fish still falling sick in the Gulf, for which the BP oil spill is being blamed, and oil companies now claiming they can drill "safely" in the Arctic Ocean, questions are being raised as to what would happen if there was on oil spill in the Arctic? It is a fragile and more forbidding environment and already suffering the effects of climate change. Shell Oil have this month been granted conditional approval to drill four exploratory wells next summer in Alaska's Beaufort Sea. Campaigners and scientists are currently monitoring the oil companies’ plans closely and hope to win more protections to keep coasts safe from oil spills.

"Offshore Windfarms May Promote Biodiversity"
A new Dutch study has found that offshore wind farms may promote biodiversity. The base of the turbines and surrounding rocks can provide habitats for marine animals that live on the sea floor, and can attract numerous fish species and even porpoises. Location and sea depth play a crucial role in minimising the effects of a wind farm, and strategic placement of wind farms can prevent them from interfering with birds' flight patterns. However, offshore wind turbines generate undersea noise that can disorient or damage the eardrums of cetaceans such as whales and porpoises. Greenpeace and the German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation advocate the use of a 'bubble curtain' to soften noises around construction sites and protect cetaceans' hearing, and construction should wait if cetaceans are present. Further studies will be needed to verify the results of this study.

Are Unicorns Real?
BBC Earth's latest blog takes a light-hearted look at their Top 5 Mythical Creatures. Check out number 4 - Mermaids. According to BBC Earth, "...these marine temptresses are more real than their mythology suggests." It is believed that sightings of mermaids could in in fact have been dugongs ('sea cows'), manatees or dolphins, which deluded sailors mistook for women with fish tails.

What is so special about the white whale?
In an earlier BBC Earth blog post, Adelle Havard delved into the lives of Beluga and Narwhal whales. Beluga whales were nicknamed the 'Sea Canary' by early Arctic sailors and are social marine mammals, using high-pitched whistles, screeches, clicks and squeaks to communicate. These noises can even be heard through the hulls of ships! Narwhals are also very vocal, and love cold water and deep sea diving. Their tusks can be up to 3m long and perform a function similar to a lion's mane or a peacock's tail feather. Narwhal's are unique in their ability to hunt in the deep waters in winter, and shallow waters in summer. The blog also discusses Narwhal migration and mating.

"Seabirds on the Decline"
The RSPB has said that the population of UK seabirds is in decline. The UK has long been renowned for it's populations of seabirds but the RSPB has claimed that too many seabird sites are no longer being protected. Most seabird nesting sites are protected, but the areas where they feed at sea are not.

"GBR: Rising Turtle Deaths Prompt Warnings of Wildlife Crisis"
Unusually large numbers of dead and dying turtles are washing up dead along the coast of the Great Barrier Reef. Researchers believe this may be linked to cyclones and flooding earlier in the year which wiped out the seagrass beds that turtles feed on. 649 turtle deaths were reported in the first seven months of 2011, an increase of 200 in the same period last year. Dugongs are also suffering, with 96 reported dead in the first seven months of 2011, compared with 79 in the whole of 2010. Environmental groups have warned of a wildlife crisis in the region, with WWF urging the Queensland government to overhaul regulations surrounding fisheries and coastal development, and reduce the amount of pollution released into the sea.

"Blue shark saved by amateur fishermen"
A fisherman in Malta has saved a blue shark by removing a plastic ring that was wrapped around it's body. The fisherman was out at sea on a fishing trip last weekend when he encountered the shark, and observed that the ring was already putting pressure on the shark's skin. He used a fillet knife to remove the ring of plastic from the shark's body. Had he not removed it, it would have started to dig in to the shark's skin as it grew and would have caused the shark difficulties.Nature Trust (Malta) have encouraged anybody who encounters plastic at sea to collect it and dispose of it properly on land, preferably by recycling it, as plastic can cause numerous problems in the marine environment. At least this shark has had a lucky escape!

"Human Pathogen Killing Corals in the Florida Keys"
Human sewage has been identified as the source of a pathogen that is killing coral the Florida Keys. The research team from Rollins College, Florida, and the University of Georgia have found that the pathogen causes white pox disease in Caribbean elkhorn coral. This species, which was once the most common coral in the Caribbean, was listed for protection under the United States Endangered Species Act in 2006 after suffering greatly from white pox disease. Researchers hope to solve the problem with advanced waste water treatment facilities.

"Scientists Study 'World's Most Robust Marine Reserve'"
A study of Mexico's Cabo Pulmo National Park, near the southern tip of the Baja peninsula, has been completed after a decade of research and has determined that the location is the, "most robust marine reserve in the world". Researchers from the Scripps Institution completed the ten-year study and found that the previously fishing-depleted area has experienced a 460% increase in total biomass from 1999 to 2009. This increase represents tons of new fish produced every year and no other marine reserve in the world has shown such a fish recovery. Ten years ago the reserve only had medium-sized fishes; now, there are large parrot fish, groupers, snappers and even sharks. Whilst the percentage of recovery isn't unprecedented, the density of the fish (4 tons per hectare) is the best the researchers have seen anywhere on record.

"Debris Month of Action"
 September sees the launch of Project AWARE’s new Dive Against Debris program, coinciding with their Marine Debris Month of Action. Participants are asked to collect critical data whilst taking part in underwater cleanups, to help address marine debris problems at their source. The data collected will help initiate policy change to prevent debris in the future. Project AWARE are looking for both organisers and volunteers to take part in a Dive Against Debris next month.