Articles for category: Marine Biology

Adaptations of Fish in OMZs

The Deep Scattering Layer: When Fish Mimic the Seafloor

Trizzy Orozco

Imagine a world beneath the waves where dawn and dusk trigger a mass migration so vast, it can be seen by ships’ sonar as a ghostly, moving false bottom. Welcome to the deep scattering layer—a mysterious, shifting band in the ocean where fish and other creatures gather in such numbers that they seem to mimic ...

tardigrade

How Coral, Tardigrades, and Fungi Are Teaching Us About Space Life – International Day of Human Space Flight

Trizzy Orozco

In the vast expanse of the universe, the quest for understanding life beyond Earth has always captured human imagination. As we celebrate the International Day of Human Space Flight, it’s fascinating to delve into how seemingly unrelated Earth organisms like coral, tardigrades, and fungi are unraveling the mysteries of space life. Who would have thought ...

Horseshoe Crabs Aren’t Crabs—They’re Living Fossils From Another Era

Horseshoe Crabs Aren’t Crabs—They’re Living Fossils From Another Era

Annette Uy

Something ancient still walks the world’s shorelines—creatures with armored shells and spiky tails that seem plucked from the pages of a prehistoric epic. Horseshoe crabs, with their alien appearance and mysterious blue blood, are not the crabs they’re named for, nor are they relics to be ignored. These magnificent survivors date back hundreds of millions ...

Teamwork in the Animal Kingdom

Spiders Aren’t Insects—They’re More Closely Related to Horseshoe Crabs

Jan Otte

Imagine wandering through a garden at dusk, brushing past a delicate web glistening with dew, and pausing to watch its silent architect—a spider. Most people would immediately call it an insect, but what if the truth was far stranger? Beneath those eight legs and mysterious eyes lies a secret ancestry, one that connects spiders not ...

A breathtaking view of the ocean at sunset, with dramatic clouds and sunrays breaking through, creating a serene seascape.

The Ocean’s Oxygen Minimum Zones and the Life That Thrives There

Maria Faith Saligumba

Imagine a place deep in the ocean where oxygen is so scarce that most life forms would struggle to survive. Yet, in these seemingly inhospitable areas, known as Oxygen Minimum Zones (OMZs), life not only exists but thrives in a fascinating array of adaptations. This paradoxical world beneath the waves is a testament to nature’s ...

Chinese robotic whale shark

China Creates World’s First Intelligent Robotic Whale Shark

Andrew Alpin

In a groundbreaking achievement, Chinese engineers using space technology have created a 5-meter intelligent robotic whale shark. A significant contribution to evolving marine technology, the robot shark can replicate the movements of a real shark with incredible precision. It can float, swim, dive and even make mouth movements just like a real one. While the ...

The Undersea Landslide That Once Rocked the New Zealand Coast

The Undersea Landslide That Once Rocked the New Zealand Coast

Annette Uy

Imagine waking up to the news that an entire underwater landscape has shifted, altering the seafloor and potentially changing the coastal geography of a nation. This was the reality for New Zealanders when an undersea landslide dramatically impacted their coast. Such events, though hidden from the naked eye, have profound effects on marine life, coastal ...