Sea Notes

Herbie's Holiday Corals

Herbie Hippocampus the Aquarium's most famous seahorse celebrates the holidays with all his Facebook friends. Thanks to everyone who participated in the daily sing-a-long. Don't forget to download these songs from c-Tunes!

The Hippocampus Song

Brine shrimp roasting on an open fire,
Small crabs nipping at your nose.
Yuletide carols being sung by sardines,  
And sharks dressed up like escargot.

Everybody knows, 
A sea star and some giant kelp,
Help to make the seafloor bright.
Bioluminescent jellies
With their arms all aglow,
Can even sting their prey at night.

They know that red tide’s on its way,
Bringing lots of algae bloom along the way.
And every seahorse babe is gonna spy,
To see if flying fish really know how to fly.

And so we're bringing you this fishy tale,
From deep water den'zens large and small,
Waving flippers and fins, we share the good cheer,
Foamy whitecaps to aaaaaaaaaaall!

Floating in an Underwater Land

Seahorses sing, are you listenin’?
In the kelp, krill is glistenin’,
A beautiful sea, come sing now with me,
Floating in an underwater land.

In the tide pool we can count the limpets,
As the tidal currents ebb and flow,
Later on the humans buy their tickets,
To see the holiday Aquarium Show. 

Later on, we’ll conspire, as we swim by the tide pools.
To face unafraid, the sharks and the whales,
Floating in an underwater land.

Brine Christmas

I’m dreamin’ of a brine Christmas,
Just like the ones I used to slurp.
Where the soft corals glisten,
And clown fish listen,
To see if seahorse really burp.

I’m dreaming of a brine Christmas,
With every coral that I sing.
Where the sea slugs glisten,
And whale watchers listen
To hear humpbacks as they blow.

 Let it Marine Snow

Oh the weather outside is frightful,
But my tank is quite delightful,
Where pygmy seahorse moan,
Let me grow, let me grow, let me grow!

The party in my tank is whopping,
And we’ve plenty of brine shrimp for chopping,
The lights are turned down low,
Meet me under the mistletoe.

Then we’ll cuddle like cuttlefish,
As we slurp up our own brine dish,
Then we’ll swim to the top of the sea,
But look out for dangerous squid.

Oh the light is slowly dimming
We can’t see where we’re swimming,
The kelp is swaying to and fro,
Santa’s here, ho ho ho, ho ho ho!

Away in a Mangrove

Away in a mangrove, near a coral reef bed,
Herbie the seahorse poked out his cute head,
The starfish in the bright sea looked down where he peeked
And said there’s a cute one in that great coral reef.

The whales are a-calling while making their way
To warm fertile waters in Mexico’s bays
Then orcas are waiting in the canyon's deep depths
To sneak up on gray whales and <censored>.

Hark the Hungry Seahorse

Hark the hungry seahorse sing,
When will someone breakfast bring?
Peace to all things tame and wild,
Sharks and sea lions reconciled.

Joyful all ye brine shrimp fries,
Eat them all? I sure will try.
Sunshine to the ocean brings,
Creates fish stew for all beings.

Hark the hungry seahorse sing,
Oh when will someone breakfast bring?

Oh Little Town

Oh little town of Monterey,
World’s best aquarium.
Perched on the bay where otters play
And pelicans fly by.

Yet in the dark of the canyon,
Where vampire squid do lurk.
The brave brine shrimp do play each day,
And then do hide at night.

Herbie the Red-nosed Seahorse

There’s Mae and Toola and Kit and Rosa.
There’ve been white sharks and tuna and even a mola.
But do you recall the famous species of all?

Herbie the hippocampus,
Had a very shiny nose,
And if you ever saw him,
You would even say it glows.

All of the other critters,
Were jealous of his snazzy snout,
They didn’t understand,
What the fuss was all about.

Then one foggy Monterey day,
The circus came to town.
Herbie with your nose so bright,
Won’t you be our clown tonight?

All of the other seahorse,
That used to laugh and shake their manes,
They never even realized, that
Shakin' manes was just in vane!

Herbie the Facebook seahorse,
You’ll go down in Aquarium fame!!! 

THE END

Special thanks to Facebook song contributors: Melanie Helmke, Claire Johnston, Mimi Hahn, Brenda Helmke Smith, Dan Sedenquist, AC Smith, Ken Peterson, Yvonne Hoffman, Elizabeth Shipley, Michelle Tobar Bauer, Pearl DeCew & everyone who gave them encouragement or sypmathy :-) Lots of love, Herbs.

Images courtesy of Microsoft clipart with a little Seahorse Magic!

In Very Hot Water

There was news about climate change and the Antarctic ice sheet last week, and it doesn't bode well if you love penguins or own oceanfront property. (Or believe that climate change isn't happening at a rapid clip.)

Oceanographer Doug Martinson of the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory told an American Geophysical Union audience that ocean waters in western Antarctica -- which he's studied for nearly two decades -- have experienced "the highest increase in temperatures of anywhere on Earth."

Glaciers are in retreat, Adelie penguin colonies have vanished and there's growing concern that the vast West Antarctic Ice Sheet could break free and begin melting in decades, not a century from now.

(Larry O'Hanlon of Discovery News online has an excellent report -- well worth your time to read in full.)

The key point is that the heat of global warming has largely been absorbed by the oceans over two centuries of industrialization. Now that warm water is coming to the surface in, as O'Hanlon eloquently puts it, "one of the worst possible places."

How rapidly the ice sheet and continental glaciers melt is dependent on the vagaries of winds that cause an upwelling of deep ocean water along the coast of western Antarctica -- the same upwelling phenomenon that's responsible for abundant nutrients, and marine life, along the coast near Monterey.

Joe Romm of Climate Progress notes that the West Antarctic Ice Sheet is "fundamentally far less stable" than the Greenland ice sheet, increasing the potential for a catastrophic collapse of the ice sheet.

Regardless of what people do to limit greenhouse gases in the future, Martinson said, we're stuck dealing with the heat already in the ocean. That means the ice sheets will continue to melt, and sea level continue to rise -- with no end in sight.

 

Photos: Adelie penguin courtesy NOAA/Michael Van Woert; Antartica courtesy NASA

 

Doctor on Duty

There aren't many dull days for a doctor whose patients include great white sharks, sea otters, sandpipers and bluefin tuna.

And Dr. Mike Murray, staff veterinarian at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, wouldn't have it any other way.

For the past 22 years, first on a contract basis and as a staff member since 2004, he's been providing primary medical care to the animals in our living collection. That includes everything from surgeries to help shark-bit sea otters, to routine exams for geriatric shorebirds and health screenings of rescued penguins flown up to Monterey from Brazil.

You can read a great profile of Dr. Murray by staff writer Jane Lee of the Monterey County Herald, with photos of him in action caring for sea otters and penguins.

His work on behalf of ocean wildlife includes major contributions to our research program. This takes him far afield, whether to southern California to tag juvenile great white sharks, or to Russia and Alaska to work with sea otters.

He's now one of the lead contributors to a multi-year project looking at the health of coastal ecosystems -- using sea otters as the "canary in a coalmine" to alert us to problems from coastal pollution or altered ocean conditions related to global climate change.

We're committed to this work, and to Dr. Murray's involvement in science that's so vital to assuring a future where sea otters, tunas, sharks and other ocean wildlife can thrive. You can support him -- and all of our conservation research programs -- with your donation to our Saving Ocean Animals campaign.

A Huge Ocean Victory in California

Christmas came early in California with Wednesday's decision by the Fish and Game Commission approving a strong network of marine protected areas (MPAs) off the southern California coast.

Creating protected areas that preserve critical pieces of coastal ecosystems, as well as reservoirs to replenish depleted ocean waters, has been a priority for the Monterey Bay Aquarium. The science worldwide demonstrates the impact MPAs can have. Now three of the five regions of California's coast have strong, science-based networks of reserves. A fourth region (the coast north of San Francisco, to the Oregon border) is on track to complete the process in 2011. Decisions about creating protected areas within San Francisco Bay are still some years down the road.

The southern California process was particularly challenging, given the size of the population and the numbers of people who had a stake in the outcome: conservation organizations, sport and commercial fishermen, kayakers, scuba divers to name a few. We're grateful that thousands of people spoke out in favor of protecting this living legacy for future generations.

In the end, the commission created 36 new protected areas encompassing approximately 187 square miles (8 percent) of state waters in the region. Roughly 116 square miles (4.9 percent) were placed in no-take state marine reserves and no-take state marine conservation areas. The rest were designated as state marine conservation areas with varying levels of protection.

Commissioner Michael Sutton, who heads our Center for the Future of the Oceans and who voted in favor of the proposal, called the decision "good news for everyone who cares about the future of our fisheries and the future of our marine ecosystems."

Photos: Kelp forest copyright Monterey Bay Aquarium/Charles Seaborn; sea bass and sardines, and garibaldi, copyright Monterey Bay Aquarium

 

Putting Ocean-Friendly Seafood on the Map

The Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch program has long been the go-to source for consumers and businesses looking for ocean-friendly seafood.

Now we're literally putting sustainable seafood on the map.

Project FishMap, a newly launched feature of our award-winning Seafood Watch iPhone app, lets you tag more than one million restaurants and markets across the United States anytime you find ocean-friendly seafood.

Every iPhone user can then discover where you (and others) have found sustainable seafood nationwide. 

(Android fans: Fear not! An Android version of the app is coming in 2011.)

The newly updated -- and always free -- iPhone app can be downloaded here.

"We want people to have a resource so they can find ocean-friendly seafood no matter where they live," says Sheila Bowman, senior outreach manager for Seafood Watch. "This is a real community project for green living."

"With Project FishMap, anyone who finds sustainable seafood can share their discoveries. Each time they do, they’re helping others make better seafood choices."

 Other key features of the updated app:

• The ability for users to easily add restaurants and markets that sell sustainable seafood to the Seafood Watch iPhone database. Each time you do, you can earn virtual badges (Sushi Master for adding a sushi item in a restaurant, Pioneer for being the first to report finding sustainable seafood at a restaurant).
• Better search functions to help you find seafood quickly and easily by its common market name or, in the case of sushi, by its Japanese name.
• Suggestions for sustainable alternatives to items on the Seafood Watch "Avoid" list.
• A highlighted list of "Super Green" seafood that's heart-healthy, low in contaminants and caught or farmed in environmentally friendly ways.

The original Seafood Watch iPhone app, launched in January 2009, has been downloaded by more than 325,000 individuals. It’s won awards from Treehugger.com as the "Best of Green in Food and Health" and is cited regularly as a trusted source for sustainable seafood information.

Since its debut in 1999, Seafood Watch has become the most influential consumer seafood selection tool in the United States. We've distributed more than 36 million Seafood Watch pocket guides to help individuals make seafood choices that preserve the health of ocean ecosystems.

In 2008, Bon Appétit Magazinenamed Monterey Bay Aquarium as its "Tastemaker of the Year," because Seafood Watch has played such an influential role in transforming seafood buying habits across the United States.

You can download the Seafood Watch iPhone app (with Project FishMap) right now. Our you can browse the App Store on your iPhone or iPod touch and download the free, official app directly to your device.

Curious how it works? Here's a demo: 

The 12 Plankton of Christmas

Beautiful photos of ocean creatures, with a seasonal flavor. Thanks to Environmental Graffiti for the feature, and Dr. Richard Kirby, a Royal Society Research Fellow at the University of Plymouth, for creating the book Ocean Drifters from which the images come.

We have our own beautiful ocean drifters here at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, including (occasionally) the spotted comb jelly. Right now, we're also offering guests a sneak peek behind the scenes in our Drifters gallery -- an up-close look at our jellies that the public rarely gets a chance to experience. Check it out when you visit.

The Aquarium Promotes Russian Relations

When Director of Husbandry Operations Jon Hoech heard the Russians were coming earlier this year, he welcomed them with open arms. In early November, a group of four aquarists and one translator arrived from Vladivostok, on the Sea of Japan. Their mission: to learn everything possible about the Monterey Bay Aquarium—information they’ll use to build the largest public aquarium in Russia, planned for a 2012 opening.

“Prime Minister Vladimir Putin announced plans for the Primorsky Aquarium in 2004,” says Jon. “And their staff was charged with engaging with the aquarium community at large to learn more about management and husbandry.” So, in a gesture of goodwill and cooperation, Monterey Bay Aquarium staff hosted the group for the entire month of November. Our Russian colleagues shadowed our staff throughout the day, learning everything from finance to penguin feeding, guest experience to growing jellies. They wore Aquarium name tags, carried our handheld radios and generally acted like any other employees.

“We were here from 8 to 5 every day, cleaning, feeding and generally helping out,” says Interpreter  Elena Boyko, fresh from watching a sea otter surgery that morning. “The idea was to not just learn theory, but to do it in a practical way.”

A State-of-the-Art Aquarium

Construction of the roughly 100,000-square-foot Primorsky Aquarium began in February 2010 and the opening is planned for summer 2012. It’s Russia’s first large-scale public aquarium, developed in association with Vladivostok’s Institute of Marine Biology, and will include sea otters, manatees, dolphins and numerous native species. Like the Monterey Bay Aquarium, Primorsky’s mission encompasses conservation, research and education, in addition to providing a state-of-the-art guest experience. “Our mission is to raise the level of knowledge of our oceans,” says Elena.

The Primorsky Aquarium is on an island, requiring a short ferry ride. A bridge is being built to serve the  facility, as well as a university, associated hotels and a conference center. It’s all slated for completion in time for the annual Asian Pacific Economic Cooperation conference in summer 2012.

Living the Lives of Aquarists

The four Russian aquarists each had specific areas of expertise. Vladimir Maslov spent almost all of his time shadowing our sea otter staff, Victor Kolobov studied pelagic (open-ocean) fishes, Aleksei Bykov focused on our kelp forest exhibit and Marat Khaydarov learned about growing and caring for jellies. Staff from throughout the Aquarium was enlisted to help, sharing information about everything from diving to the deep sea.

“We really appreciated the opportunity to learn,” says Elena. “We were very impressed with the   organization—it’s something we can strive toward. We don’t have such aquariums in Russia yet, so everything was new and interesting for us. We were overwhelmed to see how all things work together in operating a big aquarium, how the big tanks with different species are presented and maintained, and to hear stories about how everything had been started.”

Bike Rides and Big Sur

The visit wasn’t all business, however. In their spare time the Russian team visited San Francisco, the Big Sur coast and other local attractions. They rented bikes and explored the Monterey Peninsula. And, in a particular highlight, they even got to experience one Monterey Bay Aquarium staffer’s tree house.

Their visit was full of special experiences. At one point they were eating in a local restaurant and struck up a conversation with an Aquarium volunteer. Later, when they went to pay their bill, they discovered that their new acquaintance had taken care of it.

“It’s a very beautiful place—the people were very nice, very warm,” says Elena. “During the four weeks Monterey became a special place for each of us – neat, friendly, with beautiful and unusual flora.”

There were a few surprises—like steak cooked rare or medium. “In Russian we don’t eat meat if it’s not well done,” says Elena. They were also surprised when they weren’t required to remove their shoes before entering a house. “It’s not typical for Russia. Also the style of the dinner – very informal – we didn’t have to sit at the table all the time, but could eat wherever . It’s unusual for us, but we liked it!

“In general, our stay here was very positive and interesting. People are very nice and helpful and we’re very thankful of all the training and great attitude and cooperation of the Aquarium staff. Special thanks to the husbandry department, which allowed us to be with them and learn firsthand, and especially to Jon Hoech, who organized our visit inside and outside the Aquarium and became a true friend for all of us.”

And, in a fitting final gesture, one of the Russian team members got a shark tattoo on the last night of his stay. Dasvidania!

Carnival of the Blue, Holiday Edition

 
It's that time again. The best in ocean blogging. Check out this month's carnival hosted by Deep Type Flow, with a festive 12 days of blogging.

Great White Bite (Lite)

Adult great white sharks have a fearsome reputation as predators on seals, sea lions and the occasional dead whale. Younger great whites do not, sticking to a diet of small fishes, rays and other sharks.

Now researchers think they know why.

A newly published study concludes that teenage great whites lack the jaw-power to chomp down on big marine mammals. The work by an international research team involved 3-D computer modeling to look at the biomechanics of shark jaws in both great whites and grey nurse sharks. Their findings were published in the Journal of Biomechanics.

"We were surprised that although the teeth and jaws of our sub-adult great white shark looked the part and the muscles were there to drive them, the jaws themselves just couldn’t handle the stress associated with big bites on big prey," said study co-author Dr. Stephen Wroe, who heads the Computational Biomechanics Research Group in the School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences at Australia's University of New South Wales (UNSW).

The reason for this appears to be that until great whites reach a length of about 3 meters or more their jaws haven't developed enough stiff mineralized cartilage to resist the forces involved. So they stick to a fishy diet.

When they grow larger, and their jaws grow stronger, they can begin feasting on blubbery marine mammals.

As lead author Toni Ferrara, a UNSW doctoral student  (pictured with the young shark used to create the computer model), notes: "It seems paradoxical that the iconic jaws of great white sharks -- made infamous by the classic Steven Spielberg movie Jaws -- are actually rather vulnerable when these sharks are young. Great white sharks are not born super-predators. They take years to become formidable hunters."

While the Monterey Bay Aquarium and our colleagues don't study biting forces of great white jaws, we continue to tag and track juvenile and adult white sharks as part of our White Shark Research Project. When our Open Sea exhibits reopen next summer we'll try to bring a sixth young great white shark back to the aquarium for a few-month stay on exhibit.

Credit Monterey Bay Aquarium (top) and UNSW (bottom)