Blog
Wednesday Wisdom: Predator, scavenger and a cannibal from the ice age
Author: Signe Damkjaer
Date: November 2, 2011The Saduria entomon is a true survivor. Take a look at this picture, and there will be no doubt that you are looking into the eyes of a predator. It eats amphipods such as monoporeia affinis mussels, freshwater lice and larvae. Even more macabre is that it’s also an omnivorous scavenger feeding on dead fish and other dead organisms it finds at the bottom of the sea.
Read More...Beware the mutant fish
Author: Angela Pauly
Date: October 31, 2011No need for costumes, fake cobwebs or scary music, this Halloween edition of our blog features an unfortunate real life monster. Take a look at the “lovely” image of a mutant, 3-eyed wolffish found near a nuclear plant in Argentina.
Friday Meet & Greet: The Ambush of the Anemone
Author: Angela Pauly
Date: October 28, 2011Today’s Meet & Greet looks like its straight out of a horror movie! Trust me, this video is a MUST SEE – it catches you so off guard, one second you are wondering what it is you are supposed to be looking at, and then before you know it, this creepy hand looking thing is coming out of the ground – and well…I won’t ruin the surprise, see for yourself: We’ve called it the Ambush of the Anemone – watch and enjoy! There is no sound, but that just ups the creepiness factor.
Read More...Safety measures in offshore drilling: the EU misses its chance
Author: Angela Pauly
Date: October 27, 2011You know what’s frustrating? When a chance to fix something that is so clearly in need of fixing is passed over. This time around, it has to do with safety in European offshore drilling activities
You’d think after the lessons learned from BP’s Deepwater Horizon spill, the European Commission would be doing everything they could to make sure such a disaster never occurs in European waters…and yet today, when EU Energy Commissioner Oettinger presented his long awaited proposal to regulate offshore oil and gas activities in Europe, we learned they didn’t.
Read More...Dead men's fingers - a cosy soft coral
Author: Signe Damkjaer
Date: October 26, 2011
If you still dont know how to dress up for this weekend's Halloween-party, how about this soft coral. Dead men’s fingers (Alcyonium digitaturn) may have scared at least a diver or two. The conspicuous name reveals that the animal looks a bit like the swollen hand of a dead person. Dead men’s fingers is a soft coral found in coastal areas in the northern Atlantic, and is common in most areas of the Baltic Sea. The picture is from Kattegat, and was taken during Oceana’s expedition in the Baltic Sea in the spring 2011.
Read More...Red Coral, Red Alert?
Author: Angela Pauly
Date: October 24, 2011
Red coral (sometimes called precious coral) is widely used throughout the world for jewelry, and in beauty products. The human “appetite” for this stunning coral, which dates as far back as ancient Greece and Egypt, when red coral was considered to have sacred properties, has unfortunately led to the destruction of many red coral colonies, and there are concerns about the sustainability of coral harvesting.
Read More...Eelpout - closer to mammals than you might think
Author: Signe Damkjaer
Date: October 20, 2011Eelpout (Zoarces Viviparus) is one of the most common species in the Baltic Sea. It is also found in the coastal areas of North East Atlantic. Not much of looker, few people are aware how interesting a fish the eelpout actually is. Danish research has brought forward the extraordinary fact, that the eelpout suckle its offspring just like mammals. The eelpout belong to those around 750 fish species that give birth instead of laying eggs.
Read More...Atlantic Habitat Protection: Putting our Expedition Data to use
Author: Angela Pauly
Date: October 20, 2011Today is a really exciting day for us. In 2008, OSPAR developed a list of Threatened and/or Declining Species and Habitats. The list is unfortunately vague in many habitat definitions, which prevents a common and clear understanding of where they occur.
Read More...Friday meet & greet: Sea Stickleback
Author: Signe Damkjaer
Date: October 14, 2011The Sea Stickleback (Spinachia spinachia), which is also sometimes called the fifteen-spined stickleback (because it characteristically has between 14-17 dorsal spines).
Adults generally live solitary or in pairs, in shallow coastal areas and feed on small invertebrates. This fish can reach up to 25cm in length and is commonly found.
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