Last summer when Oregon State University researchers announced the development of a new strain of seaweed tasting remarkably like bacon when cooked, the news caught the attention of foodies everywhere. It was hailed as the holy grail of good eating — a nutrition-packed marine plant as yummy as a fat-loaded meat product.
“The ocean remains a wonder to me. As an ecologist, I have worked on land, but I understand that the ocean — like forests, wetlands and grasslands — is vulnerable to disruptions and that we are just starting to understand its complexity and dynamics.”
The implications for the endangered blue whale (and, by extension, other marine predators) are clear. If they’re disturbed during intense, deep-water feeding, it could have consequences for their fitness, overall health and reproductive viability over time.
The 2010 Academy Award-winning movie The Cove — which documented dolphin slaughter in Japan — included scenes of OSU researcher Scott Baker conducting DNA analysis covertly in his hotel room.
Floating in the seas are zillions of microscopic creatures called “protists,” a catchall term for a group of algae-eating organisms that are neither animal, plant or fungus. As ubiquitous as they are, scientists don’t yet fully grasp their role in the marine carbon cycle, according to OSU researcher Stephen Giovannoni.
In May, the Endurance team recovered the rest of the components of the broken mooring. Over the summer, they will examine the evidence to pinpoint the cause of the failure. The buoy will be reconditioned and sent back to its post. It’s all part of the dance that oceanographers do to unlock the secrets of the sea.