Latest news with #AndersonCabotCenterforOceanLife
Euronews
20-05-2025
- Science
- Euronews
Lack of endangered whale babies raises alarm among scientists
A vanishing species of whale gave birth to so few babies this birthing season that it has raised alarms among scientists and conservationists who fear the animal could go extinct. The whale is the North Atlantic right whale, which numbers only about 370 and has declined in population in recent years. The whales give birth to calves off the southeastern United States from mid-November to mid-April, and federal authorities have said they need to have at least 50 calves per season to start recovering. The whales didn't come anywhere near that number this year. The calving season produced only 11 mother-calf pairs, scientists with the New England Aquarium in Boston said. The lack of baby whales underscores the need for their protection, conservationists said Monday. North Atlantic right whales are vulnerable to entanglement in marine fishing gear and collisions with large ships. 'They're also reproducing more slowly than they used to,' said the International Fund for Animal Welfare in its calving season report card. "This is likely due to stress from entanglements, navigation among busy maritime traffic, increasing ocean noise, and the changing distribution of their food sources." The calving season did have some bright spots. Several females gave birth for the first time, and that gives hope for the future, the aquarium said in a statement. The whale population only has about 70 reproductive females left. 'With past calf counts ranging from 39 to zero, we never know how any calving season will unfold. While the calf count is relatively low this year, I am encouraged by four new mothers being added to the reproductive pool,' said Philip Hamilton, senior scientist in the Aquarium's Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life. The whales can weigh up to 45,360 kilograms and were heavily exploited during the era of commercial whaling. They've been protected for decades, but have been slow to recover. In recent years, scientists have said the whales have strayed from established protected zones in search of food, and that has put them at elevated risk of entanglements and collisions. The whales migrate from the south to New England and Canada to feed on tiny ocean organisms. India's plans to double steel production by the end of the decade could jeopardise its national climate goals and a key global target to reduce planet-heating gas emissions from the steel industry, according to a report released Tuesday. The report by Global Energy Monitor, an organisation that tracks energy projects around the globe, said efforts to decarbonise steelmaking are gaining traction around the world. However, in India, the world's second-largest steel-producing nation, overwhelming reliance on coal-based technologies presents a big challenge. 'India is now the bellwether of global steel decarbonisation,' said Astrid Grigsby-Schulte, project manager of the Global Iron and Steel Tracker at GEM and report co-author. 'If the country does not increase its plans for green steel production, the entire sector will miss an important milestone. So goes India, so goes the world.' Currently, up to 12 per cent of India's greenhouse gas emissions, which go into the atmosphere and heat the planet, come from steelmaking. That number could double in five years if steel is produced in line with the government's plans, according to the report. At the same time, India wants to produce 500 gigawatts of clean power - enough to power nearly 300 million Indian homes - by the end of this decade. The South Asian nation recently crossed the milestone of installing 100 gigawatts of solar power, most of which was installed in the last 10 years. By 2070, India also aims to go net zero, that is, it will either eliminate all carbon dioxide pollution it emits or cancel it out by using other methods, such as planting trees that absorb carbon. Steel production is one of the most carbon-intensive industries, responsible for nearly 9 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions. The International Energy Agency has set a target for 37 per cent of global steelmaking capacity to rely on lower-emission electric arc furnaces by 2030. Current projections by GEM show the world reaching just 36 per cent — a shortfall largely due to India's coal-heavy pipeline. India plans to expand its steel production capacity from 200 million to over 330 million tonnes per year by 2030. According to the new data, over 40 per cent of global capacity in development - about 352 million tonnes per annum - is in India, with more than half of that using coal-based capacity. 'India is the only major steel-producing nation that has so much coal-based capacity in the pipeline,' said Henna Khadeeja, a research analyst with GEM who also worked on the report. India's steel sector releases approximately 2.6 tonnes of carbon dioxide per tonne of steel, roughly 25 per cent more than the global average. China, the world's largest steelmaker, has managed to keep its emissions lower per tonne by producing more scrap-based steel and retiring older coal-based plants. India's heavy dependence on coal for steelmaking is driven by a combination of factors: low-cost domestic coal, a relatively young fleet of blast furnaces that still have 20–25 years of operational life left, and a lack of natural gas and steel scrap. The country's scrap recycling ecosystem remains informal, and high-quality iron ore is scarce. 'There is potential for India to change course,' said Khadeeja of GEM. 'Much of the planned capacity is still on paper. Only 8 per cent of it has actually broken ground. This means there is still a window to shift toward lower-emission technologies.' The consequences of producing carbon-polluting steel may go beyond climate goals. While India's steel exports are only a small share of its overall production, they could suffer as major markets like the European Union begin enforcing carbon border taxes next year. 'India may be better off tolerating some short-term pain of technological upgrading to make its steel cleaner for long-term competitiveness gain,' said Easwaran Narassimhan of the New Delhi-based think tank Sustainable Futures Collaborative.
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
First white shark of season confirmed off New England after dead seal found on Massachusetts beach
BOSTON - Beachgoers, beware! The New England Aquarium in Boston said the first great white shark of the season was spotted lurking in the waters off Nantucket over the weekend. According to the aquarium, a witness noticed a pool of blood off Smith's Point in Madaket on the western end of the island on Sunday, May 11, and then saw a seal swimming toward the shore with a shark in pursuit. Groundbreaking Research Shows Great White Sharks May Change Color To Better Hunt Their Prey After examining photos of the seal, John Chisholm, an adjunct scientist in the aquarium's Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life, it was confirmed that the bite did indeed come from a white shark. "This is the time of year when we like to remind people to be 'shark smart' as white sharks return to the inshore waters of New England, where they'll hunt seals and other prey through the summer and into the fall," Chisholm said. So, what does it mean to be shark smart? Can Lights Help Prevent Shark Attacks? Chisholm said people heading to the beach need to be aware of sharks' presence in shallow water and avoid areas where seals are present or schools of fish are visible. It's also advised to stay close to shore, where emergency responders can get to you if you need help. Beachgoers can report shark sightings and can be alerted to shark activity with the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy's Sharktivity app. What Are The Most Dangerous Beaches In America? The New England Aquarium has a team of nine scientists in the Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life who study sharks, including porbeagle and nurse sharks, as well as thresher, blue, mako, sandbar, and sand tiger sharks. Officials said that, depending on the time of year, over 15 shark species reside in the waters off New article source: First white shark of season confirmed off New England after dead seal found on Massachusetts beach
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
First great white shark of the season confirmed off coast of Massachusetts
The first great white shark of the season has been confirmed off coast of Massachusetts. On Sunday, May 11, a witness noticed a pool of blood off Smith's Point in Madaket on the western end of Nantucket. The person then saw a seal swimming toward the beach with a shark following behind. J John Chisholm, an adjunct scientist in the Aquarium's Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life, examined photos of the seal's wounds and confirmed that the bite came from a white shark. 'This is the time of year when we like to remind people to be 'shark smart' as white sharks return to the inshore waters of New England, where they'll hunt seals and other prey through the summer and into the fall,' Chisholm said. The New England Aquarium is urging the public to be aware of their surroundings and report shark sightings. Chisholm recommends to be 'Shark Smart' which means being aware of sharks' presence in shallow waters, avoiding areas where seals are present or schools of fish are visible, and staying close to shore where emergency responders can reach you if needed. Over 15 shark species reside in New England waters depending on the time of year. The public can report sightings and stay informed on shark activity through the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy's Sharktivity app. 'Increased shark sightings can be a positive sign of a recovering marine ecosystem, but this recovery also means that people should take even more care while swimming or surfing,' said Dr. Nick Whitney, senior scientist and chair of the Anderson Cabot Center's Fisheries Science and Emerging Technologies program. The Sharktivity app, which is available to download on iPhone and Android, tracks sightings fed by researchers, safety officials, and users who upload photos for confirmation. Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
‘Slow down': Mariners warned about North Atlantic right whales seen in shipping lanes south of Mass.
More than 75 North Atlantic right whales have been spotted in the shipping lanes south of Massachusetts, prompting NOAA Fisheries to designate a voluntary Slow Zone for mariners, New England Aquarium officials said Thursday. Mariners are being urged to monitor alerts from NOAA Fisheries and reduce speeds to 10 knots within slow zones and Seasonal Management Areas. 'Ship strikes are one of the leading causes of injuries and deaths for this critically endangered species, making it crucial that vessels slow down to the recommended speed,' New England Aquarium officials said in a statement. Scientists from the New England Aquarium's Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life were flying an aerial survey on April 23 when they spotted an aggregation of over 60 right whales 55 miles south of Martha's Vineyard, officials said. The whales, which were likely feeding, were seen in shipping lanes. A second survey on April 28 saw 40 right whales, including 15 additional individuals not seen on the first survey, officials said. Researchers have seen groups of feeding right and sei whales in the springtime in this area over the last few years, although this year's aggregation is one of the largest researchers have seen there. Most of the whales sighted in this aggregation were adults, including several calving females such as 'Calvin' (Catalog #2223). Associate Research Scientist Katherine McKenna was surprised and pleased to see Calvin on the survey. 'This was the first time Calvin had been seen in almost three years, and at her last sighting, she had severe entanglement wounds that were new. A lot of people had given up hope that she was still alive after not being seen for so long,' McKenna said. In 1992, Calvin was orphaned as an 8-month-old calf after her mother was killed by a large vessel strike. Calvin has since endured eight entanglements and given birth to four calves of her own. 'Calvin's story illustrates the resiliency of right whales,' McKenna said. 'However, their resiliency alone is not enough for this species to recover. We must reduce the sources of human-caused mortality and injury that are preventing the right whale population from thriving,' As right whales adapt to shifts in the location of their prey, collaborations between researchers, industries, and management officials are essential to minimize the risk of vessel strikes and entanglements for aggregations like this, marine wildlife advocates said. 'Vessel strikes are one of the leading causes of serious injury and death for North Atlantic right whales, and the presence of a right whale aggregation amidst the shipping lanes is cause for concern,' New England officials said in their statement. Some whales were seen feeding just below the surface, making them harder for oncoming vessels to detect. The survey team saw several large commercial ships utilizing the shipping lanes and was able to alert them to the presence of whales in the area. The sightings have since triggered a dynamic management area or voluntary Slow Zone, which urges mariners to slow down to 10 knots or less to prevent collisions with whales. 'While the location of the whales in the shipping lanes was concerning, in this particular instance, our survey team was able to successfully alert a ship in real time and have them shift course to avoid the right whales gathered together and feeding,' Associate Research Scientist Orla O'Brien, who leads the aerial survey team at the Aquarium's Anderson Cabot Center, said in a statement. The winter/spring season marks the peak time of year for right whale sightings in southern New England waters. In addition to the sightings in the shipping lanes, a large number of right whales are currently feeding in Cape Cod Bay—meaning waters off New England are hosting a substantial portion of the population. The Aquarium's aerial survey team has flown 32 surveys throughout New England since December and documented over 168 individual North Atlantic right whales, nearly half of the estimated population of around 370. Roughly a third of the whales documented in this most recent aggregation were also seen in January in another large aggregation near Jeffreys Ledge, off the coast of Maine and New Hampshire, but sightings by Aquarium aerial surveys south of Cape Cod have been sparse this season until now. For more than a decade, the New England Aquarium has conducted aerial surveys over the waters south of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket, collecting data on all marine animals with a focus on protected species of whales and sea turtles. In recent years, the Aquarium has expanded survey coverage in New England including coastal Maine, the Gulf of Maine, and the Canyons along the shelf break. These flights help monitor changes in animal populations, identify various species, recognize trends using standardized data, and monitor aggregations. Determining where right whales occur and how they are using habitats provides crucial information that can be used to better protect endangered species like North Atlantic right whales, New England officials said. This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available. Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
Yahoo
29-03-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Cold-stunned sea turtles recuperate in Quincy. Find out about who gets them there
EAST DENNIS — Bruce Beane, of Chatham, knows cold well. From November to January, he patrols beaches such as Cold Storage Beach after high tide — at night, flashlight in hand — searching for cold-stunned sea turtles. His wife, Debby Walther, transports the turtles to the New England Aquarium Sea Turtle Hospital in Quincy for rehabilitation. The couple takes quiet pride in their work, knowing each rescue gives the turtles a second chance at life. But what moves them most is hearing the turtles they've worked to save are thriving — years after their release. Newly shared findings from surgically implanted acoustic tags show loggerheads rescued from Cape Cod beaches and released in 2021 and 2022 are not only surviving. They are returning to local waters during the warmer months, according to researchers at the New England Aquarium 'These acoustic transmitters are telling us that rehabilitated sea turtles can survive beyond that first year, and they are showing up in well-established feeding areas," said Kara Dodge, a research scientist at the aquarium's Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life. "That gives us confidence in their ability to reintegrate into the wild population." The loggerheads they're tracking were named after spices: Tajin, Red Pepper Flake, Mace, Horseradish, and Caraway — names that appropriately suggest fiery resilience. For Beane and Walther, who are among dozens of volunteers in the cold-stun rescue program that Mass Audubon Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary coordinates in partnership with the aquarium, the scientists' findings feel like an affirmation of their efforts. The turtles, generally, are categorized as endangered or otherwise at risk. Beane, credited with rescuing Caraway, said hearing about the loggerheads' survival and successful migrations since release "makes me feel like I'm accomplishing a little something." He's volunteered with the Mass Audubon Wellfleet Bay program ever since he answered a call to help transport rescued turtles in the fall of 2014, when more than 1,200 washed ashore. "I'd always driven a van, so I said, 'if they've got a lot of turtles, I could be of use,'" he recalled. For one of his first trips, he had 50 Kemp's ridley turtles packed into his van, nestled in banana boxes. After that, he was hooked, and the next year Beane began volunteering to patrol the beaches, in addition to driving — he often takes on the three miles of beach on the bay side of Great Island in Wellfleet. Walther, who joined the turtle rescue program a few years before her husband, is thrilled to learn the rehabbed loggerheads are thriving. She feels a deep connection with each turtle she helps. "Every time I see one, I'm overwhelmed by them. I just feel that I'm helping. There are so few of them that every one that I help makes a difference." Besides the loggerheads and Kemp's ridley's, green sea turtles are also rescued from local beaches. The couple's work, and that of their fellow volunteers, is essential to a larger effort to track and protect sea turtles in the region, according to researchers. The loggerheads' acoustic tags allow aquarium researchers to gather long-term data about where they go and how they interact with the environment — all critical for shaping conservation strategies. In 2021, the scientists were granted a federal permit to implant acoustic transmitters in the rescued loggerheads. Unlike satellite tags, which can fall off quickly and have a limited life of 6 to 12 months, the internal transmitters work for 3 to 7 years, allowing for more detailed tracking. The researchers have been surprised by the turtles' annual return to local feeding habitats, which suggests "this area may be more important for loggerheads than we previously thought," Dodge said. The acoustic transmitters broadcast 'pings," which are picked up by listening stations when a turtle passes by — much like an E-ZPass system. 'It's a little like Christmas morning every time we receive a new set of data,' said Charles Innis, a senior scientist and veterinarian at the aquarium who pioneered the internal acoustic tagging procedure for sea turtles. Acoustic receivers from Massachusetts to Florida have detected the tagged loggerheads nearly 6,000 times. "The acoustic tagging and tracking work led by Dr. Dodge and Dr. Innis is groundbreaking and vitally important for sea turtle conservation research off our coast, for numerous reasons," said Karen Moore Dourdeville, the Cape Cod sea turtle research coordinator for Mass Audubon in Wellfleet. Climate change, which has resulted in rising ocean temperatures and northward expansion of sea turtle migration for feeding, is contributing to increased cold-stunned strandings. With warm temperatures lingering later into the year, some turtles head south too late, while others get trapped in Cape Cod Bay, where the water stays warmer longer. When the temperature drops below 55°F, the turtles become cold-stunned — a hypothermic condition that renders them lethargic and unable to eat or swim. Dodge and Innis are now interested in whether Kemp's ridley and green sea turtles are also returning to New England, or if this behavior is unique to loggerheads. 'If we continue to gather data for larger numbers of turtles in New England waters, we will likely have a better understanding of when they are typically present and where they spend their time, both of which may inform future protective measures,' Innis said. The scientists are hoping for permission to implant acoustic tags in the other turtle species. In the meantime, they continue to monitor data from the loggerheads, which is expected to come in through 2032. Heather McCarron writes about climate change, environment, energy, science and the natural world, in addition to news and features in Barnstable and Brewster. Reach her at hmccarron@ Thanks to our subscribers, who help make this coverage possible. If you are not a subscriber, please consider supporting quality local journalism with a Cape Cod Times subscription. Here are our subscription plans. This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Rehabilitated loggerhead turtles return to scene of rescue years later
