Latest news with #marinebiology
The Guardian
a day ago
- General
- The Guardian
Catch of the day: rare gold lobster saved by attentive cook in Rhode Island
Being one in a million may sound nice, but being one in 30m recently saved an exceptionally rare, gold lobster from being cooked and served as dinner at a New England restaurant, according to those who had a hand in the animal's reprieve. As the manager of the Nordic Lodge Restaurant in Charlestown, Rhode Island, tells it, one of the eatery's cooks noticed the crustacean in question buried under a bunch of other lobsters after they were delivered to the business. The lobster, since named Calvin, was in a basket ready to be cooked and presented as a meal alongside a number of his brethren when the employee pulled him out and set him aside, manager Jake Dolbey told the Guardian. The cook evidently realized Calvin had a genetic mutation that only occurs in about one in 30 million lobsters that prevents all the colors in that type of creature from showing up on their shells except for a yellowish-orange hue that is classified as gold. That particular mutation is much rarer than the well-known one which makes the exoskeleton of roughly one from every 2 million lobsters appear blue. So the restaurant called the Biomes Marine Biology Center in nearby North Kingstown on Tuesday with an offer to donate the gold lobster. Within an hour of the Nordic's phoning up the Biomes center, restaurant bartender Joel Humphries had driven it to the hands-on aquarium so that Calvin could be displayed there, as Rhode Island's Providence Journal first reported. Dolbey said Humphries happened to be a former volunteer and employee of the aquarium, which educationally showcases marine animals from Narragansett Bay and the Atlantic Ocean. Mark Hall, the Biomes center director, said that it took a sharp eye to pick out Calvin as unique. Gold lobsters are often confused with slightly more common ones that are a slightly darker orange color. Had Calvin been boiled, Hall continued, he would have turned the same color all lobsters do when they are cooked in that manner: red. Hall said that is because lobsters carry a mixture of color pigments. The color that shows comes down to genetics, and the only one that can withstand heat is red, Hall said. 'When you boil them, you destroy all the pigments except red,' Hall said. 'And the same thing would have happened here.' Yet, instead, within two days of being brought from the Nordic to the Biomes center, Calvin was reportedly impressing about 50 fourth grades who were visiting the aquarium. Hall suggested to the Guardian that he understood the interest in the clemency shown to Calvin, which gained notice in parts of the internet dedicated to finding feelgood news stories. But he said he wanted the public to know he had encountered about 10 gold lobsters, despite the slim odds of coming across even one. He said that illustrates the 'huge, huge numbers of lobsters that are caught' – remarks he made years after the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries expressed concern that the stock of lobster in a region encompassing Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island had been depleted 'due to environmental factors and fishing pressure'. 'For me to see 10 of these in my life, that's a lot of lobsters being caught,' Hall said. 'It makes it so that it's just a matter of time before one of these comes up.' Some social media users went to a Facebook post from the Nordic about Calvin to praise them for how they handled the gold lobster. 'Good brains! Good job!' read one such comment. Another added: 'Thank you for sparing him!'
CNN
2 days ago
- Health
- CNN
Scavenging sharks' peaceful response to rivals surprises observers
Scavenging sharks' peaceful response to rivals surprises observers Observers captured video of tiger sharks and oceanic whitetip sharks peacefully feeding together on a carcass despite conditions that posed the potential for aggression. 01:31 - Source: CNN Elephant seal in Cape Town wanders into suburbia, stops traffic and wins the hearts of locals A Southern elephant seal makes a surprise visit to the residential neighborhood of Gordon's Bay in Cape Town, South Africa, and triggers an almost nine-hour rescue effort to return him to the coast. 00:57 - Source: CNN Why e.l.f. just bought Hailey Bieber's beauty brand for $1 billion e.l.f. Beauty is buying Hailey Bieber's makeup brand, Rhode, for $1 billion. Founded in 2022, Bieber's brand racked up $212 million in net sales in its last fiscal year. 01:11 - Source: CNN Contestants risk injury in cheese wheel competition An annual race held in England has attracted thousands around the world. It's been described as the world's most dangerous race: a 200-yard dash after a wheel of Gloucester cheese. 01:15 - Source: CNN Should Sean 'Diddy' Combs testify? CNN's Laura Coates speaks with Benjamin Chew, co-lead counsel for Johnny Depp in his defamation trial, about whether Sean "Diddy" Combs should testify in his high stakes criminal trial. 01:55 - Source: CNN SpaceX Starship outperforms previous missions this year Regrouping after two consecutive explosions, SpaceX launched the 9th test flight of Starship, the most powerful rocket ever built. The mission marks the first time the company reused a Super Heavy booster from a previous flight. 01:55 - Source: CNN Two birds found onboard Delta flight A flight from Minneapolis to Madison, Wisconsin, was delayed for about an hour after two birds tried to stow away on a Delta Air Lines flight. 00:44 - Source: CNN Trump pardons reality TV couple Todd and Julie Chrisley President Donald Trump has signed full pardons for imprisoned reality show couple Todd and Julie Chrisley, who were sentenced to lengthy prison terms in 2022 for a conspiracy to defraud banks out of more than $30 million, according to a White House official. CNN's Kaitlan Collins reports. 01:07 - Source: CNN Former 'Diddy' employee describes alleged abuse Former employee for Sean 'Diddy' Combs, Capricorn Clark, took the stand to testify in the federal trial against her long-time boss, seemingly corroborating accounts from witnesses Cassie Ventura and rapper Kid Cudi. Capricorn alleges Combs made threats and carried out acts of violence against her, including forced lie-detector tests Capricorn claims to have been administered by Combs' security guard while she was held. 02:37 - Source: CNN All-American Rejects singer talks house party tour The All-American Rejects lead singer Tyson Ritter joined CNN News Central to talk about his band's house party tour that started as a protest against pricey arena shows. 01:34 - Source: CNN 'Duck Dynasty' star dies at 79 Phil Robertson, patriarch of the reality show 'Duck Dynasty,' has died at 79, according to a family statement. Robertson founded Duck Commander, a business making duck hunting supplies, which later became the center of A&E's hit show. 01:06 - Source: CNN Truck explodes after possible propane leak A home security camera caught the moment when a box truck driving through a residential neighborhood exploded in Addison, Illinois. The driver walked away with only minor injuries, CNN affiliate WLS reports. 00:36 - Source: CNN Teens help rescue family from garage fire CNN's Fredricka Whitfield speaks with Aiden Kane and Tyler Sojda, who helped rescue a family in Marcy, New York from a garage fire after spotting the flames while driving home from junior prom. 01:16 - Source: CNN Where Kermit the Frog's tea meme came from Kermit the Frog tells CNN's Sara Sidner his thoughts on being an infamous part of meme culture. 00:41 - Source: CNN Verdict reached in Paris robbery of Kim Kardashian After a weekslong trial, eight people behind the multimillion-dollar armed robbery of Kim Kardashian in Paris were found guilty. Most of them received prison sentences, portions of which were suspended, but all will walk free due to time already served. 00:43 - Source: CNN Anderson catches up with man sailing around the world Anderson Cooper speaks with Oliver Widger for an update on his viral adventures sailing across the world. Widger quit his job, liquidated his 401(k) and bought a sailboat to see the world with his rescue cat, Phoenix. 01:55 - Source: CNN See moment OceanGate team noticed something wrong Newly released video shows OceanGate founder and CEO Stockton Rush's wife, Wendy Rush, who was working on the communications and tracking team, notice the sound of a 'bang' while monitoring the submersible. The Titan submersible imploded on June 18, 2023, killing all five passengers on board. 00:49 - Source: CNN 'The Points Guy' on the best deals for summer travel Brian Kelly, founder of breaks down the best deals for summer travel and how to make the most of your frequent flyer miles. 01:00 - Source: CNN
The Independent
2 days ago
- General
- The Independent
Mystery as six gray whales found dead after unusually high influx into San Francisco Bay
Six gray whales have died in the San Francisco Bay Area region in the last week, officials have said. With the additional deaths, the total number of stranded whales this year has reached 15. Of those, 14 are gray whales, according to the California Academy of Sciences and partners at The Marine Mammal Center. 'In 2025, 14 gray whales and one minke whale have died in the greater San Francisco Bay Area region, with the cause of three of the gray whale deaths determined to be suspect or probable vessel strikes,' the academy wrote in a press release Thursday. 'The Academy and partners at the Center have not responded to this many dead gray whales since the height of the Unusual Mortality Event in 2019 (14 individuals) and 2021 (15 individuals).' However, the cause of the deaths of the other whales who died between May 21 and Wednesday are undetermined. Those animals died in multiple locations, including Berkeley, Point Reyes National Seashore, and Alcatraz. 'Necropsy response efforts and data collection have been challenging for a number of cases due to inaccessible locations that hinder full post-mortem investigations, as well as poor tissue quality from advanced decomposition, and the lack of available locations to tow for further investigation,' the academy noted. However, there have also been an unusually high number of sightings around the bay, including 33 individual gray whales. That's more than five times the number of whales that were sighted last year. Of those, approximately one-third have stayed in the Bay Area for at least 20 days, some of which were emaciated. Researchers are still working to determine what's driving the massive spike in sightings, and it is expected that gray whales will remain in the area for another one or two weeks before continuing their annual northern migration to feeding grounds in the Arctic. Dozens of gray whales have died along Mexico's Baja California peninsula since the year's start, and only five mother and calf pairs were identified in Laguna San Ignacio, where wintering whales gather. One of the main causes of death for whales on both coasts are vessel strikes, and the academy and the center pointed out gray whales can be even tougher to spot in the water than humpbacks and other coastal whales. To reduce the risk, they've altered ferry lanes based on sighting data and increased communication via the U.S. Coast Guard, so boaters can be 'whale aware.' If people do see a whale in the bay, they can report the sighting using the Whale Alert app, and people who find dead marine mammals are asked to contact the Academy's department of Ornithology and Mammalogy.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Six dead gray whales found in San Francisco Bay area in the last week
Six dead gray whales have been found in the area of San Francisco Bay over the last week, officials said Wednesday, in a year when there has been an unusually high number of sightings in the area. The gray whales were found dead from May 21 to Wednesday, when one was found washed ashore at Point Reyes National Seashore, the California Academy of Sciences said. On Monday, two were found the same day — one on Alcatraz and one at Point Bonita, it said. In most of the cases, no necropsy, which is like an autopsy for an animal, was performed. The partial necropsy for a yearling gray whale found at Bolinas was inconclusive, and results from the necropsy on the whale found Wednesday are pending, the academy said. The whales have died as an unusually large number of them have been spotted in San Francisco Bay, officials said. Why the whales died was not clear. 'That is the open question, the why,' Giancarlo Rulli, a spokesperson for the Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito, told NBC Bay Area this week. 'Why not only are there so many deceased whales in the region, but why has it been a banner year of having more sightings in San Francisco Bay of live whales than we have seen in at least two-plus decades, if ever?' So far this year 14 gray whales and a minke whale have died in the greater San Francisco Bay Area, the academy said, and the deaths of three of them were found to be from boat strikes. More gray whales have been sighted in the bay this year compared with last, it said — 33, compared with only six in 2024. Some have looked normal and others emaciated, it said. "The reason or potential reasons behind the massive spike in sightings this year are still being investigated by researchers," the academy said. "It is expected that gray whales will be in the bay for another one to two weeks before continuing their annual northern migration to arctic feeding grounds." Gray whales used to be common in waters throughout the Northern Hemisphere but are now regularly found only in the North Pacific Ocean, according to the National Marine Fisheries Service, part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. They travel around 10,000 miles in an annual round-trip migration, it said. Gray whales are known to be curious around boats, which means they are often seen on whale-watching trips, the agency said. They can grow to around 49 feet long and weigh about 90,000 pounds. Because of the long migration, the whales are sometimes hit by vessels and entangled in fishing gear, which are among their top threats, the fisheries service says. This article was originally published on
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- General
- Daily Mail
Terror in Rhode Island as enormous TWENTY FOOT shark is spotted swimming in pond
A 20-foot basking shark was spotted swimming near Rhode Island 's Block Island on Monday. Footage of the large animal first surfaced on Memorial Day, after Jennifer Seebeck spotted a large dorsal fin rising out of the waters in the Great Salt Pond, on an island off the south coast of the state. Seebeck had been dining at nearby restaurant Dead Eye Dick's when she managed to capture the shark near the surface of the water. In the clip, the shark can be seen going through the waters and past a seemingly vacant small boat. Other diners in the background can be heard passing comment on the animals appearance and laughing. The Atlantic Shark Institute shared the clip to their social media pages, causing it to go viral. In it, the organization said: 'We got a number of calls yesterday as people on Block Island, RI were treated to quite the scene, kicking off the 2025 summer season! 'Clearly a very large shark and reminiscent of a scene from Jaws on this 50th anniversary of the film.' View this post on Instagram A post shared by Atlantic Shark Institute (@atlantic_shark) They added: 'Sharks are arriving in Rhode Island daily as water temperatures continue to rise and more and more species of shark find them suitable to their liking. 'Hopefully this shark will find its way out of Great Salt Pond soon and continue on its way!' The institutes director Jon Dodd later revealed that the animal was a basking shark that was around 20 feet long. He told WBZ-TV: 'They are harmless filter-feeders but that wouldn't matter much if you were in the water when one came cruising by!' The New England Aquarium say that basking sharks are the second-largest fish species after the whale shark and eat plankton. Dodd also told Fox that basking sharks prefer cooler waters and are regularly spotted around Rhode Island during the summer months. He said: 'This is a shark that we will see fairly consistently. They're considered vulnerable according to the IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature). 'In many parts of the world they're considered endangered', Dodd added. He also believes that the shark probably likely ended up in the pond after making a mistake on his travels. 'This guy just made a mistake. He must've been cruising up the west side of Block Island and said, "Hey, let me explore what's going on in this pond", and found himself in the wrong place.' The shark is since have believed to have left the pond around a day after being spotted. Dodd added that the sighting was a good sign for marine conservationists. In 2018 a group of fishermen filmed themselves releasing a huge great white shark that they managed to catch less than a mile away from a Rhode Island Beach. First mate Michael Lorello said the predator measured six feet long and was caught not far away from the popular pleasure beach of Misquamicut.
