The Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction Treaty, widely known as the High Seas Treaty, establishes the first-ever framework for governing practices like fishing, mining and oil extraction in international waters, an issue that has threatened oceanic ecosystems across the globe with little oversight.
Some reefs in the tropical Pacific Ocean could maintain coral cover into the second half of this century by shuffling the symbiotic algae they host.
To better understand how corals improved their tolerance to heat stress, the researchers at the University of Miami examined more than 40 years of coral reef-monitoring data from Panama, one of the longest datasets of its kind in the world.
Observations using the newly upgraded human-occupied vehicle Alvin are the first of a deep-sea coral reef in the Galápagos Marine Reserve. The reef, found at 400-600 meters (1,310-1,970 feet) depth at the summit of a previously unmapped seamount in the central part of the archipelago, supports a breathtaking mix of deep marine life, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution writes.
The sunflower sea star was once a common sight along North America's Pacific coast. Although it is now an endangered species, scientists are hailing it as a potential saviour of the region's threatened kelp forests.
Recent research reveals its crucial role in controlling the population of kelp-eating urchins, thus offering a glimmer of hope for these vital marine ecosystems.
