Sea Turtle Hormone Levels Affected by Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill -Study
ocean and taken to rehabilitation facilities for medical assessment and treatment. Responders collected blood samples to assess the health of each turtle, and a portion of the blood was frozen for future studies.In the last three years, scientists in the Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life at the New England Aquarium developed a novel test to analyze sea turtle blood for the hormone aldosterone. Using this test, along with tests previously developed at the Aquarium, the scientists evaluated the oiled turtles’ blood for a suite of hormones. The results, published in the journal Endangered Species
Report: Population of North Atlantic right whales Hits 20-year Low
discouraged by this estimate, but quite frankly, not surprised. The right whale research and conservation communities know that while widespread efforts to change the trajectory of the species have been undertaken, they have not been enough,” said Heather Pettis, associate scientist in the New England Aquarium’s Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life and executive administrator of the Consortium.North Atlantic right whales have been on a downward trajectory since 2011, when the species was at its highest estimate of 481 whales. In the past 10 years, the species has declined by 30%. Human impacts
Offshore Wind Challenge Accepting Applications
support from Vineyard Wind. The Offshore Wind Challenge is for startups with a technology readiness level between three and six and a proof of concept that can be brought to a state of practice. The Challenge will be supported by experts from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) and the New England Aquarium.Vineyard Wind is developing the first utility-scale offshore wind project which will eliminate 1.68 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually. Vineyard Wind is committed to protecting North Atlantic right whales and other marine species off the northeastern United States during
Study: How Changes in Shipping Patterns Affect Whales
published in the scientific journal, Frontiers. The findings also have implications for highly endangered North Atlantic right whales in the Atlantic Ocean.Dr. Jessica V. Redfern, an Ecologist, Senior Scientist, and Chair of the new Spatial Ecology, Mapping, and Assessment Program (EcoMap) at the New England Aquarium’s Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life, is the lead author of the study. She maps the location of whale populations and uses these maps to assess the risks that whales face and is interested finding solutions to minimize these risks.Off the West Coast, ship strikes are one of the biggest
'Elusive' Omura Whale Spotted
A new research paper by Dr. Salvatore Cerchio of the New England Aquarium and recently published in Frontiers in Marine Science shows that the elusive Omura whale has now been spotted in many more tropical and warm temperate waters around the world. After Dr. Cerchio released the first video ever taken of these slender, 33 to 38 ft. long whales in 2015, marine biologists, ecotourists and bloggers from around the world have since reported more than one hundred sightings of what once seemed to be a species of ghost whale. For decades, the only available specimens to be found were the remains
Right Whales are All Right Thanks to N. Atlantic Partnership
A partnership between Irving Oil and the New England Aquarium is making a difference they find as the endangered whale species population now exceeds 500, which is the highest population on record since research began three decades ago. The North Atlantic right whale was once hunted almost to extinction, but seventeen years ago Irving Oil began working with the New England Aquarium to protect this endangered species. Irving Oil's contribution to protecting the North Atlantic right whale helps fund right whale research, conservation, and education. For two months each summer and fall, researchers
Whale Rescuers of Bay of Fundy
long, and cutting through the lines entangling them. Mackie trained with the Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies, pioneers in whale disentangling, and is now a Level Five First Responder. Later, on a trip to Cape Cod to learn more about the whale watching industry, he met members of the New England Aquarium’s Right Whale Research Project who conduct surveys every summer in the Bay of Fundy. Back in Canada, he watched one of their disentangling efforts and offered his critique. They challenged him to do better. He did. The two groups now work closely together when whales are entangled. The
February 2025
