See plastic's journey around the planet 🧴🌏
Plus moving sponges, new whale populations, microplastic removal & more
Happy Monday pod,
Firstly, a big congrats to My Octopus Teacher on its Oscar win. It took me WAY too long to actually getting round to watching it but it’s a fascinating documentary and well worth a watch. Have you seen it? 🐙
For those of you in the UK, I hope you’re enjoying the bank holiday weekend! It’s been pouring with rain outside which has helped me focus on this week’s edition but I can see the sun starting to come out so let’s dive straight into this week’s ocean news…
👀 Wildlife sightings 👀
Killer whales: came to say hello to this swimmer in New Zealand (LAD Bible)
Wally the Walrus: is still in Tenby and almost got in the way of an RNLI emergency response (BBC)
Basking sharks: continue to impress in Cornwall (Metro) with a record number of the world’s second largest shark spotted in April (Cornwall Live)
Spotted any amazing wildlife recently? Share your experience in the comments!
🐳 Whales 🐳
New study: into the feeding ecology of Caribbean killer whales (Frontiers)
Whale song comparison: may have identified a previously unknown pygmy blue whale population. (Nature)
Melting Arctic ice: is affecting the migration of bowhead whales (Guardian)
Bro bonds: Cool article on the friendship between male sperm whales (Hakai)
Think your friends would be interested in the latest ocean conservation news? Share Baleen!
🐬 Other marine animals 🐙
Don’t call me dumb-o: A new species of dumbo octopus has been discovered (Smithsonian)
SpongeBob SquareTrails: Weird trails in the Arctic suggest that sponges might crawl along the seafloor (Phys.org)
Hey, what’s your name? Students from Guam have named two snailfish species (Pacific Daily News)
Enjoying Baleen? Make sure you’re subscribed so you never miss an edition:
🚯 Plastic & pollution 🚯
Plastic journey: Cool visualisation of the journey of plastic waste around our planet (Nat Geo)
Unseen pollution: Could regulators be missing the negative impacts from plastic and chemical pollution? (Guardian)
A sticky situation: Researchers have found a sustainable way to use bacteria to remove microplastics from the ocean (Guardian)
Baleen is provided completely free each week to help you keep on top of the latest marine conservation news - if you find it useful, shout me a coffee (thanks!)
💰 Funding, grants & opportunities 💰
Three-year partnership: Octopus Group is looking for a new environmental charity partner. Apply here
Citizen science projects: being collated by Lucy - see below:
Thanks to everyone helping us reach new pod members by sharing Baleen!
🐚 Ecosystems 🐠
Cloud brightening: Experimental tech could slow the decline of the Great Barrier Reef by up to 20 years (The Straits Times)
Successful growth: Scientists have grown stony coral cells (Sci Tech Daily)
Death of a reef: Account of the Chagos Archipelago being devastated by climate change (The Conversation)
Rats and reefs: I’d never thought about rats harming coral - this article explains how they do (Ars Technica)
Queensland coal mine: proposal deemed not suitable because of risks to the Great Barrier Reef (Marine Conservation Society Australia)
Worrying rise: Sea levels could rise much more quickly than predicated due to quickly melting ice sheets (Phys.org)
📣 Campaigns 📣
New look: Congrats to the Marine Conservation Society on their new logo & brand identity! What do y’all think of their new look?
Nil points: This scorecard is being launched to hold Government accountable for their marine promises (Wildlife and Countryside Link)
Groundbreaking ruling: German’s supreme court has told the government to improve its climate laws by the end of next year (Politico)
🌊 Other ocean news 🌊
Land-based fisheries: Could Atlantic salmon be farmed on land in Florida? (BBC)
Mayflower 400: the first unmanned vessel to sail from Plymouth (UK) to Plymouth (MA, USA) will conduct marine research on the way (Bangkok Post)
Heat bombs: scientists have discovered that warm waters from the Pacific flowing into the Arctic Ocean contribute to melting sea ice (Science Alert)
That’s it for this edition - I’m off to enjoy the sunshine. Have a great week and catch you next Monday!
Melissa
📢 If you’d like to chat about how my comms consultancy or copywriting services can help you (from June), please get in touch 🤓