Ever since I was exposed to information about human-caused environmental problems, in college, I’ve remained generally horrified — sometimes vaguely, and other times acutely — about the runaway train that is our collective effect on our planet. Moments of peace have shone through. One such moment was sparked when I read David Quammen’s book “Song [...]
The news about oceans was pretty grim last week, but there is hope. Most of the world’s fishing countries are reneging on their agreements to fish responsibly and sustainably. Despite harvest restrictions in the Delaware Bay, plummeting horseshoe crab populations are leaving their migratory bird predators high and dry. In a climate change scenario, the poorest fishing [...]
 I silenced my Inner Rational Scientist here, and went for the cute factor. How could I resist? There actually is some science. It appears killer whale calves born to older mothers may be in better … um, flippers.
 Global warming has the potential to dramatically expand the oceans’ so-called dead zones, oxygen-poor areas that fish avoid and where less mobile organisms like clams and crabs can’t survive. Most dead zones are located where rivers empty into the ocean, dumping agricultural fertilizers and other pollutants. A new study by a team of Danish researchers, released [...]