Southern Fried Science

Good Conservation Policies Can Push Markets Towards Conservation

Chuck Bangley — Sun, 12 May 2013 17:42:33 +0000

A lot of debate among conservationists centers on the conflict between the desire to see a species totally protected from human exploitation and the reality that market forces will continue to exist (see the latest on shark fin bans for a very good example). Ideally, a conservation plan should strike a balance, ensuring the continued [...]

Predation Matters

Chuck Bangley — Wed, 08 May 2013 00:52:41 +0000

Today, Pew unleashed a mini-media blitz on the importance of predation in fisheries management. This got my attention because the interaction between marine predators and fisheries is one of my major research interests. They do a great (and slickly-designed) job explaining the basics of why paying attention to predation matters in fisheries management, and bonus [...]

Watch Blue Pints Episode 7: Big Fish Stories

Andrew David Thaler — Mon, 06 May 2013 20:52:58 +0000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cix8PkDpag4

Circle Hooks Save Fish

Chuck Bangley — Thu, 02 May 2013 05:18:38 +0000

When you work on the water long enough, you encounter some unique situations. Whether it’s getting stranded during field work, surviving massive seasickness, having your equipment attacked by hostile sea life, or just seeing something unusual, these anecdotes are an important part of what makes marine science fun (sometimes moreso in hindsight). That’s why I’m [...]

U.S. government: shark fin bans “significantly undermine conservation and management of Federal shark fisheries”

David Shiffman — Thu, 02 May 2013 05:15:54 +0000

Photo Credit: Jessica King, Marine Photobank

I’ve written in the past about why shark fin bans might not be the best tool for the conservation and management of sharks. Though specific details vary, these so-called “blanket bans” typically make it illegal for anyone to buy, sell, or possess shark fins regardless of the [...]

On stifling scientific curiosity, in the most egregious way possible.

Andrew David Thaler — Wed, 01 May 2013 21:39:37 +0000

No doubt you’ve seen the recent news reports of a Florida high school student, by all accounts a model student with a clean disciplinary record, who was not only expelled, but arrested on felony charges, for conducting a relatively innocuous scientific experiment. I don’ t need to rehash the details, Danielle Lee has a good summary, with relevant [...]

10 Reasons why Great and Scalloped Hammerhead Sharks Deserve Endangered Species Act Protections

David Shiffman — Wed, 01 May 2013 15:18:07 +0000

A great hammerhead shark swims by a Project AWARE “Extinction is NOT an Option” sign, Bimini, Bahamas. Photo credit: Neil Hammerschlag

The Endangered Species Act is one of the strongest conservation laws on the planet, and to date, no shark has ever been given ESA protections. In recent weeks, however, the National Marine Fisheries Service has [...]

Watch Blue Pints Episode 6: Science Online Oceans and Hacking the Ocean

Andrew David Thaler — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 18:28:47 +0000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QByplUnSNLY

The Incredible Shrinking Cups: Farewell from the World’s Deepest Pig

Andrew David Thaler — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 11:00:22 +0000

It’s the final cup in our series. Posting these images has been a fun way to reminisce about our adventures in the Cayman Abyss and hopefully give you a small glimpse into the more whimsical side of deep-sea research. To finish of the series, here is my favorite cup:

#DeepestPigPicking

That’ll do, pig, that’ll [...]

The Incredible Shrinking Cups: on the absence of giant tube worms

Andrew David Thaler — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 11:00:56 +0000

It’s true! There are no giant tube worms (Riftia pachyptila) at the Mid-Cayman Spreading Center (but there are smaller tube worms).

No Tubes.

What all this about?