News and views from the world of marine heritage and conservation
Shrinking Nemo
Rings of death
It’ s not unusual...
ENVIRONMENT
Protect Our Seas
News and views from the world of marine heritage and conservation
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PHOTO: SIMON ROGERSON
Clownfish in a bleached anemone, Kimbe Bay
PHOTO: THOMAS DAVIDSON PHOTO: M PERRING
Shrinking Nemo
Clown anemonefish have been shrinking to cope with marine heatwaves, a study has found. The research recorded clownfish living on coral reefs in Kimbe Bay, Papua New Guinea slimmed down drastically when ocean temperatures rose in 2023. Scientists say the discovery was a big surprise and could help explain the rapidly declining size of other fish in the world’ s oceans.“ Nemos can shrink, and they do it to survive these heat stress events,” said Dr Theresa Rueger, senior lecturer in Tropical Marine Sciences at Newcastle University, Australia.“ It’ s not just them going on a diet and losing lots of weight; they’ re actively changing their size and making themselves into a smaller individual that needs less food and is more efficient with oxygen.” The fish may be absorbing fat and bone, as has been seen in other animals, such as marine iguanas, although this needs to be confirmed through laboratory studies.
Rings of death
A Parliamentary Petition has been launched to save seals by banning the sale of plastic flying rings [ essentially frisbees with a big hole in the middle ]. Sue Sayer MBE, Chair of the Seal Alliance said that inquisitive young seals explore lost rings in the water, which get entangled around their heads. She said.“ As the young seal grows, it suffers
It’ s not unusual...
A cyclist has spoken of his surprise at seeing a starry smooth-hound shark in Belfast’ s Connswater River. Thomas Davidson was cycling through a park in June when he spotted the 4ft-long shark at the point where the waterway meets Belfast Lough. The same species has been seen in other urban areas, such as the River Thames and the River Mersey