Ecosystems

New research suggests that major hurricanes, though devastating to humans, have a minimal impact on salt marshes. The Boston University study reveals coastal ecosystems are more at risk of erosion by waves from moderate storms than from full-fledged tropical storms. In eight different marshes studied in the United States, Italy and Australia, extreme storm events accounted for less than one per cent of erosion.

Many years of restraint and restrictive fishing quotas seem to finally have paid off. Within a decade the stocks of spawning cod have almost doubled

Though levels of cod in the North Sea are not yet what they were pre-crisis, a remarkable recovery is well under way and advancing. Along with cod and plaice stocks of herring, haddock, hake, Norway lobster, common dab and witch (Torbay sole) are also improving .

Coral reefs make up some of the most biologically diverse habitats on Earth and face many threats such as coastal pollution, dredging and disease. However, some of their most widespread threats involve warming ocean temperatures, solar radiation and increased ocean acidification. It is from these threats that corals are finding refuge under the red mangroves.

The present study examined shark distribution patterns, species-habitat associations, and marine reserve use with baited remote underwater video stations (BRUVS) along the entire Great Barrier Reef Marine Park (GBRMP) over a ten-year period.

Overall, researchers recorded 21 different shark species. The relative abundance of sharks was significantly higher in non-fished sites in the GBR Marine Park no-fishing zones relative to fished sites.

According to a new study from the University of British Columbia, the worst-case scenario—in which ocean temperatures rise by as much as 3 degrees Celsius by 2100—showed fish could move as far as 16 miles per decade away from the equator.

A project conducted by researchers from Denmark's Technical University showed that 18 hectares of blue mussels in Skive Fjord reduced the levels of algae low enough to prevent oxygen depletion.

The main issue with fertilization of coastal waters causing algae bloom stems from the massive amounts of dead algae sinking to the bottom in thick layers. As they rot, they consume and deplete oxygen, choking huge swathes of the seabed, leading to widespread bottom death. This is a big issue along coasts of agricultural areas.