marine biology, evolution

Once thought to be silent, fish turn out to produce a range of vocalizations—so polluting the oceans with noise could pose a danger to them.

The Scientist spoke with marine biologist and barnacle researcher John Zardus about why turtle barnacles—previously thought to be immobile—in fact slowly travel. He thinks the answer is food.

This evolutionarily ancient fish species has a lifespan that’s around five times longer than previously thought, and a gestation time of more than five years.

The cephalopods resisted temptation for up to 130 seconds to earn their favorite food, hinting at sophisticated cognitive abilities such as planning for the future.

Rather than making its own light, a shallow-water marine fish gets all the tools that it needs for bioluminescence production from eating tiny, glowing crustaceans.

This marine animal looks like a sea star, but don’t be fooled.

DNA analysis of a bizarre, 30-year-old whale skull serves as a reminder of the secrets that museum specimens keep about the natural world.

The silver spinyfin has an extraordinary diversity of rod photopigments, which researchers propose may allow it to see color in the deep, dark sea.

A crab fossil new to scientists lived in the age of dinosaurs in what is now Colombia and the US.

The microscopic marine animal Trichoplax adhaerens may use rapid changes in cell shape to avoid being ripped apart by forces in the ocean.

Gates was director of the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology and a strong advocate for coral conservation.

The surviving animals may have evolved genes that provided an advantage in fighting the disease.  

Poecilia formosa, an all-female fish species, has a surprisingly robust genome. 

Aggressive little marine predators, mantis shrimps possess a mushroom body that appears identical to the one found in insects.

Marine species survived rafting thousands of kilometers on debris swept into the water by the giant wave, scientists say.

A study of a simple marine animal suggests that the common ancestor of cnidarians and bilaterians may have had three germ layers instead of two.

The turtle-headed sea snake is losing its stripes, and researchers suggest that the change reflects adaptation to fouled oceans.

Sorting the Beef from the Bull, Cheats and Deceits, A Sea of Glass, and Following the Wild Bees

Metabolic activity, not light, drives the circadian clock in cyanobacteria.