WRITER Tara Haelle
More than two years ago, scientists found a mysterious “golden orb” two miles below the ocean’s surface in the Gulf of Alaska. Since then, they have been trying to figure […]
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The Marine Science Institute’s monthly column, Science and the SeaTM, is an informative and entertaining article that explains many interesting features of the marine environment and the creatures that live there. Science and the SeaTM articles appear monthly in one of Texas’ most widely read fishing magazines, Texas Saltwater Fishing, the Port Aransas South Jetty newspaper, the Flour Bluff News, the Island Moon newspaper, and the Padre Island & Port A Living magazine. Our article archive is available also on our website.
WRITER Tara Haelle
Bull sharks have some of the highest levels of testosterone in the animal kingdom and a reputation for being among the most aggressive of all sharks. Until recently, scientists also […]
WRITER Tara Haelle
People use mirrors for grooming activities like shaving, washing their face, and applying makeup. Under the sea, though, hundreds of marine fish rely on cleaner wrasses to groom them. These […]
WRITER Tara Haelle
It’s easy to take bacteria for granted when these single-celled creatures are too small to see with the naked eye. Yet bacteria are the most plentiful living organisms on earth […]
WRITER Tara Haelle
Beaked whales are among the hardest whale species to find because they dive deeper than any other mammal (some reaching almost 10,000 feet deep), they only surface for a couple […]
WRITER Tara Haelle
You’ve heard of the Death Star weapon in Star Wars, but have you heard of the carnivorous death ball sponge in the South Atlantic Ocean? The predatory sponge is one […]
WRITER Tara Haelle
So much of the ocean remains undiscovered because it is so difficult to reach, but the sea revealed more of its secrets in July 2017, when an iceberg nearly the […]
WRITER Tara Haelle
The ocean can be a dangerous place for juvenile fish, but researchers recently discovered a way some of them ward off predators—carrying around a baby. A baby anemone, that is. […]
WRITER Tara Haelle
For years, few scientists have devoted much time to studying Arctic diatoms, single-celled algae enclosed within a wall of glass-like silica. These bizarre organisms, after all, appeared frozen in the […]
WRITER Tara Haelle
Dental offices and beauty salons follow strict hygiene and sanitation guidelines to prevent the spread of germs among people coming in for a teeth cleaning or eyebrow wax. But the […]