Latest Virginia Institute of Marine Science Stories

Oyster reefs shown to buffer acidic inputs to Chesapeake Bay Scientists have identified many benefits for restoring oyster reefs to Chesapeake Bay and other coastal ecosystems. Oysters filter and clean the water, provide habitat for their own young and for other species, and sustain both watermen and seafood lovers. A new study co-authored by Professor Roger Mann of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science adds another item to this list of benefits—the ability of oyster reefs to...

USGS Tiny sea creatures no bigger than a thumbtack are being credited for playing a key role in helping provide healthy habitats for many kinds of seafood, according to a new study by the Virginia Institute of Marine Science and U.S. Geological Survey. The little crustacean “grazers,” some resembling tiny shrimp, are critical in protecting seagrasses from overgrowth by algae, helping keep these aquatic havens healthy for native and economically important species.  Crustaceans are...

Professor Robert Diaz of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science is a co-editor of “Valuing the Ocean” a major new study by an international team of scientists and economists that attempts to measure the ocean’s monetary value and to tally the costs and savings associated with human decisions affecting ocean health. The study estimates that if human impacts on the ocean continue unabated, declines in ocean health and services will cost the global economy $428 billion per year by...

New discoveries in “marine forensics” by researchers at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science will allow federal seafood agents to genetically test blue marlin to quickly and accurately determine their ocean of origin. The test is needed to ensure that the blue marlin sold in U.S. seafood markets were not taken from the Atlantic Ocean. The import and sale of blue marlin from the Pacific or Indian oceans is legal in the U.S., while the marketing of Atlantic blues can bring civil or...

Seven species are threatened and in need of further protectionA global study by an international team including professor John Graves of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science has found that several species of tunas and billfishes are threatened and in need of further protection.The team's analysis"”published in a recent issue of Science magazine's Policy Forum"”is the first study of global tuna and billfish populations using the methods of the International Union for Conservation of...

A new study by researchers at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) shows that jellyfish are more than a nuisance to bathers and boaters, drastically altering marine food webs by shunting food energy from fish toward bacteria.An apparent increase in the size and frequency of jellyfish blooms in coastal and estuarine waters around the world during the last few decades means that jellies' impact on marine food webs is likely to increase into the future.The results of the study, led by...

A team of 21 researchers from 11 nations, including professor Robert "JJ" Orth of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science, has completed the first-ever study of the risk of extinction for individual seagrass species around the world.The 4-year study, requested by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), shows that 10 of the 72 known seagrass species (14%) are at an elevated risk of extinction, while 3 species qualify as endangered.The authors caution that loss...

Device can also provide an early warning system for spillsTests of a new antibody-based "biosensor" developed by researchers at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science show that it can detect marine pollutants like oil much faster and more cheaply than current technologies. The device is small and sturdy enough to be used from a boat.Testing of the biosensor in the Elizabeth River and Yorktown Creek, which both drain into lower Chesapeake Bay, shows that the instrument can process samples in...

By David Malmquist, Virginia Institute of Marine ScienceA new study by researchers at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science shows that turbulence from boat propellers can and does kill large numbers of copepods"”tiny crustaceans that are an important part of marine food webs.The study"”by VIMS graduate student Samantha Bickel, VIMS professor Kam Tang, and Hampton University undergraduate Joseph Malloy Hammond"”appears in the on-line issue of the Journal of Experimental Marine Biology...

Carcasses of copepods--numerous organisms in world seas--provide insights into oceanic food websTiny crustaceans called copepods rule the world, at least when it comes to oceans and estuaries.The most numerous multi-cellular organisms in the seas, copepods are an important link between phytoplankton and fish in marine food webs.To understand and predict how copepods respond to environmental change, scientists need to know not only how many new copepods are born, but how many are dying, say...