High nutrient levels in 2018 resulted in a nearly 9,000-kilometer belt of Sargassum, a seaweed critical to many marine animals but also a nuisance when it washes up on shorelines, new results reveal.
ecosystems
Progress and Planning in Understanding Ocean Acidification
The 4th Global Ocean Acidification Observing Network (GOA-ON) International Workshop; Hangzhou, China, 14–17 April 2019
Forested Streams May Warm More Than Observations Predict
Understanding how temperatures of cold-water streams respond to global warming could help clarify the impacts of climate change on aquatic ecosystems.
Uncontrolled Chemical Releases: A Silent, Growing Threat
Uncontrolled releases of household, industrial, and agricultural chemicals during natural disasters pose an underappreciated hazard to humans and ecosystems. Here’s what we can do.
Designing the Global Observing System for Marine Life
Identifying the Backbone of a Global Observing System for Marine Life and Planning Its Implementation for the Next Decade; Santa Barbara, California, 5–7 March 2019
Tracking Dissolved Organic Matter in Coastal Ecosystems
Dissolved organic matter supports aquatic food webs and holds as much carbon as the atmosphere. A new study tracks which sources and processes play the biggest role in coastal systems.
Mountain Ecosystems and Communities Face Challenges Worldwide
An unprecedented global assessment examines climate, economic, and governance threats to mountain systems and the benefits they provide, suggesting pathways toward sustainability.
Damselfish in Distress?
Noise pollution may be changing how some species of fish develop.
Leaping Global Temperatures Make Frog Disease Deadlier
Climate change will shift the warmest months, when disease rates spike, into tadpole season, which could endanger the long-term survival of common frogs.
Marine Virus Survey Reveals Biodiversity Hot Spots
Ocean samples collected from around the world produced a twelvefold increase in the number of marine viruses known. A portion of the Arctic Ocean has “surprisingly high diversity.”
