Tags: Nature

Jellies Reveal Clever Mode of Transport, Even in Absence of Brains

ENVIRONMENT & CLIMATE Without fins or bones capable of paddling, in terms of appearances, jellyfish may seem like mere drifters of the sea. But even in spite of their major deficits, including the absence of a heart and brains, these invertebrates have an incredible talent for swimming. So much so that no other creature under the sea can quite compete in terms of efficiency and skills. Though their tactics have long been misunderstood, a new study adds to the working knowledge that these brainless creatures are far more clever than we give them credit for.

VIDEO—Jellyfish Reveal A Knack for Global Positioning & Swimming in New Study

While jellyfish may seem like an innocuous marine species, most commonly known for their ability to sting, a new study published in the journal Current Biology reveals that the little gelatinous creatures are actually quite efficient in traversing waves, and can also detect the direction of ocean currents to effectively swim against them. Like a character straight out of Oz, without a heart, bones and even a brain, these little creatures may seem like their helpless in the wild but they’re proving that they can swim against the currents life brings them.

Revealing the Swimming Secrets of the Ageless, Brainless Jellyfish

They may lack brains, bones, and even a heart, but jellyfish are undoubtedly some of the most interesting creatures marine biologists have come to research. Even in spite of their major deficits, and their obvious downfalls, jellyfish have an incredible talent for swimming. So much so that no other creature under the sea can quite compete in terms of efficiency and skills. Though their tactics have long been misunderstood, a new study adds to the working knowledge that these brainless creatures are far more clever than we give them credit for.

"Living Fossil" Frilled Shark Comes Up From Ocean Depths

A rare frilled shark was caught off the coast of Australia in a fishing trawler. This rarely spotted living fossil dates back 80 million years with a face that won't win it any beauty contests and looks like something that might come out of a Hollywood horror movie.

Greenland's Massive Ice Sheets Reveal New Lakes Below

Scientists have discovered changes in the subglacial lakes that have formed below the massive Greenland ice sheet. These lakes could make the ice more sensitive to changes in the climate than many previously believed.

New Island Created By Volcano in Tonga

The Earth continues to change its landscape right before our eyes. A volcanic eruption in Tonga has created a new island, but one scientist says it could soon vanish just as quickly as it formed.

Fertilizers Pose a Threat to the Future of Our Planet

While the concept of feeding our flora may seem innocuous, the use of fertilizers on our crops could be destroying the planet. A new study published in the journal Science by researchers from the University of Wisconsin reveals that excessive use of artificial fertilizers, which contain phosphorus and nitrogen, could pose a threat to the future of planet Earth.

Researchers in Scottland Find Remnants of Nessy’s Relatives—Or So It Seems

While tales of the cryptid, the Loch Ness monster more colloquially known as Nessy, have gone largely unsubstantiated in the past, archaeologists in Scotland believe that they may now have found creature that fits the bill. The only problem is, that the dolphin-like marine reptile which grew to lengths of up to 14 feet went extinct nearly 170 million years ago.

Can You Really Smell When It’s About to Rain? Scientists Now Know Why

Do you always know before and after it rains simply because of the smell? Now, researchers have discovered the origin of the earthy, sweet smell that lingers in the air. And though scientists have been baffled by the source of this aroma, known as Petrichor, for many years now researchers from MIT have found its origin with the help of high-speed photography.

Marine Mammals Can Suffer from Irregular Heartbeats When Diving Deep

Researchers from the University of California, Santa Cruz have found that marine mammals like seals and dolphins can suffer from irregular heartbeats when they dive deep in the search for food. According to researchers, who believed they have evidence of cardiac rhythm complications in both Weddell seals and bottlenose dolphins, said the problem takes place as they hold their breath during deep dives.

Sea Turtles Use Earth’s Magnetic Field as a GPS

Female sea turtles will swim for thousands of miles to return to their place of birth to lay eggs. For years, how they found their home has remained a mystery to researchers. However, according to a new study, these sea turtles find their way home by relying on the unique magnetic signatures along the coast.

Alarming New Study Reveals Rising Sea Levels is Happening Faster Than Researchers Thought

It could be time to sound the alarm, as a new study reveals that the rise in global sea levels from the end of the 20th century until the last two decades is accelerating much faster than scientists previously believed. It was discovered that there were loopholes in the estimates made for an earlier period which has caused the rest of the readings to be off.

Pushed to the Brink—Humans Put Earth in 'The Danger Zone'

With unprecedented levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, widespread species extinction, habit destruction, and increased levels of nitrogen and phosphorous in the oceans courtesy of polluting fertilizers, the Earth is being pushed to the brink and could one day make it unsafe for the continuation of life. The rate at which humans are destroying the environment is entirely unprecedented, and with such a devastating effect unseen in the last 11,700 years, life is facing an uncertain future ahead.

Human Activity May Lead to a Bleaker Life Under the Sea

A new study has found that human activity is having a drastic impact on the creatures under the sea, with many on the verge of extinction thanks to humans. However, swift intervention could still prevent a "disaster of the magnitude observed on land."The study published this week in the journal Science analyzes the impact humans are having on the oceans. According to the group of researchers who developed the study, several marine species could soon be gone forever if changes are not quickly made.

Giant Sea Animals Are Not So Giant After All

The oceans largest creatures aren't quite as large as we often image, according to a new study. According to a report published in the journal Peer J, humans are not very good at visualizing the size of creatures like the giant squid or whales, and media reports usually exaggerate their size too. The team of researchers from the U.S. and Canada compared popular reports and scientific reports for 25 different species of marine creatures, including whales, sharks, squids and other giant ocean dwellers, and found that most of the animals were actually smaller than what was reported.

How Zebras Got Their Stripes & Why Climate Change is Likely to Blame

While they're not alone in the vast wonders of Africa's abundant plains, zebras in particular have posed quite a quandary to scientists in past decades. Their unique striping of black and white have always sparked interest in their study, but the ever failing hypotheses quickly discouraged the discovery of their significance-if any at all. But while many researchers have failed in associating the stripes with social order of a herd or even as camouflaging tactics in the wild, a new study published this month in the journal Royal Society Open Science, researchers have discovered that the stripes are much more like a tan than we think.

Sea Turtles Reveal A Sixth Sense—Finding Their Way Home & Sensing The Seasons

As a migratory species, Leatherback Sea Turtles (Dermochely coriacea) are a rare oddity of nature that spend their lives mostly in travel, between their breeding grounds in open ocean and their tropical places of birth. Travelling back and forth between the tropics and their hunting grounds to the north, the unique species follows the cool waters, as they flow throughout the oceans they inhabit. But that doesn't even begin to unravel their mysterious origins or how they know to traverse the seas.

Threatened Thresher Shark Birth Captured on Film

Thresher sharks are among the open ocean's most interesting predators, using their elongated tails to herd and stun schools of fish. And now, for the first time, a mother pelagic thresher shark was caught on camera giving birth off the Philippine coast.

Study Shows Volcanoes May Be Causing Global Cooling

We have known for a while that massive volcanic eruptions, which eject massive amounts of gases into the atmosphere, can block enough solar radiation to have an effect on the climate. For example, scientists believe the explosion of the Indonesian volcano Mt. Tambora in 1815 caused the severe cold spell in 1816. But while scientists may have arrived at a consensus that our planet is warming, according to a new study published this week, some of the warming effects have been offset by small volcanic eruptions over the last decade. The vast quantities of ash and gases ejected from the volcanoes have had a remarkable cooling effect on the climate, by blocking solar radiation.
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