Posts tagged as:

marine science

How ocean arteries carry life across the Indian Ocean

30 June 2011

Australian researchers have revealed a new pattern of ocean circulation which will change our understanding of marine events. Research at the University of Melbourne and the Bureau of Meteorology has overturned conventional ideas of ocean circulation.

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Samurai of the sea

9 June 2011

What sawfish really do with their saw Scientists thought that sawfish used their saw to probe the sea bottom for food.  But a Cairns researcher has found that these large (5 metres or more) and endangered fish actually use the saw to locate and dismember free-swimming fish – using a sixth sense that detects electric [...]

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Waste is a waste: Pigs reduce the burden on the oceans

10 June 2010

A biotechnologist from the South Australian Research and Development Institute has taken using “everything but the pig’s squeal” to new lengths. Through clever recycling of pig waste, Andrew Ward has been able to produce feed for aquaculture, water for irrigation, and methane for energy. His ‘waste food chain’ can be applied to breweries, wineries and [...]

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Octopus jets the key to greener flights: synthetic jets improve aerodynamics of aircraft

19 November 2009

Researchers at the University of New South Wales have improved the aerodynamics of aircraft by putting rows of tiny synthetic jets along the wings of aeroplanes —much like the suck and blow jets octopuses use to move through the water. The models tested demonstrated smoothing of the air flow over the wing section. This would [...]

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Life beneath the sheets: 9000 years in the dark

27 July 2009

Researchers at Geoscience Australia have unravelled the development of a unique seafloor community thriving in complete darkness below the giant ice sheets of Antarctica. The community beneath the Amery Ice Shelf in Antarctica is 100 km from open water and hidden from view by ice half a kilometre thick. This ecosystem has developed very slowly [...]

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How lobsters create their colours

26 July 2009

A team of Queensland researchers have discovered that lobsters, prawns and other crustaceans have evolved a unique way of making colours: making the complex patterns appreciated by biologists and connoisseurs of seafood. Their work will help with conservation, aquaculture and may even lead to a new food colourant. And all the colours come from just [...]

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Dinner for tuna: tracking tuna dining habits across the Indian Ocean

8 June 2009

Southern bluefin tuna can’t even have a quiet snack without CSIRO researchers knowing. They’ve developed a way of tracking when the tuna feed and also where, at what depth, and the temperature of the surrounding water.

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Does my asinina look big in these genes?

15 July 2008

The world’s fastest growing abalone—the tropical donkey’s ear abalone, Haliotis asinina—can be bred to grow rapidly and reliably for aquaculture, Queensland biologists have found.

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Fin tips reveal the secret of underwater flight: ten times faster than an Olympic swimmer

17 June 2008

Certain small reef fish use wing-like fins to ‘fly’ underwater, allowing them to cruise at speeds equivalent to tuna, a team of Australian and US researchers has found. The design of the fins has drawn the attention of underwater submersible designers and the US Office of Naval Research.   

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Tuna research in 350-tonne waterbed

16 August 2007

 Bluefin tuna use three times as much oxygen as other fish their size, making them more difficult to culture. That’s just part of the valuable information uncovered by University of Adelaide PhD student, Quinn Fitzgibbon and his colleagues in a study where they monitored live tuna swimming inside a 350-tonne “waterbed”.

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Slime wars: bacteria harnessed to fight biofouling

16 August 2007

Warfare between bacteria could provide an environmentally friendly solution to biofouling, according to Dhana Rao and her colleagues at the University of NSW.

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How sea slugs fall in love

14 August 2007

Scott Cummins and his colleagues at The University of Queensland have uncovered a potent mix of chemicals which acts like a cross between Chanel No 5 and Viagra-but only if you are a sea slug.

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Patterson’s curse may be a saving grace for salmon

10 August 2006

Fish make omega-3 from noxious weed Australian scientists have found that fish fed oil extracted from one of Australia’s most damaging noxious weeds, Patterson’s curse, produce health-giving omega-3 oils for human consumption.

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Sight for sore eyes: ancient fish see colour

30 August 2005

The Australian lungfish-one of the world’s oldest fishes and related to our ancient ancestors-may have been viewing rivers in technicolour long before dinosaurs roamed the Earth. Recent work by postgraduate student Helena Bailes at the University of Queensland has found these unusual fish have genes for five different forms of visual pigment in their eyes. [...]

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Study takes the sting out of tropical swimming

17 August 2005

Box jellyfish are capable of moving several kilometres a day, but seem to stay within a relatively short stretch of beachfront. Those are some to the initial findings of a young researcher in North Queensland, who is undertaking the first detailed study of the movements of the potentially lethal animals. Matt Gordon of the Tropical [...]

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Hitchhiking pests uncovered

31 August 2004

A test for  toxic algae could help save our coastal waters from attack by invading pests Coastal waters around the world are threatened by invaders lurking in the ballast water of cargo ships. A new global agreement will require ships to meet strict regulations to ensure they do not harbour any unwanted invaders. New technologies [...]

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