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Purple sea urchins are devouring California's kelp forests at a rate and size that has scientists, fishermen, and divers equally baffled. However, red and purple urchins have long lived in kelp forests, indicating that the three species may coexist. UC Santa Barbara researchers wanted to know what causes disrupted this equilibrium. A new study conducted by the University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC) discovered that a dramatic outbreak of kelp-eating sea urchins along California's C...

Urchins emerge to forage on living kelp when they can’t catch kelp scraps, mowing down swaths of the underwater forest

Urchins emerge to forage on living kelp when they can’t catch kelp scraps, mowing down swaths of the underwater forest

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Predators like parrotfish and pufferfish pose much more of a threat to young coral than previously believed.

 E-Mail IMAGE: A variety of reef fishes swim among the staghorn coral in Moorea, French Polynesia as a researcher swims overhead. view more  Credit: UC Santa Barbara You might not think an animal made out of stone would have much to worry about in the way of predators, and thats largely what scientists had thought about coral. Although corallivores like parrotfish and pufferfish are well known to biologists, their impact on coral growth and survival was believed to be small compared t...

Housing and Development Newsletter They also found that annual lobster landings more than doubled in the fishing block with the two MPAs during the six years after their establishment despite the 35% reduction in fishing area in that block. In contrast, the annual catch in blocks without MPAs remained relatively unchanged over that timespan. “This study is one of the first to quantify and document that the establishment of marine reserve actually enhanced catch despite reducing the area that ...

Credit: Matt Kay You cant have your cake and eat it too, as the saying goes. But what if you could save your slice while enjoying the benefits at the same time? New research suggests this is possible when it comes to marine reserves. Marine protected areas (MPAs) are among the best conservation tools at our disposal today. However, by their very nature, these reserves take away fishing grounds, which can make them unattractive to commercial fishermen. Scientists and resource managers often prom...

By Harrison Tasoff Santa Barbara, CA You can’t have your cake and eat it too, as the saying goes. But what if you could save your slice while enjoying the benefits at the same time? New research suggests this is possible when it comes to marine reserves. Marine protected areas (MPAs) are among the best conservation tools at our disposal today. However, by their very nature, these reserves take away fishing grounds, which can make them unattractive to commercial fishermen. Scientists and resou...