Research
Expanding horizons of shark bycatch reduction research
04/10/2013 17:05
Following on my most recent shark research, which involved testing certain metals to see if they could repel sharks from bait Sharks, metal, and food?, one of my coauthors and I embarked on a new project. We put together a team of shark & ray experts and fisheries/conservation specialists...
Sharks, metal, and food?
05/10/2012 15:46
Many populations of sharks have plunged over the last few decades. Huge numbers are removed from the ocean each year, but many of these are not even the fish the fisherman are trying to catch. We set out to see if a certain type of metal could help keep sharks away from bait so the...
Flipping for penguin flippers!
05/09/2012 19:14
Penguins are so specialized for swimming that instead of wings for flying through the air, they have flippers that propel them swiftly through the water! We set out to discover if all flippers are created equal or if species have differences in flipper shape that might affect their swimming...
Discovering swimming secrets from watching water flow
05/09/2012 18:57
To fully understand how and why aquatic animals are shaped certain ways and move the way they do, we need to be able to see the effects their movements have on the water surrounding them. Visualizing water flow can be done in labs using laser light sheets to highlight tiny particles in the...
From form to function: Stingray sensory superstars
05/09/2012 17:30
Sharks and stingrays are sensory superstars! They have successfully navigated and hunted the Earth's oceans for ~400 million years! With over 1100 species and counting, there are a variety of different configurations of sensory systems found in the elasmobranch group. Within the...
Making sense of stingray sensory anatomy
05/04/2012 16:40
Elasmobranchs (sharks, skates, and rays), can perceive the world around much as we can, through hearing, vision, olfaction (smell), taste, and touch, however, they also are extremely sensitive to water motion and can detect electric fields. They do this with sophisticated lateral line and...
Shark Cruising!
05/04/2012 13:01
I feel very privileged to have been able to take part in several NOAA Juvenile Shark Surveys. During the summers of 2004, 2005, and 2007 I spent 7-10 days on board the RV David Starr Jordan, met wonderful people, watched a ton of movies, perfected ship-board yoga, and of course got up close...
Bat ray feeding fun!
05/04/2012 12:15
Bat rays are beautiful and fascinating animals. They are the largest ray typically found in the cold waters of California and are capable of pusuing prey buried up to a meter deep in sand or mud! Once they find their favorite snack, they have powerful jaws and flat, pavement-like...