Why We Can’t Shake Ambergris - Hakai Magazine
Aug 17, 2021 — Ambergris has also featured in great works of literature, including Moby Dick. Herman Melville devoted a whole chapter to it. “Who would think, then, that such fine ladies and gentlemen should regale themselves with an essence found in the inglorious bowels of a sick whale!” he wrote.
Are COVID-19 Lockdowns Really Causing Nature to Heal?
May 26, 2021 — Share. Article body copy. As the COVID-19 pandemic took hold last spring and people around the world went into lockdown, a certain type of news story started to spring up—the idea that, in the absence of people, nature was returning to a healthier, more pristine state.
Hakai Magazine
6 days ago — Hakai Magazine explores science, society, and the environment in compelling narratives that highlight coastal life and phenomena.
When Rubber Hits the Road—and Washes Away | Hakai Magazine
Nov 24, 2020 — The threat these tire fragments pose globally is just beginning to come into focus. In 2017, the International Union for Conservation of Nature estimated that 28.3 percent of microplastics in the ocean come from tires, landing them in the top seven contributors.
Treasure Fever - Hakai Magazine
Jan 14, 2020 — La Trinité set sail for what is now Florida in 1565—a full half-century before pilgrims landed on Plymouth Rock—leading a fleet of six other ships and guided by Captain Jean Ribault, who operated under the order of King Charles IX of France. The fleet was packed with munitions, gold, silver, supplies, livestock, and nearly 1,000 soldiers, seamen, and French Huguenot colonists ...
Iceland’s Confusing Inter-cetacean Conflict | Hakai Magazine
Sep 23, 2021 — Share. Article body copy. Filipa Samarra could hear the pilot whales before she could see them. In 2015, out on the choppy waters off southern Iceland, Samarra and her research team were eavesdropping on a group of killer whales.
Death of a Modern Wolf | Hakai Magazine
Oct 17, 2017 — Two months earlier, I had joined Todd Windle, Pacific Rim’s human-wildlife conflict specialist, for a walk in wolf country. As we prepared to set out, he armed himself with pepper spray—“like putting your seat belt on, like putting your bike helmet on”—and dropped various noisemakers into his pockets.
Fish Feel Pain. Now What? - Hakai Magazine
Jan 2, 2018 — Should we care how fish feel? In his 1789 treatise An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation, English philosopher Jeremy Bentham—who developed the theory of utilitarianism (essentially, the greatest good for the greatest number of individuals)—articulated an idea that has been central to debates about animal welfare ever since.
The Mysterious, Vexing, and Utterly Engrossing Search for the …
Sep 13, 2022 — By now, researchers have seen eels mate in lab settings, but they don’t know how this act plays out in the wild. The mechanisms that guide migration also remain somewhat enigmatic, as do the exact social, physical, and chemical conditions under which eels reproduce.
The Oral History of Toothless Whales - Hakai Magazine
Aug 29, 2017 — “Baleen changed everything,” Werth says. “And yet our understanding of aspects of this anatomy is still tissue thin.” Many scientists concur that filter-feeding found footing in the Oligocene (33.9 to 23 million years ago) as changes in Southern Ocean currents brought massive plankton blooms—a ready new food source.