Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Reposted by David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈

American Fisheries Society @amfisheriessoc.bsky.social · 9h

The American Fisheries Society extends our support to the furloughed fisheries and aquatics professionals affected by the U.S. federal government shutdown. Read our full statement on the shutdown and its impacts on natural resources here fisheries.org/2025/10/afs-...

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Reposted by David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈

John P. Friel, Ph.D. @friel.bsky.social · 15h

My unsolicited #eel fact for today is that there are ten species of Gulper Eels (Saccopharynx) while there is only a single species of Pelican Eel (Eurypharynx ).🐟

www.youtube.com/watch?v=3nwD...

Throwback to one of our earliest encounters with a deep-sea gulper eel

YouTube video by MBARI (Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute)

www.youtube.com

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Reposted by David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈

Clare Fieseler, PhD @fieseler.bsky.social · 15h

Not sure people realize how INSANELY DRAINING data centers will be on our planet.

If you imagine data centers as their own country, they'll rank fourth in global electricity use by 2035 — outranked only by China, India, and the U.S.

Read this in @bloomberg.com👇

www.bloomberg.com/graphics/202...

AI Data Centers Are Sending Power Bills Soaring

Wholesale electricity costs as much as 267% more than it did five years ago in areas near data centers. That’s being passed on to customers.

www.bloomberg.com

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David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈 @whysharksmatter.bsky.social · 10h

This is excellent

And not just because it contains a boob shark.

theoatmeal.com/comics/ai_ar...

A cartoonist's review of AI art - The Oatmeal

This is a comic about AI art.

theoatmeal.com

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Reposted by David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈

International Association for Great Lakes Research @iaglr.bsky.social · 11h

LOOKING FOR VICE PRESIDENT NOMINEES! IAGLR is seeking candidates for positions on its Board of Directors and welcomes your involvement. We encourage you to stand for election or nominate someone you believe would benefit the association. For more details: http://bit.ly/41mJIqs

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David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈 @whysharksmatter.bsky.social · 11h

Wow...that is...considerably longer than I meant to write

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Reposted by David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈

Mike DiGirolamo @mikedigirolamo.bsky.social · 12h

Wildlife biologist Corina Newsome joins me on this week's podcast to talk about how birding is beneficial for racial justice and conservation at large.

“ What birds require of us will benefit us in ways that are far beyond bird conservation."

Listen @mongabay.com

Bird-watching for nature connection & social justice

Wildlife biologist and ornithologist Corina Newsome of the U.S. NGO National Wildlife Federation joins Mongabay’s podcast to discuss how bird-watching plays a role in environmental justice for underse...

news.mongabay.com

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David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈 @whysharksmatter.bsky.social · 12h

Further evidence that none of you are real, only I am real, I am dead, and I am in hell

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Reposted by David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈

Katie Matthews, PhD @katieocean.bsky.social · 12h

not the fisheries content I was expecting today but this is our life now 🤦‍♀️

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 16h

Trump: "We call them the water drugs. The drugs that come in through water. They're not coming. There are no boats anymore. Frankly, there are no fishing boats. There are no boats out there period, if you want to know the truth. Does anybody go fishing anymore?"

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Reposted by David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈

Biodiversity Pics @biodiversitypix.bsky.social · 12h

🌊 The natural history of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands: .
London: Printed for B. White, 1771..

[Source]

Illustration from 1771 depicting a dark-colored eel, labeled "Mureena maculata nigra," coiled gracefully among slender, branching orange coral. The eel's elongated body has a smooth, speckled texture and a pointed head with visible eye and mouth. The coral branches rise vertically behind and around the eel, providing contrast in color and form. The artwork combines scientific detail with artistic presentation typical of 18th-century natural history plates.

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Reposted by David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution @whoi.edu · 12h

🎉 We’re excited to announce the WHOI Ocean Learning Hub! ✨🌊

Explore ocean knowledge, from in-depth articles to bite-sized facts, and peek below the surface into dynamic imagery and in-depth explainer videos 🤩.

So start exploring—and let us know what you think! 👇

go.whoi.edu/OLH

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Reposted by David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈

Chris Hepler @theotherhepler.bsky.social · 12h

Lord, give me the confidence of a mediocre white shark.

David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈 @whysharksmatter.bsky.social · 14h

Shark fact:

Most "great" white sharks are actually mediocre. They're just extremely confident.

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David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈 @whysharksmatter.bsky.social · 12h

Five-year assessment of reef fish communities in the Canary Islands: marine heatwaves as drivers of rapid annual shifts - Marine Biology link.springer.com/article/10.1... 🦑🌎🧪🐠

Five-year assessment of reef fish communities in the Canary Islands: marine heatwaves as drivers of rapid annual shifts - Marine Biology

Marine ecosystems worldwide are undergoing significant shifts due to the rapid warming of sea surface temperatures (SST), driving the tropicalization of marine communities. In the Canary Islands,…

link.springer.com

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Reposted by David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈

Katie O'Reilly @drkatfish.bsky.social · 12h

New episode of the Teach Me About the Great Lakes podcast is out! I joined a couple other invasive species folks to talk about the new-ish aquatic invasive species in the #GreatLakes region we think people should know about www.teachmeaboutthegreatlakes.com/113

Teach Me About the Great Lakes | Spoiler Alert: This is Not Fine

What are the aquatic invasive species that Great Lakes experts wish you knew more about? Megan and Carolyn discuss with TMATGL all-stars El Lower, Katie O'Reilly, and Brian Roth.Links:Past episodes...

www.teachmeaboutthegreatlakes.com

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David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈 @whysharksmatter.bsky.social · 13h

UK rejects total ban on bottom trawling in offshore marine protected areas

The U.K. government has rejected calls to fully ban bottom trawling in its offshore marine protected areas, despite evidence that the fishing practice tears up seabed habitats and releases large…

news.mongabay.com

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David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈 @whysharksmatter.bsky.social · 14h

Shark fact:

Most "great" white sharks are actually mediocre. They're just extremely confident.

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David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈 @whysharksmatter.bsky.social · 14h

Today I am writing the professional email etiquette section of my upcoming marine biology career advice book.

old man yells at cloud is written on a newspaper

ALT: old man yells at cloud is written on a newspaper

media.tenor.com

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David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈 @whysharksmatter.bsky.social · 15h

For my masterclass in online science communication, I'm writing the part about how memes can be great if you know what they mean, but to be careful.

My favorite example of this is a frog scientist friend who was uses Pepe the frog memes because they were, well, frogs. No idea of any context.

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David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈 @whysharksmatter.bsky.social · 15h

Fishermen fear for their lives after US strikes in the Caribbean 🐠🦑

Fishermen in Trinidad and Tobago fear for their lives and jobs after US strikes in the Caribbean

Fishermen worry their boat could be mistaken for a drug-smuggling vessel.

www.bostonherald.com

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David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈 @whysharksmatter.bsky.social · 15h

How to Win an Underwater Photo Contest | Scuba Diving

How to Win an Underwater Photo Contest

These four renowned underwater photographers made up the judging panel for this year’s Through Your Lens photo contest. To give you some insight into their process, we asked each of them what they…

www.scubadiving.com

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Reposted by David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈

Robert Boessenecker, Dr. of Whaleontology ™️ @coastalpaleo.bsky.social · 16h

And some more kelp forest photos, with some closeups of giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) and a school of topsmelt (Atherinops affinis), also with @joshualudtke.bsky.social .

A school of bluish, reflective fish called smelt swimming through a kelp forest

A view through a kelp forest stand underwater

Another shot of kelp on the way back up from a dive, with the kelp backlit by the sun

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Reposted by David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈

Jen Bendery @jbendery.bsky.social · 16h

The Trump admin is threatening not to pay furloughed federal workers -- except that would be illegal, and Trump himself signed the law requiring them to get back pay www.huffpost.com/entry/govern... w/ @delaneyrules.bsky.social

Trump Administration Threatens To Buck The Law, Not Pay Furloughed Federal Workers

Except that Donald Trump himself signed the current law requiring federal employees to get back pay.

www.huffpost.com

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David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈 @whysharksmatter.bsky.social · 18h

New orca calf brings hope to endangered J pod near Vancouver Island 🦑🌎🧪

New orca calf brings hope to endangered J pod near Vancouver Island

Researchers are celebrating the birth of a new orca calf in the endangered Southern Resident killer whale population — a rare bright spot for the struggling J pod.

cheknews.ca

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David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈 @whysharksmatter.bsky.social · 18h

Managing the starry ray (Raja asterias) in the mid-western Adriatic Sea: why sex matters in fisheries conservation |

Large female starry rays live at different depths than juveniles- something we need to, and often do not, consider when determining protected area boundaries. Interesting research!

Frontiers | Managing the starry ray (Raja asterias) in the mid-western Adriatic Sea: why sex matters in fisheries conservation

The starry ray, Raja asterias (Delaroche 1809), is a demersal Mediterranean skate often caught as bycatch in bottom trawls and set nets. Due to high fishing ...

www.frontiersin.org

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Reposted by David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈

David Savage @dtsavage.bsky.social · 1d

Freshwater at the California Academy of Sciences. Claude the GOAT still going strong. 🐊

David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈 @whysharksmatter.bsky.social · 1d

3 years ago today, I visited the Monterrey Bay Aquarium’s deep sea exhibit. I love aquariums and always have fun and learn something, but this exhibit blew my mind. I got to pet a giant deep sea isopod!

What’s your favorite aquarium exhibit, and why?

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