The Importance of Oyster Restoration
Oysters are a bivalve species, which feed mainly on phytoplankton, algae, and other small particles within the ocean. They feed by pumping large amounts of water into their bodies. The water is then pumped over their gills, where it is then, trapped by the mucus in their gills, and then the food particles are transported…
Help Our New Jersey Sea Turtle Population
Onboard the American Star, we may encounter a Loggerhead Sea turtle (Caretta caretta) swimming in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean or the Delaware Bay along the coast of Cape May. These reddish-brown marine reptiles are the most common sea turtle to spot along the coastal waters of New Jersey. Although the Loggerhead sea turtle…
Effects of Marine Debris on Whales
As many of you have already seen on the news or read online, far more than thirty sperm whales have washed ashore in Europe since the beginning of last year. Four of the thirteen whales found in Germany were discovered to have large amounts of plastic waste in their stomachs. The marine debris included a…
Why Dolphins Have Blurry Vision Under Water
If you have ever been on a tour with the Cape May Whale Watch and Research Center, you have heard your naturalist explain that dolphins are mammals. They may swim and look like a fish, but they are not fish. Mammals have hair; they are endothermic; they produce milk for their young. However, there…
Unusual Mortality Event Strikes East Coast
Unusual Mortality Event Strikes East Coast As of 2016, the Humpback Whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) indigenous to our east coast has been taken off of the EPA’s endangered species list. The same year, January of 2016, marked the beginning of the Humpback whale Unusual Mortality Event (UME), from Maine to North Carolina, that would continue through…
Investigating Trends and Patterns of Surface Water Temperature in Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) off Cape May, New Jersey
Stockton University Research Symposium – Spring 2017 To view a high quality PDF, please email Melissa Laurino at [email protected]
Changing Sea Surface Temperature and Atlantic Menhaden (Brevoortia tyrannus) abundance and its effect on the abundance of the Atlantic Bottlenose Dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) and Humpback Whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) in Cape May, New Jersey
Background: As the fall progresses in Cape May New Jersey the sea surface temperatures in the waters surrounding the southern tip of New Jersey begin to drop steadily. Beginning at around 70 degrees in September and dropping to around 40 degrees in December. Many fish species are year round residents in the area and are…
Humpback Whale Washes Ashore In Sea Isle City, NJ; 09/16/16
On September 16th, a Humpback Whale washed ashore on 20th street beach in Sea Isle City NJ. The whale had been spotted earlier in the day off the coast of Strathmere, and eventually made its way down to Sea Isle City where it washed ashore. Crews responded immediately, and moved the whale further up the…
Humpback Whale Recollection – 08/26/2016
On August 26, 2016 at 1pm, we left the dock at Utsch’s Marina and headed through the Cape May harbor towards the Cold Spring inlet. I was hoping to see many dolphins and whales because it was my last day interning at the Cape May Whale Watch and Research Center for the season. We proceeded out…