Phytoplankton Bloom of Cape May, New Jersey; July 2016
As the Atlantic Star rocked back and forth the blue-green tinted water glared back up at me. I could see hundreds of Atlantic Menhaden and countless Cownose Rays swimming several feet beneath the surface. No, I was not in the Bahamas or the Caribbean or even remotely close for that matter. This was the coast…
What is Light Pollution?
My bedroom at home is on the top floor of our house. It sits back from the main road and there are no streetlights that flood my room with a hazy orange glow. Instead, the only thing I can see at night is the distinct outline of the pine trees that line my yard. Sometimes I pop the screen of one of my windows out and crawl through my open window onto the roof so I can view the unobstructed night sky. The Big Dipper is always easily visible on a clear night, as is Orion, and even the Seven Sisters, faint and clustered together. I can even see the Milky Way. This, I have come to realize, is a rare view for most of the world’s population. A view of the Milky Way over Eagle Lake, Acadia National Park,…
Biomagnification of Pollution in Bottlenose Dolphins
The North Atlantic Bottlenose Dolphins that reside in the Cape May, NJ waters are at the top of their food chain. With no viable predators, our dolphins are free to rule the waters, while consuming whatever they choose. As this may seem advantageous for our dolphins, it has actually become a serious health problem. Like…
Are There Any Sharks in THIS Ocean?
“Are there any sharks in this ocean?” This is the question that always comes up while I am interning on the boat. And the answer is always yes. Sharks live everywhere in the ocean. Shallow waters, deep waters, some big, some small, some with really sharp teeth, and others with none at all. But why…
Neptune’s Treasure: Commercial Whaling in NJ
When you go for a whale watching trip with the Cape May Whale Watch and Research Center around the island of Cape May, you get much more than you bargained for. An exhilarating close up look at dolphins and whales is always #1 on the agenda when taking a trip, but also along the way, guests aboard are treated to a sample of Cape May’s rich history. And as the oldest seaside resort in the United States, historical details and pirate tales alike never disappoint; the relics of Cape May’s past are apparent even from sea. The Whale Watch’s unique combination experience of marine mammal ecology and Cape May’s past, pieces together the components of a seldom told story, and a dark one, of the town’s connection to commercial whaling and what it meant for our beloved whales today. The…
Do You Have Whale SENSE?
As the years progress, the use of the oceans for recreational purposes has increased dramatically, leading to a greater number of people living near the ocean, traveling to the ocean, and using recreational boats throughout our oceans. Many don’t realize that, although jet skiing, parasailing, and fishing are all great entertainment activities used at the…
The Blue Whale
The Blue Whale General Facts: The Blue Whale is the largest animal in the world, growing up to 110 feet long (33 meters), they are larger than the biggest dinosaur. The blue Whale is a baleen whale, like the humpback whale we see in Cape May, New Jersey, it has no teeth but it has baleen plates at the top of its mouth. The baleen plates allow the blue whale to eat up to 2,200 pounds of food a day, keeping their weight consistent at 330,000 pounds. How many blue whales are there? At one time blue whales were hunted for their blubber to make oil for clocks and lamps. They were almost hunted to the point of extinction but due to the U.S Endangered species Act it became illegal to hunt blue whales around the world. Over time, blue…