Halibut Herald November 19

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ALIBUT HERALD November 19, 2009

Bizarre Bubbles Invade the Ocean Floor

Bubble corals are recognisable by their large, water-filled bubbles, or vesicles. Like light-loving balloons, these inflate during the day and deflate at the night, when tentacles come out instead in search of food. The bubbles – which are white, cream, light green or pink in colour – protect the bubble coral skeleton. Meanwhile, the extended sweeper tentacles fight for space, and hunt prey such as plankton; stinging, capturing and killing their targets. Some bubble corals are also characterised by incredible fingerprint patterns, a nice touch by Mother Nature – at least to humans, apparently keen to recognise themselves in everything they see in the world around them. READ ON: http://www.environmentalgraffiti.com/featured/bizarre-bubbles/17088

Newborn Killer Whale Buoys Hopes

A second newborn killer whale has been spotted in the waters off Washington state's San Juan Islands and near Victoria. The calf, given the scientific designation J-46, is the newest member of what marine scientists call J-Pod, part of a larger group of endangered killer whales called the southern residents. The presumed mother is a 16-year-old known as J-28, or Polaris, according to the Orca Network, a non-profit whale monitoring organization. READ ON: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/britishcolumbia/story/2009/11/12/bc-killer-whale-birth.html

Beautiful! Face-Off With a Deadly Predator

Paul Nicklen describes his most amazing experience as a National Geographic photographer - coming face-to-face with one of Antarctica's most vicious predators. VIEW: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zxa6P73Awcg

Oceans May Trap More Carbon Than Forests

Predatory Coral Eats Jellyfish

A coral is recorded eating a jellyfish for the first time, in intriguing photographs taken by scientists. READ ON: http://www.oceanleadership.org/2009/predatory-coraleats-jellyfish

Marine ecosystems including seagrass meadows, mangroves and salt marshes have a much greater capacity to trap carbon than land carbon sinks such as forests, according to a report from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The organization believes ocean ecosystems are essential to combating global warming. READ ON: http://www.oceansentry.org/lang-en/menunews/environment/2372-oceans-may-trap-more-carbon-thanforests.html

Birds and Reptiles and Mammals, Oh My An international scientific team has put forth a bold proposal to sequence the genomes of 10,000 vertebrate species. The information gathered by the ‘Genome 10K’ project will aid conservation efforts ranging from monitoring endangered species to managing fish stocks, the group says in the Journal of Heredity. Genome sequencing costs have plunged in the last decade, making large-scale sequencing efforts more and more feasible. So far, the Genome 10K group has identified samples of more than 16,000 species held at universities, museums, zoos, and research institutes around the world that could be used for the project. The proposed collection covers 34% of all known living mammal species, 52% of birds, 27% of amphibians, 37% of reptiles, and 13% of fishes, totalling roughly a quarter of all documented living vertebrates. READ ON: http://journalwatch.conservationmagazine.org/2009/11/04/birdsand-reptiles-and-mammals-oh-my/

Hi all, We wanted to give staff and volunteers an opportunity to get tickets to an upcoming event (that is sure to sell out) at a discounted price. The 2nd Annual Ocean Wise Chowder Chowdown will feature sustainable seafood chowders from 10 of BC’s finest chefs competing for the honour of the best sustainable chowder in BC. Better yet, we have teamed up with 5 of the best local micro-breweries to pair with the chowders. Staff and volunteers are welcome to purchase tickets for the event at the special rate of $28 (20% off) – see E-vite below. The event will take place November 25th from 6-9pm. Please feel free to tell your friends – regular price is $35. To purchase tickets just click the link below http://www.vanaqua.org/oceanwise/chowder.html

The Fair Food Project Tells Farmworkers' Stories (VIDEO) If you eat, you rely on farmers, but you also rely on the labor of 2.5 million farm workers in the United States who earn wages below the poverty limit ($10,000 per year) while risking their lives in the harshest conditions in order to bring us most of the food we eat on a day to day basis. Photographer and writer Rick Nahmias and the California Institute for Rural Studies have created a multimedia project called "Fair Food: Field to Table," allowing farm workers to tell their own stories, and featuring the voices of farm worker advocates and producers who are pursuing solutions to creating socially just conditions on the farm and in food businesses. READ/WATCH ON: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/paulacrossfield/the-fair-food-project-tel_b_360916.html

The GOOD Guide to COP15: All You Need to Know About the Copenhagen Conference If you're late arriving to the COP15 party, and need to get caught up on what the political fuss is about, there's still time to get your head straight: http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/11/goodhas-the-goods-on-cop15.php Or try out this “non-wonky crib sheet”: http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/11/mostly-non-wonkycop15-crib-sheet.php

Sesame Street's Top 10 Environmental Videos Solar Collectors in Space Could Finally Solve Earth's Energy Problem

The Japan Space Agency, along with Mitsubishi Electric Corp. and IHI Corp., are getting even closer to next big thing: harnessing the power of the sun with a solar collector in geostationary orbit. READ ON: http://dvice.com/archives/2009/11/solarcollector.php

Sea Shepherd Improves Radio Communications in Galapagos

Sesame Street, Jim Henson's educational masterpiece, has been teaching curious learners for 40 years. Among the well known songs about the alphabet & numbers, were segments with strong environmental messages for children around the globe. READ ON: http://www.treehugger.com/galleries/2009/11/sesamestreets-top-ten-environmental-videos.php

Top 5 Useful Green Gadgets That Make our Lives Easier

Good communication on each island as well as inter island communication is now possible through radios. After several months of installing repeaters and programming and adjusting radios, Sea Shepherd Galapagos has officially handed over a large amount of radio communication equipment to the National Police in Galapagos. READ ON: http://www.seashepherd.org/news-andmedia/news-091116-1.html

The recent shift that many consumers are making toward living greener lives has caused companies to strip away many of the superfluous bells and whistles, resulting in some great new green gadgets! READ ON: http://mylifescoop.com/featured-stories/2009/11/top-5useful-green-gadgets.html

One word: Bioplastics

Five Body Parts You May Be Able to Regrow Soon(ish)

Every year, more than 540 billion pounds of plastic are produced worldwide. Much of it ends up in the world’s oceans At a new plant in Iowa, MIT-rooted technology will use bacteria to turn corn into biodegradable plastics. READ ON: http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2009/bioplastic s.html

St. Louis Zoo Replaces Deceased Polar Bears with Electronic Proxies

Starfish, salamanders, and planarian flatworms share a seemingly magical trait: the ability to regenerate body parts they've lost. While humans may never boast quite the same ability, scientists are perfecting ways to create different types of replacement tissue using stem cells or techniques that kick-start regrowth and development. Thanks to their efforts, the fabled "human spare-parts kit" may become a reality sooner than you think. READ ON: http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/health_medicine/4337088.html

Penguins Evolving Faster Than Thought

A team of researchers collected DNA from penguins living in rookeries in Antarctica and from bones of penguins that had lived in the same spot as long as 44,000 years ago. Analysis reveals that the penguins are evolving on a molecular scale two to six times faster than standard calculations indicated. READ ON: http://www.wired.com/wir edscience/2009/11/pengu ins-evolving-faster-thanthought/

Listen to VanAqua’s Jim Bolger, Executive Director of the Pacific Ocean Shelf Tracking Project on their Website!

This week employees with James Trogolo Co. installed a family of electronic polar bears in the zoo's empty polar bear display. Technology wins again! READ ON: http://blogs.riverfronttimes.com/dailyrft/ 2009/11/st_louis_zoo_replaces_dead_po lar_bears_with_electronic_proxies.php

The conversation ebbs and flows around the (POST) Pacific Ocean Shelf Tracking Project and his team’s contributions to the international Census of Marine Life. LISTEN: http://www.postcoml.org/files/304_NGW_100309_HR2_SegD.mp3

Archival Photo

Visitors examine numbered Aquarium tanks, 1970.

Library News For more library news, book reviews, access to our online catalogue and much more, visit us on the aquanet: http://aquanet.vanaqua.org/IS/CRS/Lib/Pages/default.aspx Get your up-to-the minutes news via RSS feed from the library’s What’s new pages. Currently, there are two What’s new pages running a variety of interesting news feeds What’s New – Animals and Nature – for news about birds, reptiles, marine mammals, and places such as the Arctic http://aquanet.vanaqua.org/IS/CRS/Lib/Pages/WhatsNewAnimalsandNature.aspx What’s New – Business and General – for news about business, finance, tourism, visitor experience and marketing http://aquanet.vanaqua.org/IS/CRS/Lib/Pages/What%27sNewBGN.aspx News on Environmental conservation and education will soon be available via the Conservation Current http://aquanet.vanaqua.org/IS/CRS/Lib/ConservationCurrent/Pages/Default.aspx Did you know that the Library has access to over 100 journals and magazines?? At least 80 of these are available full text online. For a complete hyperlinked list, visit the library journals page on Aquanet: http://aquanet.vanaqua.org/IS/CRS/Lib/Pages/Journals.aspx As well, you can find new books and movies listed on this page of Aquanet: http://aquanet.vanaqua.org/IS/CRS/Lib/Pages/LibraryCatalogue.aspx

http://www.tourismcares.org/save-our-sites/polling-options

The VAHC meetings begin at 7:30 p.m. in the Aquatic Planet classroom on the first Wednesday of each month. Meet at the Aquaquest reception entrance. Talks generally get going around 8 p.m. after a hobby club Q & A session. The talks/meetings are free to attend, but if you find yourself coming to quite a few, a membership to the club is always a great idea (a mere $20/year!) DECEMBER 2ND, 2009 – LECTURE @ AQUATIC PLANET CLASSROOM, AQUAQUEST Dolph Schluter from UBC will be doing a talk on African cichlid evolution. Check out his website here: http://www.zoology.ubc.ca/~schluter/

Events From Earth to Ocean: Stories from Gwaii Haanas Parks Canada has identified the waters around Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve and Haida Heritage Site (Queen Charlotte Islands) as a potential national marine conservation area reserve. To present the stories of Gwaii Haanas, Parks Canada has partnered with The Vancouver Aquarium to offer a unique speaker series open to the public. Participation is free, though seats are limited. Each engaging event allows audience members to explore a different aspect of the region and understand the benefits of its protection. Starting in September, join us to find out more about:

Session 4: Healthy oceans, healthy people Monday December 7 Whether it’s dining out or reporting a whale sighting, your actions can make a difference to our oceans. Join us for this special conclusion to find out what you can do to help Each session takes place at The Vancouver Aquarium from 7 – 9 pm. Please enter at the AquaQuest Administrative Entrance.

To confirm your seat, email: [email protected] or call 604-659-3432. Please identify which session you would like to attend. Seating is limited.

This group has been working on a mosaic project to beautify an alley in the West End. If you are interested in participating in a public art project, here’s your chance!

Thank you every one who has donated to help fight prostate cancer you are truly awesome and should feel giddy about what you have done to help those 1 in 6 men whom suffer this damaging cancer . I truly feel that we will know a cure for prostate cancer in our lifetime.To those who haven’t givin yet ,well there is still a little over a week to give, so far the mo-baleen,s have raised over 1000 bucks and quite frankly with such a stellar team, I believe we should be able to raise at least triple that .Cmon join the team or give a few bucks ,it’s a descent thing to do and youll be supporting your mo-bros and that makes you cool like cesar ramero (that guy had a great mo) DONATE HERE: http://ca.movember.com/mospace/members/search/q/mo-baleen%2Cs

http://makeitproductions.com/vancouver/welcome-to-make-it/

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Exploring the Depths of Generations Baby Boomer... Gen X... Traditionalists... Gen Y... For the first time in history, four generations are together in the workplace. Learn about each of the generational groups, their values and experiences, and their impact on the organization. This informative, engaging, and fun workshop aims to build community across generations and explore strategies to bridge generational gaps. Please join us the afternoon of November 26th from 2:30 – 4pm in the Halibut room for this interesting workshop open to all staff and volunteers. If you are interested in attending, please let Rene know @ 3766.