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Marine biology is the study of marine or saltwater organisms. Marine biologists study everything from single-celled bacteria to the blue whale and giant kelp. They are interested in a number of marine features, including the process of marine development, how organisms interact with one another and the ecosystem, and how organisms adapt to their environment. Marine biologists focus on increasing knowledge of the fluid environment and how marine organisms function today in order to predict how ecosystems will cope with large-scale changes such as global warming, overfishing, and pollution.
Imagine you are sitting at your lab bench staring through magnifying lenses at a small invertebrate lying in a specimen dish. You are a marine biologist and you found this little guy earlier in the day while diving in a shallow bay off the coast of Vancouver Island. Whats remarkable about this species of mollusc is that its regular habitat is hundreds of kilometres south of this bay, where ocean temperatures are significantly warmer. You have been studying this species of mollusc for 10 months now, making dozens of dives and spending countless hours in the lab gathering data to support your hypothesis that warmer ocean temperatures due to climate change are altering the distribution of this mollusc species. As a marine biologist, you are an expert on the aquatic organisms and fluid environment of this particular bay. You were surprised three years ago when you first spotted this mollusc species so far north and applied for a grant to study how and why it has made its way to Vancouver Island. Youve hypothesized that climate change has resulted in warmer ocean temperatures in this region, which have made it possible for the mollusc to expand its habitat. A lot of your research has focused on gathering data and mapping trends to determine if local ocean temperatures have changed significantly in recent years, to the point where the coasts of Vancouver Island have become usable habitat for species typically found farther south. On your dives, you collect data on the distribution and abundance of the mollusc inside the bay, as well as gather specimens to take back to the lab. In addition to analyzing water temperature, you study the morphology of your specimens, looking for physiological adaptations that would allow them to survive in colder waters. When published, your research will contribute to the bank of scientific knowledge that records and predicts the effects of climate change on global ecosystems.
Imagine you are sitting at your lab bench staring through magnifying lenses at a small invertebrate lying in a specimen dish. You are a marine biologist and you found this little guy earlier in the day while diving in a shallow bay off the coast of Vancouver Island. Whats remarkable about this species of mollusc is that its regular habitat is hundreds of kilometres south of this bay, where ocean temperatures are significantly warmer. You have been studying this species of mollusc for 10 months now, making dozens of dives and spending countless hours in the lab gathering data to support your hypothesis that warmer ocean temperatures due to climate change are altering the distribution of this mollusc species.
As a marine biologist, you are an expert on the aquatic organisms and fluid environment of this particular bay. You were surprised three years ago when you first spotted this mollusc species so far north and applied for a grant to study how and why it has made its way to Vancouver Island. Youve hypothesized that climate change has resulted in warmer ocean temperatures in this region, which have made it possible for the mollusc to expand its habitat.
A lot of your research has focused on gathering data and mapping trends to determine if local ocean temperatures have changed significantly in recent years, to the point where the coasts of Vancouver Island have become usable habitat for species typically found farther south. On your dives, you collect data on the distribution and abundance of the mollusc inside the bay, as well as gather specimens to take back to the lab.
In addition to analyzing water temperature, you study the morphology of your specimens, looking for physiological adaptations that would allow them to survive in colder waters. When published, your research will contribute to the bank of scientific knowledge that records and predicts the effects of climate change on global ecosystems.