Hawaii
oracknows | February 10, 2016Naturopathy is quackery.
That can't be said often enough. After all, any "discipline" that not only incorporates homeopathy as a major part of its training but also requires that its graduates pass a test with a section on homeopathy certainly can't be considered science-based. Actually, to be more accurate, naturopathy is probably at least 80% quackery and 20% science-based modalities like diet, exercise, and lifestyle changes rebranded and infused with woo. Moreover, whenever naturopaths are misguided enough not to know their limitations, leading them to treat real diseases (rather than…
gregladen | September 2, 2015Marine biologists from the University of Queensland is looking at coral reefs in Hawaii and what they see is not good.
They used high resolution images to track coral bleaching and death. Recently coral reefs in Hawaii suffered their first known mass bleaching event, caused by unusually warm waters associated with the now famous "Blob" of warm sea water in the Pacific.
An overall warming trend (anthropogenic global warming) along with the additional effects of a growing El Niño seem to be causing this.
This phenomenon is happening now. Ove Hoegh-Guldberg, chief scientist at Global Change…
dr. dolittle | September 13, 2013233,000 gallons of molasses has leaked from a pipeline near the shore of Honolulu suffocating thousands of fish. The pipeline is used to load molasses onto ships. Officials have warned people to stay out of the water as sharks may be attracted to the area. The Hawaii Department of Health is working on removing the dead fish and cleaning up this environmental disaster.
cwilcox | July 19, 2010So, you may have heard this rumor that I, on occasion, do things other than blog, tweet, or facebook. It may seem shocking, but I do have a day job (if you can call it that - a graduate student's job never seems to be restricted by sunlight).
For the past couple weeks, I've been getting my butt kicked into super shape by an intense 2-week scientific diver certification course, which covers from open water to master scuba diver at warp speed. It was intense, physically exhausting, and mentally draining. But it was well worth it, because now, I can do something even more intense, physically…
cwilcox | May 21, 2010For those of you who don't know, today is Endangered Species Day. Started in the US Senate, Endangered species day is observed every year on the third Friday in May. The point is to call attention to all the animals that are at risk of disappearing forever. The fact of the matter is, we're losing species at an unprecedented rate. Of the 47,978 species that have been described by the IUCN, 17,315 of those are endangered, and for most of the planet's species, there simply isn't enough data to tell.
For my part, I'm making a commitment. I have about five years at least to spend on these Hawaiian…
cwilcox | April 28, 2010Anyone who follows me on twitter has probably noticed a lot of tweets about a shark fin bill that was being reviewed in Hawaii. I am glad to inform you that this historic bill has just passed the legislature. It's but a signature by Governor Lingle away from being enacted into law!
Of the 307 shark species assessed by the IUCN, 64 are listed as vulnerable, endangered or critically endangered due to shark finning. As a group, sharks represent the greatest percentage of threatened marine species on the Red List. Despite the overwhelming evidence that these majestic predators are in trouble,…
cwilcox | March 29, 2010For blog newcomers: On top of being a graduate student and blogging about science, I, on occasion, actually get to go out in the world and enjoy where I live. When I get some good pictures or go somewhere neat, I pass on my experiences with my readers. This is that kind of post.
When you drive around Oahu, there are two craters that stick out. The more famous is Diamond Head, whose noticeable profile marks the backdrop of the beaches in Waikiki. If you continue further southeast, the landscape is dominated by the facade of another, perhaps even more daunting tuff: Koko Crater. Both of these…
grrlscientist | March 1, 2010tags: Wailea, Maui, Hawaii, tsunami, nature, environment, image of the day
Image: Ron Barranco, Wailea, Maui, Hawaii [larger view]
One of my friends lived on Hawaii in 2008, where his uncle still resides. His uncle emailed two images to my friend the morning after the tsunami, which were snapped from his lanai. My friend shared these images with his friends, and he also gave me permission to share them here with all of you.
Image: Ron Barranco, Wailea, Maui, Hawaii [larger view]
bnsullivan | August 17, 2009
Many animals in the ocean seek shelter from predators by living on or among other animals. Among fishes, members of the Damselfish family (Pomacentridae) often seek protection this way. Some of these relationships also are commensal or even symbiotic.
One of the most well known symbiotic relationships in the marine world is that between anemones and fishes commonly known as 'clownfish' or 'anemonefish'. Clownfish form a subfamily, Amphiprioninae, of the Dameselfish family. Each of the twenty-some species in this subfamily lives symbiotically with one or more anemone species.
Both the…
cwilcox | August 3, 2009Took this yesterday while playing with my new camera's "Panoramic" setting at Hanauma Bay. Yeah, it's that gorgeous here :)
Ok, a couple more beautiful shots:The best place to play baseball. Ever.
Perfect scenery
But, like just about every beautiful island, Oahu has its share of invasive and introduced species which have wreaked havoc on the native and endemic species. Take this leaping little guy, for example: This is an Indian mongoose, one of the many introduced species which now calls most of the islands of Hawaii home. In the 1800s, as the islands became more and more in contact with the…
cwilcox | July 11, 2009Yesterday, we snorkeled Hanauma Bay. It's simply one of the most fantastic places to see Hawaiian fish. So, instead of trying to regurgitate the experience, I thought I'd give you all a little lesson in fish ID - Hawaiian style!
Meet Canthigaster jactator, the Hawaiian Spotted Puffer. This species is endemic to Hawaii, and is found no where else in the world. Ok, so this one is bad to start with because it has no Hawaiian name, but I thought the fact that it's endemic was too cool not to mention it.
Next is Umaumalei, or the Orange Spine Unicornfish (Naso lituratus). That's oo-mou-ma-lay,…
sciencewoman | May 19, 2009Fantastic volcano blogger, and all around cool guy, Erik Klemetti has put out a call for volcano pictures that he can use on his Eruptions blog. I'd love to be able to send him some fantastic shot of a plinian eruption, but I live in a pretty tectonically quiet part of the world.
So this weekend, while Minnow was making spaghetti out of playdough, I decided to craft an offering for Erik:
Of course, as I was feeling all smug about my depiction of a Hawaiian shield volcano, complete with lava entering the ocean and creating hydroclastic fragments, NASA's Earth Observatory posted an image of…
cwilcox | May 11, 2009Following up on my Weekly Dose of Cute, here's another little spider that is sure to make you grin. Meet Theridion grallator, perhaps better known as the Hawaiian Happy Face Spider.
This little guy, like the peacock spider, only grows to about 5 mm long, so he's a just as pint-sized as the last one. They're endemic to the Hawaiian Islands. The Hawaiian name is nananana makakiÊ»i (face-patterned spider). Its common name comes from the distinctive marking on its backside - but not all individuals have such a face. Markings are unique to each spider, and vary by region. There are quite a few…
cwilcox | April 16, 2009Cheetahs are unfortunate examples of how genetics can be devastating. After a population bottleneck 10,000 years ago source, cheetahs have become so closely related that it's said you can use skin grafts from any two individuals without rejection. To put that in perspective, your own immediate family is probably too genetically distinct to do that for you. But cheetahs look like they're in great shape compared to Hawaiian Monk Seals, new research from the University of Hawaii has found.
Hawaiian monk seals (Monachus schauinslandi) were known to the native Hawaiians as Ilio-holo-i-ka-uaua, or…
grrlscientist | December 31, 2008tags: sunset, Hawaii, landscape, nature, image of the day
Sunset, Wailea, Maui, 2
Image: John del Rio [larger view].
grrlscientist | December 10, 2008tags: green sea turtles, Hawaii, landscape, nature, image of the day
Egg-laying Green Sea Turtles
Pacific green (black) sea turtle Chelonia mydas, Maui, Hawai'i.
Image: John del Rio [larger view].
grrlscientist | December 7, 2008tags: sunset, Mexico, landscape, nature, image of the day
Sunset
Rosarito Beach, Mexico.
Image: John del Rio [larger view].
grrlscientist | December 6, 2008tags: sunset, Hawaii, landscape, nature, image of the day
Sunset
Ka'anapali, Maui.
Image: John del Rio [larger view].
grrlscientist | December 5, 2008tags: storm cell, Hawaii, landscape, nature, image of the day
Storm Cell
Black Rock, Ka'anapali, Maui.
Image: John del Rio [larger view].
grrlscientist | December 4, 2008tags: stormfront, hawaii, landscape, nature, image of the day
Ka'anapali, Maui
Image: John del Rio [larger view].