Mote scientists and partners exploring "blue holes" will be featured in an upcoming episode of the award-winning PBS show, Changing Seas.
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After just a little over a month of rehabilitation, a manatee mom and her calf are back in Sarasota Bay. The mother was rescued in mid-May by Mote and Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, and was rehabilitated at SeaWorld Orlando. She gave birth to a healthy male shortly after arriving, and the two were released on June 18, 2020 in Sarasota Bay.
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June 9, 2020
Stephannie Kettle
Mote welcomes Barbara Brizdle as the newest member of the Board of Trustees
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June 8, 2020
Stephannie Kettle
Mote announces plans for an additional coral nursery and international coral gene bank
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June 4, 2020
Hayley Rutger
New research on stony coral tissue loss disease reveals similar “bacterial signatures” among sick corals and nearby water and sediments for the first time. Results hint at how this deadly disease might spread, and which bacteria are associated with it, on Florida’s Coral Reef.
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In nature, many fish eat other fish—and some naturally engage in cannibalism, eating members of their own species. However, fish farming (aquaculture) operations strive to reduce that behavior and aim to raise as many healthy fish as possible to meet important needs for sustainable seafood and environmental restoration. Common snook, a Florida sportfish raised by Mote Marine Laboratory to enhance wild fisheries, are capable of snacking on their fellow snook as they grow up in aquaculture systems. Mote Postdoctoral Scientist Dr. Flavio Ribeiro is studying how to curb this behavior by investigating its biology and environmental causes. In this episode, Dr. Ribeiro tells hosts Hayley and Joe about tackling cannibalism, also known as "intraspecific prediation," during his career with multiple aquaculture-raised species.
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May 21, 2020
Hayley Rutger
As people return to local beaches and visit local waters by boat for Memorial Day, Mote Marine Laboratory reminds everyone to respect and protect marine life. Social distancing might be new to humans, but marine animals have always needed safe, undisturbed space for essential behaviors such as feeding, mating, and bearing and rearing young.
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May 12, 2020
Stephannie Kettle
Thanks to a collaborative rescue effort over the weekend, two manatees may have second chances at life. A pregnant manatee was rescued by Mote Marine Laboratory and partners, and taken to SeaWorld Orlando, where the manatee has since given birth to a calf.
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Sea turtles are currently nesting on southwest Florida beaches: laying eggs that will hatch to produce babies known as hatchlings. On April 15, as Mote began its annual routine of monitoring these nesting beaches for research and conservation, our new Postdoctoral Research Fellow Dr. Jake Lasala joined the "Two Sea Fans" team to describe the new research projects he is launching with Mote's Sea Turtle Conservation & Research Program. Dr. Lasala studies sea turtle mating systems and other population features to support conservation and management of these endangered and threatened reptiles. In this episode he explains why we need to investigate sea turtle mating and estimate how many females and males might be contributing to a population. He also shares why sea turtles are nicknamed "hot chicks and cool dudes."
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