A magical weekend of scientific learning and exploring scenic Bamfield

April 2, 2024

Sailing away from Bamfield aboard the MV Frances Barkley. Photo by Anna Luna Rossi.

By Anna Luna Rossi.

It takes about six hours, departing from Vancouver, to reach the Bamfield Marine Science Centre, where was held the 45th annual Pacific Ecology and Evolution Conference (PEEC). Three of those hours consist of sailing on the MV Frances Barkley – a 65-year-old heritage ship originating in Norway that started its current route in 1990 – through the Alberni Inlet from Port Alberni to Bamfield, almost reaching the open ocean in Barkley Sound.

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Juvenile, yellow Mimic surgeonfish from Romblon, Philippines

Fish species show surprisingly narrow combination of traits

August 23, 2023January 4, 2024

Mimic surgeonfish. Reference photo by Rickard Zerpe, Wikimedia Commons.

The world’s waterbodies are filled with predatory fish feeding on other animals from zooplankton to squid and other fish, while “vegetarian” or herbivore fish are rare, new research has found.

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Black and white snapper in the Red Sea, Egypt

How warmer waters from climate change affect fish’s biochemistry (and growth)

June 27, 2023March 22, 2024

Black and white snapper in the Red Sea, Egypt. Photo by Derek Keats, Wikimedia Commons

Warmer water than that to which a fish is used becomes an aggressor of sorts that impacts internal biochemical processes and forces the fish to stop growing at a smaller size than it would normally do in optimal habitat conditions, new research shows.

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Keep growing – Fish’s growth is not reduced by spawning

April 27, 2023January 4, 2024

Atlantic horse mackerel. Photo by Kulac, Wikimedia Commons.

Contrary to what is stated in biology textbooks, the growth of fish doesn’t slow down when and because they start spawning. In fact, their growth accelerates after they reproduce, according to a new article published in Science.

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Fish biodiversity facing global change – Video

April 17, 2023

On April 6, 2023, members of the FISHGLOB Consortium offered a conference at the University of British Columbia’s Michael Smith Labs Theatre to present some of the findings of three years of work on issues related to marine species assemblages’ homogenization/differentiation through time, consequences on fish stocks shared across countries, and fishery management.

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