Oysters

Apart from the fact that pearls comes from oysters and they taste great not many people know much about them. They are grown commercially for their meat as well as the cultured pearls the produce. Since they are in no danger of becoming an endangered species soon - unless the global climate dramatically changes and that would affect more than just oysters. That reminds me of an oyster joke:

One oyster was showing off it's pearl to another oyster. The larger oyster claimed to have the bigger pearl. An argument ensued. Soon they were fighting. The other oysters near them remarked "they're at it again, they are always fighting in bed"

Oysters do carry dangerous organisms and can be a health risk if eaten raw.

Fish are dying because the water is too cold

We are all worry about global warming and now we are hearing that certain parts of the oceans are getting too cold. Too cold for some fish to survive. Watch the video.

Military sonar hurts whales

Did you ever think about how whales and dolphins hear? They are very sensitive to underwater noises. The US Navy often does sonar practise off the west coast of the USA. The practise of using sonar is now thought to cause the sea mammals to have hearing damage. More in the article below.

Horseshoe crab’s blue blood

Did you know that the Horseshoe crab had blue blood? Did you also know that the blood is used in medicines? Pharmaceutical companies have been using Horseshoe crab blood in the making of medicines for years now. They remove the blood the same way human blood is removed – with a needle and syringe

Edinburgh, Scotland, gateway to the North Sea

Edinburgh, Scotland is known for its castles, green countryside and noted for being photographed in many movies such as Harry Potter. Located on the North Sea it is also known for its access to the ocean and many ocean studies. Leigh is the port of Edinburgh and they were officially merged together in 1920. Leigh port is the home of the Royal Yacht Britannia as well as most of the major ocean cruise lines.

The University of Edinburgh has on going research into the world’s ice sheets. They also have done extensive climate studies with the world’s oceans as their model. One of the major staff personas at Edinburgh University is Dr. Tim Malthus. His fields of expertise are remote sensing; freshwater systems. Remote sensing for quantitative applications; high spectral resolution remote sensing; remote sensing of aquatic systems with emphasis on algal and macrophytic vegetation. Change detection in semi-natural vegetation. Remote sensing of leaks from aqueducts and applications of high spatial resolution remote sensing.

The Port has many local cruises available where you can cruise under the famous Forth Bridges to beautiful Inchcolm Island, the 'Iona of the East', with its historic abbey. You'll see seals and many seabirds including puffins, gannets, guillemots and terns.

For more information on the city of Edinburgh go to the following sites: Wikipedia, City of Edinburgh and the Edinburgh tourist page.