Oceans

It has been another amazing week here on the Tangaroa. On Saturday we saw Antarctica which was an absolutely breath-taking experience that I’ll remember for the rest of my life!

Scientists from the Australian Antarctic Division explain the blue whale research they are leading onboard the New Zealand-Australia Antarctic Ecosystems Voyage 2015.

NIWA voyage leader Dr Richard O’Driscoll updates the Tangaroa’s encounter with the planet’s largest living beings – the Antarctic blue whales – and discovers what’s on their menu.

The first objective of the New Zealand- Australia Antarctic Ecosystems Voyage was successfully achieved with the completion of the research at the Balleny Islands.

Data collected continuously from this voyage will fill a critical knowledge gap, helping scientists to produce better global climate and oceanographic models to ultimately improve weather forecasting.

This research will investigate whether Antarctic silverfish eggs are spawned elsewhere or whether there is a mass migration of silverfish to their coastal spawning sites each winter.

Commercial toothfish fishing in the Ross Sea has the potential to affect some demersal (bottom-dwelling) fish species in the region through by-catch and ecosystem changes.

This study will complement groundbreaking work undertaken in 2013 to determine the distribution of blue whales in the area and measure the characteristics of their habitats.

This voyage will undertake a range of surveys around the islands to understand the factors influencing abundance and distribution of the whales - including what they eat.

In this week’s blog we explore Ecionemia alata (Dendy, 1924) commonly known as the purple cup or pillow sponge.

This week’s critter, found from the northern part of New Zealand to southern Australia, is the brightly coloured and aptly named clown nudibranch, Ceratosoma amoenum.