From Data to Discovery: Unlocking Ocean Secrets With eDNA
NOAA Ocean Exploration
Published: 5 May 2026
NOAA released its first deep-sea environmental DNA dataset from Okeanos Explorer expeditions (2021-2023), enabling non-invasive biodiversity assessment of deep-ocean organisms across the Atlantic and Pacific.
Keywords: environmental DNA, eDNA, deep sea, biodiversity, Okeanos Explorer, genetic sampling, marine organisms
MBARI technology helps reveal rhythms of microbial activity in open ocean eddies
Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute
Published: 6 May 2026
Autonomous robots equipped with genetic sampling tools revealed daily rhythms of microbial activity in open ocean eddies near Hawaii, showing how microbes respond to changing conditions. Published in Nature Communications.
Keywords: microbial activity, ocean eddies, autonomous underwater vehicles, gene expression, phytoplankton, biogeochemistry, environmental sampling
Kelp forests connected to sandy beach food webs
University of California, Santa Barbara
Published: 4 May 2026
A survey of 24 California beaches revealed kelp forest health directly shapes sandy beach food webs, with wrack inputs impacting invertebrates and shorebirds across multiple trophic levels.
Keywords: kelp forests, beach ecosystems, food webs, marine ecology, coastal connectivity, wrack, California coast
