Nature
Monthly Archive: December natu
The Captivity Debate: Should We Keep Marine Mammals in Tanks?
![Chester - a false killer whale at the Vancouver Aquarium. (Credit: Vancouver Aquarium) Chester - a false killer whale at the Vancouver Aquarium. (Credit: Vancouver Aquarium)](https://www.rom.on.ca/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/blog_post/thumbnail/chester_false_killer_whale_twitter.jpg?itok=Q7n9mtdf)
Guest blog written by Environmental Visual Communication student Adil Darvesh
In November 2016, Qila and Aurora, two Beluga whales at Vancouver Aquarium, died due to an unknown toxin in their tanks. News of their deaths added to an ongoing debate: Should humans keep marine mammals in captivity for the sake of education and entertainment? Read this blog to learn more about the heated discussion.
From Poop to Plankton: Working Together to Conserve our Ocean’s Gardeners
![Asha de Vos, P.h.D. holds two bottles of freshly collected blue whale poop off the coast of Sri Lanka. Photo Credit: Oceanswell Asha de Vos, P.h.D. holds two bottles of freshly collected blue whale poop off the coast of Sri Lanka. Photo Credit: Oceanswell](https://www.rom.on.ca/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/blog_post/thumbnail/asha_field.png?itok=r8pXtHGO)
Guest blog written by Environmental Visual Communication student Meghan Callon
From the ROM’s recent “Out of the Depths” Blue Whale Exhibition to the upcoming Canada’s Oceans: Towards 2020 Symposium, the ROM has had a big focus on our oceans this year. In fact, there have been many eyes on Canada’s oceans recently. The Society for Marine Mammalogy Conference was held in Halifax, NS, just two weeks ago, bringing together some of the greatest ocean thinkers from around the world. There, Dr. Asha de Vos gave a keynote speech describing her journey to understanding how blue whales act as our ocean’s gardeners. Check out this blog to learn more about the incredible story of blue whale poop and the researcher who studies it!
True Blue Detectives
![ROM technician Oliver Haddrath extracting a DNA sample from blue whale tissue. Photo by Connor McDowell ROM technician Oliver Haddrath extracting a DNA sample from blue whale tissue. Photo by Connor McDowell](https://www.rom.on.ca/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/blog_post/thumbnail/20170619-0015.jpg?itok=XCePYOTi)
Guest blog written by 2017 Environmental Visual Communication student Connor McDowell
The Royal Ontario Museum has marked yet another first for science with the Blue Whale Project. This achievement could hold keys to the conservation of this majestic, endangered mammal – not to mention a deeper understanding of the unique evolutionary history of the largest living animal on Earth. The beginning of this story starts two thousand kilometers away, on the shores of Newfoundland, Canada with something so small that you can't see it with the naked eye.
Smudging Blue: Honouring the Spirit of Our Whale
![Kim Wheatley drums and sings an Anishnaabe blessing to the skeleton of the blue whale. Photo by Rachel Brown Kim Wheatley drums and sings an Anishnaabe blessing to the skeleton of the blue whale. Photo by Rachel Brown](https://www.rom.on.ca/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/blog_post/thumbnail/thumbnail_1.jpg?itok=Tu0i_ysX)
Guest blog written by 2017 Environmental Visual Communication student Rachel Brown
Kim Wheatley is an Anishinaabe mother and grandmother of the Shawanaga First Nation. Read this blog to hear the story of how EVC student Rachel Brown met Kim at the ROM, where she offered a traditional prayer and blessing for the bones and heart of ‘Blue,’ the whale - the star of Out of the Depths: The Blue Whale Story.
Our Future is Deep in the Ocean
![蓝鲸展馆的由来。| Entrance to the Blue Whale Exhibition. 照片由吴昊康 | Photo by Shawn Wu 蓝鲸展馆的由来。| Entrance to the Blue Whale Exhibition. 照片由吴昊康 | Photo by Shawn Wu](https://www.rom.on.ca/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/blog_post/thumbnail/header.jpg?itok=fRxNIYFE)
Guest blog written by 2017 Environmental Visual Communication student Shawn Wu
Written in Mandarin, this is a story about the Out of the Depths: The Blue Whale Story exhibition and the powerful role these magnificent creatures play in our oceans.
Singing the Blues: The Mystery of B105
![A blue whale diving into the Gulf of St Lawrence off the coast of Gaspé. Photo by René Roy A blue whale diving into the Gulf of St Lawrence off the coast of Gaspé. Photo by René Roy](https://www.rom.on.ca/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/blog_post/thumbnail/_header_image.jpg?itok=593I6uBr)
Guest blog written by 2017 Environmental Visual Communication student Viridiana Jimenez
The ocean’s largest and most iconic animal, the blue whale, can produce sounds that cross entire oceans and can be heard from one end of the planet to the other. With humans’ increased presence in the oceans, how are these charismatic giants affected by—and adapting to—our noisy activities? In this blog we follow the story of a single whale, B105 “Invasor”, and muse on how it may have changed its ways to contend with our cacophony.
The Woman Behind the Biggest Heart in the World
![The ROM's Mammalogy technician Jacqui Miller is always up for a challenge. Photo credit Jacqueline Mille ROM Mammalogy technician Jacqueline Miller with sword in hand in a fencing match - always up for a challenge. Photo credit Jacqueline Miller](https://www.rom.on.ca/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/blog_post/thumbnail/jacqui_blog_pic_1_0.jpg?itok=uYZUNzaj)
Guest Blog written by 2017 Environmental Visual Communication student Fenella Hood
Knife in hand and knee-deep in rotting blubber, Jacqueline Miller is about to do something that has never been done before: carve out a blue whale's heart for preservation. Enveloped in its stench and racing against decay, she cuts deep into the tissue beneath, sure in her knowledge of anatomy but ever wondering: Will this even work? Read on to learn more about one of the team members behind the world's biggest heart in this blog by EVC student Fennella Hood.
A Superior BioBlitz
![The insect team treks down to the dock to head out and find more species. Photo by Adil Darvesh The insect team travels with nets in hand on a chilly morning towards the dock. Photo by Adil Darvesh](https://www.rom.on.ca/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/blog_post/thumbnail/20170717_bigtroutbaybioblitz_adildarvesh_10.jpg?itok=9wfv4LWT)
Guest blog written by 2017 Environmental Visual Communication student Adil Darvesh
Most BioBlitzes tend to span a 24-hour period, but this was no typical BioBlitz. Read on to see what made the Big Trout Bay BioBlitz on the North shore of Lake Superior different!
The Journey of the Lost Water Bottle
![A plastic water bottle stands next to Toronto’s CN Tower. Photo credit: Cristina Bergman A photo of the skyline where a plastic water bottle stands next to Toronto’s CN Tower. Photo credit: Cristina Bergman](https://www.rom.on.ca/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/blog_post/thumbnail/cntower_bottle-edit.jpg?itok=4av5KXlC)
Guest blog written by 2017 Environmental Visual Communication student Cristina Bergman
I will travel the ocean for hundreds of years. I will see more wildlife and more extinction in my lifetime than any human that has ever walked the earth. I fit in your hand, but can be more powerful than a blue whale. I am a plastic water bottle and this is my story.
Habitat the Game Update for #Bioblitz150
![A cartoon image of a Blanding's turtle](https://www.rom.on.ca/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/blog_post/thumbnail/row_blandingsturtle_02-01_widescreen.jpg?itok=Rz0BOgc4)
ROM Biodiversity is excited to announce an update to its content on Habitat the Game, celebrating the upcoming Rouge National Urban Park Bioblitz!