Can Scientists, Entrepreneurs, And The Private Sector Come Together To Save Sharks?

Scientists are working with houndsmen and houndswomen to track mountain lions in Montana to understand their behavior and to better estimate their population. By forming this partnership and using GPS collars, the team is learning about these animals’ habitat use and where they rest, hunt, and feed. Houndsmen and houndswomen have been crucial in the success of cougar conservation in the state.

Squids play an important role in the ecosystem, so scientists are focusing efforts on better understanding how the species adapts to climate change. By creating a "FitBit for squid," scientists have successfully been able to monitor soft-bodied invertebrates.

Despite advancements in technology in most sectors of life leading to an increase to access of information about practically anything, little is still known about the ocean and its behavioral patterns. Liquid Robotics – a Silicon Valley-based company – is trying to change that. Engineers here have created the "Wave Glider," which essentially acts as a router within the ocean powered by wave energy and solar panels. This invention can transmit data on tectonic activity that has the potential to predict tsunamis.

There's a robot revolution happening in the San Francisco Bay Area, and it's all in the name of mapping our oceans. This boom of technological innovation is helping bring lower-cost tools to both researchers and citizens. These consumers in turn use the devices to take photos during their excursions that ultimately create a network of ocean data that helps map the realities of concerns such as ocean acidification, rising water temperatures and overfishing.

Concerned with colony collapse syndrome in honey bees worldwide, scientists, farmers and tech companies teamed up in Australia to create a micro-sensor that collects data on the bee's environment.

A collaborative coastal network of signaling devices called StationKeepers is enabling ship operators to receive real-time whale location alerts directly on their navigation screens, resulting in significantly reduced collisions and greater protection for the critically endangered North Atlantic right whale.

An unlikely sculpture museum is helping to battle illegal fishing off the coast of Italy, but this one museum you'll have to dive to see. Over 39 sculptures make up this underwater exhibit and serve as a physical barrier to seafloor trawling.

A unique partnership between scientists, state agencies, and coastal communities in Washington state allows these different entities to monitor and manage toxic algal blooms. Known as the Olympic Region Harmful Algal Blooms Partnership, the initiative allows them to take water samples and analyze them for domoic acid, which is a deadly neurotoxin produced by algae. This collaboration allows fishers from tribal communities to know if it’s safe to harvest seafood and state officials to warn people when it becomes unsafe.

Members of the Marine Corps in Hawaii often pull double duty: military training and endangered species protection. For example, in June, the Marines roped off 13 green sea turtle nests on a local beach. Part of their job is to evaluate the potential environmental impacts of where they perform their training exercises. Sometimes there are military members or residents who might not understand why they have to preserve and manage the land, but education outreach has led to a ramp up in conservation efforts for turtles, birds, and other creatures.

Since 2014, the Billion Oyster Project has been working to restore oyster reefs to the New York coasts in an attempt to reduce pollution and bring back marine life. In partnership with restaurants and students throughout the city, the foundation and grant funded project is seeing the return of some oyster reefs and using artificial reefs to support more marine life.