As we make our way off the shore of Cape May to look for our larger marine mammals the water becomes increasingly clearer, and this is when it happened! For the past couple of weeks, the water temperature had been consistently over 70 degrees and more wildlife was being spotted. I had seen tons […]
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Three Simple Ways to Do Your Part
If you are anything like me, your social media feed may be flooded with the dire state of our oceans. While this fact is rather unsettling, all hope is not lost. In fact, there are three simple lifestyle changes you can make that would have an immediate positive impact on our oceans. Switch to […]
The Hydrodynamic Head of Hammerhead Shar...
When interning on a whale watching boat, of course the main goal is to find and spot some whales and dolphins. For me, I was always secretly hoping that on our outing we would come across my favorite marine animal, sharks. My wish came true and my favorite day on the boat turned out to […]
Don’t Release Your Balloons!
Here at Cape May Whale Watch and Research Center we participate in the Clean Ocean Initiative. Each time marine debris is spotted during the cruise we collect it and record the day, weather conditions, as well as take a picture of the debris. Balloons are our most collected piece of debris. It is important to […]
Deep Sea Adventures and Deeper Sea Diver...
Cuvier’s beaked whales hold the record for the deepest dives made by a marine mammal. They have the capability of diving at least 3,300 feet and their deepest dive ever recorded was 9,816 feet!
The Mystery of the Oceanic Sunfish (Mola...
One of my most impactful experiences happened aboard the American Star on May 26, 2022. It was my third day as an intern at the Cape May Whale Watch and Research Center and Icould not wait to get out into the open waters. As we were leaving the inlet to enter the AtlanticOcean, that’s when […]
Horseshoe Crab Spawning in New Jersey
PCB Bioaccumulation and Cetaceans
What are PCBs? PCB stands for Polychlorinated Biphenyls, and represents a grouping of man-made chemicals that consist of carbon, hydrogen, and chlorine. PCBs were first produced in the late 1920’s / early 1930’s, and were continued to be used in products until its ban in 1979 (Toxic Substances Control Act) due to the toxicity of […]
The Cownose Ray
The Cownose Ray, Rhinoptera bonasus, gets its name from the shape of its forehead, which resembles the nose of a cow. The top of the ray is a brown color, and the bottom is white. Females are 3 feet in width, and males are 2-and-a-half feet in width. They have long whip-like tails with […]
The Breach of a Lifetime
On May 15th, 2021, I witnessed a very rare event. Some would even say it was once in a lifetime sight. It seemed like just a normal day on the water while interning on the American Star for Cape May Whale Watch and Research Center. But, halfway through our trip, we see a black object […]