LEO Network

About the LEO Network
The LEO Network is a worldwide network of observers and experts that share their observations of environmental change.
Continue

Observations

It’s Maine Shrimp Season, Without the Shrimp
As the state’s shrimp fishery is closed for a fifth year, scientists blame climate change, shrimpers fret and locals mourn a beloved treat.
Port Clyde, Maine, United States
New York Times

How Global Warming Fueled Five Extreme Weather Events
Scientists analyzed 27 extreme weather events from 2016 and found that global warming was a “significant driver” for most of them. We look at five cases.
The New York Times

Sea life beneath Antarctic ice shelf is changing, and warming may be why
In dives to the seafloor, scientists have noticed big differences in only a few years.
McMurdo Station, Antarctica
Washington Post

Coral Found Following November Storm
Red coral observed near Port Heiden along the Bering Sea coast.
Port Heiden, Alaska, United States

As Oceans Warm, the World’s Kelp Forests Begin to Disappear
Tasmania, Australia
Yale Environment 360

Shellfish off coast of Sweden produce vast amounts of methane, researchers say
On a more helpful note, fish farts also are giving researchers and managers clues about fish distributions.
Tampa, Florida, United States
Alaska Dispatch News

Dozens Of Octopuses Are Walking Up Onto Shore For No Apparent Reason
There was no evidence of physical harm to the eight-legged creatures, but there was still plenty of concern as to why they were all abandoning their regular ocean home.
Wales, United Kingdom
The Rainforest Site Blog

Octopus invasion on Welsh beach blamed on effects of recent storms
An incredibly rare octopus invasion may have been caused by recent storms. Storm Ophelia, quickly followed by Storm Brian caused huge waves and storm surges as gusts of up to 80 mph hit the Welsh coast.
New Quay, Wales, United Kingdom
The Telegraph

A 'monster' discovery: Tiny translucent crustacean a 1st in Canada's Arctic
What has eight hairy legs, one eye, no mouth and haunts the frigid waters below the frozen ocean? A speck of a creature you'd never know exists in Canada's Arctic, were it not for one researcher's accidental discovery off the shores of Cambridge Bay, Nunavut.
Iqaluit, Nunavut, Canada
CBC News

Stinger jellyfish swarms wipe out farmed salmon in west of Ireland
Killary Harbour, Ireland
The Irish Times

The biggest ever invasion of potentially fatal jellyfish-like creatures ever recorded in the UK thought to have been brought there by recent hurricanes
An invasion of potentially fatal jellyfish-like creatures on Britain's shores is the biggest ever recorded in the UK. The P...
United Kingdom

Slugs plague Dillingham gardeners
Dillingham gardeners say that an uptick in slimy pests in recent years is making growing greens more difficult.
Dillingham, Alaska, United States
KDLG Dillingham

Common Rock Crab Spreads Quickly Across Icelandic Shores
The Common Rock Crab has begun to grow rapidly in number around Icelandic shores. It was first seen in Hvalfjörður, West Iceland, in the year 2006. This summer, it has reached Eyjafjörður in North Iceland.
Hrisey, Iceland
Iceland Review

Record numbers of Portuguese man o' war wash up on Cornish coast
Record numbers of the potentially-fatal Portuguese man o' war have washed up on the Cornish coast, according to conservationists.
Perranporth, England, United Kingdom
BelfastTelegraph.co.uk

Day of reckoning for marine invaders
For centuries, marine species have moved around either by hitching ride on the hulls of ships or as stowaways in ballast water. In many instances, species have been deliberately introduced for aquaculture or other commercial purposes.
United Kingdom
Phys.org

Mysterious, Brain-Like Blob Found in Lagoon
Scientists are unsure if warming temperatures are causing the bizarre invertebrates to spread.
Lost Lagoon, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

B.C.'s coastal sea star population in increasingly hot water
Biologist Jackie Hilderling says four years of decline in B.C.'s sea star population is due to climate change warming local waters and making the animals susceptible to sea star-associated densovirus.
British Columbia, Canada
CBC News

Can sea stars make a comeback in Kachemak Bay?
Sea star wasting syndrome, or disease as it has become known, hit Kachemak Bay hard in 2016, killing about 90 percent of sunflower and true star populations.
Kachemak Bay, Alaska, United States
Alaska Public Media

Swarm of Jellyfish in Garðabær
A swarm of jellyfish numbering in the hundreds washed ashore in the Sjáland area of Garðabær, a town just south of Reykjavík, yesterday.
Garðabær, Capital Region, Iceland
Iceland Review

Abundant Slugs Consuming Vegetation
Abundant slugs in Dillingham acting as a stressor to garden plants.
Dillingham, Alaska, United States

New Jersey-Size Dead Zone Is Largest Ever in Gulf of Mexico
Scientists report the latest data from the Upper Gulf of Mexico, and the results aren’t good.
Northern Gulf of Mexico
National Geographic

Stinging 'floating terror' spotted in Nova Scotia waters
The colourful Portuguese man-of-war is more commonly seen in warmer waters. Their painful stings can be fatal to some.
Crystal Crescent Beach, Nova Scotia
CBC News

Weird Jelly on Tube Worms
Tube-Dwelling Worms on Seldovia Beach
Seldovia, Alaska, United States

Black Slugs (Arion ater L) Devastating Native Plants in Chugach Forest
Black slugs are impacting native plants in the Chugach Forest and may be spreading elsewhere.
McKinley Lake, Alaska, United States

Scientists find strange sea creatures in Alaska for the first time
Pyrosomes were first seen on the Oregon coast in 2014 and every year since. Recently they have been reported in Washington, BC and Alaska. These weird organisms that resemble large pink thimbles, could signal really big changes in the marine ecosystem.
Sitka, Alaska, United States
CBS News

Tiny California Sea Cucumber (Parastichopus californicus)
The smallest California cuke I have found.
Sitka, Alaska, United States

Jellied sea creatures confound scientists, fishermen on U.S. Pacific Coast
Drifting throngs of pyrosomes, jelly-like, glowing organisms native to tropical seas have invaded Pacific coastal waters from Southern California to the Gulf of Alaska this year, baffling researchers and frustrating fishing crews.
Baranof Island, Alaska, United States
Reuters

Millions of tropical sea creatures invade waters off B.C. coast

Squid Found in Seldovia Bay
Squid are occasionally found in the area, but not very often.
Seldovia, Alaska, United States

Worm Species Found During Beluga Hunt
Several dozen worms were observed during a Beluga hunt in Norton Bay.
Norton Bay, Alaska, United States

Ghost fishing: Lost pots are a crab killer
Douglas Indian Association catalogs marine debris at the bottom of Gastineau Channel | Though it sounds like the subtitle to a Pirates of the Caribbean movie, ghost fishing is a real phenomenon. It's going on right now in Gastineau Channel.
Juneau, Alaska, United States
Juneau Empire

Sea Otters (Enhydra lutris) Hauling Out with Seals
Sea otter population growth not seen in recent history and shellfish harvest have been dropping.
Port Heiden, Alaska, United States

Overfishing is killing climate-resistant coral found in Mozambique
Quirimbas National Park, Mozambique
Mail Online

38 million pieces of plastic waste found on uninhabited South Pacific island
Henderson Island
the Guardian

Extraordinary levels of pollutants found in 10km deep Mariana trench
Mariana Trench
the Guardian

Sea star populations in Kachemak Bay annihilated by wasting disease
Sea star wasting disease, a type of densovirus, reduced the count of sea stars in Kachemak Bay from 180 last spring to a measly five this year.
Seldovia Village, Alaska, United States
Alaska Dispatch News

When Alaska shellfish turns deadly
No one really knows why algae put so much effort into making poisons. Alexandrium makes saxitoxin, and causes PSP. Another algae called Pseudo-nitzschia produces domoic acid, the source of amnesiac shellfish poisoning.
Seldovia, Alaska, United States
Alaska Dispatch News

Two-Spot Keyhole Limpet (Fissurellidea bimaculata)
A limpet not seen in the area before.
Sitka, Alaska, United States

Two dead squid in two weeks: Coincidence?
The novelty of seeing a jumbo squid in Unalaska is not wearing off: a second one washed ashore Monday night.
Unalaska, Alaska, United States
Alaska Public Media
Zoë Sobel, Alaska's Energy Desk - Unalaska

Researchers identify widespread parasite in Alaska scallops
The prevalence of "weak meats" syndrome in 2014, 2015 meant that somewhere on the order of half of all scallops shucked couldn’t be marketed. That was much higher than the fleet had ever seen before.
Kamishak Bay, Alaska, United States
Peninsula Clarion

Hurghada Coast Degradation
Coral degradation, fish species decline and an increase in jellyfish population.
Hurghada, Red Sea, Egypt

At-risk countries worry what 'America first' means for climate change
Bairiki Village, Gilbert Islands, Kiribati
Public Radio International

Unalaska receives surprise visitor from the deep
What has eight arms, two tentacles and washed ashore on a beach in Unalaska Monday night? A more than six-foot long squid.
Unalaska, Alaska, United States
Alaska Public Media
Zoë Sobel, Alaska's Energy Desk - Unalaska

Two Robust Clubhook Squid (Onykia robusta) Wash Ashore
Both squid were of the genus/species Onykia robusta, previously known as Moroteuthis robusta, and commonly known as the robust clubhook squid.
Unalaska, Alaska, United States

Great Barrier Reef hit by severe coral bleaching — study
Cairns, Queensland, Australia
NBC News

Reef restoration underway to restore native oyster populations
Victoria's biggest-ever reef restoration project is underway, in attempt to restore the once abundant populations of native oysters in Port Philip Bay.
ABC News

When Globalization Brings Brain-Invading Worms
The parasite that causes rat lungworm disease is now endemic in the southeastern United States, and it’s expected to spread northward.
Hilo, Hawaii, United States
The Atlantic

Paralytic shellfish toxin found in mollusks at Auke Bay
Researchers with Southeast Alaska Tribal Ocean Research found high levels of Paralytic Shellfish Toxin in a population of mollusks at Auke Recreation Area in Juneau on Friday.
Juneau, Alaska, United States
JuneauEmpire.com

How the Great Barrier Reef is responding to global warming. (Hint: not well)
Global warming has likely caused permanent damage to the world's largest coral reef, according to a new report in the journal Nature.
Townsville, Queensland, Australia
latimes.com

Yukon species list shows climate change in action
A big emphasis in the last few years has been updating and adding to the list of species known to occur in the Yukon.
This past year, a whopping 1,973 species of plants, insects and animals have been added.
Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada

Unusual Depressions in Lummi Tideflats
Marietta, Washington, United States
Tom Okey, Jeramiah Wallace, Sichangu Lee

Amazon Deforestation, Once Tamed, Comes Roaring Back
"A decade after the “Save the Rainforest” movement captured the world’s imagination, Cargill and other food giants are pushing deeper into the wilderness."
Coari, Amazonas, Brazil
HIROKO TABUCHI, CLAIRE RIGBY and JEREMY WHITE

Manila Clam (Venerupis philippinarum) Die-Off
Manila Clam (*Venerupis philippinarum*) Die-off observed - possibly related to freezing temperatures.
Lummi Bay, Bellingham, Washington (Lummi Nation), United States

After die-off, sea stars face uncertain future
Sea star wasting syndrome was first documented in Kachemak Bay in 2014, but it wasn’t until last summer that the mysterious infection began killing sea stars in large numbers.
Homer, Alaska, United States
KBBI

Logging Crew Mobilizes Near Irreplaceable Wetland, Slated for Site C Flooding
Watson Slough, Peace River region
DeSmog Canada

Support

Observation Template