The Marine Biologist

Latest Issue

The Marine Biologist is an exclusive and beautifully produced quarterly magazine that covers all the important developments in our knowledge of life in the sea.

Many of us have been enthralled by images of small fish herded into ‘bait balls’ and picked off by various predators. In our cover feature, ‘First to the feast’ we follow a team of scientists snorkelling in the open ocean chasing sardine bait balls while drones recorded the action from above. Jens Krause and his team set out to measure the hunting success of individual predators—in this case striped marlin off Mexico.

‘For the first time, we can quantify the individual capture rates of entire groups of hunting predators in the open ocean.’ – Jens Krause.

Plankton are the most important organisms in the sea and produce around half of the oxygen in the atmosphere. The MBA helped lay the foundations of our understanding of marine microbial life. In June, we celebrated the opening of the new Marine Microbiome Centre of Excellence at the MBA’s Plymouth laboratory.

All this plus a roundup of the latest stories, book reviews, and opportunities to get involved. Full access to the printed and online editions is a benefit of MBA membership. However, you can read exclusive articles from this edition:

The new Marine Microbiome Centre of Excellence by Professor Willie Wilson and Guy Baker.

MBA Chief Executive Professor Willie Wilson explains the new Centre’s role in the context of future marine science.

Experiences of citizen science by Craig Pinder.

MBA member Craig Pinder explores his local shore and receives help and encouragement from a network of experts.

The Marine Biologist podcast explores articles from each edition of the magazine in greater depth. In our latest episode, ‘Why inspiration is the ocean’s greatest untapped resource’ find out about marine biomimetics with leading marine biologist Robert Blasiak and colleagues from the Stockholm Resilience Centre. Join us on a fascinating exploration of the deep sea, how we must value it, and why the benefits of exploration may outweigh those of extraction. Listen here.

10 years of The Marine Biologist magazine

In October we will be featuring highlights from 10 years of the magazine.

The magazine is available four times a year in print and online and is just one of the benefits of membership of the Marine Biological Association. Members are supported on their journeys in marine biology and there is a membership category for anyone interested in life in the sea.

Join the MBA today and connect to a global community of marine scientists and professionals.