Media Gallery: Photos A-Z

"The ocean is essential to all," reads a sign written in Korean by calligrapher Myoung-Won Kwon, a resident of Maryland. The artist showcased his craft for visitors at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History during a May 2011 event in honor of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. Kwon works on scales small and large; one of his brushes is some four feet tall and he's created one piece that's 150 feet long.

A still from The Changing Sea, part of the 19th Annual Environmental Film Festival in the Nation's Capital.

Some fish you can fry up in the pan, no questions asked. Others require a bit of research. Case in point: the puffer fish. Commonly known as fugu, some species contain toxins more deadly than cyanide. The Indo-Pacific puffer Lagocephalus cf. suezensis (pictured here) is among the more toxic. Ensuring that only the safe puffers make it to market is of concern to the U.S.

Bycatch, or accidentally caught species, can make up a very high percentage of the haul in shrimp trawl nets. However, some of these “trash” species are now being used, rather than discarded, and new technologies can reduce the catch of non-target species. Learn more in our featured story about Sustainable Seafood.