![Danielle Hall smiling at the camera with a sea star on her forehead.](/sites/default/files/styles/01_contributor_image/public/BioPic_0.jpg.webp?itok=gEsl1jMO)
Danielle Hall
Danielle’s love for the ocean began as a young girl in the tidal pools and beaches of New England. She proclaimed at the young age of three that she wanted to be a marine biologist. True to that goal she earned her undergraduate degree in biology and marine science from the College of William and Mary and recently completed a Master’s in Science Journalism and Communication from Stony Brook University. Danielle’s research experience includes work studying seagrass biodiversity, salt marsh chemistry, and tiny drifting sea creatures called zooplankton at institutions such as the Virginia Institute of Marine Science and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. Her most recent research position brought her to the bottom of the world for a six week expedition to Antarctica as a member of the Palmer Long Term Ecological Research Project (LTER). Working aboard a 230 foot research vessel in the Antarctic allowed Danielle to witness first-hand the rapid changes occurring in that region due to climate change. Recently Danielle has shifted her focus from research to science communication and is the digital producer of the Ocean Portal. She hopes to share her love of the ocean and science with others around her. Danielle also enjoys diving, cooking, and hiking with her dog Shadow.
![The Cook islands banknote](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/image_banknote.jpeg.webp?itok=v3swQ6bS)
Sharks and Humans: A Love-Hate Story
![Blue whale skull being installed at National Museum of Natural History.](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/blue_whale_skull_nmnh.jpg.webp?itok=m9XL5Y2C)
When Did Today’s Whales Get So Big?
![Killer Whales from Above Two killer whales.](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/nrkw_from_above02.jpg.webp?itok=3q-2VgQe)
How Drones in the Sky Unlock Secrets of the Sea
![Tawny Nurse Sharks Two nurse sharks hover over a baited cage](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/FinPrintCarousel2.jpg.webp?itok=ATkXpWIy)
Shark Snapshot - Saving sharks with an underwater photoshoot
![A narwhal breaches the surface, its tusk pointed to the sky](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/%28GW%29-narwhal-tusk.jpg.webp?itok=_6jIiUtp)
Why a Tusk? The real-life unicorns of the sea and the tusks that make them famous
![Brittle Star clings to deep sea coral A brittle star clings to the branches of a deep sea coral](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/BrittleStar_Photoshop.jpg.webp?itok=BLZKhKsU)
A Brittle Star May Be a Coral’s Best Friend
![Wandering albatross Wandering albatross soars over the ocean](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/wanderingalbatrossNOAA.jpg.webp?itok=_t-Z5M6l)
Saving Albatross Lives with Bird Scaring Lines
![The shell of a sea slug](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/STreamCOde2.jpg.webp?itok=C4GM19Da)
A Microscopic Identity Crisis
![A school of bluefin tuna](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/bluefin_fish_NOAA_Danilo_Cedrone_1999_Sicily.jpg.webp?itok=zBMFg2H2)
The Great Pacific Migration of Bluefin Tuna
![Diving at the Wreck Divers at a shipwreck site](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/divers.jpg.webp?itok=oIIP8LuT)
Wood Under Sand: The Search for A Slave Shipwreck
![green and red pom poms adorn a decorator crab green and red pom poms adorn a decorator crab](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/decorator_crab.JPG.webp?itok=0FfRMMYt)
Happy Crabby Holidays
![A photo of a solitary European green crab on a sandy substrate.](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/GreenCrab_37944_strandkrab.jpg.webp?itok=jao4Uzoi)
A green crab’s super power: eating through its gills
![Deep Sea Dreamers A deep sea anglerfish called a dreamer](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/Lasiognathus-dinema_0.jpg.webp?itok=gOMWA8sF)
The Gulf of Mexico: A Deep-Sea Treasure Trove of Fishes
![Deep Poached Halibut A dish of halibut](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/Deep-Poached-Halibut2.jpg.webp?itok=ySTymOP8)
America’s ever-changing relationship with seafood
![Cartoon t-shirts with got plankton.](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/Screen_Shot_2018-03-19_at_11_50_30_AM.png.webp?itok=l87m0AU-)
The Cloud Factories that Live in the Sea
![The Havre volcano lies three thousand feet (900 meters) beneath the sea surface.](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/Havre_red_2012_lavas.jpg.webp?itok=3Oxf5uNg)
The Mystery of an Underwater Volcano
![The colorful parrotfish sculpture is made entirely of ocean plastic trash.](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/Priscilla_Parrot_Fish_2016_.jpeg.webp?itok=Tklgjw9G)
Turning Ocean Trash to Treasure
![A large red research vessel among icy waters and snowy mountains](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/DSCN0379.JPG.webp?itok=JyXGBPNo)
Shipboard Life in the Antarctic
![Marie Tharp Historical Map A map of the Mid Ocean Ridge](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/Marie_Tharp.jpg.webp?itok=-T_QQqb8)
Making a Mark on the Ocean Floor
![Desmostylia A hippopotamus-like creature swims underwater](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/Desmostylia.jpg.webp?itok=mt2DvUsq)
Flippers or Feet? An Extinct Mammal May Have Been Replaced By Today's Sea Cows
![Greenland Shark in cold water](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/nielsen2HR_0.jpg.webp?itok=ZXG3TeWF)
In the Eyes of One Shark, Age is Nothing to Fear
![An image from a drone of Majuro island](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/160926_MI_MajuroDE_45deg_0557.JPG.webp?itok=qg99BR0z)
Mapping Out What’s Next for the Marshall Islands
![A green mahi-mahi fish underwater](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/NOAA_Mahi.jpg.webp?itok=J2PjRZ7G)
Fish Heart Out of Water
![a bull shark in a net](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/bullshark.jpg.webp?itok=Q9A2_yQa)
How Climate Change is Impacting Shark Mothering
![A bloom of algae from up above](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/kareniabloom.jpg.webp?itok=eoZU_T0G)
What Exactly Is a Red Tide?
![A female napoleon wrasse swims by a reef](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/6189133019_d1119de7cb_o.jpg.webp?itok=Jfyvxpj6)
An App Helps Scientists Combat Illegal Fish Trade
![The Sant Ocean Hall is the National Museum of Natural History's largest exhibit, providing visitors with a unique and breathtaking introduction to the majesty of the ocean](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/Smithsonian_Sant_Ocean_Hall.jpg.webp?itok=ElEsqMmS)
The Sant Ocean Hall Turns Ten
![the skull of a mosasaur](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/Image_from_iOS_%2814%29.jpg.webp?itok=bvPRZkB6)
Meals of the Mighty Mosasaur
![the foamy surface of the ocean](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/wave-1215449_1280.jpg.webp?itok=zxmRV1FS)
Five Methods for Tracking the Ocean's Motion
![ichthyosaurs frolic in the waves](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/Ichthyosaur_hharder.png.webp?itok=N2iiy0T9)
Form Equals Function for Ancient Sea Lizards and Modern Whales
![dead coral from disease](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/DSCN1988.JPG.webp?itok=azE3Qyly)
Sickness in the Sea: A Coral Plague Hits Florida
![a squid](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/20190611T222035Z--bcfaa82a-19cb-49f9-85aa-f3c76e0c1348.png.webp?itok=qKUUf6G8)
Meet the Only Squid that Willfully Lops off its Arms
![an elephant seal with a tracker](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/fem_e-seal_w_gps_danielcosta.jpg.webp?itok=n5lYLXsZ)
Citizens of the High Seas
![Human activity is increasing in the Arctic marine environment due to climate change. To help the most vulnerable areas, the Global Marine Program of IUCN, along with partners, is convening a series of workshops aimed at enhancing ecosystem-based management and identifying biologically or ecologically important or vulnerable habitats. Burgerbukta, a bay in Svalbard, Norway, is being managed for ecosystem protection.](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/_IMG_3681_0.JPG.webp?itok=K44sKb_w)
What is the Sea Ice Minimum? (And Why Do We Care)
![a painting of a ship on a plate of baleen](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/LArgePlate.jpg.webp?itok=hf0DHXtA)
The Story of Stashed Whale Baleen
![A Bryde's whale catches a meal](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/JasonThompson.jpg.webp?itok=GtniYPqC)
The Case of the Mystery Whale
![A sea sponge underwater](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/Niphates_callista_%28Tube_sponge%29_with_sea_cucumbers_and_cup_corals_2.jpg.webp?itok=RlLH6rXz)
Sea Sponges: Pharmacies of the Sea
![a red snapper's ear stone in the palm of someone's hand](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/29097321707_a968edfcbc_o.jpg.webp?itok=TiDSrkLJ)
The Bone that Logs a Lifetime
![two brittle stars in a tank](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/Picture2.png.webp?itok=GjAwl0LH)
Brittle Star Splits
![Narwhals with their long unicorn-like tusks.](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/Narwhals_breach_Glenn_Williams.jpeg.webp?itok=-6MSdrjI)
Native Knowledge of the Narwhal
![a large salmon colored orb with tiny fluorescent green and blue orbs covering it](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/eating_oil.jpg.webp?itok=3E6Q0NII)
A Bacterium's Super Powers
![a megamouth shark swims with a diver in the background](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/MegamouthPhoto.jpg.webp?itok=BqIhwWJO)
The Massive Filter Feeding Shark You Ought to Know
![stony corals among sea fans](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/Andrea_Quattrini_-_Chinchorro2.jpg.webp?itok=aNDE58I5)
Ancient Reefs Reveal Glimpse at Future Oceans
![a veterinarian listens to a dolphin's heartbeat](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/Cynthia-Smith-NMMF.jpg.webp?itok=r3NpDMsZ)
The Musical Hearts of Dolphins
![A view of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill as seen from a NOAA research aircraft, June 2010.](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/DWH_oil_credit_UCSB_LR.jpg.webp?itok=ci25cPKD)
Discoveries Abound During Oil Spill Research
![A small, transparent, shell-less sea snail in the open ocean. A small, transparent, shell-less sea snail in the open ocean.](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/sea_angel.jpg.webp?itok=4o8L5HYG)
Angels of the Sea
![Kelps are large, brown algae that grow along coasts around the world, especially in cooler regions.](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/02_Giant_Kelp_aquadiver.jpg.webp?itok=t_QJiV08)
What is a Sea Vegetable?
![Two silver fish with big eyes facing one another](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/DEPPENDArgyropelecusaculeatus2.jpg.webp?itok=3CdVmdsq)
Oil's Legacy in the Open Sea
![a lamprey's suction mouth opens to show a disk of pointed teeth](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/Sea_lamprey_%288741578394%29.jpg.webp?itok=Xoo5yz2j)
7 Ocean Parasites Worth Celebrating on World Parasite Day
![spindles of magnified green algae](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/Lyngbya.jpg.webp?itok=0u9pND4i)
A Cancer Fighter from the Sea
![scientist Drew-Baker reads a book by her microscope](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/Kathleen_Mary_Drew-Baker.jpg.webp?itok=txeNpq8x)
Saving Nori
![an upside down jellyfish](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/IMG_3460-a.jpg.webp?itok=BBppQJf2)
Tracking Down Ocean Species On the Go Using eDNA
![Two Southern Resident killer whales.](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/southern_resident_killer_whale.jpg.webp?itok=_yMZ74g_)
When Killer Whales Hunt the King of Salmon
![This is one of about 200 species of moray eels that live in tropical and subtropical coral reefs.](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/1_06-P03-G13_0.jpg.webp?itok=HDhXz509)
The Revealing Nature of Eel Faces
![a woman's hands close a tin of sardines near a pile of empty cans](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/5607_watermark.JPG.webp?itok=FoN9gQ1H)
Nimble Fingers: the Women Behind Maine’s Canneries
![a Māori woman in a navy blue fleece holds the skull of a beaked whale](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/Ramari3_CreditTanyaCumberland.jpg.webp?itok=OzBaDvVM)
Tohunga Tohorā’s Intuition Reveals New Whale Species
![pancakes of ice cover the ocean](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/pancake_ice.jpeg.webp?itok=8AXQbKpJ)
Winter Under the Waves
![a graphic depicting the four species of puffins](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/PuffinSizeComparisonDRAFT.jpg.webp?itok=sXVxUHRY)
Know Your Puffins
![a graphic of 10 illustrated fish](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/SalmonGraphicDRAFT.jpg.webp?itok=njWJ31Ho)
The Complicated Tale of Salmon and Trout
![Sargassum forms dense clumps up to the size of a beach ball that slowly rotate as they drift.](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/DriftingBall2small.jpg.webp?itok=tiXFvWZR)
Too Much of a Good Thing—the Atlantic Sargassum Belt
![a man snorkels at the surface near a coral reef while a woman sits on a boat and watches](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/ReefSnorkeling.jpeg.webp?itok=M0erlDGb)
The Truth About Corals and Sunscreen
![a woman with short black hair and a long necklace of pearls sits in front of a microscope and holds a small button coral](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/Joan_Owens_HowardPhoto-15cropped.jpg.webp?itok=xvIghHdB)
Joan Murrell Owens and her Button Corals
![a graphic depicting the various species of tuna](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/tunasGraphic.jpg.webp?itok=2x7ZDaFM)
The Big Tunas
![a group of ichthyosaurs swims at the ocean's surface](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/0_-_Shonisaurus_Group_Main_Gabriel_Ugueto_0.jpg.webp?itok=_Oo9PxyY)
Mystery of An Ichthyosaur Graveyard Revealed
![an old illustration of an eel](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/20824871176_877778633d_o.jpg.webp?itok=u77bC4bN)
The Origin of Eels
![Walruses use sea ice as platforms on which to nurse their young and launch their dives.](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/NOAA_Walrus_anim0022_full_1.jpg.webp?itok=TqJkILaZ)
Walrus: An Arctic Mammal in Peril?
![a lanternfish's scales glitter blue in a black sea](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/lanternfish.jpeg.webp?itok=gE8D_ImE)
The Ocean at Night
![a blue embroidery shows zigzag stitching in a cirlce](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/PassiveAcoustics.jpeg.webp?itok=-BREr3DY)
Sea Sounds Embroidered in Silk
![a white coral on the seafloor](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/DSCN7933.JPG.webp?itok=38hcNWry)
An Ocean Heat Wave Reaches to the Seafloor
![Two clams, a mussel, an oyster, on a bed of algae](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/4shellfish.jpeg.webp?itok=azoHjPDo)
Shellfish for Dinner: More than just Clams and Oysters
![a blue negative of algae](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/Cyanotype_Chordaria-flagelliformis-large_resized.jpg.webp?itok=c75RTndV)
No Longer Anonymous: Anna Atkins and her Algae
![A stingray swims in an Australian marine reserve.](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/stingray-australia.jpg.webp?itok=EN82rAhD)
Shark Cousins: the Skates and Rays
![Black men dredge for oysters in a boat](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/Oystermen_Chesapeake.jpeg.webp?itok=QOawstDu)
The Bay of Opportunity and Hope
![: Black corals often resemble bushes or trees. Their living tissue can be one of several colors. It’s the skeleton that is black.](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2023-11/bushy_black_coral_full.jpg.webp?itok=7nr3vIEk)
Black Corals of the Deep
![a flounder blends into the sandy seafloor](/sites/default/files/styles/3_2_small/public/2024-06/NicolasBattiniRemo.jpg.webp?itok=3sSbq7Zo)