Photo

Ancient Sea Cow Vertebra

A fossil vertebra that a Smithsonian researcher's mother found while prospecting in...

Photo

Right Whale Baleen

A right whale opens its mouth wide, revealing huge plates of baleen hanging from...

Photo

One Hundred Names for Sea Ice

To people living in warm climates, all ice looks the same. But if you live day-in...

Personal Perspectives

Fossil Whale Found, Excavated, Jacketed, and Returned to STRI!

Jorge and I packed up the night we arrived in Panama with Aaron O'Dea and his team...

Personal Perspectives

At STRI, No Whales Yet, But There Are Fossil Sea Cows...

Jorge and I arrived in Panama City around 3 pm this afternoon, and took a taxi to...

audio

Bowhead Whale: One Species at a Time

In the episode of One Species at a Time, writer Karen Romano Young takes an...

Article

Why a Tusk? The real-life unicorns of the sea and the tusks that make them famous

In the frigid Arctic Ocean, a mysterious toothed whale—the narwhal— resides...

How Do Sea Lions Swim?

A family of tourists in Canada’s Steveston Harbor recently got a treat when a...

video

The Whale Acoustic Lab

John Hildebrand discusses his research at the Scripps Whale Acoustic Lab on the...

Photo

Elephant Seals Tussle for Territory

Male northern elephant seals face off on the beach by vocalizing through their...

Archaeologists Study Early Whaling Community in Quebec, Canada

For over a decade, Smithsonian's Arctic Studies Center archaeologist, William...

Personal Perspectives

Expedition to Excavate a Fossil Whale

My graduate student Jorge and I are departing today for Panama, to excavate a...