Scientists Discover 400-Year-Old Greenland Shark Likely Born Around 1620

Greenland sharks are now the longest-living vertebrates known on Earth, according to scientists.

Researchers used radiocarbon dating of eye proteins to determine the ages of 28 Greenland sharks, and estimated that one female was about 400 years old. The former vertebrate record-holder was a bowhead whale estimated to be 211 years old.

To read more on this story, click here: Scientists Discover 400-Year-Old Greenland Shark Likely Born Around 1620

Watch As A Whale Breaches Just Inches Away From A Kayaker At Sea

Whales are not just the biggest mammals on this planet, but also the most magnificent. They’re so great, in fact, that a whole country was named after them. If you’ve ever been whale-watching, you’ll know just how incredible it is to see them in the flesh. But no matter how close you got, you probably didn’t quite get this near to them.

This insane footage was captured by David Rogers while he was kayaking half a mile offshore at Moss Landing in California and shows the crazy moment a whale breaches just inches away from him and his kayak.

The video – which is very wobbly, as it would be if you’re in a tiny kayak when a whale breaches right next to you – shows fish almost flying out of the water as the whale breaks through the surface.

Thankfully, David, who’s a civil engineer, managed to keep hold of his phone and capture the exhilarating moment as it happened.

“It all happened so quick, there wasn’t much time to think,” he said. “I knew the whales were not out to attack or hurt me. I remained calm and tried to keep my balance as one whale pushed my kayak to almost the tipping point.”

It’s the latest in a number of spectacular sea creature moments captured on video in recent months, including a bunch of dolphins playing with a humpback whale and the savage moment a shark attacked another shark.

Most incredible of all, however, is the footage showing a whale protecting a diver from a shark by using his fin – and even lifting the diver out of the water at one point.

All of which poses the question that, if we can co-exist with other animals who are totally different from us, why do humans find it so hard to live together peacefully? But that’s a whole other philosophical conversation that would last years without coming to any decent conclusion so we’ll drop it.

Instead, we’ll just keep watching this wonderful moment and hope that, at some point in the future, we get to experience something equally as exhilarating firsthand.

33 Foot Long Humpback Whale Found Dead on New Jersey Beach

Sea Isle City, New Jersey - Bob Schoelkopf, founder of the Marine Mammal Stranding Center in Brigantine, said it was a young male, about 33 feet long, and probably weighs about 20 tons. There were no visible signs of injury or trauma.

Schoelkopf said one or two whales beach themselves along the Jersey coast each year; this is the second of 2016.

The whale was first spotted before noon, floating offshore around Ocean City.  It eventually washed onto the beach at Sea Isle near 20th Street around 2 p.m.

A crowd of about 100 people had gathered on the beach behind yellow police tape, braving the overwhelming stench to get a glimpse of it.

"It’s sad to see such a beautiful animal dead on the beach like this," said Ann Heffer, a vacationer from Exton, Pa.  "I’m glad this doesn’t happen every day."

Officials with the Stranding Center and the New Jersey Division of Fish & Wildlife were on the scene, said Sea Isle City spokeswoman Katherine Custer.

A necropsy will be performed on the beach Saturday morning to learn how it died. Until then, officials brought in heavy machinery to draw the body further up the beach and away from waves that could drag it out to sea again.

A heavy-duty chain tied around its tail snapped under the weight of the animal. Crews had to shorten the length of the chain and add a second, canvas strap to successfully drag it up the beach.  No one was injured when the chain snapped.

The necropsy should take about eight hours, Schoelkopf said.

Humpbacks can live up to 50 years, Schoelkopf said, but this one was a juvenile.

Have You Seen the Animal Chairs of Maximo Riera?

When you’re designing your dream room, you may find yourself thinking about the one piece of furniture that will really make a statement.

And if making a seriously unforgettable statement is for you, then the animal chairs of Maximo Riera just might be for you. But don’t say we didn’t warn you! These things are intense.

Creating, or even making over, a piece of furniture is a serious project and takes a considerable amount of time, just like this conversion of a century-old sleigh.

And these amazing chairs are no different. Each one is custom-made using cutting-edge technology in a process that can take up to eleven weeks to produce just one.

But take a look at them and you’ll see why. While they might not be the perfect complement to your living room, you have to admit these are pretty fascinating.

Riera’s furniture is certainly not for every home, but there’s something undeniably captivating about it. The pieces are both playful and sinister, celebratory and solemn, and when you look at them, you can’t help but think of humans and their often damaging relationship towards the other animals on Earth. You can see more of Riera’s designs on his website  and Instagram, and if you know someone in the market for a new chair, you can always share this article with them — but you probably shouldn’t expect a giant toad to show up in their living room.

Riera creates these massive chairs that look like the bodies — or at least the partial bodies — of animals.

They are, to say the least, rather strange.

Each piece is manufactured to order, and on average, 480 hours are spent creating just one.

The chairs are made of a high-density polyurethane, which is very durable, and inside, each one has a metal frame for extra support.

What's more, no two are ever alike. The coding that determines their color is unique to each piece, so while the shapes will be the same, the color or color combination never will be.

So...with all this labor involved, why would anyone do this?

For Riera, this series is an homage to nature and the many forms it takes.

Riera took inspiration from each of the animals featured in the collection, using his own feelings about them, as well as cultural associations and scientific information.

Plenty of time and care was spent to create an accurate portrayal of the animals' unique characteristics, shapes, and textures.

They also make us think, uncomfortably, of trophy walls and taxidermy. They make us aware of the way humans that have exploited animals, and how we should be protecting and not damaging our planet.

Heartbreaking: This Video Shows the Techniques Used by SeaWorld to Capture It’s First Orcas

In the wake of the documentary Blackfish, SeaWorld has had to account for their questionable business practices and the ethical questions surrounding cetacean captivity.

This video features the techniques used to capture SeaWorld’s first orcas. It is both stunning in its depiction of killer whale intelligence and the relentless cruelty the capture teams used to take calves from their mothers. In fact, during this particular raid, several whales died as a result of the chase.

Watch this clip from Blackfish:

You Will No Longer Be Able to Feed the Dolphins at SeaWorld Orlando - A New Program, Starting in March, Will Allow You to Only Touch and Interact With the Dolphins

You will no longer be able to feed the dolphins at SeaWorld Orlando. A new program, starting in March, will allow you to only touch and interact with the dolphins.

The new program starting on March 2, will cost $15, and will be a reservation-only package, that allows small groups to spend several minutes touching and interacting with dolphins but not feeding them.

"Dolphin Cove will continue to provide areas where all guests are able to view dolphins up close, and interact with animals that choose to interact with them," said spokeswoman Becca Bides in an emailed statement on Tuesday.

Conservationists hailed the move as an incremental improvement in the treatment of captive marine mammals, saying the feeding pools are dangerous.

"It’s out of date, out of style and it’s full of risk," said Courtney Vail, campaign and program manager for the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society.

Vail said dolphins have been harmed in large feeding programs fighting over food and by guests dropping objects into the pools, not washing their hands and touching the dolphins’ eyes or blowholes. Guests occasionally are bitten, she said.

Vail said feeding programs encourage people to feed dolphins in the wild, leading to dolphin-boat collisions and teaching dolphins to beg rather than forage.

Vail said most aquariums other than SeaWorld ended feeding programs years ago.

Feeding of dolphins will remain a part of SeaWorld’s sister park in Orlando, Discovery Cove, where a limited number of guests touch, feed and swim with dolphins.

SeaWorld San Diego ended its large group feeding program in 2012, followed by the San Antonio park in 2013, according to Bides. Those parks still allow guests in small group interaction programs to feed dolphins.

Attendance at SeaWorld Orlando park took a hit after a 2013 documentary focused on its captive killer whale program, and in particular on Tilikum, formerly a performing a killer whale that drowned trainer Dawn Brancheau.

Her death led a federal administrative judge to order the theme park to maintain barriers between trainers and the whales.

In August, the company announced a planned expansion of the whale pools, and a $10 million contribution to killer whale research.

French Authorities Shut Seafront Over Fears Beached Animal May Blow Up - They May Have To Use Dynamite On It

French officials face a race against time to dispose of a beached whale - before it explodes with potentially fatal consequences.

The decaying 15-ton carcass has become so bloated with gas there is a high chance it could burst, wildlife experts have warned.

Authorities are now desperately trying to work out the best way of getting rid of it - and may even blow it up with dynamite.

To read more on this story, click here: French Authorities Shut Seafront Over Fears Beached Animal May Blow Up

Eighth Grader Convinces Entire School To Skip SeaWorld

The annual “winterim” trip to San Diego taken by the seventh and eighth graders at Alexander Dawson School in Lafayette, Colo., will be missing one element this year. The students will no longer be visiting SeaWorld, thanks to the efforts of one intrepid eighth grader named Phoebe Goldstein.

Goldstein, a longtime opponent of whale and dolphin captivity, had heard of other schools nearby that took field trips to the marine park. When she heard that her own school was planning a trip, she was shocked — and driven to action.

To read more on this story, click here: Eighth Grader Convinces Entire School To Skip SeaWorld

Watch: Drones Monitor Killer Whales For First Time

For the first time, researchers are using unmanned drones to study killer whales in their natural habitat.

The Vancouver Aquarium, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries are trying to figure out how killer whales without enough food to eat are surviving.

To read more on this story, click here: Watch: Drones Monitor Killer Whales For First Time

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58-Foot Dead Finback Whale Found on Long Island Beach

Shirley, New York - Authorities are investigating the death of 58-foot finback whale that washed ashore on an eastern Long Island beach.

Kimberly Durham of the Riverhead Foundation for Marine Research and Preservation says the whale was spotted Thursday morning at Smith Point County Park beach in Shirley.

Durham says a forensic examination is being conducted to determine a cause of death. She says the whale shows signs of advanced decomposition, requiring an internal examination.

The foundation is working with county officials on how to dispose of the whale.

Durham says finback whales have been spotted off eastern Long Island frequently in recent months.

She says a dead leatherback turtle also was found nearby on Tuesday. The two discoveries appear unrelated.

The turtle was buried on the beach.