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Selected articleThe oceanic whitetip shark, Carcharhinus longimanus, is a large pelagic shark of tropical and warm temperate seas. It is a stocky shark, most notable for its long, white tipped rounded fins. This aggressive but slow-moving fish dominates feeding frenzies, and has attacked more humans than all other shark species combined — it is a notable danger to survivors of oceanic ship wrecks and downed aircraft. Recent studies have shown that its numbers are in steep decline — its large fins are highly valued as the chief ingredient of shark fin soup and, as with other shark species, the oceanic whitetip faces mounting pressure from fishing throughout its range. The oceanic whitetip shark was first described by naturalist René Lesson in his account of observations made during Louis Duperrey's 1822–1825 circumnavigation of the world on the corvette Coquille. Lesson described two specimens found in the Tuamotu Archipelago in French Polynesia, and named the shark Squalus maou after a Polynesian word for "shark". However, Lesson's description and name were forgotten. More on the oceanic whitetip shark Selected biographyNicholai Nicholaevich Miklukho-Maklai (Николай Николаевич Миклухо-Маклай in Russian) (1846 – 1888) was a Russian ethnologist, anthropologist and biologist. Miklukho-Maklai was born in a temporary workers camp near Novgorod, a son of a civil engineer working on the construction of the Moscow-Saint Petersburg Railway. He attended a grammar school in Saint Petersburg, then went on to study at St. Petersburg University. He travelled and studied widely in Europe, and became a close friend of the biologist Anton Dohrn, with whom he helped conceive the idea of "research stations" while staying with him at Messina, Italy. Miklukho-Maklai left St Petersburg for Australia on the schooner Vityaz. He arrived in Sydney on 18 July, 1878. A few days after arriving, he approached the Linnean Society and offered to organise a zoological centre. In September 1878 his offer was approved. The centre, known as the Maritime Biological Centre, was constructed by prominent Sydney architect, John Kirkpatrick. This was the first marine biological research institute in Australia. He visited Papua New Guinea on a number of occasions, and lived amongst the native tribes, writing a comprehensive treatise on their way of life and customs. More on Nicholai Miklukho-Maklai Did you know...
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Selected pictureThe Magellanic penguin (Spheniscus magellanicus) is a South American penguin, breeding in coastal Argentina, Chile and the Falkland Islands, with some migrating to Brazil. It is the most numerous of the Spheniscus penguins. Its nearest relatives are the African Penguin, the Humboldt Penguin and the Galápagos Penguin. More on the Magellanic penguin Related PortalsWikiProjectsThe Wikiproject associated with this portal is the Marine Life WikiProject Other WikiProjects include: Lists
Marine Life CategoriesMajor Fields of Marine Biology: Marine Biology - Ecology - Zoology - Animal Taxonomy Specific Fields of Marine Biology: Herpetology - Ichthyology - Planktology - Ornithology Biologists: Zoologists - Algologists - Malacologists - Conchologists - Biologists - Marine Biologists - Anatomists - Botanists - Ecologists - Ichthyologists Organisms: Plants: Algae - Brown Algae - Green Algae - Red Algae - Sea Vegetables - Invertebrates: Cnidarians - Echinoderms - Molluscs - Bivalves - Cephalopods - Gastropods Fish: Fish - Bony fish - Lobe-finned fish - Ray-finned fish - Cartilaginous fish - Electric fish - Fish diseases - Rays - Sharks - Extinct fish - Fictional fish - Fisheries science - Fishing - Fishkeeping - Live-bearing fish Reptiles and Amphibians: Marine reptiles - Sea turtles - Mosasaurs - Sauropterygia Mammals: Marine mammals - Cetaceans - Pinnipeds - Sirenians Miscellaneous: Aquaria - Oceanaria - Agnatha - Endangered species - Aquatic biomes - Ecozones - Aquatic organisms - Cyanobacteria - Dinoflaggellates Marine Life TopicsAssociated WikimediaThe following Wikimedia sister projects provide more on this subject:
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