Cuttlefish, the chameleons of the sea, have many intriguing features and behaviors. Sepia Apama, also known as Giant Australian Cuttlefish, are not only the largest cuttlefish, but also some of the most unique and interesting. Their family, Sepidae, come from the phylum Mollusca, class Cephalopoda, and order Sepioloida (Sepia Apama). Their genus and species are Sepia and Apama respectively. They are known for their multiple year classes and breeding habits unlike any other cephalopod, including other species of cuttlefish.
These amazing cuttlefish live anywhere from Moreton Bay in Southern Queensland of Australia to Point Cloates in Western Australia (Fowler). They can also be found at the northern tip of Tasmania (Fowler). They will not go past 100 m, or about 328 feet, in depths because of gases being used in their cuttlebone for buoyancy (Elterman). Typically these giant cuttlefish will live in rocky reefs, sea grass beds, or areas of mud and sand (Elterman). Every year around May, they will migrate to the northern point of Spencer Gulf along about an 8km stretch of coast to mate during the Austral winter (Fowler). As they swim around preparing for the great aggregation, they show a preference to the fins that line their mantles and allow them to swim in any direction at their leisure rather than their siphons which would jet them in one direction (Elterman). They are diurnally active and will communicate with each other with their skin as they individually hunt (Elterman). They will often feed on different kinds of small fishes and many crustaceans, they especially love crustaceans (Elterman). These creatures, like many other cephalopods, have eight arms and two tentacles along with a very handy beak for munching on food. Whi...
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... invertebrates. One other interesting fact about cuttlefish in general is that their beaks have a distinctive pattern and shape to each species. (Elterman)
In all of this talent and uniqueness there is still more to be found. Unfortunately the IUCN has labeled their threat status as near threatened. This is due to fishing habits and a wide range of uses for the cuttlebone. A small bait fishery in Australia experienced a rapid increase in fishing efforts between 1993 and 1997 that severely hurt the population of giant cuttlefish (Hall, Principal). When they are caught as by-catch, meaning they happened to get scooped up with what was actually being fished, they are sold as food or bait for snappers (Giant Cuttlefish). Their cuttlebones are also used frequently as beak sharpeners for birds and a source of calcium for pets such as birds, turtles, and snails (Elterman).
The documentary Blackfish by Gabriela Cowperthwaite is a gripping documentary about orca whales in captivity at SeaWorld and other sea parks around the world that shows the disturbing effects that can be caused from having these animals in a place where they shouldn’t be.
Because of its size and abundance, T. californicus is commonly regarded as the insect of the sea. This creature is generally very small, from 1-3 mm in size as adults. They are cylindrically shaped, and have a segmented body (head, thorax, abdomen) though no noticeable division between body regions (Powlik 1966). Each segment of the body has a pair of legs. They use their 'legs' to propel themselves through the water in short rapid jerks. They have 2 pairs of long feathered antennae, a chitin us exoskeleton and a single eye in the middle of their head, this simple eye can only differentiate between light and dark.
There’s No Real Good Guy In the movie, “Blackfish” we are exposed to the fact that the way orcas are treated at SeaWorld is worse than we are lead to believe. We see how they are forced to swim in tiny pools and how they can only be fed if they preform well. After seeing this it makes you feel like the only way to help these poor creatures is to jump on the animal activist wagon and to free all the whales like in “Free Willy”. But is that really the right way to go?
Together with 1,500 species of fishes and several species of snapper and coal trout. There are many more species in the Reef and this makes it important to Australian fish markets as a source of fish. This place is also a tourist location and a lot of people come visit here every day whether it be fishing or sight seeing.
...rough an attempt to overfish the species is unlikely due to their ability to quickly recover (Barbour, 2011). A substantial reduction of adult abundance will require a long-term commitment and may be feasible only in small, localized areas where annual exploitation can be intense over multiple consecutive years (Barbour, 2011).
The background of this article gives information that is necessary to understand the experiment. The shape of the pelvic girdle is an appropriate predictor of both phylogeny and movement in terrestrial vertebrates. However, in marine vertebrates, the gravitational forces typically applied to terrestrial pelvic girdles are not there and therefore have little impact on the shape of the girdle. Pelvic girdles of fish are generally not attached to the vertebrae and primarily are used as a place for muscles to attach and supporting of the fins. The authors discuss how in many cases the pelvic girdle could be removed and not result in any complications. However, there are some marine vertebrates that are capable of bottom walking on the ocean floor with their fins. In batoids, the pelvic fins are used for walking, which is when pelvic fins move in an alternating fashion, or punting, when both pelvic fins move at the same time. There is also augmented punting; this is when the vertebrate uses both the pectoral fins and the pelvic fins to generate more thrust, this action decreases the forces on the pelvic fins during a punt. While this locomotion would
Like other rays of the Urolophidae family, the yellow stingray has an almost round body, or disc body. It has a circular shaped pectoral fin and a short snout. The eyes are behind the snout. Yellow stingrays do not have a dorsal fin. It has a caudal fin which is around the tip of its tail. They have a long flat tail spine located just behind caudal fin. This tail spine is used as a poisonous barb, which is used only when needed in self-defense. They move by rippling their bodies in waves or by flapping their sides like wings allowing them to glide. The yellow stingray is considered to be part of the elasmobranch class which is made up of rays, sharks and skates that all have a skeleton made of cartilage instead of bone. Due to the fact that the stingray is composed of cartilage, it is classified as an invertebrate. (Kennedy, 2008) Because they are elasmobranchs, these rays do not have a swim bladder which is a gas-filled sac found in the body of many bony fishes and is used to maintain and control their buoyancy. Instead, elasmobranchs maintain buoyancy with oil that they store in their livers. (Peters, 2008) The majority of yellow rays have either a pattern of dark green or brown on a pale background, or a pattern of white, yellow or golden spots on a dark green or brown background on the dorsal side. The bottom side of the disc is yellowish or brow...
Liubicich, D.M., et al. 2009. Knockdown of Parhyale Ultrabithorax recapitulates evolutionary changes in crustacean appendage morphology. PNAS 106 (33): 13892-13896
Along with having camouflage, all species of octopi are known to be venomous. Only one species is known to be dangerous to humans. (The blue ringed octopus which is only 5-8 inches long) Octopi will only use their venom to defend themselves against a predator when they feel threatened or to paralyze its intended meal. The venom then dissolves the meat so the octopus can easily consume it.
In The Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister tells how a beautiful, extraordinary, yet, self-centered blue fish learns that being beautiful isn’t the key to happiness. The blue fish came to find this lesson when he lost his friends. Pfister takes a simple ocean setting and explores the consequences of an individual’s arrogance toward their peers, the process of humbling of oneself, and the tremendous reward one feels when they learn to share. The story achieves these morals by the author’s use of detailed imager and also, the influence of minor characters on the antihero in order to reveal to the audience the true thematic message; selfish actions bring true happiness.
The Great Lakes system affects our lives in various ways. Not only does this water system affect people, it has an impact on the natural environment as well. The weather, climate, wildlife and habitat are all affected by this arrangement of five lakes: Huron, Ontario, Michigan, and Erie. The lakes are huge and powerful, however they are very fragile when it comes to being mistreated. The ecosystem has been placed under stress in the past, and we now realize the importance of protecting and preserving our lakes. Years ago, a species of carp were brought into the United States to help our lakes, and now they run the risk of destroying them. Asian carp are a species of fish native to Siberia and China, but they were imported by fish farms in the southern United States to control algae and snail population. In the early 1990’s, aquaculture facilities in the southern United States were flooded and the carp escaped into the Mississippi River and spread into northern rivers. The carp moved north becoming the most abundant fish in some areas of the Mississippi river, triumphing over native fish and bringing hardship to the people who fished the river. The carps’ domination over the Mississippi is reason for concern in the Great Lakes region growing concern in the Great Lakes; the Chicago Ship and Sanitary Canal connect the Great Lakes to the Mississippi. Last month, a survey was taken that found Asian carp only 55 miles south of our very own Lake Michigan. Unless the Asian carp are deterred, they will infiltrate our great lakes, potentially bringing disastrous effects to the entire region.
Darkness all around. Like an infinite black hole. Only flashes of light from fish. So much pressure, it feels like you are being squeezed into a ball. That’s what it would be like to live in the deep dark depths of the Pelagic zone, so fish make big adaptations to be able to live down there. One quick definition everyone should know is ecosystem. Ecosystem means all of the living things (plants and animals) and nonliving things that live in a specific area and interact with each other. The Pelagic zone has deeper water and the deeper down you go, the colder it gets and the more pressure there is. When it gets deep into the Pelagic zone it gets very dark so lots of animals have bioluminescence which basically means they can make their own light.
After reading "A Perfect Day for Bananafish" and "For Esme--with Love and Squalor", I found the two short stories to be similar, with only a few small differences. For example, the themes are very much alike due to the war and how it affects the people in each character's lives which shows to be the main conflict in both of the following stories. In Bananafish, Seymour the main character, is suffering from PTSD after being involved in the war, which similar to Sergeant X, who is the narrator in For Esme. Although they share the idea of mental suffering post war, the end results of the character's in both stories are different. Seymour doesn't handle his situation well, he has to much to deal with mentally, resulting in his death.
Scorpionfish – scorpion fish Introduction: Scorpionfish are marine fish that belong to the family scorpaenidae that includes many of the world's most venomous species. The family has several genus and more than 200 identified species. As the name tells, scorpionfish have a type of "sting" in the form of sharp spines coated with venomous mucus. The Bearded Scorpionfish (Scorpaenopsis barbata) is most likely the species shown here.