CHAPTER 14 Animals of the Pelagic Environment

http://www.yoto98.noaa.gov/books/whaleshttp://www.aloha.com/~lifeguards

How organisms avoid sinking Increase buoyancy

Gas containers○ Rigid container such as shells (internal or

external) or…○ Swim bladder

Fig. 14.2http://www.geocities.com/darthdusan/nautilusNYCaquarium.jpg

http://www.fineartradiography.com/images/nautilus-pos.jpg

How organisms avoid sinking Float – less dense than

saltwater or neutralMicroscopic zooplankton

have shells or tests○ Radiolarians○ Foraminifers○ Copepods

Macroscopic zooplankton may have oil droplets

Krill (resemble mini-shrimp or large copepods)

http://www.rpgroup.caltech.edu/~natsirt/aph162/webpages/dylanandco/lab1/image

Fish egg with oil droplet

http://www.sfos.uaf.edu/research/arcdiv/watercolumn/euphausiid/images

http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/people/klf/MicroGalleryLarge_files/

Forams1.jpg

Foraminifers

Krill

How to avoid sinking Floating

macroscopic zooplankton

CnidariansHydrozoan

(Portuguese man-of-war) gas-filled float

Scyphozoan (jellyfish) soft low-density bodies

http://www.aboututila.com/Photos/AdamLaverty/

How to avoid sinking

Fig. 14.9

Active swimming Fish – swim by curving

body from front to back

http://www.wissenschaft-online.de/sixcms/media.php/591http://

www.jupitergreetings.com/files/anims/thumbnails/

266_sm.gif

http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x245/Aquaman1956/fish_swimming.gif

How to avoid sinking Active swimming – Squid

Swim by trapping water and expelling it

Also swim by using fins

http://www.smithsonianmag.si.edu/smithsonian/issues96/may96

http://www.fishingnj.org/jpegs

http://www.mbari.org/news/news_releases/2001/dec21_clague/squid_swimming-400.jpg

Unknown deep sea squid

How to avoid sinking Active swimming

sea turtles use flippers marine mammals use up/down tail

movements Different from fish

http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/fish/southflorida/everglades/estuarine/images/

http://www.biltek.tubitak.gov.tr/canlilar/img

Sperm whale

Fin designs in fish Vertical fins as stabilizers

○ dosral and anal fins

Paired fins for “steering” and balance○ Pelvic and pectoral

Tail fin (caudal) for thrust

http://www.biologycorner.com/resources/fish_fins.gif

Fin designs in fish Rounded caudal finsRounded caudal fins flexible,

maneuver at slow speeds

Truncate finsTruncate fins and forked finsforked fins, useful for both maneuvering and thrust

Lunate finsLunate fins rigid, lots of thrust for fast swimmers

Heterocercal finsHeterocercal fins asymmetrical, lift for buoyancy (shark)

Adaptations for finding prey

Mobility LungersLungers wait for prey and

pounce (grouper)Mainly white muscle tissue

CruisersCruisers actively seek prey (tuna)Mostly red muscle tissue

http://www.emeraldinsight.com/fig/0170960108002.png

Adaptations for finding prey Swimming speed

Speed generally proportional to sizeCan move very fast for short time (mainly to

avoid predation)

http://images.inmagine.com/img/imagezoo/iz125/iz125022.jpg

http://chemistry.csudh.edu/faculty/jim/cozmay06best/barracuda.jpg

Adaptations to finding prey Most fish cold-

blooded but some are warm-bloodedHomeothermic-body

temperature above sea water temperature

Modifications in circulatory system

Mainly in fast-swimming fish

http://www.sciencedaily.com/images/2005/10/051031133653.jpg

Adaptations of deep-water nekton Mainly fish that consume detritus or each other Lack of abundant food Bioluminescence

○ http://www.ted.com/talks/edith_widder_glowing_life_in_an_underwater_world.html

Fishing lures Large, sensitive eyes

http://www.lifesci.ucsb.edu/~biolum/organism/pictures/myctophid1.jpg

Lanternfish

http://www.antoranz.net/CURIOSA/ZBIOR2/C0301

Anglerfish w/ males

Adaptations of deep-water nekton

Large sharp teeth

Expandable bodies

Hinged jaws

http://www.floranimal.ru/pages/animal/b

Gulper eel

Figure 14.12

Adaptations to avoid predation SchoolingSchooling

“Safety in numbers”School may appear

as single larger unitSchooling maneuvers

confuse predator

http://www.oceanbrite.com/gallery/d/811-2/Fish_School.jpg

Some taxonomy……

FishKingdom Animalia○ Phylum Chordata

Class Chondrichtyes – cartilaginous fish- Sharks, rays

Class Osteichthyes – bony fish

Marine Mammals Kingdom Animalia

Phylum Chordata○ Class Mammalia

Order Carnivora- Sea otters- Polar Bears- Pinnipeds – Family Odobenidae (walrus), Family

Otariidae (Sea lions), Family Phocidae (seals)Order Sirenia- Manatees and dugongs

Order Cetacea- Whales

Whales Kingdom Animalia

Phylum Chordata○ Class Mammalia

Order Cetacea- Suborder Odontoceti (toothed whales –

dolphins, orcas, sperm whales)- Suborder Mysticeti (baleen whales – blue

whale, gray whale)

Marine mammals

Land-dwelling ancestors Warm-blooded Breathe air Hair/fur Bear live young Mammary glands for milk

http://www.colonialzone-dr.com/images/manatee%20mother%20and%20calf.jpg

http://images.aad.gov.au/img.py/8bb.jpg

Marine mammals CarnivoraCarnivora

Prominent canine teeth

Sea ottersSea ottersPolar bearsPolar bears

http://www.sierraclub.org/compass/uploaded_images/otter-700966.jpg

http://www.gaszappers.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/04/3-lazy-polar-bears.jpg

http://www.birdsasart.com/Sea-Otter-w-pup-_T9J9119-Cordova,-AK.jpg

Marine mammals CarnivoraCarnivora

PinnepedsPinnepeds○ WalrusesWalruses

Eat crustaceans with tusks

○ SealsSeals

http://images.livescience.com/images/071008-walrus-04.jpg

http://www.cambriarealty.com/images/seal_pic1.jpg

Marine mammals

CarnivoraCarnivoraPinnepedsPinnepeds○ Sea lionsSea lions○ Fur sealsFur seals

http://www.naturetrek.co.uk/newsletter/images/200796947570.Galapagos-Sea-lion-and-pup.jpg

http://neilshedden.com/africa/images/animals/seals3.jpg

Marine mammals

SireniaSirenia Herbivores

ManateesManatees○ Coastal areas of

tropical Atlantic Ocean

DugongsDugongs ○ Coastal areas of

Indian and western Pacific Oceans

http://www.nepa.gov.jm/yourenv/biodiversity/Species/gifs/manatee.jpg

http://www.cnsweb.org/digestvertebrates/Photos/Dugong%20CL25_1b.jpg

Marine mammals Cetacea Cetacea Stream-lined bodies

for fast swimming Specialized skin

(dermal ridges) structure for fast swimming

WhalesToothed - carnivoresBaleen – filter

feeders

http://www.solcomhouse.com/images/wszhale.gif

http://faculty.mccfl.edu/rizkf/OCE1001/Images/whales2.jpg

CetaceaFig. 14.18

http://www.alaska-passages-yacht-charters.com/breach_1.gif

Marine mammals Dolphins vs. porpoises Dolphins (Delphinidae)

○ 35 species○ Beaks○ melon (fatty organ in forehead)○ Prominent, curved dorsal fin○ conical, undifferentiated teeth○ Range in size from 1.5 m

Hector's dolphin to 9 m killer whales

Porpoises (Phocoenidae) ○ 6 species○ Lack prominent beak ○ laterally compressed teeth○ More triangular dorsal finhttp://www-heb.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/community/

education/images/harbourporpoise/teeth2_small.gif

http://cache.eb.com/eb/image?id=94551&rendTypeId=4

Harbor porpois

e

Bottlenose dolphin

http://www.flheritage.com/facts/symbols/images/symbols/porpoise.jpg

Cetacea Adaptations for deep

divingUse oxygen efficiently○ Able to absorb 90% of

oxygen inhaled○ Able to store large quantities

of oxygen – high levels of myoglobin and hemoglobin

○ Able to reduce oxygen required for noncritical organs

○ Slowed cardiac rate

Muscles insensitive to buildup of CO2

Collapsible lungs

http://www.keanani.com/dolphin_Animation.gif http://www.freewebs.com/cetaceanrc/SpermWhale1.jpg

http://www.uwrf.edu/biology/electives_dir/444_dir/VSmith/Page1.html#skin

http://www.uwrf.edu/biology/electives_dir/444_dir/VSmith/Page1.html#skin

Adaptations for deep divingAdaptations for deep diving

Sperm whales can dive up to 1 hour, 52 min. and to 3 km Sperm whales can dive up to 1 hour, 52 min. and to 3 km deepdeep

Cetacea Suborder OdontocetiOdontoceti

(toothed)Dolphins, porpoises,

killer whale, sperm whale

Echolocation to determine distance and direction to objects○ Clicks produced in nasal

air sacs are focused by the melon

○ Echos received thru lower jaw middle ear

Determine shape, size of objects

http://hearingresearch.net/pix/FultonCaldwell.gif

http://www.palaeos.com/Vertebrates/Units/520Cetartiodactyla/520.100.html

Intelligence in toothed whales

Large brains relative to body size

Communicate with each other

Brains convoluted Trainable Are they

intelligent?

http://www.nodium.com/wp-content/img/article/503.jpg

http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/bb/kinser/images/jerison1.gif

Cetacea

Baleen whales Blue whale, finback whale,

humpback whale, gray whale, right whale

Fibrous plates of baleenbaleen sieve prey items

Vocalized sounds for various purposes

Suborder Mysticeti

Fig. 14.23

http://www.coastalstudies.org/what-we-do/right-whales/fieldnotes.htm

Right whale feeding

Right whale baleen

Gray whale migration

22,000 km (13,700 mi) annual migration from coastal Arctic Ocean to Baja California and Mexico

Feeding grounds in Arctic (summer)

Breeding and birthing grounds in tropical eastern Pacific (winter)

Fig. 14-25

http://www.howardhall.com/stories/Gray%20Whale1H.jpg

Whales as endangered species

Fewer whales now than before whaling

International Whaling Treaty

Hunting of gray whale banned in 1938

Gray removed from endangered list in 1993 as population rebounded

Fig. 14.26http://typingisnotactivism.files.wordpress.com/2008/02/japan-whaling-2008.jpg

Marine reptiles○ Sea turtlesSea turtles

Prey depends on speciesGreensGreens eat seagrass (gut

flora digests cellulose)LoggerheadsLoggerheads eat conchLeatherbacksLeatherbacks eat jellyfish

Nest on beaches: predation, lights on dunes

Many overexploited

http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/fish/southflorida/everglades/estuarine/images/

http://www.fws.gov/endangered/ihttp://swfsc.nmfs.noaa.gov/PRD/PROGRAMS/turtles

Leatherback

Green

Loggerhead

○ Marine iguanas Marine iguanas of Galapagos Islands Feed on submerged algae Dive for up to 20 minutes Must surface before they become too cold and

can’t climb out of water

http://www.exzooberance.com/virtual%20zoo/they%20walk/

iguana

http://www.surtrek.com/en/images/Program_pics/photogallery/gps

○ Sea snakes Sea snakes of Pacific Highly poisonous Truly aquatic - reproduce in water - live-

bearers

http://www.gbrmpa.gov.au/corp_site/info_services/publications/sotr/1998/photos

http://www.oceanbrite.com/albums/Fiji/

Misconceptions

Florida Sunshine State Standards

Ocean Literacy Principles 3e. - The ocean dominates the Earth’s carbon cycle. Half the primary productivity on Earth takes

place in the sunlit layers of the ocean and the ocean absorbs roughly half of all carbon dioxide added to the atmosphere.

5a. - Ocean life ranges in size from the smallest virus to the largest animal that has lived on Earth, the blue whale.

5b. - Most life in the ocean exists as microbes. Microbes are the most important primary producers in the ocean. Not only are they the most abundant life form in the ocean, they have extremely fast growth rates and life cycles.

5c. - Some major groups are found exclusively in the ocean. The diversity of major groups of organisms is much greater in the ocean than on land.

5d. - Ocean biology provides many unique examples of life cycles, adaptations and important relationships among organisms (symbiosis, predator-prey dynamics and energy transfer) that do not occur on land.

5e. - The ocean is three-dimensional, offering vast living space and diverse habitats from the surface through the water column to the seafloor. Most of the living space on Earth is in the ocean.

5f. - Ocean habitats are defined by environmental factors. Due to interactions of abiotic factors such as salinity, temperature, oxygen, pH, light, nutrients, pressure, substrate and circulation, ocean life is not evenly distributed temporally or spatially, i.e., it is “patchy”. Some regions of the ocean support more diverse and abundant life than anywhere on Earth, while much of the ocean is considered a desert.

5g. - There are deep ocean ecosystems that are independent of energy from sunlight and photosynthetic organisms. Hydrothermal vents, submarine hot springs, methane cold seeps, and whale falls rely only on chemical energy and chemosynthetic organisms to support life.

5h. - Tides, waves and predation cause vertical zonation patterns along the shore, influencing the distribution and diversity of organisms.

5i. - Estuaries provide important and productive nursery areas for many marine and aquatic species.