Squid Lab

There are more than 300 different types of squid that have been identified around the world. The giant squid have eyeballs that are the same size as a standard basketball. Some of the larger squid can weigh more than 1,000 pounds. Every squid features three hearts. They also move through the water tail first instead of head first. Even though 300 species of squid have been identified and classified, it is believed there are at least 200 more that still need to be evaluated. The most interesting thing was looking at the squid eyeball underneath the microscope, and pulling it out of the head was the most disgusting thing. I liked touching the squid but hated the feeling of the gonads inside the squid. I would have definitely used gloves and not my bare hands if I could change something about the lab.

Overfishing

Overfishing is a major concern because we are killing fish that we aren't even eating and it makes no sense to deplete the population of fish for no reason whatsoever. This affects my daily life because if the ocean food chain is damaged, it means less fish for fisherman to catch and sell to markets so we can eat them at restaurants. Getting involved in local governments to promote safe catch limits and controls on bycatch would be the best way to help prevent overfishing.

Whale Flukes

Flukes are used to ID whales because they are unique to each whale just like a fingerprint is unique to each human. Scientists need this data because it helps to find the whales' migration patterns. The most difficult part of the lab was finding the exact whale fluke that matches when almost all of them look exactly the same. The best way to make this lab better is to add more things to do like come up with a story about each whale fluke you identify.

Coral Bleaching

Warmer water temperatures can result in coral bleaching. When water is too warm, corals will expel the algae (zooxanthellae) living in their tissues causing the coral to turn completely white. This is called coral bleaching. When a coral bleaches, it is not dead. Corals can survive a bleaching event, but they are under more stress and are subject to mortality.

4 Problems Caused By Marine Debris

Bottle Caps are eaten by birds because they mistake them as food, and the plastic causes them to starve.

Oil Spills can get oil all over marine life and cause them to have problems feeding and breathing.

Plastic bags can get eaten and get caught around marine life and can end up suffocating them.

Six pack rings can be traps for younger marine life and they can lose parts of their body or become deformed.

Little Stinger Of the Sea

Common Name : Portuguese Man-of-war
Scientific Name: Physalia physalis
Adaptations: To avoid threats on the surface, they can deflate their air bags and briefly submerge.
Hunting Strategies: Man-of-wars are found, sometimes in groups of 1,000 or more, floating in warm waters throughout the world's oceans.
Reproduction: The polyps responsible for reproduction are the gonozooids, which are comprised of gonophores; sacs containing either ovaries or testes.
Interesting Facts: The tiny Nomeus gronovii fish is immune to the sting of the Portuguese man-of-war. Portuguese men of war are a food source for some fish and crustaceans that are of commercial value and thus, benefit the economy as well.

I chose it because I have seen them up close in Corpus Christi on a vacation.

Sea Grass Adaptations

Sea grass provides food for many organisms in the ocean with its detritus. They also provide leaves for marine life.  Residents of sea grass ecosystems live in the sea grass while migrants and travelers only visit sea grass ecosystems sometimes for meals, and they move on somewhere else.