Marine+Life+-+Oliver

//** DO NOT INCLUDE WHALES, PENGUINS OR SEALS IN YOUR TOPIC **// ====‍**‍ What are the varieties of marine life found in the Antarctic waters? **==== ====‍**‍ What special adaptations have these marine creatures made to survive in such extreme conditions? **==== ====‍**‍ What adaptation have fish made that allow them to survive in the freezing waters without freezing themselves? **====

‍**‍‍ Do they have any predators and what are these? **
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Antarctica is the 5 th largest continent in the world. It is the coldest, driest and windiest place on Earth, because of this, it is classified as a desert. Continents close to Antarctica are South Africa and Australia // but // the closest is the tip of South America, which is only 1,000 km away.

In summer Antarctica is approximately 14 million km 2 of land and ice. In winter, the freezing of the sea surrounding Antarctica, doubles its size by more than 30 million km 2. This is about four times the size of the Australian mainland.

The Australian Antarctic Territory (AAT) covers 5.9 million km2, which is 42% of Antarctica. This is about 80% of the total area of Australia.

It is much colder in Antarctica than at the North Pole. This is because the ice at the South Pole covers a large piece of land and is higher than the North Pole. The North Pole is only a large, flat piece of ice, it has no land that covers the ocean. In winter the temperature in Antarctica ranges between -80 and -90 degrees celsius and in summer the temperature can reach up to 15 degrees celsius.

In this project I will be researching the marine life of Antarctica. = = == = =  When people think of marine life in Antarctica they think of penguins and whales but the marine environment is rich in biodiversity. Below is a link to Dr Adrian Glover from the Natural History Museum, London talking about biodiversity in the Antarctic deep sea.

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Marine Species Living in the Antarctic Waters



Source: Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting Diversity in the Antarctic, Stockholm 2005 = = The following marine creatures will be discussed in detail: = = = = =**PHYTOPLANKTON**= = = == = = Phytoplankton are two Greek words, which are Phyto (plant) and Plankton (made to wander and drift). They are micro-organisms, mostly algae and bacteria, that live in fresh and salty water.
 * Phytoplankton
 * Krill
 * Squid
 * Patagonian Toothfish
 * Antarctic Icefish
 * Jellyfish, and
 * Sea Pigs

Phytoplankton, like plants, use sunlight to produce food for themselves. Phytoplankton help us breathe by absorbing CO2 and releasing oxygen.

Like plants they need nitrate, phosphate, silicate, iron and calcium to survive.

Cold Antarctic water is the perfect breeding ground for Phytoplankton because it is enriched with nutrients. Each spring when the ice melts in the Antarctic it leaves behind a layer of fresh water on the ocean surface, this is full of nutrients and provides food for the Phytoplankton. At this time a bloom of Phytoplankton occurs because the algae is no longer trapped in the ice and the sunlight penetrates the water. T he population of Phytoplankton increase rapidly along with the other animals, especially Krill, because of the abundant food supply.

When a Phytoplankton bloom occurs you can see it from space.



The Phytoplankton is the base of the food chain, without it, most species in the Antarctic Waters would die out.


 * KRILL **



Antarctic Krill, //Euphausia Superba//, are one of the most abundant multi-celled animals on Earth with 150 million million living in the Antarctic region. Krill means 'whale food' in Norwegian.

Krill are prawn-like creatures with black eyes and a translucent red shell. If you look through the shell you can see the green digestive system of the Krill. It is green because of the Phytoplankton and Algae they eat. Females lay 10,000 eggs at a time, t hey grow up to 6 centimetres in length and weigh 1-2 grams.

Krill are mostly herbivores, they eat Phytoplankton and sometimes Zooplankton. In winter they eat algae off the bottom pack ice, decomposing animals/plants on the sea-floor and other animals in the water.

When they reach adulthood Krill gather into swarms. A Swarm of Krill weighs 100-500 million tones and turns the water orange or red. The Krill Swarm moves to the surface at night and live below the surface during the daytime, it is rare that you see Krill on the surface in the daytime. Swarms of Krill can be seen from space.

Commercial Krill fishing started in the early 1970 and it is fished for heath products and animal food. Trawlers fish from Antarctica and can catch approximately 45,000 tones of Krill in one season. If Krill are overfished it will disturb the Antarctic Food Chain and other animals will die because of the lack of food.


 * How Krill have adapted to live in Antarctica **

Unlike other animals Krill don't build up fat reserves. They reduce their size, using their own body proteins as a source of energy. This reduction in size presents a special problem for animals which have exoskeletons. The problem is overcome in Krill by keeping the ability to moult into adulthood. The ability to change size depending upon food supply enables the krill to survive during the freezing Antarctic winters. Adult Krill can survive up to 200 days without food by decreasing their size.


 * SQUID **



Squid belong to a group of animals called Cephalopods, which includes cuttlefish and octopuses. There are 70 species of Cephalopods in Antarctica and about 20 different types of squid.

Squid are plentiful in Antarctica.

The squid ranges in size from 2.5 centimetres to 18 metres. It is the largest invertebrate on the planet.


 * The External Anatomy of The Squid**


 * The eye of the squid is the largest eye in the animal kingdom, and is as big as a soccer ball.


 * Squid have 2 tentacles lined with hooks and at the end of the tentacles, a club. None of the squids' prey can escape these hooks!


 * The 8 arms are covered in sharp hooks and suckers. The Squid cannot hook itself because there is a coating over the hooks.


 * The Squids' sharp parrot like beak chews food into small pieces.


 * Did you know? The Squid has a doughnut shaped brain with the Squids' throat through the middle! If the squid eats more that it can chew it may get brain damage.


 * The mantle of the squid is basically a huge blob of muscle which holds the body together.


 * If in danger, the funnel can blow ink out of the squids body to confuse a predator and push water out to propel itself backwards.


 * The fin moves the squid forward and with the help of the funnel can keep the squid in the same place.


 * Did You Know? Squid have 3 hearts that pump blue blood?



Squid mainly eat fish and small crustaceans, especially Krill. Some species are cannibals and feed on each other, especially when caught in nets.
 * Diet**

It is thought that squid can eat 30% of their body weight a day.

They have an important place in the food web. Many vetebrate predators eat squid, such as sperm whales, wandering albatrosses, emperor penguins, some seals and most whales. It is the second most eaten animal in the Antarctic, the first being Krill.

**Breeding**

Most squid have a life cycle which starts from a tiny plantonic stage to adulthood in about one year.


 * Catching a Colossal Squid! **

The colossal squid or Antarctic Squid, // Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni, // have eyes as wide as dinner plates and sharp hooks on some of their suckers.

The colossal squid was first discovered in 1925, though the only evidence was two tentacles found in a sperm whale's stomach. Since then there have been only a few sightings, including a colossal squid caught in 2003 in the region of the Ross Sea.

In 2007 a fishing boat caught a colossal squid in Antarctica's Ross Sea. The Squid become tangled while feeding on Patagonian Toothfish caught on fishing lines. It is thought it is the largest known colossal squid ever caught, weighing 450 kilograms. Scientists at the Auckland University of Technology have said, the squid would make calamari rings the size of tractor tires.

Below is a video of a New Zealand fishing boat catching a Colossal Squid.

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Here is a great website where you can find information on Colossal Squid and you can build your own squid!

http://squid.tepapa.govt.nz




 * ANTARCTIC TOOTHFISH AND PATAGONIAN TOOTHFISH **



The Toothfish is named 'Toothfish' because of the sharp teeth on their top jaw. They belong the family //Nototheniidae//, genus //Dissostichus//. There are two species of Toothfish - The Antarctic Toothfish //Dissostichus Mawsoni and // The Patagonian Toothfish // Dissostichus eleginoides. //



Both the Antarctic Toothfish and The Patagonian Toothfish are very large fish, reaching lengths of more than 2.3 metres and weights of more than 200kg. They are the largest species of fish targeted by commercial fisheries.

The Antarctic Toothfish has an antifreeze substance in its blood, the Patagonian Toothfish does not, because of this the Antarctic Toothfish can cope with much colder temperatures. It lives near the Antarctic Continent where it is colder. The Patagonian Toothfish lives near the Antarctic Islands, where it is warmer.

Below is a map showing where the Patagonian Toothfish swims. The red line show a pathway.


 * Toothfish Life Cycle**

Toothfish eggs float around in the current for three months, until they hatch. The larvae eats phytoplankton until they become Juveniles. Juveniles become benthopelagic, which means it has positive buoyancy. This means it cannot swim very deep. As they grow the fish can swim deeper because it loses the positive and develops negative buoyancy. When it becomes an adult it lives in deep water between 1000-2000m. They only move to a shallower place during the breeding season in July/August.




 * Diet**

Phytoplankton (Larvae), a range of small fish, squid and seals.


 * Predators**

Humans, Colossal Squid, Albatross (juveniles), Sperm Whale, Killer Whales and Elephant Seals.


 * Fisheries**

The Toothfish are valued higher than other fish because they have high omega 3 levels, are harder to catch and don't have many bones. They are known as "white gold".

Toothfish are usually caught caught on long lines. The three methods are:

Below is a video showing how Toothfish are caught and what the fishermen do with it.

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 * THE ICEFISH **



In the Antarctic Waters 5 fish species dominate out of the 260 other species. They are called //Nototheniods.// This species includes the Antarctic Dragonfish and the Antarctic Icefish, they only live in cold environments.

The Antarctic Icefish;
 * Is also known as the Crocodile Icefish because its snout is shaped like a crocodile. It is is usually red, black, white, grey and silver in colour.

>
 * Makes up approximately 95% of the marine life in the Antarctic and there are over 100 species of the Icefish.
 * Live for approximately 4-5 years.


 * Is an omnivore they eat krill, fish, and crabs


 * Has a maximum adult weight is 2kg

The temperature of the Southern Ocean has a narrow range; from about -2°C to 0°C. Sea ice freezes at about -1.8°C which is about 1° lower than the freezing point of many species of fish.
 * How Icefish have adapted to Antarctic temperatures **

Fish of the Antarctic waters have adapted to cold temperatures in special ways, these include;


 * Many species accumulate sodium, potassium, chloride ions or urea which lower the freezing point of their bodies. Others have glycoproteins which, like anti-freeze, stop the growth of ice crystals in the blood.

The Icefish
 * Have no haemoglobin in their blood. Haemoglobin is the red coloured substance in the blood which carries the oxygen around the body. Due to the lack of the hemoglobin the Icefish has a bigger heart and blood vessels than fish with hemoglobin. This is a useful adaptation as oxygen is highly soluble in the cold sea water. This also makes their blood thinner, allowing their metabolism to be slower, which conserves energy.


 * Also have an extremely efficient enzyme systems which allows them to remain active at low temperatures - their activity at 0° C is similar to that of a temperate water fish at 20°C.


 * THE JELLYFISH **

media type="custom" key="23637678" The Youtube Video above is a Big Red Jellyfish floating near James Ross Island in Antarctica.


 * The warming of the water in Antarctica is perfect for Jellyfish **

In Antarctica krill numbers are decreasing because of the rising temperature and melting snow. It is making life hard for penguins because they rely on krill to survive, but it is ideal for jellyfish. The krill are being replaced by the copepods (invertebrates that are approximately half a millimetre long or 120 times smaller than krill). They are too small to be eaten by penguins, whales and other krill predators, but, they are the main diet for creatures with tentacles like the Jellyfish. As the copepods numbers are increasing, so do the number of predators, like Jellyfish. According to the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) there are large numbers of Jellyfish living in Antarctica and they predict that the Jellyfish may become a dominate species because of climate charge.


 * What does a Jellyfish look like? **

The Jellyfish has a mouth in the centre surrounded by tentacles of various sizes, which is used to capture prey. The Jellyfish has a dome shape on top of its tentacles, which is called an umbrella (also known as a bell), the Jellyfish uses the umbrella to swim. Near the mouth are the organs. Below is a picture of Jellyfish Anatomy:



Here is a video of an Antarctic Jellyfish, Desmonema Glaciale, swimming : media type="custom" key="23648902"


 * Did You Know? **


 * The Jellyfish doesn't have a respiratory system, blood or a brain! The Jellyfish has a Neural Net instead of a Nervous System. A Neural Net is a net of nerves that surrounds the body of a Jellyfish.


 * The Jellyfish are one of the oldest creatures on the planet. They have existed for over 500 million years.


 * Jellyfish are 95% water. They cannot survive out of the water.


 * The Jellyfish is a type of Zooplankton.


 * How do Jellyfish Reproduce and what is their Life Cycle? **

For Jellyfish to reproduce there needs to be a male and female. The female releases the eggs and then moves to the sea floor. As the sperm from the male mixes with the eggs it becomes a polyp. The polyp stays on the sea floor. Eventually the polyp sheds parts of its body and each part becomes a Jellyfish. The last stage of the life cycle is when the Jellyfish is in the Medusae stage. It is when the Jellyfish has an umbrella and tentacles. It is called the Medusae because it looks like Medusa from Greek Mythology.


 * What do Jellyfish Eat? **

Jellyfish eat Zooplankton, Krill and Fish Larvae. They use their stinging cells on their tentacles to capture, stun or kill their prey.

Below is a picture of a Jellyfish digesting Krill.



The Jellyfish doesn't have many predators because of the cold climate. Main predators of the Jellyfish, like turtles, do not live in the Antarctic.



There are over 200 Species of Jellyfish in the world. The main species of Jellyfish in the Antarctic are Transparent Jellyfish and the Orange-Bellied Jellyfish.




 * SEA PIG **



There seems to be very little information available about Sea Pigs, but what I could find out about these curious creatures is....

They are Echinoderms, which is an abundant species with 1,250 known species. This species includes Starfish, Sea Urchins and Sea Cucumbers. Echinoderms live on the ocean-floor.

Sea Pigs, //Scotoplanes,// can be called a Sea Cucumber but a Sea Cucumber cannot be called a Sea Pig.

Sea Pigs feed on tiny particles like algae, aquatic animals, or waste materials, which they gather in with 8 to 30 tube feet that look like tentacles, surrounding their mouths. The animals break down these particles into even smaller pieces, which becomes food for bacteria, and then recycle them back into the ocean ecosystem.

Below is a video about Sea Pigs moving in the ocean.

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 * Predators **

The main predators of The Sea Pig are snail parasites that dig into their skin and eat their insides. There are also crustaceans that burrow inside the Sea Pig and eats their internal organs.



**CONCLUSION**

Climate change is warming the sea temperature and melting the Antarctic Ice. Krill and Toothfish numbers are declining due to illegal fishing activities.

Jellyfish are replacing penguins. These environmental changes will disturb the finely balanced food-chain and eco system of the Antarctic. R ising sea levels will lead to the flooding of small islands thousands of kilometres away.

All of the Antarctic marine creatures are wonderful and strange. They and their environment must be protected, because:


 * Antarctica is the largest (and last) unspoiled wilderness area on Earth. The oceans are full of amazing marine life, many of which are found no where else in the world.


 * Antarctica is the only place on earth never really colonised by people, because of this the impact of changes to the planet, like global warming, can be studied free from the impact of people on that environment.


 * YOU CAN HELP PROTECT ANTARCTICA! **

What you do can make a big impact in Antarctica. You can help by:


 * Reduce, Reuse, Recycle your waste


 * Ride a bicycle, (or drive a fuel efficient car, like a hybrid)


 * Plant Trees


 * Don’t use the air conditioning or the heater, quite as much, and


 * Think carefully about the products you buy, where the ingredients come from and whether, if it is seafood, it was fished legally and in a sustainable way.

Antarctica is worth saving.




 * REFERENCES**
 * **NAME OF WEBSITE** || **WEB ADDRESS** || **DATE ACCESSED** ||
 * Australian Government, Australian Antarctic Division
 * Who's Eating Who
 * Wildlife
 * Antarctic Law and Treaty
 * || http://www.antarctica.gov.au || 27 July 2013 ||
 * Australian Government, Geoscience Australia || http://www.ga.gov.au || 27 July 2013 ||
 * National History Museum, London || http://www.nhm.ac.uk || 28 July 2013 ||
 * Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research || http://www.scar.org || 28 July 2013 ||
 * Encylopedia of Britannica || [] || 14 August 2013 ||
 * WWF Antarctic Krill || http://www.wwf.org.au/ || 13 August 2013 ||
 * Greenpeace International || http://www.greenpeace.org || 17 August 2013 ||
 * Australian Antarctic Division || http://www.antarctica.gov.au || 17 August 2013 ||
 * 4 Antarctic Sea Animals That Are Just Plain Strange || http://www.orma.com || 17 August 2013 ||
 * Animal Town || http://www.animalstown.com || 2 August 2013 ||
 * Adaption to the Cold || http://www.anta.canterbury.ac.nz || 18 August 2013 ||
 * Antarctic Biology || http://www.antarctica.org.nz || 18 August 2013 ||
 * British Antarctic Survey || [] || 19 August 2013 ||
 * Polar Trec || http://www.polartrec.com || 21 August 2013 ||
 * Buzzle || http://www.buzzle.com || 24 August 2013 ||
 * Invertebrate Nervous System || http://faculty.washington.edu || 24 August 2013 ||
 * Jellyfish and other Zooplankton || http://www.whoi.edu || 24 August 2013 ||
 * Reefed || http://www.reefed.edu.au || 24 August 2013 ||
 * Antarctic Ecosystem || http://www.teachersdomain.org || 25 August 2013 ||
 * The Colossal Squid || http://squid.tepapa.govt.nz/ || 29 August 2013 ||
 * National Geographic || http://news.nationalgeographic.com.au || 8 September 2013 ||
 * The Daily Green || http://www.thedailygreen.com || 8 September 2013 ||
 * The Echinoblog || http://echinoblog.blogspot.com.au/ || 11 September 2013 ||
 * Real Monstrosites || http://www.realmonstrosities.com || 11 September 2013 ||
 * Cool Antarctica || [] || 15 September 2013 ||
 * EPA || [] || 12 September 2013 ||


 * **AUTHOR** || **NAME OF BOOK/ NEWSPAPER ARTICLES/ JOURNALS** || **PUBLISHER** || **WHERE WAS IT PUBLISHED** || **DATE PUBLISHED** ||
 * Dr Hutchinson, Stephen || The Encyclopedia of Fishes || Weldon Owen Inc || Sydney, Australia || 2006 ||
 * || The Telegraph || Telegraph || London || 2010 ||
 * || The Patagonian Toothfish: Biology, Ecology and Fishery Volume 58 || Elsevier Ltd || Online Journal || 2010 ||