Click link to return to Lecture
Schedule
or Lecture Notes by Chapter
Back to Chapter 8
or forward to Chapter 10
Case History: Dead in the
Water at Stronsay
Island
More on Petrie's report of the Stronsay
sea monster
Was it a basking
shark?
Check
out this humorous (?!)
1933
Hollywood movie of basking shark hunters
Was it really an
oarfish?
More
links: 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
Was it a plesiosaur
(marine reptile thought to be long extinct)?
Similar "beasts"
were caught off New
Zealand in 1977 and
washed up on Mann's
Hill Beach, 1970
See also pp. 236-237:
The
Gloucester "sea serpent"
RQ 9.1: The Stronsay "sea
monster" from 1808 was once considered
to be a plesiosaur,
but these marine reptiles have been extinct
for over 65 million years. What is a more likely explanation and
on what evidence is this interpretation based?
I. Marine Birds - More
Links: 1 - 2
- 3
- 4
- 5 - 6
- 7 - 8
- 9
- 10 -
11
- 12
- 13 - 14
a) Feeding: On Shore, on the Water,
in the Water,
and in the
Air
terms: neritic vs. oceanic (Table 9.1)
RQ 9.2: Give an example of
each of the four modes of seabird feeding
described in the text, including the name of a seabird that feeds in
each way and a brief description of how it feeds.
1) Aerial fishing
birds exploit the uppermost meter of the sea
surface.
Featured
organisms:
gull, tern,
gannet,
skimmer,
booby,
albatross,
petrel
Note: In the U.S., black
skimmers are most common on the Gulf
Coast
but have recently invaded southern California, commonly seen in
upper
Newport Bay. They are the only bird with a lower mandible
longer than the upper mandible. Why?
RQ 9.3: Why do relatively
few people ever see storm petrels, shearwaters,
and albatrosses?
2) Shorebirds
harvest the animals of beaches, tideflats, and shallow
waters.
Featured
organisms (emphasizing common shorebirds in California):
sandy beaches and mudflats shallow:
egret,
heron
sandy beaches and mudflats shallower:
curlew, godwit,
whimbrel,
willet,
avocet,
stilt
sandy beaches and mudflats on shore:
plover, sandpiper
rocky beaches:
oystercatcher
RQ 9.4: Why is the spring
migration "rest stop" made by
red
knots at Delaware
Bay so important to the success
of individual red knots, and why
does this make them
potentially vulnerable?
3) Divers and swimmers pursue prey far below the surface.
Featured
organisms:
marine residents:
pelican, cormorant,
puffin,
auk,
penguin
part-time visitors:
duck family
(incl. goose,
swan,
etc.), loon, grebe,
coot
RQ 9.5 (Fig. 9.3): Explain the efforts by a king penguin in order
to obtain food to feed its chicks. How successful is it per dive?
4) Aerial pirates are superb fliers.
Featured
organisms:
jaeger, skua,
frigatebird
b) Migratory Patterns
RQ 9.6: What are common migratory patterns in the following?:
a) sea ducks and gulls; b) coastal seabirds; c) aerial "pirates"
c) The Ecological Significance of Seabirds
RQ 9.7: Give an example of how a seabird can be ecologically
important in terms of its impact as a predator and by its role
in the global phosporus cycle.
II. Marine Mammals - More
Links
a) Seals, Sea Lions, and Walruses - the Pinnipeds
RQ 9.8: How does one distinguish
a seal from a sea lion?
Why is a walrus considered somewhat intermediate between
these two?
1) Some pinniped life cycles center on harem mating.
RQ 9.9: Briefly describe the annual life cycle of a northern
fur seal.
2) Pinnipeds
are easily slaughtered but can also recover
quickly.
RQ 9.10: Briefly review the history of Guadalupe
fur seal
populations in Mexico and California.
3) Pinnipeds and people compete for the same resources.
Notes: Recent El
Niño events also have had important consequences. Also,
look ahead to p. 422 for an explanation of why some pinnipeds,
such as Stellar's sea lion, might be especially vulnerable to over
fishing and its consequential reduction in average fish size.
RQ 9.11: Explain how Herschel
the California sea lion
achieved celebrity status in Seattle at the fish
ladders
for the Lake
Washington - Puget Sound locks.
Visit the source of the jumping dolphin at the Animal
Den
b) Whales and Dolphins - More Links
1) Toothed whales are active predators.
Featured Organism pp. 9 and 221:
Mocha
Dick "The Whale"
2) Baleen whales
are huge filter feeders.
terms: baleen, rorquals, breach, lobtailing, spyhopping
Featured Organisms p. 10 and 224:
Baleen whales
and krill
RQ 9.12: Briefly explain what a baleen is and how it works.
RQ 9.13: What functions are likely when a whale breaches,
lobtails, or spyhops?
3) Whales have
been severely depleted by human hunters.
terms: endangered species, Endangered
Species Act (Box 9.1)
RQ 9.14: When was the Endangered
Species Act passed in
the United States and how has it impacted populations of
marine mammals and turtles?
4) Toothed
whales are intelligent
animals.
Note that brain size and intelligence are not
easy to relate.
See also Chapter 4 Notes.
c) Sirenians
Featured
organisms:
dugong,
manatee,
Stellar's
sea cow (extinct)
RQ 9.15: What does a sirenian feed on? Why are they so
vulnerable?
d) Sea
Otters More links: 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6 - 7
- 8 - 9
- 10
- 11 - 12
Sea otter pup recently born at Oregon
zoo - (see
movie)
RQ 9.16 (Fig. 9.15, see also pp. 63-64): How does a sea
otter's activities affect the health
of a kelp forest?
e) The Importance of Marine Mammals
III. Marine Reptiles
a) Sea
Turtles
terms: turtle
exclusion device (TED; Fig. 9.17)
RQ 9.17: What is a TED, how does it work, and why is
it needed?
b) Sea Snakes More links: 1 - 2 - 3
c) Other Marine Reptiles, Then and Now
IV. Sea Serpents? (See above)
Click link to return to Lecture
Schedule
or Lecture Notes by Chapter
Back to Chapter 8
or forward to Chapter 10
This page created 3/24/01 © D.J. Eernisse, Last Modified 3/26/01