There are over 400 species of Eels in the world, occupying both saltwater and fresh water habitats. Although eels look like snakes, they are fish and come from the order Anguilliform. All eels have elongated, narrow bodies with long dorsal and anal fins. Most species of eels act as ambush predators, hiding in rocky crevices or reefs, or burrowing under mud or sand. Some eels prefer a more active, hunting life, using their length to reach into holes and crannies after prey.
Eels start life as transparent larva and remain in that state for 6 – 12 months. During this time they can float thousands of miles through the open seas. After the larval phase, they become elvers and although not sexually mature, they look more like an adult eel. Elvers, like lobster, were once considered a cheap food and were a staple of coastal fishermen. Elvers are now considered a delicacy and command a hefty price.
The Moray Eel is perhaps the most well-known eel with over 100 species occupying tropical oceans worldwide. They are nocturnal hunters who prey on other eels, fish and mollusks. They have poor hearing and eyesight, but a keen sense of smell which makes them a formidable predator. Groupers, barracudas and larger moray eels are their only natural enemies. Humans do not generally hunt moray eels as many of the species are toxic to us.
Morays are scaleless and cover their camouflaged bodies with protective mucus. They have small circular gills and their mouths must remain open to facilitate breathing. The moray eel has many sharp, backward curving teeth and can inflict serious wounds on both their prey and humans. Not intentionally aggressive, the moray can not always distinguish between potential food and a diver’s curious fingers. Moray eels generally reach 5 feet in length, but a species inhabiting the Pacific Ocean can grow to lengths of 10 feet.
Did you know?
Starfish do not have brains.
That there are about 2000 species of star fish?
They don't have a single drop of blood in their body. Their blood is actually filtered sea water.
That there are about 2000 species of star fish?
They don't have a single drop of blood in their body. Their blood is actually filtered sea water.
There are 28 species of clown fish. They are orange, yellow, maroon and many other colors. The most common clown fish - and the one that looks most like Nemo - is the percula clown fish which is bright orange with white stripes. Clown fish are between two and five inches long.
Where Do Clown Fish Live?
Clown fish live on the ocean floor. They are found in the warm waters of the Pacific Ocean, the Red Sea, the Indian Ocean and Australia's Great Barrier Reef.
The blow fish is part of the Tetraodontidae family, which includes over 120 species known, among others, as puffers, blow fish and toad fish. For defense, these fish rapidly inflate themselves with water until they resemble globes.
Lobsters are crustaceans from the family Epinephrine They are most closely related to crabs, shrimp and barnacles. They have segmented bodies, hard exoskeletons and paired jointed limbs. Most types of crustacean are bilaterally symmetrical, meaning their left and right sides are visually identical. Clawed Lobsters, however, have specialized front claws—the larger one for crushing and the smaller one for ripping and cutting. Just like people, clawed lobsters show preference or dominance towards one side. If the larger claw is on the right side, you're looking at a "right-handed" lobster. There are many different species of lobster, but they fall into some basic groups. Spiny, and Slipper Lobsters have no claws and are more closely related to the Squat Lobster. Spiny Lobsters are commercially fished for their tails. Reef Lobsters and Crayfish are more closely related to the Clawed Lobster, the most well known of that family being the American or Maine Lobster. The lobster is primarily a carnivore, preferring fresh food such as clams, mussels, crabs and worms. After a lobster hatches from its egg, it is extremely vulnerable. Of the more than 10,000 eggs the female will lay, only 10 may make it through the first month of life. It doesn't get easier. The young lobster must shed its shell (molt) numerous times in its first year, leaving itself open to cannibalism and predication The lobster must molt to grow, and although the need slows as the lobster gets older, it will continue to molt and grow throughout its lifetime. Until the lobster reaches a suitable size (usually when it is 4 years old, depending on water temperature), it remains hidden in its shelter, feeding on food that drifts by. Even a mature lobster remains wary of predators and prefers a solitary, nocturnal life. Lobsters not only have to molt to grow, the female has to molt to mate. The female will approach the male's den (females make the choice and prefer the biggest male in the neighborhood) and send out pheromones which tells the male she is ready to mate. He usually emerges with an aggressive posture—lobsters don’t like company. She returns his aggression or ignores him, either ploy works, and the male soon settles down and allows her to enter his shelter. Once inside, the female molts and leaves herself entirely vulnerable. If the male chose to eat her now, she would have no way to protect herself. But the male (who retains his shell) carefully cradles her during mating and will protect her afterwards. The female stays in the male's den for about a week, just until her new shell has grown and hardened.
Crabs generally live in all the waters of the world and on land. They fancy their living in tropical regions in particular. There is a considerable size variation from few millimeters to 4 meters (13 feet). Crabs are very fond of freshwater where they spend most of their time. Of all the species, around 850 crab species live in freshwater and are considered to be territorial. The males display larger claws as compared to those of females.
The horseshoe crabs show a hard and tough spiny shell that serves as an important tool while defending against predators; however, they should be aware of loggerhead turtles as theturtle’s powerful jaws can easily tear into a chitin shell and consume the whole horseshoe crab.
In case of fiddler crabs, the males employ one claw for communicating especially during the mating season to attract its mate.
The males have slender abdomen while in females the abdomen is rather wider and rounded perhaps due to the fact that female crabs brood fertilized eggs on their pleopods.
Crabs are often found walking in to one side. There are certain species that tend to walk backwards as well. Raninids and Mictyris platycheles are some of these.
Mostly crabs are proactive with complex behavior patterns. They can be aggressive towards one another and the fight typically arises on gaining access to females. However, on rocky seashores, where almost all the crevices and caves are engaged, crabs often fight over hiding holes.
Robber crabs are capable to climb trees and they can fall at least 15 feet (4.5 meters) without being hurt. These crabs are entirely land-living species. However, females march towards the sea to lay eggs. The length of the robber crabs measure around 1.5 feet (45 cm), while it weighs around 9 pounds (4 kg). The robber crabs have robust legs and claws. These crabs are closely related to the hermit crabs. The average lifespan of robber crabs is 50 years. Using their massive and strong claws, robber crabs usually fight each other to protect their territory. They also serve as an important food item.
The length of the horseshoe female crabs measure around 2 feet (0.6 meters) including tail. The adult females can weigh around 10 pounds (4.5 kg).
Seals live at both ends of the Earth and travel in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Fur seals, crab eaters, leopard seals, Ross seals, Weddell seals and southern elephant seals prefer Antarctica, while the harp seal, hooded seal and ringed seal live in the Arctic.
These creatures are well-adapted to the ocean though they require air to survive. Their size varies greatly, depending upon species — from the small Kemp’s ridley, which weighs between 80–100 pounds, to the enormous leatherback, which can weigh more than 1,000 pounds.
Octopuses vary in size depending upon the species. While those found in tropical waters are small, those of the colder seas are larger in size. The giant Pacific octopus is the largest among all the members of the group and are known to grow as large as 23 feet. However, most species are smaller in size. Females are usually smaller than the males, but the female blanket octopus is an exception to this rule. Being 100 times larger than the male, it is 40,000 times heavier!
Blue whales are simply enormous. A blue whale heart is the size of a small car and pumps 10 tons of blood through the massive blue whale body. A blue whale aorta (the main blood vessel) alone is large enough for a human to crawl through. In the Antarctic, Blue Whales have reportedly reached lengths of 110 feet, but most probably grow to between 80 and 90 feet long. They can weigh over 200 tons or 400,000 pounds! Female blue whales are generally larger than males, and northern hemisphere blue whales are generally smaller than those in the southern hemisphere. Blue whales are light bluish gray on their dorsal side and mottled gray whitish on their bellies. Some have yellowish bellies.
Baby Blue Whales
A baby Blue Whale is called calf. When the baby is born it is as large as an elephant and grows very quickly. It will gain around 200 pounds a day and be about 50 feet long at the age of 6 months. Wow! A Baby Blue Whale will live off its mother's milk for the first 6 months, at which point it will have grown its baleen plates so it can eat krill.
Please feel free to leave any comments or suggestions.
No comments:
Post a Comment