One Ocean: October 2021

Friday, 29 October 2021

Five Creatures That Have No Bones

If you are like me, the only forecast you are looking at these days is the one proffered by the adorable Noodle the Pug. Each morning is like a mini-Groundhog Day as the internet waits to see if this 13-year-old pug stands up (a “Bones Day”!) or slumps down as if his skeleton decided to become Jell-O that day (a “No Bones Day”). This simple ritual helps people like me determine the vibe of the day. If it’s a No Bones Day it might be a time to take it easy, practice self-care and lie low. If it’s a Bones Day, it’s a time to celebrate, go for an adventure or take a risk.

As I watch Noodle day in and day out, I realize there are some boneless ocean creatures who might teach this prophetic pug how to make the best of things when life gives you no bones. In fact, around 97% of animals are invertebrates, all lacking a literal backbone. I’m here to show you a few of the fabulous creatures that can teach us to embrace a No Bones Day. Meet five ocean creatures who have found a way to live their best life with no bones.

Sea Slug

A pink Sea Slug in the ocean — © Albert Ollé Callau

The ocean floor is a secret runway with designs to rival any fashion week. Sea slugs have a name in desperate need of a rebrand because it doesn’t properly convey their fabulousness. These slugs range from the little loveable white puff known as the sea bunny, the plant baby leaf slug and the brightly colored “Pokemon-esque” neon slug. These sea slugs are living proof that you can still shine bright without bones. In fact, some sea slugs have a strange trick when their bodies get them down: They can decapitate themselves and regrow a new body. Perhaps Noodle is taking a lesson from the sea slug and occasionally ditching his bones to grow new, more powerful ones. Every No Bones Day is just prep” work for a great Bones Day to come. You can see the serious faces these sea slugs bring to the ocean here.

Glass Octopus

Glass octopus in black water — © Schmidt Ocean Institute

Deep below the ocean, around 3,000 feet below the surface to be exact, there is a marvel to behold. There have been only a few sightings of the incredible glass octopus, but the photos and videos we’ve captured of this incredible creature are awe-inspiring. Due to the see-through nature that gives the glass octopus its name, you can clearly see it’s always having a No Bones Day. That doesn’t stop these creatures from literally glowing with their bioluminescence and teaching us all to “put it all out there” and shine brightly. Learn more about these rare and magnificent deep-sea creatures.

Mantis Shrimp

A Mantis Shrimp in the ocean — © Jayne Jenkins/ Ocean Image Bank

The mantis shrimp is living proof that you don’t need bones to be strong. The unique herringbone structure found in the claw, or the dactyl club, of some mantis shrimp has inspired the creation of ultra-strong materials for airplanes or helmets. These dactyl clubs allow mantis shrimp to punch with a force as powerful as 2,500 times their body weight. If humans could do that they could punch through steel. If that wasn’t enough, their punches form bubbles acting like shockwaves to stun prey and creating temperatures nearly as hot as the sun. So pack a punch for your next No Bones Day by channeling the mantis shrimp and learn more about their splendor here.

Pink See-Through Fantasia

A sea Cucumber swimming on the ocean floor — © Kristin Hettermann

Enypniastes eximia have a few nicknames, some complimentary, like Pink See-Through Fantasia, and some less so, like Headless Chicken Monster. With two opposing names like this, the animal must have a good side and a horrifically scary side, just like me before and after my morning coffee. These swimming sea cucumbers are also found in the deep ocean where they travel around using a peculiar method. They suck in water through their anal opening (which is also their mouth) to increase their buoyancy, turning their bodies into balloons ready to ride the ocean’s currents. Their bloated bodies help them travel much faster, sometimes traveling miles in a day. These crazy critters show us the new weird possibilities in store for us in a world without bones. Learn more about the gross and incredible lives of sea cucumbers here.

Immortal Jellyfish

Have you ever looked at a photo of yourself at eight, eating cookie dough at a friend’s pool party, and wished to go back to those carefree days? Well, the immortal jellyfish have a real life “reset button.” If they aren’t feeling well, they can revert into their younger polyp states and start life relatively anew. Who knows, perhaps Noodle is emulating the jellyfish to discover its secret to longevity? His bones are just preparing to become different cells and a new cuter Noodle (if that’s even possible!) will emerge forever young. If you’re ready to learn the secrets of life everlasting, read more about the immortal jellyfish.

On the next No Bones Day, channel these delightful creatures and see that there’s no reason to be jelly about a skelly. Here’s to #NoBonesEveryday!

The post Five Creatures That Have No Bones appeared first on Ocean Conservancy.

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Thursday, 28 October 2021

The Sailfish is the Fastest Fish in the World

When it comes to a fish’s ability to be simultaneously majestic and athletic, none can quite compare to billfish. And while all the marlins, spearfish and swordfish on our blue planet are impressive in their own right, I’ve always thought there to be something truly mesmerizing about one billfish in particular: the sailfish (Istiophorus).

Weighing up to about 200 pounds and measuring anywhere from six to 11 feet in length, these striking pelagic creatures are, of course, called “sailfish” for a reason. They credit their name to their massive sail-like dorsal fin, which bears quite the resemblance to (you guessed it) the sail of a ship. Often stretching the entire length of the animal’s body, the sail of a sailfish is truly an incredible sight to behold—but it’s also not all for show! Today, I’m here to share some sensational facts about these brilliant billfish, from their famed “sails” to their impressive speed and everything in between.

How to recognize a sailfish

It probably comes as no surprise that these unique-looking swimmers have quite a few distinguishing features. First, there’s that massive, jaw-dropping sail (their dorsal fin) that graces the back of their bodies. These sails are sometimes taller than the rest of the fish’s body! While this trademark sail serves a number of purposes (we’ll dive into that in a moment), it’s important to note that these fish don’t always swim with their sails extended as they’re often depicted in photos. Keeping the sail folded down helps the fish streamline its physique in order to swim faster and more efficiently, so this famous feature isn’t always quite so obvious to an observer.

Apart from their dorsal fins, sailfish have long, pronounced bills that form as a result of their upper jaws protruding heavily beyond their lower jaws (this, of course, is what makes them members of the billfish club!). One way to differentiate between sailfish and other billfish is by paying close attention to the sides of the fish’s body. Sailfish have up to 20 vertical stripes of faint dots on their sides which are typically bluish in color.

Sailfish illustration photo — © Boston Public Library, Tichnor Brothers Collection

Where they live

You can find most sailfish in tropical and temperate waters around the world. These fish are migratory, moving closer to the equator when the waters are cooler in autumn and returning to higher latitudes as the summer months near. Sailfish belong to a largely pelagic species, meaning that they live the vast majority of their lives in the open ocean, usually hanging out closer to the water’s surface. They’re not afraid to dive deep when it comes to hunting for food, however. In fact, these determined predators have been known to visit depths of more than 1,000 feet below the surface in search of their next meal.

When it comes to hunting prey, sailfish are the track stars of the ocean

Sailfish have quite a few favorite prey, including smaller fish such as sardines, anchovies and occasionally mackerel. Sailfish in the Atlantic Ocean even eat cephalopods, too (think smaller octopus or squid). Since they spend most of their time gallivanting through the waters of the open ocean, sailfish get plenty of practice when it comes to tapping into top-notch speeds to hunt. They are often spotted working in pairs or small groups and using their sails to herd their prey around. And, when chasing after a school of fish (aka a combo meal), these fierce swimmers never fear a challenge. They’re known to fold their fins back completely, their bodies resembling a torpedo as they dash toward their targets at speeds of up to 68 miles per hour. Because of this, sailfish are widely regarded as the fastest animals to call our ocean home.

Sailfish in Paradise: Their valiant fight for love

Another area in which sailfish are fearless? Romance, of course! When mating season arrives, females will extend their brilliant dorsal fins to show off to curious males nearby. These males are known to be quite aggressive in their pursuit of a mate, often competing with other suitors in an intense race as they chase after the female to see who is strong and fast enough to make it to her first. Once a male and female sailfish are finally paired, they engage in what’s called broadcast spawning, where males and females pair up and release their eggs and sperm into the water beside each other. Females can release millions of eggs at once to increase the chance of fertilization. One more quick fact:when it comes to baby sailfish, these fish start out very tiny! Recently-hatched larvae usually measure only a couple millimeters in length, with most of their growth happening within the first year of their lives (that’s a lot of growth in a short span of time).

Modern threats to our ocean’s sailfish

As glorious as our ocean’s sailfish are, there are man-made risks that still pose a threat to their survival. Because of their beauty and speed and the challenge they pose to recreational fishers, sailfish are often caught and released by sport anglers, but they’re not permitted to be fished commercially in U.S. waters. Even though they’re rarely sought after for anything but catch-and-release fishing, there’s still a quiet but prominent danger that lurks beneath the surface for these animals: ghost gear.

“Ghost gear” refers to any fishing gear that is abandoned, lost or discarded into marine environments, including items such as fishing nets, long lines, stationary traps and any other human-made device used to catch marine animals. Because fishing gear is designed to capture marine organisms, it can continue to do so long after the gear is lost or discarded into the sea. When these pieces of gear continue to “fish” even after being lost or discarded, it is called “ghost fishing.” Adult sailfish don’t have many natural predators in the open ocean, but the risk of encountering ghost gear for sailfish and countless other species is ever-present in the waters where they live.

That’s why Ocean Conservancy’s Global Ghost Gear Initiative (GGGI) is working every day on the frontlines of developing and supporting innovative solutions to combat ghost fishing, working with partners around the world both to remove ghost gear currently lost at sea and prevent more from being discarded in the future.

Dive in today and learn how you can help protect sailfish by supporting the GGGI and the work this program is doing to combat this dangerous form of marine debris here.

The post The Sailfish is the Fastest Fish in the World appeared first on Ocean Conservancy.

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Wednesday, 27 October 2021

Top 5 Biggest Whales in the Ocean

It’s hard to fully comprehend just how BIG whales are—until you see them with your very own eyes. Someone can tell you a humpback whale is bigger than a school bus, but I don’t think that fully conveys the immensity. That is why I LOVE museums. While working for a few years in New Bedford, Massachusetts, I was a frequent visitor to the New Bedford Whaling Museum. I would sneak over there on my lunch break to wander around and learn all I could about whales. I can still remember feeling very, very small standing underneath the blue whale skeleton, Kobo, on display high above. The whale spanned the length of the room—it was huge!

Everything seems bigger in the ocean! But why?

There is a maximum weight relative to an animal’s volume above which its legs would collapse and life on land would be impossible. Water’s buoyancy counteracts the gravitational pull on the body, so aquatic animals can grow larger than land animals.

Here are the top five biggest whales in the ocean. Let’s count them down.

5. Bowhead Whale (59 feet)

Bowhead whale (Balaena mysticetus) breaching, Canada, Arctic Ocean. — © Doc White

Bowhead whales live in the icy Arctic and subarctic waters. The bowhead is the fifth largest whale in the ocean, reaching up to 60 feet in length. Bowhead whales are among the heaviest animals on Earth—weighing 75-100 tons. The only whale that weighs more is the blue whale. Bowhead whales are big, heavy and long-lived! Rounding out their impressive traits, bowhead whales are among the longest-living animals in the entire world, with some scientists estimating maximum lifespans of up to 200 years.

4. North Atlantic Right Whale (60 feet)

right-whale-whitesided-dolphins 2 — © NOAA Fisheries/Allison Henry

The North Atlantic right whale represents the most critically endangered populations of large whales in the world. Currently, North Atlantic right whale populations are estimated to be fewer than 440 individuals. North Atlantic right whales can grow between 45 and 60 feet and weigh up to 70 tons. They have long arching mouths that begins above the eye and rows of baleen plates hanging on each side of their upper jaws.

3. Sperm Whale (60 feet)

Sperm whales are the largest of the toothed whales and use sonar (echolocation) to hunt prey and to sense the world around them. The sound waves they emit are so powerful that human divers swimming near the whales can feel the pulses. The sound bounces off objects in the water and returns to the whale, whose brain creates an image based on the signals. Sperm whales are among the world’s deepest divers. When hunting squid, a sperm whale may spend as much as an hour on a dive to more than 3,000 feet, where the temperature hovers at 36 degrees Fahrenheit and the pressure is more than 1,400 pounds per square inch.

2. Fin Whale (90 feet)

Overhead shot of fin whale at ocean surface © NOAA Fisheries

Coming in at second place, the fin whale is the second-largest species on Earth. Fin whales got their name from easy-to-see fins on their backs. Sometimes referred to as the “greyhound of the sea,” the fin whale can swim at astonishing speeds of up to 28 miles per hour. And, with such a large stomach to fill, the fin whale can eat up to 4,400 pounds of krill every day! That’s a lot of krill.

1. Blue Whale (100 feet)

2048px-Anim1754_-_Flickr_-_NOAA_Photo_Librarysm — © NOAA Photo Library

The blue whale is the largest animal that ever lived (yes, including dinosaurs). A blue whale can grow up to 100 feet long and weigh up to 200 tons. Their hearts alone are the size of a small car! Despite their size, they keep their eyes low on the food chain: they eat krill which are small crustaceans that grow to about three inches in size. A blue whale can eat up to four tons of krill in a day.

Whales Need Your Help

Many whale species are endangered—like the blue whale and North Atlantic right whale. Whales are at risk from ship strikes and entanglement in fishing gear. Krill, their prey of choice, is also at risk due to climate change. The good news? Here at Ocean Conservancy, we’re fighting to keep blue whales, as well as other vulnerable ocean animals, safe from these threats.

Consider making a donation to Ocean Conservancy today—give today and make a difference for the future of our ocean!

Learn more about our efforts to reduce and remove ghost fishing gear, support safer shipping methods and address climate change.

The post Top 5 Biggest Whales in the Ocean appeared first on Ocean Conservancy.

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Friday, 22 October 2021

Coastal Restoration Helps the Ocean Help Us

The ocean has absorbed nearly 33% of all greenhouse gas emissions and around 90% of the excess heat produced through climate change. It may seem like a good thing all around that the ocean is protecting us in this way, but the ocean actually pays a hefty price. If you’re not on the water or near the coast, much of this price may go unnoticed until there are disasters like stronger hurricanes, more intense flooding, coastal erosion or harmful algal blooms. Even if you aren’t directly affected by any of those types of disasters, the ocean still affects all of us, no matter where we live, by moderating our climate and providing us with the oxygen we need to breathe. These disasters have huge physical, economic, cultural and human impacts on our communities, especially those on the coast.

We know our ocean is at risk, and now is the time to help the ocean help us

In addition to cutting greenhouse gas emissions, we must shore up our natural coastlines. Currently, Congress can do both as it debates the Build Back Better Act which represents the largest investment opportunity in our ocean and coasts to date, including funding for coastal restoration and resilience projects.

Coastlines are a vital link between our ocean and our inland areas. They also represent a key intersection between the ocean and climate. Coastal habitats—like salt marshes, mangrove forests and seagrass meadows—provide homes for fish, shellfish, birds and other animals. These areas, in turn, provide recreational, commercial, and cultural value to local communities.

Coastal habitats offer massive climate benefits as well

They are living ecosystems that protect coastal communities from erosion, keep us safe from storm surges and offer food security. When Hurricane Sandy devastated much of the northeastern United States, coastal wetlands helped prevent over $625 million in property damages. Homes that were built behind salt marshes in Ocean County, New Jersey, sustained 20% less property damage compared to areas where these marshes had been lost. By protecting and enlarging these ecosystems, we can help communities better prepare for increasingly destructive climate disasters like storms or floods. They also sequester carbon dioxide more efficiently than terrestrial forests.

Projects administered by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) demonstrate these multiple benefits. In Oregon, NOAA worked with community partners to restore 443 acres of the Tillamook estuary, protecting endangered Coho salmon habitat and producing reductions in flooding. Approximately 500 structures in the nearby town of Tillamook and Highway 101, a key transportation corridor, will now experience less damage from flooding, saving around $9.2 million over the next 50 years. In time, this site will also be able to store 100,000 tons of carbon dioxide, the equivalent of removing 21,000 cars from the road for a year.

Local job markets also benefit from these endeavors

Habitat restoration projects like this one support an average of 15 jobs per $1 million invested.

Funding for these coastal projects in the Build Back Better Act can protect the ocean and the communities that rely on it from climate change.

Tell your congressional representatives that they need to pass the Build Back Better Act and include funding for NOAA.

The post Coastal Restoration Helps the Ocean Help Us appeared first on Ocean Conservancy.

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Monday, 18 October 2021

I Eat Fish, Am I Eating Microplastics?

Written by Hayley McIlwraith, Research Assistant in the Rochman Lab and Chelsea Rochman, Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto, co-founder of the University of Toronto Trash Team and Scientific Advisor to Ocean Conservancy.

Plastic is everywhere.

It’s in the laptop I’m using to write this blog, in the clothes I’m wearing as I sit at my desk and in the packaging protecting the food that I’m snacking on in between sentences. It’s easy to see how much we rely on plastic. But what we don’t see is that this widespread dependence on plastics has led to widespread contamination of microplastics—tiny pieces of plastic (less than 5mm in size) that float in the air around us and lurk in the food we eat and water we drink.

We are trying to understand how much microplastic fish eat and whether these particles are also present in the fillets we eat. Recently, researchers in the Rochman Lab and collaborators at the Ontario Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks sampled seven species of sportfish from Lake Simcoe in Ontario, Canada. We looked for microplastics in the stomach, fillet and liver of each fish.

Our study revealed that microplastics were present in the stomachs of nearly all of the fish sampled.

This did not come as a surprise, given a recent study where we demonstrated relatively high concentrations of microplastics in several species of fish from Lake Ontario and Lake Superior.

However, we also found microplastics were widespread in the fillets and livers of all seven species. This means that plastics are not just being excreted after being ingested (i.e., via poop), but they’re also traveling to other parts of the body—including the parts we eat.

A woman looking at a sample of micro plastics — Lead author, Hayley McIlwraith, looking at the microplastics found in the tissues of fish from Lake Simcoe in Ontario, Canada. © Courtesy of Rochman Lab

Previous research has suggested that microplastics can transfer from a gut to a fillet, but here we show widespread occurrence in wild fish. Around 74% of fillets and 63% of livers had at least one microplastic present, while 99% of fish had at least one particle present in any of the three studied tissues.

We found something else that was really interesting. For seafood, we are generally told to eat fewer top predators or long-lived fish, because these fish tend to have higher levels of toxins like mercury. In this study, our data suggests the opposite may be true for microplastics. We found that while larger fish contained a higher number of microplastics overall, it was the smallest fish that contained more microplastics per gram of tissue. So, if you cut a piece of fillet of the exact same size from the largest fish and from the smallest fish, the fillet from the small fish would have more pieces of plastic inside it. These results highlight the uniqueness of microplastics as a contaminant—because they are physical particles rather than dissolved organic chemicals, they may behave differently than chemical contaminants. These unique properties are important, especially when considering their risks and effects in the environment.

Now before raising the alarm bells and cutting fish out of your diet,

keep in mind the levels we found were low relative to other sources of microplastics we may be exposed to.

In our study, we calculated the yearly intake of microplastics based on a diet of eating half a pound of fish twice per week. For most of the fish species in our study, average consumption would be less than 1000 microplastics a year.

Yearly intake of microplastics bar graph — A graph showing the annual intake of microplastics by humans based on a diet of 0.5 lbs of fish twice per week. This is based on data from our study. © Courtesy of Rochman Lab

In comparison, another study estimated that 35,000—62,000 microplastics are inhaled annually by the average adult. These other exposure routes include drinking water, beer, salt and even honey. All of this raises questions about the many routes of exposure, and how microplastic contamination relates to risk for humans.

Bar graph of plastics consumed — Average number of microplastics humans are exposed to from multiple sources. © Courtesy of Rochman Lab

Nonetheless, the uniqueness of our results opens up new avenues of research relevant to the fate and risks of microplastics in food webs. Don’t worry, members from our lab are already on it! A current project is looking at fish fillets from Lake Ontario, where we already know fish have lots of microplastics in their guts—some up to 900 particles!

In the meantime, we need to reduce our plastic waste, reuse as much as possible and recycle when we can.

Each of these actions will reduce plastic emissions to the environment and reduce plastic exposure for us.

The post I Eat Fish, Am I Eating Microplastics? appeared first on Ocean Conservancy.

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Thursday, 14 October 2021

5 Poisonous Ocean Animals to Stay Away From

Swimming beneath the waves is a sea of creatures even more unique and wild than you could ever imagine—fish that look like horses, whales that are 100 feet long and sharks living to more than 400 years old. But, what about those ocean animals that have adapted to use poison to defend themselves against predators?

Before we begin today’s exploration, let’s lay some ground work. Venom is injected, but poison is ingested. Venomous animals are ones that produce specific toxic substances that can be injected into their foes. Poisonous animals, on the other hand, coat part or all of their body in a toxic substance, so they’re harmful to touch or eat.

Today, we are going to explore these five poisonous ocean animals. Dive in with us …

Pufferfish

One pufferfish carries enough poison to kill 30 adult humans! Almost all pufferfish contain tetrodotoxin, a substance that makes them bad-tasting and often deadly to fish. Tetrodotoxin is also deadly to humans and is up to 1,200 times more toxic than cyanide.

Nudibranch

Commonly known as sea slugs, nudibranchs are a group of shell-less marine mollusks. They live in shallow tropical ocean waters. There are more than 3,000 species of nudibranch. Nudibranchs absorb and store toxins from their food, making themselves toxic to potential predators. Scientists aren’t certain how nudibranchs survive after ingesting so many toxins, but one thing is sure: they have a great defense mechanism.

Nudibranch in the ocean — © Peetj Vaneeden

Boxfish

The boxfish is related to the pufferfish—although not as poisonous. The boxfish uses its poison to help defend itself against predators—it would rather not become the predator’s next meal. The boxfish excretes a toxin into the water, poisoning the water and any marine life in the area.

Flamboyant Cuttlefish

The flamboyant cuttlefish is a member of the class Cephalopoda (which also includes octopuses). These flamboyant cuttlefish are native to sandy habitats in the Indo-Pacific Ocean and are relatively small in size, reaching only three inches in length. These colorful, captivating cephalopods will steal your heart, but beware, they are also poisonous. Their colorful and bold exteriors may be a warning sign to predators. According to the Monterey Bay Aquarium, research by Mark Norman with the Museum Victoria in Queensland, Australia, has shown the flamboyant cuttlefish’s toxin to be as lethal as that of the blue-ringed octopus. That’s quite impressive, considering the blue-ringed octopus is one of the most toxic animals in the ocean.

Cuttlefish in the ocean — © Fenkieandreas/Fotolia

Blue Ringed Octopus

Speaking of… the blue ringed octopus is an absolute overachiever—it is both poisonous and venomous! If an animal somehow avoids being injected with venom when it attacks and tries to eat the blue ringed octopus, the animal will learn the hard way that the meat is poisonous. Just another reason to leave the blue-ringed octopus alone!

Blue Ringed Octopus in the ocean — © David Evison/Fotolia

Poisonous versus Venomous

Now that you know the difference between poisonous and venomous, here is a fun game you can play. Can you spot inaccuracies as you are doing research, web surfing or reading news articles? It happens more than you know. Many, many times the terms are used interchangeably, but they are not the same. A lionfish isn’t poisonous, and a pufferfish isn’t venomous.

The post 5 Poisonous Ocean Animals to Stay Away From appeared first on Ocean Conservancy.

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Friday, 8 October 2021

10 Ink-credible Octopus Photos

October 8 is World Octopus Day, which is the perfect excuse to appreciate these unbelievable cephalopods.

To be fair, if you know us, you know we don’t need a reason to celebrate octopuses. You can make every day World Octopus Day by learning more about octopuses on our blog, with posts including: