OceanicNekton-CantonLocalSchools.ppt

3 species Mediterranean (critically endangered) Caribbean (thought to be extinct) Hawaiian (endangered) Natural History Cool: lying on damp sand Very inactive when ashore Respiration: long periods of breath holding Low metabolic heat production Pregnant females and nursing mothers appear greatly upset when approached Cause increased deaths of seal pups Solitary in water and onshore Loose groups may form on beaches when environmental conditions are favorable Resting seals will avoid bodily contact with each other (except for mothers and pups) Dive at least to 500 ft Remain underwater for as long as 20 min while foraging Vocalize from pups to adults Alarmed adults will make a “bubbling” that originates deep in the throat Fewer than 1500 Hawaiian monk seals exist today Illegal to kill, capture, or harass monk seals Population declines due to Human activity to remote and isolated area Many are clubbed to death for meat, oil, and their skin Death from predation by sharks Lower pup survival due to human disturbances Ciguartera intoxication Entanglement in fishing nets and debris Reproduction Polygynous – mate a number of times with a number of different partners Adult males outnumber females 3 to 1 Mate in the water Give birth between mid-December and mid-August peak season in May Gestation is about 1 year Mothers due not feed while nursing Nurse 5 to 6 weeks Feeding Fish and invertebrates Spiny lobster, eels, flatfish, small reef fish, larval fish and octopus Eat as much as 10% of their body weight a day Seals Walrus Walruses Spend time on icebergs Highly social Only member of the order to have tusks Both male and female Manatee Order: Sirenia Manatees dugongs Not pelagic Relative of elephants Manatee Live Order: SireniaManatees Tropical rim of the Atlantic Immense tail flattened in horizontal plane and rounded Hind limbs are lacking with front limbs flippers Ear openings but no external ears Large grinding molars, no canines or incisors Tiny eyes and nos