Chapter 8: Feeding ecology

Question 1

name the four feeding pylogeny types of baleen whales

Answer 1

• gulpers (blue whales) ventral grooves and specialized tongues
• stiff and short plates (grey whales). bottom feeders that filter sediments
• short baleen piscivorous diet (minke whales)
• skimmers (bowhead whales) have long plates With fine baleens continuous straining of small prey

Question 2

phylogeny and feeding types of toothed whales. name some!

Answer 2

• uniformly shaped teeth; grasping and holding prey
• Fish-eating dolphins 20-65 pairs of conical Sharp teeth per jaw
• squid-eating pilot whales 7-12 pairs per jaw, but larger
• squid-eating sperm whales 20-25 teeth only in lower jaw, grasping
• most Extreme: beaked whales only 2 teeth bent outward, use suction feeding

Question 3

what is the difference between the feeding strategies of dugongs and manatees

Answer 3

dugongs: bottom feeders
manatees: both bottom and surface feeders

Question 4

name the Three Extreme phylogeny types of pinnipeds

Answer 4

crabeater seals which feed on krill (weirdo teeth)
walrus tusks dig the bottom for Shells, use for fighting
leopard seals feed on mammals

Question 5

unique phylogeny and feeding strategy of otters

Answer 5

feed on Fish and benthic invertibrates

use tools

Question 6

what is the difference between ‘capital’ and ‘income’ breeders?

Answer 6

Capital: energy and nutrients are stored prior to breeding, as they will fast for months during breeding season (large baleen whales, polar bears, large phocids, male otariids)
Income: must continuously feed during breeding. (sea otters, most odontocetes, small phicds, female otariids)

Question 7

name some marine Mammal foraging behaviors

Answer 7

• most are large bodied, long lived With low reproductoin rate. temporal and spacial flexibility in foraging
• high fat Storage means can feed irregularly over large distances
• foraging behavior adjustment to prey abundance
• prey switch

Question 8

review the portion on prey selection (slide 10/13). i think it has to do With how some species will feed on many species, but most have prey preference of 2-3 specific species.

Answer 8

also it says that sea otters can prey on up to 160 species, but individuals are maternally transmitted individual prey preference (I think)

Question 9

how do grey whales affect top Down effects?

Answer 9

they take out 8-18% of amphipod Productivity, but carrying capacity is increased by resuspending sendiments and trapping nutrients

Question 10

name some bottom up effects

Answer 10

• 1* and 2* Production often influenced by el Nino, influence Galapagos seals to care for their Young longer.
• overfishing: change of migration or prey switch or Death
• climate change: norway mackerel further North.