Ocean life Flashcards
Which of the following is not a marine reptile?
Nerodia sipedon
Which of the following is NOT an aquatic adaptation of penguins?
Pneumatic bones
Fish exhibit the greatest species diversity of all other vertebrate groups.
True
Some fish have heat-producing mechanisms that allow them to maintain warm muscles, in turn allowing for short-bursts of speed and/or improved vision in cold water.
True
What is a possible reason that puffin populations are decreasing?
A decline in the population of sand eels, their preferred prey items, due to growing fisheries
What is a lateral line system?
System of sensory organs that detect movement and vibrations in surrounding water
Which of the following animals has a lateral line system?
Bony Fishes
A seahorse is a type of bony fish
true
The hawksbill turtle’s sharp beak is specially adapted for feeding on what?
Sponges
All of the following are characteristics of Mysticetes except…
The use of echolocation to find food
Mysticetes
Baleen Whales
Smallest Mysticete
Minke Whale (10 meters)
Odontocetes
toothed whales
Because of low visibility in the marine environment, many marine mammals use _____ to communicate.
sound
Ecolocation
use sound to find food
Which marine mammals use Ecolocation
Odontocetes
Which marine mammal has the densest fur?
Sea Otter
Phocidae
earless seal
Marine otters are larger than sea otters and live primarily in the northern hemisphere.
False, Sea otters are bigger and live in the northern hemisphere while marine otters are smaller and live in the southern hemisphere
Which of the following species if known for its unique teeth that it uses to filter out krill?
Crabeater seal
What is the largest member of the Delphinidae family?
Killer Whale
No marine vertebrate is deaf
true
In which hemisphere does the majority of shipping take place?
Northern Hemisphere
Agnatha
Hagfishes- 85 species
chondrichthyes
sharks and rays- 900 species
Osteichthyes
herring, salmon, parrot fish- 25,000+ (96% of all fishes, 50% of all vertebrates, 50% marine)
buoyancy of bony fish
Most species have a swim bladder- gas filled sac for adjusting buoyancy
Absent in most fast moving fish, absent in all hag fish and cartilaginous fishes.
Ectotherms
animals that primarily gain heat through the environment
Poikotherms
animals whose body temp adjusts depending on the environment
Locomotion
Mucous covered scales and streamlined to reduce drag
Sun fish (mola mola)
heaviest bony fish
spend most time in the mesopelagic zone but seen near surface
Reproduction of bony fish
-produce eggs that are fertilized externally
Sequental hermaphrodites
some species are all born one sex, but change to another during their life (nemo)
Cryptic coloration
to blend in with surroundings
disruptive coloration
stripes, bars or spots that break up the outline of the fish and confuse the predators
Herring sound makers
produce fast repetitive ticks (FRT)
generated by passing air from the swim bladder through their anus
Squamata
snakes and lizards
Chelonia
turtles and tortoises
crocodilia
Crocs and Alligators
todays reptile species
1% are marine
Sea snakes
sub family hydrophiidae
can only survive in water
air breathing, non aggressive but highly venomous
what do sea snakes feed on?
fish and fish eggs
Viviparous
give birth to live young in water (sea snakes)
Deadliest sea snake
beaked sea snake
Sea Kraits
more primitive than sea snakes
oviparous- lay eggs on land
eat fish/eels
venemous
Marine iguanas
Amblyrhynchus cristatus only found in galapagos islands lay eggs in sand Herbivores- marine algae laterally compressed tail
Sea turtles
2 families Cheloniidae Dermochlyidae all species endangered lay eggs on land in sand nests mostly tropical and subtropical
Dermochlyidae
leatherback turtles
turtle shells
each species has a different number of plates
formed from a deeper layer in the dermis than scales on sakes
Sea turtle reproduction
no parental care of hatchlings
100 eggs that incubate for 2 months
Sea turtle hatchlings
entire nest emerges at night and head towards the brightest light
most die before reaching the ocean (1/100)
Leatherback turtles
Largest sea turtle
lack scutes and have rubbery skin that allow them to dive deep
ENDOTHERMIC
Seabird nesting habitats
islands
tundras
coastal cliffs
Seabird reproduction
k selected reproduce every 1-3 years produce on land few eggs, big babies lots of parental care
seabird feeding
different bill shapes enable different feeding methods
Birds that can’t fly
Penguin
oxygen storage in birds while diving
lungs+muscle+blood
Penguins
all live in the southern hemisphere except one species
found from tropics to poles
Seabird-fishery interactions
killed in bycatch
Where do salt water crocs live and how big?
Southeast asia and 7m and 2000+ pounds
Foraging in sea birds
different bill shapes for different food
Foraging in marine mammals
filter feeding
engulfment
echolocation
strand feeding
Walruses
odobenids
Sea lions and fur seals (otariid)
otariid
external earflaps
quadrapedal locomotion
swim with front flippers
Carnivores (5 families)
Polar bears otters seals walruses sea lions and fur seals
3 orders of marine mammals (cetecea)
Mystecetes (Baleen whales)- low frequency sounds
Odonocetes (toothed whales)- echolocation
Sireneia (dugong and manatees)
Manatees and dugong (sirenia)
mostly eat sea grass
Closest terrestrial species are elephants
seabird
must depend on marine environment for something
Monitors
Amphibious lizards found in southeast asia laterally flattened tail bigger than iguanas lay eggs in nests on land
