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Visiting Winter the Dolphin

Mon, 20 Feb 2012 10:23:40 +0000

I'm in Florida this week, so we took a trip to the Clearwater Marine Aquarium. After seeing A Dolphin Tale, one of the first items on my daughter's list was to see Winter the dolphin.

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Ocean Romance: Seahorses

Tue, 14 Feb 2012 08:02:02 +0000

Who are the best lovers in the ocean? That trophy might go to the seahorses. Before they mate, seahorses have an elaborate courtship ritual that involves color changes, dancing, and ...

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Sea Shepherd Activist Knocked Off Jet Ski

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 10:43:31 +0000

The Environment News Service reported that an activist with Sea Shepherd Conservation Society was knocked off a jet ski by a water cannon from a Japanese whaling vessel on February 11. The incident occurred in the Southern Ocean while the organization was on its annual mission (this year, known as Operation Divine Wind) to "expose and confront illegal activities on the high seas."

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Guess the Creature

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 08:57:24 +0000

Can you guess the species?

Image: Erik Hannon, Flickr

Some Shark Species

Sun, 12 Feb 2012 22:55:37 +0000

There are about 400 species of sharks. I haven't written about them all here...yet. But here you can learn about 10 different types of sharks, from whale sharks to sand tigers.

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Featured Creature: the Bull Shark

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 06:45:01 +0000

Bull sharks are among the top 3 shark species reported in unprovoked attacks on humans (source: International Shark Attack File). While that statistic might strike fear in the hearts of many, the actual number of shark attacks is relatively small compared to other accidents that might befall you (you're more likely to get injured by a toilet, for example, than a shark).

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Viviparity in Sharks

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 08:21:34 +0000

A recent post talked about sharks that lay eggs. But what about the ones that don't? Those sharks give birth to live young. This reproductive strategy is called viviparous.

About 60% of shark species give birth to live young. But as the young grow inside their mother's uterus, they get their nourishment in a variety of different ways. Some feed off of a yolk sac - similar to those who develop in egg cases outside the mother. This reproductive strategy is referred to as ovoviviparous.

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Guess the Creature

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 14:18:28 +0000

Can you guess this species?

Image: Stephen Frink / Getty Images

Do Sharks Lay Eggs?

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 06:18:05 +0000

Bony fish and cartilaginous fish (i.e., sharks, skates, and rays) have different reproductive strategies. Bony fish tend to scatter large numbers of eggs into the ocean - take the Atlantic cod for example. These fish lay 3-9 million eggs along the ocean bottom. However, only a few survive. In contrast, cartilaginous fish produce relatively few young. Reproductively speaking, there are two main groups of sharks - those that lay eggs, and those that don't.

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Is It An Animal, Vegetable or Mineral?

Tue, 17 Jan 2012 17:23:22 +0000

When dealing with sponges, that used to be the question. Finally, someone figured out that sponges have special cells that perform functions common to animals - they breathe, eat, and ...

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