That was a very ocean concerned episode of family guy. I rather liked it.

While we’re being microbiologists, lets also explore the zooplankton. These are radiolarians, they are, if possible, even more intricate and beautiful than diatoms due to to their mineral based skeleton. The feeding manner is quite interesting: Using extensions in their skeleton known as pseudopods, they slowly ingest prey such as diatoms or other small plankton. In some cases however, they have been found to be attached and slowly digesting zooplankton sometimes 1000x larger than themselves (which still isn’t that large, as radiolarians only grow to a max of 300 microns, but still an impressive feat nonetheless)

Things in the ocean that you can’t see, but really should be paying attention to:

Diatoms. One of the most commonly found types of phytoplankton, they’re made up of these incredibly complex silica exoskeletons, which give them their distinctive look. They’re an incredibly important group - alone they’re responsible for something like 40% of marine primary production.

5 things you may not have known about the ocean. 1. While its commonly known that the ocean covers something like 71% of our planets surface, it contains within it 99% of the habitable space on earth. Within this 99% as much as 95% of the life on earth is found.   2. 90% of the ocean is considered “deep” (over 2000 meters) and the average depth of the ocean is around 3795 meters. The deepest point (the Challenger Deep) is 10,916 meters. That’s as much as 1.23 Mount Everests. The pressure of the water on top of you at this point is equivalent to supporting 50 Jumbo Jets by yourself.   3. Only 10% of the sea has been explored by humans. In this 10%, around 200000 species have been described: it is estimated that as much as 30 million species may remain undiscovered.   4. The largest animal ever to live on this earth is the Blue Whale, measuring in at 30 meters long and weighing 180 tonnes (although the Bootlace Worm can grow longer than a blue whale, with some being measured at 50 meters long and 10 cm wide). It is also one of the fastest aquatic animals, reaching speeds of 50 km/h (the fastest are Sailfish, clocking in at 110 km/h)   5. The ocean is being destroyed at an alarming rate: More oil reaches the oceans as a result of leaking cars every year than the BP spill, and as much trash is dumped in the oceans each year as fish are taken out. Around 100 million sharks are killed yearly, 30% of these for their fins and the rest as by-catch.

5 things you may not have known about the ocean.

1.

While its commonly known that the ocean covers something like 71% of our planets surface, it contains within it 99% of the habitable space on earth. Within this 99% as much as 95% of the life on earth is found.

 

2.

90% of the ocean is considered “deep” (over 2000 meters) and the average depth of the ocean is around 3795 meters. The deepest point (the Challenger Deep) is 10,916 meters. That’s as much as 1.23 Mount Everests. The pressure of the water on top of you at this point is equivalent to supporting 50 Jumbo Jets by yourself.

 

3.

Only 10% of the sea has been explored by humans. In this 10%, around 200000 species have been described: it is estimated that as much as 30 million species may remain undiscovered.

 

4.

The largest animal ever to live on this earth is the Blue Whale, measuring in at 30 meters long and weighing 180 tonnes (although the Bootlace Worm can grow longer than a blue whale, with some being measured at 50 meters long and 10 cm wide). It is also one of the fastest aquatic animals, reaching speeds of 50 km/h (the fastest are Sailfish, clocking in at 110 km/h)

 

5.

The ocean is being destroyed at an alarming rate: More oil reaches the oceans as a result of leaking cars every year than the BP spill, and as much trash is dumped in the oceans each year as fish are taken out. Around 100 million sharks are killed yearly, 30% of these for their fins and the rest as by-catch.

5 Favourite Cephalopods, No. 4:

The Blanket Octopus, Tremoctopus is not actually a single species but a genus of 4 different species: Tremoctopus gelatus, robsoni, gracilis & violaceus, with T. violaceus being the most common one. 

Blanket Octopus females may grow as large as 2 meters, while males achieve a measly 5-6 cm. They’re also immune to the Man o’ Wars poison, and while they don’t predate on it, young octopus may rip off tentacles and use them for defence. Beautiful thing.

Sharks populations are declining worldwide. This is (somewhat) common knowledge. What i think escapes most people is how important sharks are to the marine ecosystem.

In all marine food chains where there are sharks, they are at the top. Now, you remove the shark, you’re cutting of the head. There would be nothing to regulate (except human overfishing, but that’s another matter for another post) fish which feed on phytoplankton down at the bottom off the food chain. This phytoplankton creates something like 70% of atmospheric oxygen through photosynthesis. 

It’s amazing how sharks, who managed to survive all 5 major extinction events in this planets history are now finally disappearing. Who needs asteroids and massive volcanic eruptions when we have ourselves? 

5 favourite Cephalopods, number 3:

Of cephalopods (and aquatic animals), there is one who’s beauty and presence can’t be denied: Enteroctopus dofleini, The Giant Pacific Octopus. Weighing in at between 60-70 kg and with an impressive length of up to 4 meters, it is the largest of the octopus (sharing the title with the 7-armed octopus). It is an incredibly intelligent creature as well, octopus is one of the few creatures which you are not allowed to perform surgery on without anaesthesia. 

The Frilled Shark, Chlamydoselachus anguineus, has some of the coolest teeth in the animal kingdom. Feeding on Octopus and Squid, the small, sharp teeth prevent escape.

It’s listed as near threatened by the IUCN, this isn’t due to overfishing though: it so seldom reproduces even accidental catches may deplete its population.

5 favourite cephalopods countdown, no.2: Japanese Flying Squid, Todarodes pacificus.

Commonly growing to around 40-50 cm, these squid can jump out of the water and have been seen covering distances of 50 m above the surface. Often mistaken for Flying Fish, they are commonly found in the northern pacific. Pretty cool. 

Internetvibes asked for Octopus. These are some of my favourite creatures of all times, so i think im gonna do a top 5 countdown of my favourite over the next few days. To start off, the Wonderpus, Wunderpus photogenicus. Often mistaken for a Mimic Octopus, this colourful, elusive octopus is found around the Phillipines. If nothing else, you’ve at least got to love it for its name. 

And while amphipods are all very interesting, why not showcase some of the amazing diversity of fish you might find in the deep as well. 

i think the deep sea showcases evolution better than any habitat on earth to be honest. These fish have all lived an incredibly isolated life for millions of year, and just look how different and amazingly adapted they are to the incredibly harsh conditions of the deep. Amazing. Interestingly, the deep sea comprises something like 60% of the earths surface as well, so it is actually the largest habitat on this planet. 

Time to deal with some requests. hannibalism wanted to see more deep sea creatures, so lets see what we can find down there.. 

There are a lot of big bad fish down there, viperfish, anglerfish, pelican eels etc, and that’s all very good, but some of the coolest creatures are generally much smaller: Amphipods. Some of these, like the Phronima (top) even acted as inspiration for the alien movies (note the similarity between their appearance and the alien queen). They often inhabit bodies of Salps and other similar animals. A lot of the coolest ones are found in the deep waters of the antarctic and southern oceans, like the Epimeria rubrieques (funny looking thing in the middle) and the recently discovered Amphipods of the coast of New Zeeland that can grow up to 30 cm long, which is incredibly large for Amphipods.

More to come..