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Lesson 3: Antarctic Oceanography- Animals: Penguins, Seals and Whales

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Lesson 3: Antarctic Oceanography- Animals: Penguins, Seals and Whales ANTARCTIC Lesson 3: Antarctic Oceanography- Animals: Penguins, Seals and Whales Lesson Objectives: • Students will be introduced to the Marine animals that live on the ice sheets of Antarctica. • Our main focus will be seals, whales and penguins. • We will discuss adaptation, survival, and their place in the food chain. Very few animals are permanent residents on Antarctica's landmass; mostly worms, insects and mites are found there. No vertebrates, or backboned animals, of any kind are naturally found in Antarctica. Penguins Penguins are flightless birds ashore to claim their breeding found only in the Southern ground and Hemisphere. They are clumsy mate. In May on land but very or June, she agile in the water. lays her egg. Their wing like The female goes to sea to feed flippers helps them and leaves the egg with the dive and swim through the icy Emperor male, who holds the waters. There are several egg on his feet and warms it penguin species found in with folds of loose skin. This Antarctica incubation lasts for two (see table), months. The males must but only the survive on stored body fat for Emperor that duration. After feeding for lives on the several weeks, the females ice shelf. return and the male must then make the trek back to the sea In March, to feed, which often can be female several miles from the nest site. Emperor He needs to renourish himself penguins and bring back food for the come female and the baby. The baby ©PROJECT OCEANOGRAPHY ANTARCTIC OCEANOGRAPHY 107 ANTARCTIC is cared for by to care for itself, usually at its parents about 5 months of age. until it is able • Seals and whales are predators of penguins. Penguins of Antarctica NAME POPULATION SIZE DIET Under 200,000 Height - 36"-42" Krill, squid and EMPEROR breeding pairs. Weight - 66-88 pounds. fish. 1 to 1.5 million Height – 37" KING pairs. Weight - 30 lbs. Fish and squid Height - approx. 30" 2.5 million breeding Antarctic and ice ADELIE Weight - 11 lbs. pairs. krill. 7.5 million pairs. Height - 27" Almost exclusively CHINSTRAP Weight - 9 lbs. krill. Estimated to be Height - 21" Lantern fish and ROCK- near 3.7 million Weight - 5-6 lbs. euphausiid HOPPER pairs. crustaceans Estimated 300,000 Height - 23" breeding pairs. Crustaceans, fish GENTOO Weight - 12 lbs. and squid Height - 27" Lantern fish and 11.8 million pairs. MACARONI Weight - 9 lbs. euphausiid crustaceans. ©PROJECT OCEANOGRAPHY ANTARCTIC OCEANOGRAPHY 108 ANTARCTIC Seals The common feed on the flightless birds. The seals found in females are ten percent larger than Antarctica are the male. the Weddell, Ross, Crabeater seals are the most Crabeater, common large seal on earth, Leopard, numbering around 40 million. Southern Despite their name, they do not feed Elephant and on crabs; they feed on krill. The Antarctic Fur females are slightly larger than Seal. Other males. than the Fur seal, they are all "earless" seals, The largest seal is the Elephant meaning they have no external ear Seal, which gets its name from a structures, but they have excellent large proboscis, or trunk. The males hearing both on land and in the sea. can inflate this trunk to attract Like penguins, the earless seals females and scare off other males. move awkwardly on land but are The male, which can weigh up to quite agile in the water. The Fur seal four tons, is much larger than has longer flippers than the others, female, which weighs about one ton. so it moves well on land as well. The Antarctic Fur seal is an eared Weddell seals can dive down 2000 seal, meaning it has visible ear feet in search of fish, using sonar to structures. Its fur has two layers – locate their food. Since they require an outer layer of coarse hair and a air to breathe, they can cut holes in thick velvet-like inner layer. Because the ice for air holes of their beautiful fur, these seals using their sawlike have been hunted teeth. The almost to the point Weddell seal can of extinction. The stay underwater for up to an hour at populations of the a time Fur seal are once again increasing thanks to Ross seals are the smallest and international laws banning the least plentiful of the Antarctic seals. hunting of them They live on thickest areas of pack ice. All seals have fish in their diet, while some species also eat krill, squid, Leopard seals are fierce predators. penguins, octopus and/or They are found in the sea near areas crustaceans. where penguins breed, so they can ©PROJECT OCEANOGRAPHY ANTARCTIC OCEANOGRAPHY 109 ANTARCTIC Whales There are two types of whales The Blue whale found in Antarctic waters, is not only the Southern baleen whales and largest of the toothed whales. They are so baleen whales, categorized by the structures but also largest found in their mouths to feed. creature that has The baleen whales have a ever lived on the earth (the bristly substance (baleen) in largest one measured 124 feet their mouths. This baleen is in length). Before hunting attached to plates on the whales for blubber and oil whale's gums, and it serves as became popular, there were a filter by which the whale can 200,000 Blue whales; now strain krill, its main food source. there are only approximately The toothed whales have teeth, 1000 left in existence. All and therefore can eat much whales are now protected by larger animals. international agreement, but there are still countries that The major species of baleen ignore the treaty and hunt the whales found at least part of whales for precious food and the year in Antarctic seas are: oil. Blue, Fin, Sei, Minke, Humpback and Southern Right The two most common toothed whales. Humpback whales whales found in the Antarctic have been observed herding are the Sperm Whale and the krill into a circle, causing the Orca, the killer whale. The krill to swarm into a more sperm whale is the largest of compact group. The whale the toothed whales, measuring then dives and rises up approximately 60 feet in length beneath the concentrated krill and weighing 70 tons. The with its mouth open, ending up toothed whales' diet consists of with a mouthful of food. fish, squid, birds, penguins and seals. ©PROJECT OCEANOGRAPHY ANTARCTIC OCEANOGRAPHY 110 ANTARCTIC What to do if you come across a stranded whale Source: http://www.clearlight.com/~kid/whales/hbwhales.html A stranded whale is one that has Out of the water, stranded whales beached itself ashore for some will find it very difficult to maintain reason. They can be found correct body temperature. A rapid anywhere throughout the world. If rise in body temperature will result in you are the first to come upon such death in a few hours. Pouring an unfortunate creature, there are a buckets of seawater over the skin number of things you can do to help will ensure it stays cool and wet. its rescue: Never pour water in the blowhole! These mammals breathe air through The first thing you should do is their blowhole and pouring water in contact the nearest office of the there will cause them to drown. national parks or wildlife department Covering exposed areas of the skin to summon help from experienced with water-soaked hessian bags or persons. You will need to tell them something similar will help with the exact location of the stranded cooling and also help prevent whale and give an accurate sunburn. Once again, do not cover description of its type, condition and the stranded whale's blowhole ! health. If you are unsure of the type Also, do not cover the fins, as these you should take notes as to its size, areas are used to lose heat from the body shape, color, the size and body. positions of its fins, the location and number of blow holes, and whether When the wildlife officers arrive, or not the stranded whale has throat follow their instructions exactly. They grooves. know best what to do for beached whales ©PROJECT OCEANOGRAPHY ANTARCTIC OCEANOGRAPHY 111 ANTARCTIC Fun Facts • Antarctica is the highest continent on earth. Winds flow down the coastal slopes under the influence of gravity. Speeds of these katabatic winds have been recorded up to 320 kilometers per hour. • Antarctica is the driest continent on earth. • Adelie penguins walk up to 50 kilometers across the sea ice to reach their nesting grounds, returning to the same nest site and to the same mate in often-crowded colonies containing many thousands of birds. • Did you know: Dolphins and porpoises are related to toothed whales? • Did you know the Orca is the most intelligent whale, often trained for entertainment purposes at Marine Parks? ©PROJECT OCEANOGRAPHY ANTARCTIC OCEANOGRAPHY 112 ANTARCTIC Activity 3-1. Classroom Discussion 1. How does the increase or decrease of whaling over the centuries affect the food chain? 2. What adaptations enable sea animals to live in such a frigid climate? Whales: Extra layers of fat to protect from cold, Baleen is attached to plates on the whale's gums, and it serves as a filter by which the whale can strain krill, its main food source. Penguins: males store body fat to survive during incubation. The Fur seal has longer flippers than the others, so it moves well on land as well. Weddell seals can dive down 2000 feet in search of fish, using sonar to locate their food. Since they require air to breathe, they can cut holes in the ice for air holes using their sawlike teeth.
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