2007: Exploring the Inner Space of the Celebes Sea The Census of Marine Life FOCUS AUDIO/VISUAL MATERIALS The Census of Marine Life None GRADE LEVEL TEACHING TIME 9-12 (Biology) One or two 45-minute class periods plus time for student research FOCUS QUESTION How can scientists study life in Earth’s ocean on a SEATING ARRANGEMENT global scale, and understand what used to live in Classroom style or groups of 3-4 students the ocean, what currently lives in the ocean, and what will live in the future ocean? MAXIMUM NUMBER OF STUDENTS 30 LEARNING OBJECTIVES Students will be able to describe the Census of KEY WORDS Marine Life (CoML). Celebes Sea Census of Marine Life Students will be able to explain in general terms Biodiversity the CoML strategy for assessing and explaining Biogeography the changing diversity, distribution, and abun- Climate change dance of marine species from the past to the pres- Ocean Biogeographic Information System ent, and for projecting future marine life. Worksheet Students will be able to use the Ocean BACKGROUND INFORMATION Biogeographic Information System to retrieve Indonesia is well-known as one of Earth’s major information about ocean species from specific centers of biodiversity. Although Indonesia cov- geographic areas. ers only 1.3 percent of Earth’s land surface, it includes: MATERIALS • 10 percent of the world’s flowering plant Copies of the “Census of Marine Life species; Worksheet,” one copy for each student or stu- • 12 percent of the world’s mammal species; dent group • 16 percent of all reptile and amphibian Internet access for student research or copies of species; and applicable reference materials (see Learning • 17 percent of the world’s bird species. Procedure, Step 1) In addition, together with the Philippines and 1 2007: Exploring the Inner Space of the Celebes Sea – Grades 9-12 (Biology) Focus: The Census of Marine Life oceanexplorer.noaa.gov Great Barrier Reef, this region has more species the largest animals on Earth, provide a major of fishes, corals, mollusks, and crustaceans than source of nutrition for benthic (bottom) communi- any other location on Earth. ties, and are an important link in the transfer of energy and materials from the top to the bottom What, exactly, is meant by biodiversity, and why of the ocean. Note that the term “midwater” as is it important? The term “biodiversity” is usually used here includes the entire water column, but understood to include variety at several levels: the same term has also been used to refer to • variety of ecosystems: high biodiversity sug- only part of the water column. Scientists often gests many different ecosystems in a given divide the ocean water column into three zones: area; the “epipelagic zone” (also called the “sunlit” or • variety of species: high biodiversity suggests “euphotic” zone) from the surface to a depth of many different species in a given area; about 200 m; the “mesopelagic zone” between • variety of interactions between species; and 200 m and 1100 m; and the “bathypelagic • variety within species (genetic diversity): high zone,” which is deeper than 1100 m. biodiversity suggests a relatively high level of genetic variety among individuals of the same The seas of Indonesia and the Philippines (includ- species. ing the Sulu, Banda, Celebes, Java, Molucca, and Halmahera Seas) are the only deep-water A simple definition of biodiversity could be “The gap between the continental shelves of Australia variety of all forms of life, ranging in scale from and Southeast Asia. Water flowing from the genes to species to ecosystems.” Western Pacific Ocean into the Indian Ocean is channeled by numerous island chains to form a Biodiversity is important to humans because our series of ocean currents known as the Indonesian survival depends upon many other species and Throughflow. The dominant Throughflow cur- ecosystems. Some examples of our dependence rent passes off the southern Philippines into the on biodiversity include: Celebes Sea (which is partially enclosed by • fresh air containing oxygen; Borneo (Kalimantan) and the island of Celebes • clean water; (Sulawesi), then flows through the Makassar • productive soils; Strait, around Java and the Lesser Sunda Islands, • food, medicines and natural products; and eventually becomes part of the west-flowing • natural resources that provide the basis for South Equatorial Current. human economies; and • natural beauty that improves our quality of The path of the Indonesian Throughflow through life. the Celebes Sea coincides with an imaginary (adapted from the Biodiversity Project, http://www. boundary known as “Wallace’s Line.” Alfred biodiversityproject.org/bdimportant.htm) Russell Wallace was an English naturalist who spent eight years in Indonesia during the mid- Quite a lot is known about Indonesia’s terres- 1800’s studying wildlife and collecting specimens trial and shallow-water ecosystems. But scientific for museums. During his travels, Wallace noticed knowledge and understanding of midwater that animals on the island of Bali seemed to be ocean communities is generally sketchy, and related to similar species found in Asia, while many midwater animals have not been studied animals on the Island of Lombok (only 20 miles at all—even though the midwater ocean environ- away to the southeast) were very different and ment is our planet’s largest ecosystem. Midwater more closely resembled species in Australia. The animals range from microscopic zooplankton to boundary between these two “zoogeographic 2 2007: Exploring the Inner Space of the Celebes Sea – Grades 9-12 (Biology) oceanexplorer.noaa.gov Focus: The Census of Marine Life regions” became known as “Wallace’s Line,” year 2020 (Wilkinson, 1992). Protected areas and extends from the middle of the Celebes Sea, known as marine reserves are one way to deal through the Makassar Strait between Borneo and with this problem; studies have shown that marine Celebes, and through the strait between Bali and reserves can help restore biomass and diversity Lombok. in over-exploited communities. To be effective, though, marine reserves must have a supply of This junction of two great zoogeographic regions new organisms to re-populate such communities, is sometimes referred to as “Wallacea,” and is an and for many marine species this means a supply area of particularly high biological diversity and of larval organisms. endemism. Endemic species are species that are found nowhere else. The high number of endemic So, decisions about the size and location of species in Wallacea is probably due to several marine reserves require information on how much factors: interaction or “connectivity” exists between popu- • High temperatures associated with the tropi- lations in a given region. One way to predict cal climate are thought to increase rates of connectivity is to examine the currents that flow mutation, which in turn increase the opportu- between populations, and couple these data with nity for new species to arise; information about the larval cycle of organisms of • The presence of many islands creates habi- interest (organisms with long larval cycles would tats that are more or less isolated from each be expected to travel farther than those with other, and such isolation favors the evolution shorter cycles). But this approach may not give an of new species that are uniquely adapted to accurate picture if there are other factors that tend local conditions; and to keep populations isolated from each other. • During past ice-ages, lower sea levels cre- ated land bridges between the islands of The 2007: Exploring the Inner Space of the Java, Borneo, Sumatra and Bali and allowed Celebes Sea Expedition is focused on exploring species to spread among these islands, but the variety of midwater organisms in the most bio- deep ocean trenches prevented migrations to logically diverse region on Earth. Key expedition islands to the east. questions include: • What animals are found in Indonesian mid- These factors help explain the diversity of terrestri- water communities? al organisms on either side of Wallace’s Line; but • How does the biodiversity of Indonesian what about marine organisms? Does Wallace’s midwater communities compare with other Line also exist in the ocean environment? Recent marine communities in this region, and with research on the genetics of some marine spe- other midwater communities in other regions? cies suggests that populations in the seas of • What proportion of animal species in Indonesia may also be biologically isolated from Indonesian midwater communities is endemic each other, even though strong currents would be to this region (found nowhere else on Earth), expected to spread larvae around the region and and how does this degree of endemism com- prevent this kind of isolation. pare with that of other regions? Why is this important? Because Earth’s marine The last two questions require information from all habitats are in serious trouble. In particular, coral of Earth’s ocean habitats, and some of the major reefs are in decline: 10% of reef environments concerns about these habitats are global in scale have already been permanently lost, and this (overfishing, pollution and climate change, for figure may increase to as much as 70% by the example). To deal with these realities, scientists 3 2007: Exploring the Inner Space of the Celebes Sea – Grades 9-12 (Biology) Focus: The Census of Marine Life oceanexplorer.noaa.gov from over 80 countries are collaborating in a ten- Review questions on the “Census of Marine year project known as the Census of Marine Life Life Worksheet;” and if students do not have (CoML). Using historic databases (some of which Internet access for research, download appro- are centuries-old), new ocean exploration tech- priate materials from the Web sites referenced nologies, and the communications power of the in the Worksheet. worldwide web, CoML’s mission is to “assess and explain the changing diversity, distribution, and 2.