Scientists believe
that life on Earth began in the ocean, approximately 4 billion years ago.
And in fact, it was only about 500 million years ago that life emerged from the
ocean onto the land. That means that ocean life has existed 8
times longer. So no matter how unimaginably long it was
since the first creatures crawled out on land... to the age of the
dinosaurs... to our time, all of that is but a small slice of the pie
compared to the vast span of time in which the oceans have nurtured
life. And even today, although living things now exist on nearly every part of the Earth's surface,
in so many different forms, the ocean continues to be critically
important to life on Earth.
To begin with the ocean covers 70% of the Earth's surface
and is still the home of the majority of Earth's living creatures.
Secondly, the oceans
are a vital part of the water cycle that brings rain to our crops and
forests -- and drinking water to our cities. And the ocean also produces
much of the oxygen upon which all human beings, and animals, depend.
Many of our recent medical and scientific breakthroughs have been made
possible in one way or another through ocean based research. Finally, the oceans provide fish and shellfish and other vital resources
upon which humans depend, including jobs for millions of people. In
fact, in the United States alone,
1 out of 6 jobs is marine related. And of
course
ocean based transport, by ships and barges, accounts for some 98% of our commerce with other nations.
But the ocean's role doesn't
end there. Because it's so vast and deep
the ocean absorbs much of the heat and light that comes from the sun.
In fact it is so deep (average depth about 13,000 feet, with a maximum
depth of 36,198 feet), that sunlight can't even reach the ocean floor in
most places. The sunlight, and it's warmth, seems to simply fade
away as you go deeper into the ocean. But what really happens is a
bit more complicated. In actual fact, there are currents at work
within the ocean, causing the warm and cold water to move in complex
patterns that control how the heat from the sun gets redistributed
around the planet. And these warm and cold ocean currents actually
help drive our weather patterns. In fact, did you know that if the
North Atlantic current stopped pulling warm water north toward
England, it could plunge England and all of Northern Europe into another
ice age?
Here's another fascinating ocean fact: the
vast majority of ocean creatures live in the waters of the continental
shelves, in the band of shallower water that
surrounds each continent (before the drop off into the vastly deeper
waters of the open ocean). And yet a single study of a single small
section of the deep ocean yielded 898 species -- half of them previously
undiscovered. All this in an area half the size of a tennis
court! If this is what can be found in the relatively
less populated ocean depths, imagine what would be found in a similar
sized area located on the continental shelf! What's more,
given the variety of life that exits in the oceans' different depth and
temperature zones, and oceanic regions, we can only imagine what remains
to be discovered out there in the deep recesses of the ocean.
And yet as we said, much of the life in the seas
exists relatively close to land. Which means it is also
close to human beings and their pollution -- including run-off from
dirty city drains and from farmlands that use pesticides and artificial
fertilizers. All of this disrupts breeding cycles and food
webs and brings the delicate balance upon which our fisheries depend
into jeopardy.
This is why we've included resources below that
you can use to educate yourself and others about caring for the ocean
and the creatures that live there. We've also included plenty of
fascinating fact sources about different marine habitats and their
underwater inhabitants. And of course, since learning about
the ocean is so much fun, we'll be adding plenty of craft and activity
resources for younger children. Enjoy!
Important
information from Ocean Legacy about the state of our fisheries.
Includes a quick overview of various regions as well as in-depth
printable articles concerning different species, developments,
and environmental threats.
Be sure to
surf their site to see what you can do to help!
Working to
educate the public and shift public policy since 1977. Check
their site for whale facts and ways to get involved. Learn how
small changes in your daily life can help sea mammals. Adopt a
whale!
Visit this page from the
Pacific
Whale Foundation. For a $35 donation, you can adopt a whale
and help the Foundation fund its work to help the whales and the
ocean. You can even pick out your own whale! Find out about all
the cool stuff that comes with adoption.
Check
out these wonderful online videos from Project Oceanography.
Presented by the University of South Florida College of Marine
Science.You can learn about plankton, deep sea vents,
hurricanes, and more! Suitable for middle school and older.
These 30 minute presentations can be maximized to full screen video.
Teachers may want to download the
teacher packets that relate to each topic.
Games, Fish
&
Marine
Mammal Facts,
& Strange
Secrets of the Ocean
Here's
a chance to test how much you know about Cetaceans. Don't
worry if you don't know one of the answers -- just use your "back"
browser button and try again. You can keep trying until you
find the right answer. Sponsored by
Whale Songs.
In the fathomless depths of the ocean,
where it's so far from the surface that even can't penetrate, live
bizarre creatures with adaptations so strange they seem like science
fiction. Part of the
Extreme Science website.
Online encyclopedia of fish
facts. Just click on a creature name to learn about it's
appearance, region, habitat, and more. Also includes
information about coral reefs, mangroves, and seagrass beds, as
well as peoples and cultures that depend heavily on the sea.
Sponsored by Shedd Aquarium
Discover marine creatures from the tiny zooxanthellae that make the
coral reefs home to the giant mammals of the vast seas in this
series of brief overviews of various marine ecosystems. Surf
their site to learn about fresh water ecosystems and other biomes as
well!
In one way or another, our oceans are an integral part of every
other biome on Earth. In this online "book" you can learn
about the interconnection of river and ocean through the life cycle
of the salmon.
A comprehensive and informative
site covering many ocean topics, including formation, physical
features, tides, zones, and even the water cycle.
Includes some lesson ideas as well.
Created
by
the Conserve Our Ocean
Legacy (COOL) Campaign
the game helps to raise awareness about overfishing and the
problems facing fish like bluefin tunaas more nets and hooks fill
the ocean.
If you're not
already familiar with this important species, bluefin tuna are
some of the most majestic creatures in the ocean. Like living
rockets, bluefin can grow to 12 feet long, weigh 1500 pounds and
travel at speeds up to 25 MPH, migrating across oceans in just a
few days to feed and reproduce. Unfortunately, during the last
30 years the worldwide population of bluefin has been reduced by
more than 90 percent. In the April 2007 National Geographic the
global overfishing of bluefin tuna is compared to the early 19th
century American Buffalo hunt.
In
United States waters, the catch of bluefin tuna has declined by
99 percent since 1963. Bluefin tuna are emblematic of the
declining state of many U.S. marine fisheries. In U.S. ocean
waters, overfishing is known to be occurring on at least 41
stocks or roughly 18 percentof assessed fisheries.
Poor fishery management continues to put our fish, birds, marine
mammals, and all of ocean life at jeopardy.
Make sure
to sign the
bluefin tuna petition!
COOL needs your help to build public support to end
overfishing!
Features 5 live cams, including the
penguin cam and the otter cam! Be sure to check out their great
kids corner which features
games, information about aquarium careers, the student oceanography
club, plus a field guide, a dictionary, and plenty
of cool facts.
Learn about various kinds of whales
and other sea animals, plus a huge variety of other animals!
Don't miss their cute pictures of their baby animals. Other
features include animal sound bytes plus loads of fun games and
activities.
Fascinating
facts from
WildDolphin.org. including
anatomy,
behavior, and what human interference dolphins really don't
like (see
harassment). While you're there, find out
how
you can help them protect wild dolphins and the habitats
they depend on.
Want to learn even more about
these exciting undersea mammals? Then surf this collection
of outstanding links for fun facts, videos, activities and more.
Sponsored by KidsConnect.com
Take your
students on an underwater exploration of the sea to inspire
their creativity and teach them about the ocean and the many
life forms that make their homes in its mysterious depths.
Students will learn about the ocean and the creatures that live
there, listen to stories and poems with oceanic settings,
conduct research about oceanic life forms, and write their own
stories and poems about the sea.
19 printable (pdf) student activity
sheets help kids learn about whale biology, location,
conservation, and whaling history. Activities
range from cut and paste to crossword puzzles to a short
research project. Can be used along with
Gander Academy's Whale Resources.
Projects designed for Canadian 5th
grade students, but can be adapted for similar ages.
For this craft you will need to cut
out shapes of a seahorse or a starfish. (Click
for patterns.)
Now mix a little gold glitter with clean, dry sand and put it in a
shaker bottle (an empty glitter shaker or an old, empty salt shaker will
do). And lay out some old newspaper under the area will you will
be making your art.
Lay your paper shapes on top of the newspaper.
Dribble white craft glue onto your seahorse and starfish shapes.
You can make interesting designs with your glue or just smear it lightly
all over.
Now sprinkle the glitter sand onto the glue. Be
sure to use plenty. Now shake off off the glitter sand that
doesn't stick onto a paper plate or etc. You'll be able to pour it
back into the shaker to reuse. Lay your creations out to
dry. Later you can hang them up in the house for some nice
summertime decorations!
This excellent listing, hosted by Stanford
University's Hopkins Marine Station, features information about
a wide range of careers in the marine sciences. It also
features listings for internships and links to pages with job
listings. Check it out!
Sylvia Earle, marine biologist and underwater explorer, dedicates
herself to protecting the world under water. Find out more
about the work of a marine biologist in this article by
Riverdeep.
Outstanding Book Selections!
Fossil Fish Found Alive: Discovering the
Coelacanth
Sally M. Walker. Illustrated with photographs. 64pp. The
coelacanth is a prehistoric fish that existed millions of years before
dinosaurs walked the Earth. These fish have remained virtually
unchanged over the millions of years of their existence. This is a
story of the first discovery as well as subsequent discoveries of
these ancient fish. It is about the author’s quest to answer many
questions, with each answer raising new questions. Bibliography,
Glossary, Index, Major Coelacanth Discoveries (map), Timeline,
Web-sites.
Meeting Dolphins: My Adventures in
the Sea Kathleen Dudzinski.
Illustrated with photographs. National Geographic Society. 64pp.
This book is an account of the author's work with dolphin
communications. Marine biologist Dudzinski explains how gestures,
sounds, and behaviors are used as communications tools. She also
describes her invention - a mobile video/acoustic array system. It is
used to determine which dolphin in a group is making sounds. Author's
Note, Dolphins Chart, Resources, Index.
Hello,
Fish! Visiting the Coral Reef
Sylvia A. Earle. Illustrated with
photographs by Wolcott Henry. National Geographic. 32pp. In very poetic yet fact-filled text
accompanied by eye-catching, large-format photographs, the young
reader is given an up-close-and-personal view of a variety of funny,
unusual, and beautiful fish, all residents of various coral reefs
around the world. Map
Salmon Stream
Carol
Reed-Jones. Illustrated by Michael Maydak. 32pp.
This book is a poetic yet accurate description of the life cycle of
the salmon. The sense of movement of the “Salmon Stream” is embedded
in the language, words, and illustrations. Facts, References,
Organizations.
This enchanting tale was inspired by a true story about the efforts of
a group of people working to save whales trapped in an ice-enclosed
bay. The story and artwork weave the story of human effort and
partnership to assist imperiled beluga whales. Historical Notes.
Sea Soup: Zooplankton
Mary M. Cerullo. Illustrated with photographs by Bill Curtsinger.
40pp. The
world of the invisible microbe is alien to us. Too often we are
unaware of the vital role and stunning beauty such creatures present.
This book effectively captures the important niche filled by
zooplankton. The book’s microscopic photography reveals this unseen
universe, documenting the teeming life that occurs in just one cubic
centimeter of ocean water. Index, Bibliography.
course
ocean based transport, by ships and barges, accounts for some 98% of our commerce with other nations.
In the fathomless depths of the ocean,
where it's so far from the surface that even can't penetrate, live
bizarre creatures with adaptations so strange they seem like science
fiction. Part of the
Sea Soup: Zooplankton
