Deep Sea Creatures!

Deep Sea Creatures!
By Jack W. Hunsberger
May 2, 2014 Deep Sea Creatures! Introduction Imagine two deep­sea researchers lead you into a deep­sea submersible. As you climb in, you wonder what you will see. one of the researchers tell you you are going very deep. As you sink deeper, into the ocean It begins to get dark, darker and then pitch­black ­ but wait ­ Lights and flashing teeth casually float by. Only less than 2% of the ocean has been discovered. It is important for humans to learn about deep sea creatures’ way of life and how they adapt to the environment. Get ready to learn about some of the world’s most interesting and strange creatures of all time! Bioluminescence Before we begin I would like to tell you about an ability most of these creatures have. It's a chemical reaction called Bioluminescence. It’s when Inside an organ called a photophore, 3 things mix. 2 chemicals and oxygen. The chemicals are called Luciferase and Luciferin. When these chemicals mix with oxygen it creates a chemical reaction which will make the photophore glow. The by­product is called Oxyluciferin. This reaction can Illuminate a creatures path, attract mates and help find food. Many fish have it such as the Deep­sea Dragonfish, the Gulper Eel and the Viperfish. This chemical reaction helps creatures that live deep in the ocean because of three reasons: It illuminates the way in the dark depths of the ocean, It attracts mates to reproduce. The final reason is it attracts prey which can be a problem at certain depths. Now our Journey is about to begin so get ready to see and learn about the craziest creatures on earth! ViperFish Our first stop is the home of the Viperfish, at 2,500 ft. underwater (they can live anywhere from 500ft.­5,000ft. underwater) It can also be know as “Sloane’s Viperfish.” It's scientific name is Chauliodus “Sloani.” which has the name “Sloane” in it which relates to its name. They are only a foot long. Surprisingly, Its teeth are so long it can’t fit them in its mouth. The size and shape of its fins and body help it stay motionless in water. It can also go for a week without any food. It eats small fish and crustaceans, In fact, it's stomach can stretch to fit even the biggest meals. Before we began we talked about Bioluminescence. The viperfish uses Bioluminescence on two parts of its body. It has a long strand with a photophore on it to attract prey and mates. It also has photophores along the sides of its body. These properties and abilities help the viperfish survive in it's environment because of one BIG reason: food. It can go a week without food so starving is out of the question. It doesn’t have to look for food, the food comes to it too. Its light attracts prey and It can also disorient predators. Lastly It can say motionless in water so it can jump and catch prey by surprise. Now enough of that, let us head deeper! Giant Oarfish Next stop: 3,000 feet underwater. This depth is the home of the weird Oarfish. It is also called, and commonly referred to as “The ribbon fish” or “the king of the herrings.” It's scientific name is Regalecus glesne too. This fish is normally 15­20 feet long, which is HUGE compared to the other fish we will learn about. These fish are pretty common in the ocean, and on land. When they are sick or dying they tend to float to the surface, where they wash ashore and die. In fact, all the information we know about the oarfish has been obtained from dead oarfish. Strangely these fish have no scales and blue skin. The largest ever recorded weight and length of an oarfish is 50 feet long and 600 pounds! This fish has a dark red fin running the length of its body. They are 4 inches long at the head, and farther down its back they gradually grow smaller. These properties and abilities help the Oarfish survive because of its speed. Its long fin running down it's back is long because it gives it better aerodynamics. It's an easy kill because of how it's not armoured with scales, but its long fin helps it make turns, and its shape and long size helps it propel itself through the water. Now let’s get going deeper! Giant Isopod Next stop: 4,000 feet underwater. This depth is the home of the weird Giant Isopod. It’s not known as anything else except it's scientific name: Bathynomus giganteus. This creature is 12­16 inches which is incredibly big for a isopod. This is a result of a genetic disorder that another creature has, the giant tube worm. This creature can be eaten. It is served with ice and with a sauce. Its small eyes are compound, much like a fly’s. They include 4,000 facets. It eats anything that falls above. It can eat whale, squid or just small fish. It has a hard shell, much like that of a pillbug. In fact, it can roll up in a ball too. The strange thing about the giant isopod is that it is a lot like an insect. It is divided into a head, abdomen and thorax. Its mouth is also strange. It works like an assembly line: Pull, grind, chew and swallow. These properties and abilities help it survive because of its defense skill. It can see predators coming from the sides of it's body because of it's eyes. It can also roll into a ball to protect its soft body. Now, get ready as we forge onward! Deep­sea Dragonfish Next stop: 5,000 feet underwater. This is the home of the creepy deep­sea Dragonfish. It can also be called the “Scaleless dragonfish” and its scientific name is “Grammatostomias Flagellibarba.” It is only 4­6 inches long. Contrary of its miniscule size, Its teeth are 2 centimeters long. It eats crustaceans, small fish or pretty much anything It can find. When the babies hatch they float to the surface and eat to grow to their full size. It takes 2 days for them to swim back down. This fish uses Bioluminescence in 2 places. It has a lure on its chin and photophores running the length of its back, much like the viperfish. The lure attracts mates and prey. Food is scarce at a depth like this. These properties and abilities help the Deep­sea Dragonfish survive because of one features: Its photophores. The lure attracts an array of food, as well as mates. Its other photophores can attract prey and mates as well. Without further ado, let us venture onward! Gulper Eel As we head deeper we arrive at 6,000 feet underwater. This depth is the home of the alien­looking “Gulper eel.” The reason it looks alien is its gaping mouth, designed to engulf prey 3 times its size. Its other names include the “Pelican eel” and the “umbrella mouth.” This eel is 3­6 feet long. Its stomach can stretch very large to also help it engulf prey, but this is strange because it only eats small crustaceans. In the gulpers scientific name, “Eurypharynx Pelecanoides,” It has the word “pelican” in it which relates to its name. Proportionally, its eyes are verrrrry small. They are 1/24 of the size of its mouth. A strange part about this eel is its tail. It is ¾ of its body. At the tip of its thin tail is a photophore that produces a pink­red light. This is used as a lure for prey or mates. Lastly this eel can be Brown black or green. These properties and abilities help the gulper eel survive because of its ability to feed efficiently. its stomach and mouth help it feed because the stomach can hold a lot of of food and the mouth can eat all that food. Its color also helps it jump out on prey. Now we shall head deeper to our final stop! Fangtooth Our last stop is 8,500 feet underwater. This incredible depth is the home of the terrifying Fangtooth. Due to its appearance it can also be called The “Ogrefish” and the “Common Sabretooth.” The scientific name is “Anoplogaster cornuta” This small but terrifying is 6 inches long. Its teeth, each and every one is a centimeter to an inch long. In fact, the teeth are so long its front teeth could be longer than a small adult Fangtooth. It has prickly scales, much like The sharpness of a rose­thorn. It eats anything It bumps into. this is called “Chemoreception.” Another strange thing about the fangtooth is it has holes on the roof of its mouth, so it can close it without impaling its brain. These properties and abilities help the fangtooth survive because of its intimidation skills, and its ability to eat things fast. It can Intimidate predators even if they are much bigger than the tiny fangtooth. Food can be a problem, especially at a depth like this, but with teeth this large, it is able to tear apart a whale in a month. Conclusion As you climb out of the submersible, you think, “Wow, that was amazing!” This is just one step to discovering and learning about the sea. Not only were you intrigued, now you know about 7 new creatures, you (probably) had no Idea existed! The End Works Cited www.Seasky.org. Bioluminescence J.D. Knight www.Seasky.org. Viperfish J.D. Knight www.Seasky.org. Oarfish J.D. Knight www.Seasky.org. Giant Isopod J.D. Knight www.Seasky.org. Deep­Sea Dragonfish J.D. Knight www.Seasky.org. Gulper Eel J.D. Knight www.Seasky.org. Fangtooth J.D. Knight http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/exploration Weird Sea creatures. Erich Hoyt. 2013. Buffalo, NY. Firefly books. Pictures Works Cited http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_ckBlasgNSzg/SGgzXl2Ke_I/AAAAAAAAGlA/4ejmEsoRpdM/s400/Viper+Fish.jpg http://mybirdie.ca/files/can­oarfish.jpg http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Br1rQvAweME/TErjCw32JUI/AAAAAAAAABw/XTSaT0TcFpg/s400/Giant+Isopod.b
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