The giant clam is known as a reef dwelling mollusk. The domestication factor has
become of large importance to the
Indo-Pacific peoples. Mainly in the area of their diet.
These huge clams are huge targets for fishermen and can be found easily. With the crystal
water complection of the reef waters they live in makes them even easier to be spotted by the fishermen an by poachers. The people of this region eat every part of the flesh of the
animal. They either dry, cook, or eat them raw.
In
Taiwan there has been a large illeagal industry of selling these huge clams.
With
a demand of somewhere around 100 tons of the meat a year that is worth around $7.50-
$21.25 a kilogram at the dockside of Taiwan. It is being severely poached by foreigners
and the population of the giant clam is decreasing. The reefs that they live on are also
being severely damaged and destroyed in large amounts. The giant clam has been
eliminated from the areas of Indonesia and the Phillippines. The species Tridacnid gigas
and the Tridacnid derasa are the most heavily hunted species.
Tridacnid gigas are the largest of the giant clams. They grow to around a meter in
length and weigh around 300 kilograms. These particular clams are hermaphrodites which reach sexual maturity at around five years of age. They spray out large numbers of their
eggs and sperm into the seawater which then meet to form a free floating larvae. A large
Tridacnid gigas has the ability to release hundreds of millions of microscopic eggs in a
single day, which makes it one of the most fertile marine invertebrates. However most of
the free floating larvae do not survive during their one week planktonic period.
The ones
that survive settle on a patch of hard reef by means of a sticky byssal threads and orient
their fleshy mantles towards the sun. They continue to grow their at a rate of around five
to ten centimeters a year.
But they are not safe from other reef predators until they are
around
2.5 years old, which makes this large species hard to find.
T. californicus is found from Alaska to Baja in small, shallow tidepools and tidal flats in the upper spray zone where they cannot avoid the full effect of visible and ultraviolet (UV) radiation. Individuals assemble in areas of lower radiation at midday, yet have no preference to the intensity of light at dawn and dusk (Hartline and Macmillan 1995). These tiny arthropods inhabit all types of marine sediments from sand to fine mud and ooze. Along with plankton, T. californicus eats microscopic algae, protists, bacteria, diatoms, algae and microbes (McGroarty 1958). When the concentrations of the species in their habitats are high, T. californicus will turn to cannibalism for a food source. The nautilus eye present in the species is rich with fatty acids and provides a good food source for the animal.
not travel into deep ocean waters. They like calm, quiet waters to relax and eat.
They are good swimmers but are not found much near water. The birds nest on the
Flatworms belong to the phylum Platyhelminthes. They have the simplest body plan of all bilaterally symmetrical animals. They are called flatworms because their bodies are compressed. The mouth is the only opening into the digestive cavity the flatworms have. Food is taken in through this hole and wastes are discharged also through this hole. Flatworms have a well-defined nervous, muscular, excretory, and reproductive system. The flatworm distributes the food it digests through a digestive tube that branches throughout all of its body parts. The fact that the worm’s body is flat serves many purposes. It allows the worm to hid in small spaces, to fit into the opening of other animals if the worm is parasitic, and it means that all the cells are close enough to the surface for exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide with the environment (Meinkoth 399).
Almost every one of us have heard and most of you have seen the Coral reefs but did you know what actually these are:
Together with 1,500 species of fishes and several species of snapper and coal trout. There are many more species in the Reef and this makes it important to Australian fish markets as a source of fish. This place is also a tourist location and a lot of people come visit here every day whether it be fishing or sight seeing.
The outer layer of a reef consists of living animals, or polyps, of coral. Single-celled algae called zooxanthellae live within the coral polyps, and a skeleton containing filamentous green algae surrounds them. The photosynthetic zooxanthellae and green algae transfer food energy directly to the coral polyps, while acquiring scarce nutrients from the coral. The numerous micro habitats of coral reefs and the high biological productivity support a great diversity of other life.
Though food is everlasting in both the coral reef and deep sea, space is very limited. Organisms in both habitats have to compete for space and survival, having defense mechanisms to keep other species from killing out their kind. Some fishes in the coral reef hide in cracks and crevices along the rocks and corals to hide from their predators. Other fishes camouflage within the brightly colored corals to hide from predators, or even humans looking into their tank. The deep sea holds many small fish, but with large mouths. The large mouths and pointy teeth help the miniscule fish eat their prey, whi...
Soft corals are very widespread among the Great Barrier Reef and other Indo-Pacific coral reefs. On the Great Barrier Reef they may cover up to 37% of the reef area (Bastidas, et. al, 2001). Even though soft corals are abundant on the Great Barrier Reef they have been overshadowed by the study of hard corals. Very little research has been conducted on them, yet they are just as fascinating as their hard coral neighbors. The main purpose of this paper is to explain why evolution has made it possible for soft corals to reproduce both sexually and asexually. To do this I will first introduce soft corals, then explain the types of reproduction soft corals are capable of, and finally explain why evolution has made it possible for soft corals to reproduce both sexually and asexually, using numerous studies to support my claims. Most of the information on this topic was very species specific, but this paper will explain the reproductive evolution of soft corals in a broader array that will pertain to the scientific order Alcyonacea, or all types of soft corals.
The 7,109 islands that make up the Philippines have a diverse range of both aquatic and land-dwelling life-forms. The coral reefs there and throughout the world are facing new challenges. Pollution, climate change and destructive fishing methods all threaten the health of fragile coral reefs. This is where Samantha has focused much of her work. She dives, takes amazing photographs and videos, and spreads her excitement about marine biology to teach and encourage others about the importance of conserving our oceans and coral
Hemingway’s use of symbols and the metaphors beyond the symbols is phenomenal. Metaphors are an implied analogy that has an ideal that is being expressed and it also has an image by which that idea is conveyed. Establishing the similarities between the following dissimilarities is what helps to identify the metaphors behind the symbols in Hemingway’s writings. He uses things as symbols to help express the old man’s deep feelings in his journey through life.
The Great Barrier Reef is an exemplary model of the famous exotic coral reef seen in a copy of the National Geographic or the popular animated film Finding Nemo. Located on the coast of Australia, it is known as the “largest biological organism in the world” (“Human Impact on the Great Barrier Reef” par. 1). The idea bears that coral reefs are again not an assortment of organisms functioning separately but rather working together to thrive. The groups of coral that are seen in t...
Natural has its own world in St. Martin. The island is about two kilometres long and the deep blue water all around it is outstanding to watch. Rocks of different sizes and types are all around the beach, some of which are with razor sharp spikes that can cut your foot into pieces if you step on them. Moreover, different coloured sea weeds and live corals can be seen on the rocks which are submerged in the water. St. Martin is the only Island in the world with live corals. There are more than thousands of different types of coral in this island. Scientists say that this island actually grew from this coral by the metamorphosis of different c...
These reefs provide a house for many species. If the coral reefs were to become