May Day!

Happy May Day everyone!

You know what that means?  The end of the Blogging from A to Z April Challenge!  And boy was it challenging!  It was definitely rough at times, trying to get a post out every day.  Some of the advice on the Blogging site recommends that people have a list of their topics and perhaps even begin their posts prior to when the challenge starts.  Personally I don't think that's very challenging.  I did have a list of animals I'd like to do, but I honestly ended up changing it half the time.

The real challenge this time around was writing up posts between completing assignments, group projects, job applications, work, volunteering, crafts, and club activities!  Plus there were the times where I had to write multiple posts a day when I had weekend plans away from the computer.  It's all worth it though as I am graduating from college in two weeks!  I will have a Bachelor of Science in Conservation and Wildlife Management.  I am so ready.

I hope you all have enjoyed reading my animal posts.  I enjoyed introducing people to animals they've never heard before and I hope you enjoyed learning!  There are thousands of fun and unique animals in this world.  Sadly many of them are only just being discovered as they are disappearing off the face of the earth.  Conservation is extremely important for the future survival of this planet: animals, environments, oceans, marine animals, insects, everything is connected.  Maybe that will be my next project- ways to help the planet.  We'll see.  I have to get through finals first!  Happy A to Z Blogging everyone!

Y is for Yellowfin Tuna

The Yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares) is a large predatory fish found worldwide in tropical and subtropical waters, minus the Mediterranean. Just like Dori from Finding Nemo, the yellowfin tuna is built for speeeed.  Also, endurance.  

The yellowfin gets it's name from the yellow tiny fins (finlets) that run down the top and bottom of the fish.  Yellowfin are schooling fish, however they prefer to school with fish of the same size, rather and fish of the same species.  They are often found schooling with skipjack tuna and bigeye tuna and even porpoises and dolphins.  

Like other tuna species across the globe, yellowfin are facing decline. Recent reductions in catch numbers have led to their reclassification by the IUCN as Near Threatened.

W is for Whale Shark

Whale sharks (Rhincodon typus)!  Our second aquatic animal on the list!  You may be wondering, is it a whale or a shark?  It is a shark.  But what makes it similar to a whale is 1) it's massive size and 2) it's fondness for plankton.

The whale shark is the largest fish in the world at 9-12m (18-36ft) and weighing up to 12,500kg (27,500 lbs or almost 14 tons).  Whale sharks are typically solitary though they have been seen feeding in large groups.  They are highly migratory animals, traveling thousands of miles.  The reasons behind this travel is unknown, though it is likely due to a search for food.  They generally remain in tropical waters, ranging from 30° to 40° latitude.

Whale sharks are generally quite docile and, as mentioned before, feed on plankton and other small fish by suction filter-feeding.  Females are ovoviviparous, meaning they carry their fertilized eggs until the young hatch inside them and then give birth to live young.  One shark was reported to have 300 fetuses.  Whoah baby!

Not much else is known about these gentle giants, simply because of their habitat and extreme migratory patterns.  What is known, however, is the threat they face from Asian markets.  The recent rise in demand of shark-fin soup could be extremely detrimental to this species.  Based on their size they are likely to be long-lived and slow reproducing animals which could face a rapid extinction if their populations are not cared for.  Luckily some countries have instituted anti-hunting laws and many more have tourism interests that help protect the whale sharks.

The Real Nemo

February 5, 2011

Courtesy of Russ, our advisor in Fiji....

If the story of Nemo were not Disney-fied, it would be completely different.  Say the female in a mated pair of clown fish died, but the male and son survived.  The male would actually change sex to be the female and the son would become the new male.  So, as you can see, Disney got it wrong...again.  Though, to give them credit, hermaphrodite fish are just a little strange for a children's movie.