Last week, I went to a marine science camp at UC Berkeley for 5 days. During those 5 days I learned a lot about marine animals the about the ocean in general.
On the first day, we just did some general introductions but mostly learned a lot about water and its properties. We learned things like adhesion, which means that water likes to stick to other things, cohesion, which means that water likes to stick to each other, and capillary action, which is when water can defy gravity due to a combination of cohesion and adhesion.
On day 2, we learned more about animals in the ocean. The first thing we learned about was adaptations, which are traits that animals have to stay alive better. Some things adaptations can help with include defense from predators, hunting, movement, mating, oxygen, temperature, light, and in ocean animals pressure and salt regulation. We also learned a lot about camouflage, which is something animals use to hide in the environment by making themselves look like it.
-Photo of cuttlefish camoflauging by Smithsonian
Some insane animals that can camouflage or octopus and cuttlefish, which can make themselves basically invisible in their environments by changing the color and texture of their skin. The last thing we learned about was bioluminescence, which is when animals can use chemicals in their body to glow and make light, which is especially helpful in the deep dark ocean.
The third day was when we dissected animals. Before the dissection however, we learned about how humans effect marine ecosystems. We learned about oil spills, and the catastrophic effects to animals that live in the area, and how hard it is to take out the oil in the water. We also learned about plastic and how it doesn't actually dissapear but turns into super teeny tiny microplastics. We also learned about how increased carbon in the atmosphere makes the water more acidic, which can make shells and coral weaker. We then dissected a squid, and learned about its anatomy. Did you know squids have two brains that are donut shaped? Their throat runs through the middle of their brains as well. Next, we dissected perch, which are a type of fish. We looked at some unique parts on their bodies, like their feathery gills. They also have a unique organ in their body called a swim bladder, which they can blow up with water to make heavier and sink, and deflate to float.
Lastly, we dissected a shark, which was very interesting, but all the organs were fused together because it was under a preservative for a year.
On the fourth day and the last day before going home we went to the aquarium of the bay in pier 39. At the aquarium we just looked at a lot of cool and interesting animals, and learned facts about them. Did you know that stingrays cover their skin in mucous to make themselves harder to eat? We then went into the marine mammal center nearby and learned about how to protect the ocean, like eating less meat or making sure that our seafood is sustainably caught.
Comments