The (Polar) Bear Necessities

I just love that song from the Jungle Book movie, but I won't sing it for you... So instead this week we'll talk about some bear facts. We'll start with the largest bear, the polar bear.

The polar bear Latin name is Ursus Maritimus, which means “sea bear.” They can swim at about 6 miles per hour. Their paws are so big they function like snowshoes. Watch a mother and her two half-grown cubs in action as they walk across the snow in this video.



Polar bear live in the arctic, the Northern Hemisphere. Some commercials and cartoons show polar bears and penguins together, but in real life that would never happen since they live on opposite ends of the earth.

Jungle Jane

A whale of a smile

The beluga whale is a white whale that primarily lives in the Arctic. Its name comes from the Russian word for white. In size, the average 14-16 feet (males) with a maximum length of 20 feet and 13-14 feet (females), with a maximum length of 17 feet. They weigh in the 3000 to 3,300 pound range.

Belugas can nod and turn their heads, unlike most other whales whose neck vertebrae are fused. They also don’t have dorsal fins, which allows them to go under the ice more easily.

About 20 years ago I got to see one face-to-face in the Long Island Aquarium—lovely! See if this video clip makes you smile.

JJ

Let me check your back

Remember how we’ve talked a time or two about individual animal identification? I just found out that the humpback whale has its own ID - the shape and color pattern on its dorsal (upper) fin and flukes (tail)! Researches can use this fact to tell humpbacks apart. Pretty cool, huh?

Yesterday’s orca could be measured in pounds. With these guys that’s not so workable, since they weight 25 to 40 tons! Even a baby humpback (calf) weighs almost a ton. Adult males measure 40 to 48 feet long and females, 45 to 50 feet. Calves range from 10 to 15 feet.

Here’s a beautiful video done by Cousteau divers.



It made me think of the 20 year old movie, Star Trek IV – The Voyage Home – where they come back to earth to get a whale to take to the future. I remember the whale’s name, Gracie, whom Spock said was pregnant, but I’d have to watch the movie again to see if she was a humpback or not, but I think so. Guess that’s my homework assignment . . .


Jungle Jane

Not really a whale…

Orcas, or killer whales, have striking black and white markings. You, like me, may have seen them perform at places like Sea World. Aren’t they beautiful?

Orca are carnivorous hunters and are sometimes called "the wolf of the sea." They prey on sea lions, elephant seals, harbor seals, porpoises, squid, sharks, fish, penguins, smaller whales, such as belugas and narwhals, and even large baleen whales.

Orca actually belong to the dolphin family. Warm blooded, males (bulls) average 19-22 feet and usually weigh between 8,000-12,000 pounds. Females (cows) are smaller, averaging 16-19 feet, weighing between 3,000-8,000 pounds.

Some day I’d like to be close enough to see one in the ocean. But for now this incredible video from National Geographic will have to do!


Jaw dropping,

Jane

Not Jaws!

There are more than 350 species of shark, but only a handful are dangerous to humans. The two largest, the basking shark and the whale shark, only eat small creatures like plankton.

How large is the largest? The whale shark is about 40 feet long. The smallest shark, the dwarf shark, is only 10 inches long.

Did you know that sharks can see better in the dark than cats? But better yet, they can detect electrical fields. Their electro-perception organ is called the Ampullae of Lorenzini. If shark stop swimming, they sink, since they don’t have swim bladders like most other fish.

Pacific Islanders once worshipped the shark god Kamohoali'i. Was that out of fear? They are pretty fearsome looking!

JJ

Flying through the water

A group of stingray is called a “fever,” which is an interesting choice. Stingray can be as small as the palm of your hand or as big as 14 feet long! (That includes tail.) Speaking of tails, that’s where a stingray’s stinger is. Stingers grow like fingernails, but can be barbed, serrated, or razor-sharp.

Stingray are very flat, which makes it easy for them to hide on the ocean floor, where they bury themselves in the sand. The most common reason for them to sting a human is because they get stepped on!

In Finding Nemo, Nemo’s teacher is a ray.

Let me check your head

It’s not quite as good as a fingerprint, but individual seahorses can usually be told apart by their coronets (the top of their head that almost looks like a crown).

You may know that it’s the male seahorse who becomes pregnant. But did you know their eyes move independently? There are times I think that would be an advantage, but it’d probably just confuse me.

There are about 35 species of seahorses. In size they range from ¼ inch to a foot. Seahorse are at threatened status.

Jungle Jane

Look at ‘em go!

Sea Turtles come in a variety of sizes and colors. The largest is the leatherback which can be 4-6 feet long and weigh 440-1115 pounds! Whoa! The smallest sea turtle species is the Olive Ridley—they’re only 22-30 inches long, but still a respectable 65 to 110 pounds.

I think Crush and his family in the movie Finding Nemo are green sea turtles.

Unfortunately, all species of sea turtles are threatened or endangered. The following is a video of baby Kemp’s ridley sea turtles being released by Sea Turtle Inc., a sea turtle rescue organization.

Wish I’d been there. Looks fun to watch.


JJ

Starfish, not a fish

Since we were in the sea yesterday, I thought we’d stay there this week.

Let’s start with the Starfish or Sea Stars. As you probably know they are not actually fish at all, but echinoderm, closely related to sea urchins and sand dollars. Think how they get stiff when taken out of the water.

Sea Stars have no blood and they don’t have a brain! Though they do have quite a complicated nervous system. Sea Stars have spiky skin and move on tube feet. You can see the feet in the video below where one has been turned upside down. If you wait a few seconds, once the people quit touching it, you can see the Sea Star move across the sand.



Cool, huh?

There are over 1800 varieties. The crown-of-thorns starfish are wiping out coral reef in several areas of the world. I knew sea stars were predators, but didn’t know they could be dangerous. This particular guy is even poisonous, but, fortunately, the only starfish who is.

JJ

Dangerous to have babies!

Early sea-farers called the Octopus (family Octopoda) the “Devil Fish.” They are kind of strange looking, with their 8 arms. I can’t say they create “warm fuzzy feelings” in me like many other animals do, yet, they are interesting. Some people have even kept them as pets, though they don’t have a long life span.

There are over 200 different species of Octopus. My understanding is that they are broken into two groups:
• Cirrata: Finned octopi who live at depths between 1,000 and 24,000 feet
• Incirrata: non-finned shallow water dwellers

Octopi crawl or swim, walk, and use jet propulsion to get around. Though some have been seen to “fly” as they blast themselves out of the water to escape a predator.

Reproduction causes death in octopi: males can only live for a few months after mating, and females die shortly after their eggs hatch. No wonder octopi don’t live long!


JJ