1. Alba Gallardo
3ºA

2. Sea Mammals include
whales, dolphins, manatees, true seals, eared
seals, walruses, and even sea otters. Sea mammals have
evolved from land mammals over time by adopting
new features that help them survive in the water.
Marine mammals breathe air instead of extracting
oxygen from water. Marine mammals also give birth to
offspring and they have a thick layer of blubber. There
are around 120 total species of sea mammals known to
be in existence as of June 2011.
THE SEA MAMMALS

3. Bottlenose Dolphin
The scientific name of the Bottlenose
Dolphin is Tursiops truncatus. The
Bottlenose Dolphin travels mostly
in the coastal waters of temperate,
tropical and subtropical areas.
They are often found in the
English Channel in Britain.
The dolphin is a highly intelligent animal. It communicates
through a range of sound waves with other dolphins. In
addition, the Bottlenose Dolphin lives in groups of 10 to 100
dolphins. Its diet consists of a variety of fish and invertebrates.

4. Blue Whale
The scientific name of the Blue
Whale is Balaenoptera musculus.
The Blue Whale is the largest animal that has
ever lived, even in comparison to dinosaurs.
It is found in the Atlantic, Pacific,
Indian and Arctic oceans.
According to the website Arkive, there are approximately 5000 Blue
Whales that remain in the oceans. Blue Whales travel in groups of 60.
They feed on shrimp-like krill. Blue Whales spend most their summer
feeding in cold waters.

5. Sperm Whale
The scientific name of a Sperm
Whale is Physeter macrocephalus.
The Sperm Whale has the largest brain
of any living animal. It has a single
blowhole and finds as its habitats all
of the oceans except the Arctic Ocean. The Sperm Whale dwells in waters
at least 200 meters deep. It has been recorded that some Sperm Whales
dive as deep as 3000 meters. They mainly feed on squid, octopus and fish.

6. FISHES
There are over 14,000 species of marine
fishes, from the tiny pygmy goby to the giant
whale shark. This group of vertebrate animals
includes the jawless fishes, cartilaginous fishes
(sharks, rays and chimaeras), and the bony
fishes. Learn about some of these species here.

7. Atlantic Cod (Gadus morhua)
Cod are greenish brown to
gray on their sides and back,
with a lighter underside.
They have a light line that runs
along their side, called the lateral line. They have an
obvious barbel, or whisker-like projection, from their
chin, giving them a catfish-like appearance. They have
three dorsal fins and two anal fins, all of which are
prominent.
There have been reports of cod that were as long as 6
1/2 feet and as heavy as 211 pounds, although the cod
typically caught by fishermen today are much smaller.

8. Whale Shark (Rhincodon typus)
 While its name may be deceiving,
 the whale shark is actually a shark,
 and the largest fish in the world.
 Whale sharks can grow to 65 feet
 in length and up to about 75,000 pounds in weight.
 Females are generally larger than males.
 They are huge and streamlined, and have a beautiful
coloration pattern on their back and sides that is made
up of light spots and stripes over a dark gray, blue or
brown background. They have a white underside.

9. Basking Shark (Cetorhinus
maximus)
The basking shark is the
second-largest shark species,
and can reach lengths up to
30-40 feet. Weights for the
basking shark have been estimated
at 4-7 tons (about 8,000-15,000 pounds). They are filter-
feeders who are often seen feeding near the surface with their
huge mouths agape.
Basking sharks got their name because they are often seen
“basking” on the surface of the water. It may appear the shark
is sunning itself, but in fact it is often feeding on tiny
plankton and crustaceans.

10. Shortfin Mako Shark (Isurus
oxyrinchus)
 Shortfin makos have a
 beautiful blue coloration on their
 back which lightens to a white
 ventral surface (belly).
 They grow to a maximum length of about 13 feet and
weight of about 1,220 pounds. The largest shortfin
mako ever caught was one off the coast of
Massachusetts that weighed 1,221

11. INVERTEBRATES
 Invertebrates, animals without a notochord or
backbone, comprise the largest group of organisms in
the world, forming over a million species. Marine
invertebrates alone comprise thousands of species, and
are a hugely diverse group of animals, from sessile
sponges to spiny sea urchins. Below are profiles and
facts on some marine invertebrates.

12. Chinese Mitten Crab (Eriocheir
sinensis)
 The Chinese mitten crab is
 most easily distinguished
 by its claws, which are white
 -tipped and covered in
 brown hair. The shell,
 or carapace, of this crab is up to 4 inches wide and
light brown to olive green in color. They have eight
legs.

13. European Green Crab (Carcinus
maenas)
 The green crab's carapace varies
in color from green to brown or
reddish orange, and is up to about
4 inches across.
The green crab's native range is
along the Atlantic coast of Europe and northern Africa. In the
1800's, the species was transported to Cape
Cod, Massachusetts and is now found in the eastern U.S.
from the Gulf of St. Lawrence to Delaware. In 1989, green
crabs were discovered in San Francisco Bay, and now they
inhabit the West Coast up to British Columbia. Green crabs
have also been recorded in Australia, Sri Lanka, South Africa
and Hawaii.

14. Sponges
Sponges come in a wide variety of colors, shapes
and sizes. Some, like the liver sponge
pictuerd here,
look like a low-lying crust on a rock,
while others
can be taller than
humans. Some sponges are in the form
of encrustations or masses, some are branched,
and some look like tall vases (e.g., see vase sponge
image by clicking on the "more images" link above). Sponges are relatively simple
multi-celled animals. Sponges do not have tissues or organs like some animals
do, but they have specialized cells to perform necessary functions. These cells
each have a job - some are in charge of digestion, some reproduction, some
bringing in water so the sponge can filter feed, and some for getting rid of wastes.
The skeleton, or structure of sponges is formed by spicules, which are made of
silica or calcareous materials, and sponging, a protein that supports the spicules.
Sponge species may be most readily identified by examining their spicules under a
microscope.
Sponges do not have a nervous system, so they don't move when touched

15. Crustacean
All crustaceans have a hard
exoskeleton, which protects
the animal from predators and
prevents water loss. However,
exoskeletons can't grow as the animal inside them
grows, so crustaceans are forced to molt as they grow
larger. During molting, a soft exoskeleton forms
underneath the old one and the old exoskeleton is shed.
Since the new exoskeleton is soft, this is a vulnerable time
for the crustacean until the new exoskeleton hardens.

16. Starfish
Although sea stars live underwater
and are commonly called "starfish,"
they are not fish.
They do not have gills, scales, or fins
like fish do and they move quite
differently from fish. While fish propel themselves with
their tails, sea stars have tiny tube feet to help them
move along (see more on that below).