Plastic Debris in the Open Ocean and Biomagnification

I recently read an article by Carlos M. Duarte named, “ Plastic Debris in the Open Ocean”. This scholarly article reports on recent research regarding the prevalence of plastics in the world’s oceans. This study was conducted by dragging a 1m by .5m net behind a boat at a speed of 2-3 knots a period of 10-15 min to collect any plastic (Duarte 10243). The team of researchers repeated this process twice at every one of the 3,070 sites to ensure validity. What they discovered was that 88% of the locations contained plastic particles. While it is true that Duarte and the rest of the research team were trying to discover the places where plastics were most prevalent, they were more specifically trying to determine the size of the particles at the sites. While plastics most commonly enter oceans as whole pieces, after long periods of exposure to the sun and seawater they begin to degrade into smaller and smaller pieces. The problem with this is that at a certain point these pieces of plastic become small enough for fish and other marine life organisms to ingest. During their research there was one piece of data in particular that puzzled the researchers. They found a gap in the size of plastic particles, which they quickly attributed to the fact that it was being ingested by fish. This hypothesis was supported by further research showing that, “[the] incidence of plastic in stomachs of epipelagic zooplankitvorous fish ranges from 1 to 29%, and in the stomachs of small mesopelagic fish from 9 to 35%” (Duarte 10241).

            While this article relates to many sections in our class such as sustainability and the need to protect our oceans, it also relates to biomagnification. This is the tendency for top predators to contain higher concentrations of substances that originate at lower trophic levels. This is why the incidence of plastics in the stomachs of small fish is a problem for every organism in the food web, humans included. As humans we consume fish so these plastics are also transferred to us. Due to the health impacts that plastic pose to humans along with aquatic organisms, it is important that we reduced the amount of plastic that enters our oceans. Plastics enter bodies of water primarily through storm water runoff. So, one simple way to positively impact our oceans is to simply recycle and reduce the amount of litter that ends up in streets.

Bircher, Nina. Tear-drops of the Mermaid Land on Our Food-plates. 2013. N.p.

Duarte, Carlos M., and Andres Cozar Et Al. "Plastic Debris in the Open Ocean." Proceedings of The National Academy of Sciences 111.28 (2014): 10239-0244. Siena College Interlibrary Loan Service. Web. 11 Feb. 2015.

Over fishing along the East Coast and what Google is doing to combat it.

All around the world, fisheries are seeing their stocks of fish harvested at an alarmingly faster rate than these species can reproduce. This has caused overfishing to become the global crisis that it is today. Millions upon millions of people rely on fish for food as well as income, so, if this crisis is to continue, we could see copious additional problems arise. Thankfully this issue has come to the attention of the world’s population and as such, big business has taken notice too. Google has partnered with SkyTruth and Oceana to create a product called Global Fishing Watch. This is a system that uses GPS to track fishing vessels, identifying them based off of certain attributes like speed and direction, and tracking them on a global scale. This is an initiative to allow anyone to painlessly see how and why some fisheries are being devastated by overfishing. This article, written in November of 2014, states that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will be closing off cod fishing in most of the US’s northeastern waters, even though cod catch quotas have been significantly reduced over the past few years. This comes after statements that cod populations are at about 4% of what is understood to be sustainable levels. The fact that overfishing is being opposed is great news for many activist groups and, frankly, the world. There are, however, many people negatively affected these laws. Many fisherman are becoming frustrated with the laws being placed on them by groups who do not fully understand the multitude of factors, not just overfishing, that is causing fish populations to decline. In effect, these fisherman’s livelihoods are being jeopardized by laws that may be targeting the wrong symptom. This article coincides well with our course. It explains that overfishing is directly related to the decline of fish populations around the globe. However, it also states there are other factors that could be contributing to the issue. These possible factors are not mentioned but can be many different environmental issues such as: ocean pollution, ocean acidification and climate change, as well as many others. The article also describes what some groups and government entities are doing to combat the overfishing crisis. Lastly, I believe large companies, like Google, who are fixtures in the eye of the public, should stand front and center to stem global issues like this one, but ranging anywhere from environmental and ecological problems to humanitarian crises.

http://globalfishingwatch.org/

Works Cited:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2062787/Chinese-fishermen-caught-South-Korean-waters-try-escaping-armed-coastguards--tying-boats-rope.html

http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.siena.edu:2048/docview/1625030638

Drilling in the Atlantic Ocean (Stephanie DeRubertis)

The Obama administration has announced a proposal to open up coastal waters from Virginia to Georgia for oil and gas drilling. Opening the Eastern Seaboard to oil companies is a prize the industry has sought for decades and is a blow to environmental groups. They argue that the move would put the coasts of Virginia, the Carolinas and Georgia at risk for an environmental disaster like the BP spill that struck the Gulf Coast in 2010. According to Bob Deans, a spokesman for the Natural Resources Defense Council, “Opening Atlantic waters to offshore drilling would take us in exactly the wrong direction. It would ignore the lessons of the disastrous BP blowout, the need to protect future generations from the dangers of climate change and the promise of a clean-energy future" (Davenport, 2015). The part of the Atlantic Ocean that is being considered for oil drilling is an ecologically diverse network of soft-bottom shelves and rocky canyons that includes some of most dynamic and mysterious marine systems on Earth. Many of the species living in this part of the ocean have sensitive acoustic systems such as the endangered Fin and Right whales. 

 Endangered North Atlantic right whales travel each fall from their feeding grounds in Canada and New England to calving grounds in South Carolina and Georgia (Welch, 2015). 

The potential to drill in the Atlantic Ocean is related to our course Principles of Ecology because it has a potential to affect the many interconnected parts of the ocean's system. The ocean has many species, some known and many unknown. These species play an important role in creating and maintaining their habitat. Their habitat depends on them and they depend on their habitat. once accident such as an oil spill could put these species in serious harm. According to Steve Ross, a research professor at UNC-Wilmington, in a spill, every part of the ecosystem is potentially at risk—the bottom, the upper water column, the surface, and the shore. There are not a lot of places where you could say, 'We could afford to write that off.' (Welch, 2015)

I believe it's important to realize the consequences of drilling in the Atlantic ocean. We risk having another incident the like BP oil spill, which took a lot of money and effort to clean up the Gulf and species that lived in it. It's also important to recognize that the result of the BP oil spill has not been completely rectified, so it is a consequence that has long lasting effects. Obtaining human resources such as oil is imperative, but protecting our environment should be a priority. If Obama fights against the Keystone Pipeline because of the harmful effects it could have on the environment, than he should fight against drilling in the Atlantic Ocean.  

Work Cited

Davenport, C. (2015, January 26). White House to Propose Allowing Oil Drilling Off Atlantic Coast. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/27/us/politics/white-house-to-propose-allowing-oil-drilling-off-atlantic-coast.html?_r=0

Welch, C. (2015, January 29). Could Drilling in the Atlantic Harm Fish, Whales, Turtles? Retrieved from http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2015/01/150129-ocean-atlantic-offshore-drilling-oil-environment-animals/

Cost of Ocean Acidification (Priscila Ferreira)

Oceans have absorbed a considerable part of the carbon dioxide released by humans over the last 200 years and the impacts of this acidification on marine life remain invisible. It is estimated that by the end of this century the damages will be vast. Since these changes in the ocean are still difficult to comprehend and ocean acidification is a very young field, the U.N. Convention on Biological Diversity released a report to alert and make governments aware of the potential of the various threats, with an estimated the cost of $1 trillion annually. It is looking only at protecting lost ecosystem, such as tropical reefs. The researchers gave context to authorities try to avoid the worst scenario, starting to work on areas that are possible to change now.

Corallines, corals, goldies, reef and surface at

 Halahi Reef, Red Sea, Egypt. 

To determine the impact of ocean acidification, it is necessary to consider societal implications, loss of ecosystem services or policy, and how organisms physiologically respond. Fish have more flexibility to adapt, but the time might not necessarily be enough for species to adjust. As another example, looking at tropical reefs, their destruction can lead to decreased food security, income loss, and shoreline damage. Therefore negative impacts represent a direct threat not only on the ocean, but also to human populations. For all predictions made, they are not considering other factors that occur in oceans worldwide, like their warming. Because of this, it is necessary to focus on goals that can be implemented right away, like limiting construction debris, sewage and pollution levels.

The ocean acidification is related to Principles of Ecology since this topic is not only about how the ocean and their marine life are affected, but also how the humans interact with them, contributing to this problem or helping to solve it. This relation is on one hand about the possible loss of biodiversity and extinction of many different species, and on the other hand about their preservation.

In my opinion, the ocean acidification is a big problem that might be ignored because people cannot see it directly, but it exists and is becoming worse over the years. The effects will start on some calcifying species and then, once these species are at risk, the entire food web may also be at risk. Besides this, people that have food from the ocean as their primary source of protein and as a source of income will suffer too. The changes need to start as soon as possible before the damage will be so vast that it will take thousands of years to be repaired.

Sources:

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/oceans-could-lose-1-trillion-in-value-due-to-acidification/

Image Credit:

https://secure.flickr.com/photos/dkeats/6412317169?rb=1

Endangered Species: The Giant Panda (Kevin Warnken)

The giant panda is located in central China, in the mountain ranges in the Sichuan, Shaanxi, and Gansu Provinces. The giant panda used to live in lowland areas, but farming and forest clearing have pushed them into the mountain ranges. According to the World Conservation Union's Red List of Threatened Species, the giant panda is an endangered species. There is around 1,600 left in the wild, and there is over 300 living in zoos and breeding centers that are primarily located in China. A reason why the giant panda is an endangered species is that they have a narrow niche. They have a narrow niche because the only thing they eat is bamboo, so if something bad happens to the bamboo, the number of pandas will decrease. Also, female pandas only ovulate once a year for about two to three days, so that does not give them a lot of time to reproduce.

The giant panda is important to China, especially in the bamboo forests that they live in. While living there, the giant panda moves through the forest, spreading seeds, which encourages the growth of vegetation. The pandas are at the geographic and economic heart of China, and by making this location more suitable, it makes the quality of life for the nearby citizens better, mainly because of the enormous economic benefits of tourists that come and see the pandas. Another reason the giant panda is important, is the fact that the panda is a symbol of nature conservation, so by encouraging people to save the panda, we are actually helping to preserve rich biodiversity.

In my opinion, and hopefully everyone else, the giant panda needs to be saved. Even though the giant panda serves no ecological purpose to where I am from, which is Albany, New York, they are my favorite animal, and I would hate to see them become extinct. Ecologically wise though, the giant panda is important for the growth of vegetation in China, so if they become extinct that would not be good. Also, and this something I would have never thought of if I did not do this assignment, is the symbol that the giant panda is for nature conservation. I guess this is kind of a double-edged sword, because with the giant panda being the symbol, people would feel more inclined to save them, which is a good thing. The bad thing is that maybe if they were to go extinct, it could possibly send a stronger message to people and show them that endangered species are a serious problem, and that we have to do what we can to save them from becoming extinct.

Sources:
http://nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/giantpandas/pandafacts/
http://wwf.panda.org/what_we_do/endangered_species/giant_panda/panda/why_we_save_the_giant_panda/
http://www.worldwildlife.org/species/giant-panda

Image Credit:
http://www.engadget.com/2006/06/16/giant-panda-robots-extinction-solved/

Endangered Species: The Great Hammerhead Shark (Joe Stewart)

Picture of underside of Great Hammerhead Shark

 

 

 

 

The Great Hammerhead shark is the largest of the hammerhead shark species, growing up to a length of at least 18.3 feet and are common to grow even past 20 feet in length. This apex predator is extremely important to the environment as it has a wide variety of prey that include: stingrays, groupers, squids, crab, tarpon, sardines, toadfishes, herring, other sharks, boxfish, and eagle rays. The positioning of the Great Hammerhead's eyes on each side of it's T-shaped head give it a 360 degree view that allows it to find prey positioned both below and above it with incredible accuracy. On the front of the "hammer" of the shark, there is a incredibly strong and sensitive electromagnetic field that is more sensitive in Hammerheads than any other species of shark which allows it to spot stingrays hidden under the sand which rest on the ocean floor.

These majestic creatures are being threatened the most by overfishing, driven by the global demand for shark-fin soup. The Great Hammerhead is caught, "finned", which entails its dorsal fin being removed from its body, and then being thrown back into the ocean alive, giving it a slow death from starvation or blood loss. Moreover, a large number of Great Hammerheads are caught accidentally in large commercial fishing nets along the Atlantic. The largest amount of illegal fishing of these creatures occurs along the coast of Africa as well as the Indian Ocean.This activity of humans has contributed to the Great Hammerhead species of shark to officially become endangered on a global level.

The fact that the Great Hammerhead is an endangered species is directly related to principles of ecology. The Great Hammerhead could be considered a keystone species in that if it is removed from the ecosystem, the ecosystem could collapse. The Great Hammerhead is a top predator keystone species that feeds on and regulates the populations of other species. If the Great Hammerhead were to become extinct, it could lead to a population crash of certain species as well as extinctions of other species in the same ecosystem. Therefore, it is vitally important to preserve this creature so that the ecosystem it associates itself with stays in balance and there is no further endangered or extinct species as a result.

In my opinion, these creatures play one of the most crucial parts in maintaining a balanced marine ecosystem as the Great Hammerhead has the role as the apex predator. Since it is the top predator of earth's oceans, it is it's job to maintain a proper food web without allowing one species to overpopulate or become extinct. Shark fin soup is one of the key reasons Great Hammerheads are over-fished, and I believe every country should make it illegal to serve shark-fin soup to stop this brutal treatment of sharks and reduce the amount of endangered species of shark.


Citations:

Great Hammerhead Shark. (2015, March 3). Retrieved from Our Endangered World: http://www.ourendangeredworld.com/species/sharks-fish/great-hammerhead-shark/

Great Hammerhead Shark. (2015, March 3). Retrieved from The Shark Research Institute: http://www.sharks.org/species/great-hammerhead-shark

Photocredits:  

http://www.ourendangeredworld.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/Great-hammerhead1.png

Tropical Deforestation: Stephanie Bundas

         Tropical Rain forests are one of the highest retainers of biodiversity. Statistically the rain forests only make up seven percent of the planet, but hold fifty percent of all species on Earth. These dense forests provide an abundance of characteristics to sustain life. The sunlight and the constant rainfall make tropical rain forests have a very large Net Primary Productivity (NPP). Net Primary Productivity measures how quickly producers make chemical energy that is stored in their tissues and that is potentially available to other organisms. This rate is significant because when such forests are cut down or burned to make room for crops and cattle, there is a drastic drop in the Net Primary Productivity as well as a loss in biodiversity.

Deforestation of the Amazon rain forest in Quiandeua, Brazil

              Producers are the source of all the nutrients in an ecosystem that are used by numerous groups such as decomposers, consumers and even producers themselves. Not only do these groups use these specific nutrients they require it, specifically consumers. Thus, the planet Net Primary Productivity ultimately determines the number of consumers including human that can sustain life on Earth. Tropical deforestation brings down the Net Primary Productivity rate which will have long term effect such as bringing down the number of consumers that this planet can sustain.

            This topic directly relates to this course because loss of biodiversity and sustainability are key concerns in the ecology field. Tropical deforestation impacts both of these topics immensely. For example, due to some of the microhabitats located within the rain forests they are only found in small areas. Their need for specializations makes them vulnerable to extinction. In the case of an area being totally deforested many different species fall susceptible of becoming endangered or extinct.

            My viewpoint is that although deforestation meets many human needs it has long term consequences on the environment. The impacts of tropical deforestation in my opinion outweigh the human wants such as printing the Sunday newspaper. Many devastating problems such as extinction and endangerment of species, climate change as well as drops in Net Primary Productivity comes with tropical deforestation. These consequences have a global scale impact that will affect each and every species. Thus, I firmly believe to put more advocacy on this ecology concern so that solutions such as recycling, conserving energy become habitual in everyday life. Only with this can Earth successfully conserve biodiversity and the keep high rates of Net Primary Productivity that is located in the cherished tropical rain forests.

Works Cited

"Deforestation Facts, Deforestation Information, Effects of Deforestation – National   Geographic." National Geographic. 11 Feb. 2015.

Lindsay, Rebecca. Tropical Deforestation : Feature Articles. Earth Observatory. March 30,2007.

Miller, G. Tyler. Essentials of Ecology. South Melbourne, Vic.: Thomson, Brooks/Cole, 2005

Picture Credit: Joey Santore -National Georgraphic