Introduction
Going down into
the deep ocean is a fascinating sight. With the lights
on, you see nothing except for an occasional weird creature. When you
turn the lights off, there are hundreds of lights flashing around you.
There are plains, deep trenches, and mountains that make it seem much
like land, except there no plants. More people have been to the moon
than have been to the depths of the ocean. Every time someone goes down
to the bottom of the ocean, they find a new species. In this report,
you will learn about some of these bizarre creatures.
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Fish
Dragon fish
The Dragon fish
is a small, fierce predator. It only grows to be about 6
inches long, and it has many long and sharp needle like teeth. The
Dragon fish has a barbel with a light producing organ at the end that
it
uses to attract prey. The ability to produce light is called
bioluminescence. When a curious fish wanders too close, it is snatched
by the Dragon fish. This fish lives at depths of 5,000 feet.
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Lantern
fish
The lantern fish
has many light producing organs that gives it it's
name. These organs are used to attract prey and mates. Lantern fish
only
grow to be about 6 inches long. It spends it's time at
depths up to 3,000 feet. At night, it comes up to the surface to feed
on other small fish.
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Hatchet fish
The Hatchet
fish is a small fish that resembles a hatchet. It only
grows to be about four inches long and has eyes that face upward that
allows it to look for prey falling from above. The Hatchet fish feeds
on
copepods and corpses falling from above. Hatchetfish llive at
depths
of 4,500 feet all over the world. They also have light producing organs
at the bottom of their body. It is believed that they use these lights
to attract prey from below and mates.
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Mammals and Squid
Sperm Whale:
The
Sperm Whale is the Largest of
the toothed sea mammals. The Sperm
Whale has an oily fat in it's
head called spermaceti, hence comes the
name. As with all mammals, they need to breath air, but the Sperm Whale
can stay underwater for over two hours before coming up for air.
The
Sperm Whale eats different types of fish and eels, but its favorite
food is the giant squid. The
Sperm Whale can dive to a depth of 10,000 feet to search for squid. It
can grow to be 65 feet long.
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Firefly Squid:
The Firefly
Squid is a small squid that has light producing organs
called photophores at the end of their tentacles. They attract small
fish by flashing their lights on and off. Then, they pounce on their
prey with its muscular tentacles. During the day, this squid swims at
depths of 1,200 feet, but when night comes, it comes to the surface to
hunt for food. Every year, during spawning seasons many can be seen
close to shore, especially in the Toyoma Bay of Japan. Toyama Bay has a
current that flows upward that brings the Firefly Squid to the
Surface. Firefly Squids only live about one year.
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Eels
Gulper Eel:
The
gulper eel can easily be recognised by its huge mouth. It can be
opened wide enough to swallow prey much larger than it self. The victim
is then deposited into the Gulper's pelican-like lower jaw. The Gulper
Eel's stomach can be stretched in order to accommodate it's prey. This
gives the Gulper Eel the nick names pelican eel and umbrella
gulper. The Gulper Eel can grow to be about six feet long. This eel can
be at depths from 3,000 to 6,000 feet deep.
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Conclusion
I hope now,
after you have read my work on the deep sea, you understand
a little more about deep sea creatures.
Bibliography
http://www.mysteries-megasite.com
The Blue Planet, Seas of Life, the Deep Ocean, BBC Discovery Channel
production, DVD
www.seasky.org
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Created:April 17, 2004
Last Updated: May 14, 2004
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