G-535 Oarfish Regalecus glesne Once mistaken for a sea serpent, the oarfish is the longest bony fish, over 50 feet (17 m). The name refers to red fins that pivot as it swims, like oars on a boat. phylum Chordata illustration E. Paul Oberlander
G-502 Green turtle Chelonia mydas Sea turtles have an uncanny sense of direction; some migrate over a thousand miles to lay eggs. Like most sea turtles, green turtles are threatened by hunting and habitat loss. phylum Chordata photo Tom Campbell
G-534 Meiofauna These animals--all less than a millimeter long--live between sand grains. Meiofauna samples from a single bucket of sand taken off Florida may yield up to 22 phyla. The world's rain forests have 15 to 16 phyla of all kinds of organisms at most. illustration Robert Higgins
G-478 Candy-stripe sea cucumber Thelenota rubralineata Like other sea cucumbers (relatives of sea stars and urchins), this species can shoot sticky poisonous tubular threads from its anus. The writhing tubules entangle an attacker, while the "victim" escapes to regenerate new tubules. phylum Echinodermata photo Mary Jane Adams
G-528 Common sea dragon Phyllopteryx taeniolatus Sea dragons reverse traditional sexroles. The male carries and incubates the eggs, which the female lays in a soft skin pouch under his tail. He stores the eggs until they hatch. phylum Chordata photo Fred Bavendam
G-472 Pink vase sponge Dasychalina cyathina None of the five thousand or so species of sponges has specialized tissue. They simply filter water through pores in order to "eat" detritus and plankton. phylum Porifera photo David Wrobel
G-476 Giant purple jellyfish Chrysaora sp. Many marine animals remain to be discovered. This relative of corals and sea anemones was found in the early 1990s. Formal scientific identification of the species hasn't been published. phylum Cnidaria photo Bob Cranston
G-470 Sea gooseberry Pleurobrachia If disturbed at night, sea gooseberries (and other comb jellies) glow in the dark. At sea, people have reported waters filled with greenish comb-jelly "fireworks." Even the embryos of this group light up. phylum Ctenophora photo David Wrobel
G-362 [may add sci. names] Clownfish and anemone The mobile fish draws predators; the non-mobile anemone kills them with its stinging cells. The anemone eats; the fish gets leftovers and protection. phylum Chordata and phylum Cnidaria photo Michele Hall/HHP
G-457 Horsehair worms These are marine members of a mostly fresh-water group (their name comes from having been discovered in watering troughs). These parasites absorb nutrients through their body walls. phylum Nematomorpha photo Oxford Scientific Films/Animals Animals
G-459 Goose barnacles Lepas anseripera Larval barnacles can swim, but adults use environmental cues to choose a hard surface for settling down. "Glued" in place, a barnacle stands on its head and uses its foot to scoop water (and food) into its mouth. phylum Arthropoda photo Oxford Scientific Films/Animals Animals
G-509 Vent worms Riftia pachyptila Found only around sea-floor cracks, vent worms live in sulfurous hot water and rely on bacteria living in their body tissue for energy. Adults of this group do not have a mouth or digestive tract. phylum Vestimentifera photo Al Giddings/Ocean Images, Inc.
G-460 [sci. name?] Peanut worm The name comes from the shape they assume when they contract. Adults burrow in sand or dwell in crevices in rocks or coral. The long- lived larvae swim in warm surface waters the world over. phylum Sipuncula photo Kathie Atkinson/Oxford Scientific Films/Animals Animals
G-513 Polychaetes Chloeia viridis For reproducing, many "bristle worms" have split personalities. They develop an extra body part containing sex cells (and even "eyes" and "feet" for swimming), which breaks off, rises to the surface, and releases the cells. phylum Annelida photo Woody Lee/Smithsonian Marine Station
G-471 Brachiopods Laqueus californiensis Often called lamp shells because of their resemblance to Aladdin's lamp, this ancient group has been around at least 400 million years, with 26,000 species in the fossil record. Only 335 species survive today. phylum Brachiopoda photo David Wrobel
G-474 Pencil urchin Heterocentrotus mammillatus Sea urchins maintain ecological balance in coral communities by devouring algae that could outcompete the corals. Thick spines help stabilize the urchin in rough waters. phylum Echinodermata photo Bob Cranston
G-461 Arrow worms Billions of these small predators live in the upper layer of open seas. Named "hairy jaws," they have movable hooks to grasp and swallow prey--young fish, protists, copepods. phylum Chaetognatha photo Peter Parks/Oxford Scientific Films/Animals Animals
G-438 Sea grass and kelp Phyllospadix scouleri and Macrocystis pyrifera In the oceans, algae far outnumber flowering plants. The surf grass on the left is a flowering plant. The kelp on the right is a brown alga. phylum Angiospermophyta (grass) phylum Phaeophyta (kelp) photo Jeff Rotman
G-462 Sea-star larva Many immature marine invertebrates (which may not even look like the adults of the same species) drift over long distances. This swimming sea-star larva will become a bottom-dwelling adult. phylum Echinodermata photo Peter Parks/Oxford Scientific Films/Animals Animals
G-456 Dinoflagellates Ceratium Some of this group of one- celled, mostly planktonic organisms are plant-like and photosynthetic; others are animal-like and "eat" food. Some produce potent neurotoxins and may cause red tides that kill animals. phylum Dinoflagellata photo E. R. Degginger/Animals Animals
G-320 Brown algae Macrocystis pyrifera For size, giant kelp has no rivals among sea plants and algae--it can grow to lengths of 260 feet (80 m) or more. Upper fronds, exposed to the most sunlight, can grow up to 2 feet (0.6 m) in a day. phylum Phaeophyta photo Helmut Horn
G-469 Red algae Maripelta Red algae grow from the intertidal zone down to 900 feet (274 m). Their color allows them to absorb the parts of sunlight that penetrate deeper water. Agar (used to culture bacteria) comes from a species of red algae. phylum Rhodophyta photo David Wrobel
G-507 Radiolarians Sarcodina radiolarida With their elaborate skeletons of silica, these single-celled organisms are often preserved on the sea floor after they die. Buried in sedimentary rock layers, they mark changes in oceanic conditions. phylum Actinopoda photo Al Giddings/Ocean Images, Inc.
G-72 Forams Almost all of the 40,000 known species are fossils and microscopic. The white chalk cliffs of Dover, England, are deposits of calcium-carbonate foram shells. Some forams are good oil-deposit markers. phylum Foraminifera photo Peter Parks/Norbert Wu
G-158 Blue-green algae Oscillatoria These photosynthesizing bacterial cells may have released oxygen into the primordial atmosphere. Although most are blue-green, one can appear red--it colors the Red Sea. phylum Cyanophyta photo Sinclair Stammers/Science Photo Library/Photo Researchers, Inc.
G-508 Blue whale Balaenoptera musculus Larger than any animal ever (including dinosaurs), the blue whale has a heart the size of a car. An adult sucks in 45 tons of water in a gulp, and filters out 3 to 4 tons of small shrimp and fish daily. phylum Chordata photo Doc White/Ocean Images, Inc.
G-521 Sea hare Aplysia sp. Sea hares, unlike their relatives the snails, don't have shells. Instead, they release purple ink for escape and toxic white fluid for protection when disturbed. phylum Mollusca photo Mike Severns/Tom Stack & Associates
G-550 Xenophyophores Reticulammina labryinthica These giant single-celled organisms can be seen by the naked eye, yet little is known about them. They've been found only on the sea floor. In some Pacific trenches, half the bottom is covered by slime they produce while feeding. phylum Xenophyophora photo courtesy of Institute for Oceanographic Sciences Deacon Laboratory
G-64 Diatoms Pleurosiama balticum The remains of billions of silica diatom shells have made history--geologic, biological, and even industrial. Alfred Nobel used diatomaceous earth to stabilize nitroglycerine when he invented dynamite. phylum Bacillariophyta photo Peter Parks/Norbert Wu
G-504 Sea otter Enhydra lutris Sea otters help to keep kelp healthy by eating the sea urchins and abalones that graze on kelp. When 19th- century hunting almost wiped out California sea otters, grazers destroyed giant kelp in some areas. phylum Chordata photo Tom Campbell
G-548 Marine viruses These bits of genetic material coated with protein aren't really living organisms (they can't reproduce outside of host cells--mostly bacteria). From 50,000 to 50 million marine viruses can be found in a teaspoon of sea water. viruses don't belong to a phylum photomicrograph John Waterbury/Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
G-543 Vent food web depends on sulfur--not sunlight. Bacteria convert chemicals (from the sulfur-rich fluid spewed out of vents) to energy, in a process called chemosynthesis. Other animals eat bacteria, harbor bacteria in their bodies, or eat bacteria-eaters. Vent worms have no mouth or digestive tract. Instead, chemosynthetic bacteria living in their tissues provide nourishment. Hemoglobin(which transports hydrogen sulfide to the bacteria) makes the vent worms red. illustration Linda Huff, courtesy of Sigma Xi, the Scientific Research Society
G-539 Black smokers, the hottest submarine hot springs, can reach 518-716„ F (270-380„ C). The super-hot water laced with hydrogen sulfide and other minerals spews out of cracks in the earth's crust. photo courtesy of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
G-540
G-541 The first known loriciferan, Pliciloricus enigmatus Actual size is about one- quarter of a millimeter. illustration Carolyn Gast, National Museum of Natural History scanning electron micrograph Robert Higgins
G-416 Pygmy beaked whale, Mesoplodon peruvianus These small whales are often caught accidentally and sold in local fish markets, where Smithsonian scientist James Mead (who later identified thespecies) first obtained a skull. photo Julio C. Reyes
G-542 This elusive species has never been seen alive, but an artist's composite illustration gives a glimpse of the whale in its natural habitat. illustration Pieter Folkens
G-581 East Pacific Rise seamount field, located by satellite altimetry and mapped by sonar, was unknown until 1993.
G-547 Close-up of three seamounts, East Pacific Rise [new caption info on height and geologic activity to come] computer images courtesy of Ken McDonald, Dan Shierer, Don Forsyth, University of California, Santa Barbara
G-455 Diatoms, photosynthetic algae of many sizes and shapes but mostly microscopic, with shells of silica, are among the oceans' primary producers- -the first and most vital link in food webs. photo Oxford Scientific Films/Animals Animals
G-93 Copepods are the most numerous of grazers in the oceans--they may even be the most numerous multicellular animals on earth. Most of them are filter feeders that scoop up diatoms and other phytoplankton. photo Peter Parks, Norbert Wu
G-464 [pls check...] Surface dwellers: goose barnacles, Spirula shell, porpita, Portuguese man-of- war. photo Peter Parks/Animals Animals
G-574 photo of nuclear mushroom cloud, uncaptioned Radioactive tritium became a perfect marker for tracking ocean water. Scientists sampling North Atlantic water found that tritium released into the atmosphere before the 1962 nuclear test ban treaty, mixed downward by 1973. By 1980, the same tritium had moved into deep areas off Florida. The water had taken about 20 years to travel 3000 miles (4800 km) through the sea at an average speed of less than half a mile a day, about half the speed of a snail. photo courtesy of National Atomic Museum
G-560 Launching a mooring buoy photo courtesy of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
G-563 Alvin, a three-passenger deep submergence vehicle, can dive to 14,850 feet (4,500 m). It has been instrumental in discovering many oceanographic features, including hydrothermal vents. Its titanium sphere houses sophisticated navigation, scientific, and film and video equipment. photo courtesy of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
G-562 Hauling aboard a CTD sensor with sampling bottles attached, after a day's work. Onboard computers connected to the CTD have collected the data. photo courtesy of Scripps Institute of Oceanography
G-545 In just two minutes a satellite collected data for this map of phytoplankton around Tasmania, Australia. Higher concentrations of phytoplankton are shown in red. It would have taken a ship moving at 10 knots an entire decade to collect the same type of data on this area slightly larger than Texas and New Mexico. photo Gene Carl Feldman/National Aeronautics and Space Agency
G-544 Gulf Stream, western North Atlantic, June 1984 photo courtesy of O. Brown, R. Evans, M. Carle, University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science Miami
G-193 Stilt fishing, near Galle, Sri Lanka, 1983 photo Heather Angel
G-221 photomural Welcoming the Fleet Kayar villagers wait every day for fishing boats to come in, in order to bargain for fish, near Dakar, Senegal. photo Wolfgang Kaehler
G-142 Unloading swordfish, Sesimbra, Portugal, mid- 1980s photo Louis Goldman/Photo Researchers, Inc.
G-260 Fishing for king crab, Bering Sea Most fishermen around the world allot profits from the catch by "shares." Owners may get as much as half; the crew divides the rest. Skippers get two or three shares. The crew gets quarter, half, or full shares, based on their experience. photo Mark J. Rauzon
G-151 Cleaning the catch (brown pelicans are interested, too), Galapagos Islands photo C. J. Collins/Photo Researchers, Inc.
G-256 Annual harvest of awa (milk fish), Christmas Island, eastern Indian Ocean, 1982 photo Mark J. Rauzon
G-347 Meeting in the fish house, Monhegan Island, Maine photo Jeff Rotman
G-188 Polar Inuit women sewing kayak cover, northwest Greenland, 1971 Women help prepare gear. photo Fred Bruemmer
G-124
G-125, inset Salmon cannery, Poronaysk, Sakhalin Island, Russia, 1990 Three shifts work round the clock during the peak salmon run. Women are wage earners, paid according to their team's production. photos Natalie B. Fobes
G-237 Selling the fresh catch, Hong Kong Women sell fish the world over. photo Wolfgang Kaehler
G-241 Women fishing, ėle aux Nattes, Madagascar Women have traditionally fished near shore. photo Wolfgang Kaehler
G-365
G-371
G-366 Women enter men's traditional domain, fishing the open ocean photos Women's Maritime Association
G-5 Angela A. Sanfilippo, lobbying, Gloucester, Massachusetts photo Nance S. Trueworthy
G-564 fisherman's wife addressing audience at a demonstration
G-161 background photomural Geared Up Magnificent frigatebirds will lose their perch when this fishing boat lowers its nets in the Sea of Cortez, Mexico. photo Art Wolfe
G-281 Sperm whalers prepare an iron harpoon, 1904 During the 19th century, New England whaling crews included men from Cape Verde, the Azores, and the West Indies. photo courtesy of New Bedford Whaling Museum
G-303 Fishermen use a speargun to capture an octopus, Ponape, Micronesia Sometimes a diver puts a moray eel (an octopus predator) into octopus's burrow, so that the octopus will come out far enough to be speared. photo Philip Rosenberg
G-153 Tuna fishing, St.-Jean-de- Luz, France photo Franois Delaporte
G-261 Fisherman splicing rope, Prince Rupert, British Columbia, Canada photo Mark J. Rauzon
G-192 Cantilevered Chinese fish traps for catching fish close to shore, Cochin, India photo Heather Angel
G-135 On the lookout for whales, Gambell, Alaska photo Natalie B. Fobes
G-357
G-356 (inset) Lobster traps stacked on dock for Trap Day--January 1, Monhegan Island, Maine inset A father teaches his 7-year-old son to set traps photos Jeff Rotman
G-14 A father shows his son how to build an outrigger canoe, Madagascar photo Frans Lanting/Minden Pictures
G-577 Fisherman using a GPS. Safety-conscious mariners rely on the Global Positioning System for bearings at sea. A GPS monitor on board a vessel receives signals from orbiting satellites, giving the skipper exact latitude and longitude coordinates. [credit]
G-132 Unloading pollock during a blizzard, Dutch Harbor/Unalaska, Alaska, 1992 photo Natalie B. Fobes
G-98 Fishing boat and container ship, Puerto Princesa, Palawan Island, Philippines Aptly named for its desired catch, the Dog Shark loads ice before setting out to Sulu Sea reefs. photo Steve Simonsen
G-406 Rescue at Sea [new info to come] photo U.S. Coast Guard
G-214 Fishermen's monument, St. Pierre, St. Pierre Island, off Newfoundland photo Wolfgang Kaehler
G-446 Temple for fishermen's safe return, Bali photo Curtis W. Callaway/Passage Productions
G-440 Fishermen's memorial, Gloucester, Massachusetts photo J. D. Sloan/The Picture Cube
G-445 Pearl divers' memorial, Thursday Island, off northwestern Australia photo David O. Brown/Passage Productions
G-439 Blessing the fleet, Stonington, Connecticut photo Stan Ries/The Picture Cube
G-15 Turtle hunter adorns his canoe bow with turtle blood to honor prey, Madagascar photo Frans Lanting/Minden Pictures
G-122 First salmon ceremony, Tulalip tribe, Marysville, Washington, 1990 photo Natalie B. Fobes
G-129 Kissing the first sockeye salmon for good luck, before throwing it back, Bristol Bay, Alaska, 1991 photo Natalie B. Fobes
G-431 Bahia, Brazil photo Stephanie Maze/Woodfin Camp & Associates
G-51 Crac'h, Brittany, France photo Randall Hyman
G-434 Atchafalaya Bay, Louisiana photo Eastcott/Y. Momatiuk/Woodfin Camp & Associates
G-254 Shipwreck, Kure Atoll, Hawaii photo Mark J. Rauzon
G-133 Factory trawler in 90-knot winds, Bering Sea photo Natalie B. Fobes
G-191 Icy waters surround a semisubmersible drill vessel used in oil exploration, Beaufort Sea photo Fred Bruemmer
G-494 Sea urchins have enlarged our understanding of embryology. This urchin is releasing 20 million eggs that will be used for research. photo Eric Davidson, California Institute of Technology
G-530 Squids make news in neuroscience because they have the animal kingdom's largest single nerve cell. The giant axon makes them prime models for studying how nerve impulses travel--with applications for research on Alzheimer's disease. photo Roger Hanlon, University of TexasMedical Branch, Galveston
G-529 Octopuses, with advanced eyes and brains, serve as models for studies of short- and long-term memory and learning mechanisms. photo Roger Hanlon, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston
G-565 Sponges as research subjects contributed to our understanding of the mechanisms of human diseases and how to combat them. This species, Teichaxinella morchella, has shown potential in antibacterial research. photo John Reed, Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution
G-520 California sea hares, Aplysia californica, have revealed basic molecular mechanisms that govern behavior, because the few and large neurons of the animal's nervous system could be partially mapped, and thenrelated to specific behaviors. photo Randy Morse/Tom Stack and Associates
G-566 Smooth dogfish, the shark Mustelus canis, was used in research that uncovered the cause of gout, a form of arthritis, and led to production of effective drug treatments for it. photo Photo Researchers, Inc.
G-39 photo in natural habitat Shortfin Mako Shark species Isurus oxyrinchus classification cartilaginous fish habitat open ocean feeding habits mainly bluefish, some squid, octopus, swordfish photo Howard Hall/Innerspace Visions
G-553 photo of cooked critter Serving Suggestions Shortfin Mako Shark nutritional information: high protein, some heart-healthy Omega-3 fatty acids; like other top predators, may accumulate mercury and other persistent contaminants commercial information: matures at about 6 ft (2 m); extremely sensitive to fishing pressure because of slow reproductive rate photo courtesy of Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
G-282 photo in natural habitat American Lobster species Homarus americanus classification arthropod (crustacean) habitat rocky bottoms feeding habits scavenges mussels, crabs, dead fish photo Herb Segars
G-308 photo of cooked critter Serving Suggestions American Lobster nutritional information: meat high in calcium, iron, protein, thiamine, niacin and sodium; tomalley (liver & pancreas) may contain contaminants commercial information: mature between 5 and 9 years; legally harvestable at about 1 pound; caught in baited traps and pots photo William B. Folsom
G-573 photo in natural habitat Brown Shrimp species Penaeus aztecus classification arthropod (crustacean) habitat estuaries, open ocean feeding habits algae, detritus,micr oorganisms photo National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
G-551 photo of cooked critter Serving Suggestions Brown Shrimp nutritional information: high in protein, vitamin C, iron, calcium; moderate sodium content; low calorie commercial information: medium and large sizes sold range from 31 to 60 shrimp per pound; caught in fixed nets, baited pots, trawls photo King & Prince Seafood Corporation
G-527 photo in natural habitat Atlantic Herring species Clupea harengus classification bony fish habitat coastal waters feeding habits copepods, shrimp, prawns, fish larvae photo Fred Bavendam
G-554 photo of cooked critter Serving Suggestions Atlantic Herring nutritional information: high in protein and heart-healthy Omega-3 fatty acids commercial information: small herring canned as sardines; others processed to make poultry and livestock feed, oil for diet supplements, paints, soaps photo North Atlantic Sardine Council
G-523 photo in natural habitat Skipjack Tuna species Katsuwonus pelamis classification bony fish habitat coastal, open water feeding habits fish, squid, crustaceans photo Norbert Wu
G-555 photo of cooked critter Serving Suggestions Skipjack Tuna nutritional information: low in fat, high in protein, iron commercial information: more than 50% of all tuna caught, the most common canned "light" tuna photo National Museum of American History Archives Center
G-522 photo in natural habitat Swordfish species Xiphias gladius classification bony fish habitat coastal, open water feeding habits fish, squid, crustaceans photo James D. Watt/Earthviews
G-552 photo of cooked critter Serving Suggestions Swordfish nutritional information: high in protein, niacin, vitamin A; some heart-healthy Omega-3 fatty acids; like other top predators, may accumulate mercury and other persistent contaminants commercial information: available year-round; most caught with baited hooks on long fishing lines photo Hawaii Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism
G-584 photo in natural habitat Alaska Pollock species Theragra chalcogramma classification bony fish habitat ocean bottom feeding habits crabs, other invertebrates photo Phil Edgell
G-556 photo of cooked critter Serving Suggestions Alaska Pollock nutritional information: high in protein, riboflavin, calcium; lean commercial information: caught by bottom trawls; inexpensive, used to make fish sticks and imitation crabmeat photo Alaska Seafood Marketing Council
G-159 photo in natural habitat Red Snapper species Lutjanus campechanus classification bony fish habitat reefs, coastal waters feeding habits shrimp, crabs, octopus, small fishes photo Allan Power
G-557 photo of cooked critter Serving Suggestions Red Snapper nutritional information: high in protein, low in fat commercial information: caught year-round with power reels and bait photo Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
G-177 photo in natural habitat Sockeye Salmon species Oncorhynchus nerka classification bony fish habitat spawns in streams, lakes; matures in estuaries, open ocean feeding habits plankton, insects photo Jeff Foott
G-558 photo of cooked critter Serving Suggestions Sockeye Salmon nutritional information: high in protein, vitamin C, iron, heart-healthy Omega-3 fatty acids commercial information: mature between 1 and 4 years; usually caught with netsin streams and lakes when returning to spawn; some salmon runs are endangered photo Alaska Seafood Marketing Council
G-537 photo in natural habitat Eastern Oyster species Crassostrea virginica classification mollusk (bivalve) habitat estuaries feeding habits plankton filter- feeders, up to 4 gallons per hour photo Andrew J. Martinez
G-559 photo of cooked critter Serving Suggestions Eastern Oyster nutritional information: high in iron, zinc; bacteria and viruses may pose risk if eaten raw commercial information: grown on natural reefs or ropes or containers hung from floats; hand-harvested when shell is approximately 5 inches (13 cm) across photo National Fisheries Institute
G-579 Paul with plat du jour) A dish too good for its own good It all began in 1984, when Chef Paul Prudhomme presented his now-famous recipe for blackened redfish. He intended to use tuna but at the last minute had to substitute red drum, or redfish. The dish became wildly popular, the price of redfish skyrocketed. Heavy fishing exhausted the supply of adult fish and was stopped by the federal government.
G-331 Big Sur, California photo Helmet Horn
G-81 Natural Nurseries Where rivers meet oceans, the young of many species find ideal nurseries. These transition zones between fresh and salt water are called estuaries. They are rich in river-deposited and recycled nutrients, and sea grasses provide good hiding places for the young. Many commercially useful fish feed in estuaries when young. Shrimps, crabs, oysters, cockles, and mussels are caught in estuaries.
G-81 Minnow school in red- mangrove-root community, Pelican Cays, Belize photo Tony Rath
G-290 Offshore oil drilling platform, Gulf of Mexico photo Robert W. Parvin
G-194 background Untreated waste from a tannery and meat-packing factory pours into the Pacific, Oamaru, South Island, New Zealand winner of a photo contest sponsored by the United Nations Environment Program, taken by Kurt Adams, then 12 years old
G-82 Mangroves nurture young fish and shellfish, and control erosion and water quality. To date, nearly half of the world's mangrove forests and salt marshes have been cleared, drained, diked, or filled. photo Tony Rath
G-441 Polar ecosystems are no longer beyond the reach of human activity. Tourism, commercial fishing, and pollution are putting pressure on populations of penguins, whales, seals, and krill. photo Onne Van Der Wal/Stock Newport
G-67 Kelp forests shelter many kinds of life in temperate coastal waters of the Americas, Europe, and Asia, but these habitats are vulnerable to declining water quality, over-harvesting of kelp and fish, and fluctuations in water temperature. photo Norbert Wu
G-160 Intertidal zones may support as many as two thousand species, but these interfaces between land and sea are in jeopardy from coastal development, land-based runoff, and ocean pollution. photo Art Wolfe
G-108 background image Crude oil from a tanker that ran aground, Kill Van Kull Channel, between Staten Island and New Jersey, 1991 photo Michael Baytoff/Black Star
G-466, rain on pavement Road runoff adds up. Every year road runoff from a city of 5 million could be as much as one large tanker spill. photo Fred Whitehead/Animals Animals
G-432 Dead oiled otter, a victim of the Exxon Valdez spill, Prince William Sound, 1989 Oil-covered fur or feathers can't insulate marine mammals and diving birds from cold water, and when an animal cleans itself, it also swallows oil. photo Gary Braasch/Wheeler Pictures, Woodfin Camp & Associates
G-481 NOAA scientist collects samples from a rock sole after an oil spill, 1989 Even if oil exposure isn't immediately lethal, it can cause long-term harm. Bottom- dwelling fish exposed to compounds released after oil spills may develop liver disease and reproductive and growth problems. photo Northwest Fisheries Science Center/National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
G-36 Mangroves stand in oil from a ruptured refinery tank, Panama, 1986 Smithsonian Institution scientists monitored effects of this 1986 spill, one of the largest in tropical North America. Five years later, mangrove sediments still held fairly fresh, toxic oil. It may take the mangroves fifty years to recover fully. photo Carl C. Hansen
G-506 Workers install a machine for cleaning waste oil off the sides of the ship's cargo tanks MARPOL requires installation and use of oil-pollution prevention equipment on tankers and other ships, and prohibits discharges within certain distances of land. photo International Maritime Organization
G-380 Factory waste pipe, Widnes, Cheshire, England, 1991 Industrial, agricultural, household cleaning, gardening, and automotive products regularly end up in water. About 65,000 chemicals are used commercially in the U.S. today, with about 1,000 new ones added each year. Only about 300 have been extensively tested for toxicity. photo David Woodfall/Tony StoneWorldwide
G-482 NOAA scientists study reproductive problems in fish from contaminated water in Puget Sound, 1989 Toxic materials don't always kill wildlife but they can still cause severe damage. photo Joni Packard/National Marine Fisheries Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
G-505 Analyzing sediment samples to classify level of contamination, Puget Sound, 1990 State sediment-management standards and federal law regulate methods for dredging, disposing, and cleanup of contaminated sediments. photo Puget Sound Water Quality Authority
G-76 A northern sea lion, entangled in an old net, St. Paul Island, Alaska, rescued by the National Marine Mammals Laboratory photo Charles Fowler
G-12 A decaying albatross chick, fed plastic garbage by its parents, reveals the objects that killed it, Leeward Island, Hawaii photo Frans Lanting, Minden Pictures
G-109 Medical waste, Coney Island, 1988 Needles and syringes suspected to have washed from New York City streets and sewer systems after heavy rain storms, washed up onto Long Island and New Jersey beaches during the summer of 1988. Although medical trash turns up infrequently on beaches, estimated costs from lost tourism and recreation that year were as high as $3 billion. photo Michael Baytoff
G-57 Ducie Atoll, Pitcairn Islands, South Pacific An important breeding area for seabirds, the atoll is littered with as much trash as some European beaches. photo Tim G. Benton
G-449 Mustang Island cleanup, Texas photo Linda Maraniss, courtesy Center for Marine Conservation, Washington, D.C.
G-452 Falmouth's Morse Pond School sixth graders, Woods Hole, Massachusetts, October 1993
G-451 Red Cross beach cleanup, British Virgin Islands, September 1993 photo BVI Red Cross
G-453 Susquehanna River cleanup, Broome County, New York, September 1993
G-487 One day's worth of plastic trash from a typical crew of 300 on a U.S. Navy destroyer Compressed into blocks, thirty days' worth can be stored in the space that would be filled by one day's worth of uncompacted plastic trash. photo George Filiopoulus, U.S. Navy
G-167 MV Anson dumping jarosite at sea, April 1990 Australia has permitted dumping of jarosite, a by- product of zinc smelting, since 1973. photo [? Hewetson/Greenpeace]
G-364 Collecting coral to process for lime, Solomon Islands, 1988 Mining coral removes habitat of local marine species, and weakens coastal storm defenses. Rebuilding coral takes time because colonies of tiny coral animals grow slowly. Mined or dredged areas take a very long time to recover. photo Sarah Keene Meltzoff
G-84 Mining sand for landfill, Belize, Sand and gravel are in demand as fill, and as an ingredient of concrete. Mining near shores may lead directly to beach erosion. Removing sand from river beds may also cause beach loss, because floods would have eventually brought that sand to beaches. photo Tony Rath
G-568 Madeleine Albright, U.S. Representative to the United Nations, signaled U.S. approval of the Law of the Sea treaty by signing the sea-bed mining provision on July 29, 1994 (four months before the treaty took effect). photo United Nations
G-435 landscape with photos, objects, captions inset Chesapeake Bay watershed, Maryland photo David H. Harvey/Woodfin Camp & Associates
G-398 Pond after nutrient build- up, Chesapeake Bay watershed, 1994 photo David Harp/Chesapeake Bay Foundation
G-533 Analyzing barnyard manure for nutrient content allows farmers to use manure as an alternative to commercial fertilizers for corn, and to control nutrient-laden runoff from livestock operations. photo Kathie Bentley, Northeast Iowa Demonstration Project
G-447 Storm-drain signs remind Baltimore neighbors that discards can harm the Chesapeake Bay. photo David W. Harp/Chesapeake Bay Foundation
G-172 Sewage spills onto a North Sea beach, Hartlepool, England Every day in the early 1990s, 300 million gallons of sewage entered British coastal waters, most of it untreated. photo Simon Fraser/Photo Researchers, Inc.
G-569 Surfers Against Sewage publicizes health risks from polluted water. This is dried toilet paper on the beach in Troon, Scotland. photo Surfers Against Sewage
G-396 Fish kill caused by nutrient build-up, Nanticoke River, Chesapeake Bay, 1992 photo David W. Harp
G-178 Golden Gate warning sign
G-107 Wildwood, NJ beach closing sign
G-489 shellfish bed closing sign photo Jeff Foott photo Michael Baytoff photo Bruce Wodder/The Image Bank
G-468 Marshes, the final filters in waste-water treatment, Arcata, California photo Ted Streshinsky
G-570 Blue Plains Sewage Treatment Plant, Washington, D.C. The Clean Water Act provided the regulatory tools and financing to build this state- of-the-art plant that treats more than 300 million gallons of sewage per day. Along with a ban on phosphate detergents, the plant has helped to drastically cut the level of phosphorus entering the Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay. photo Hedrich Blessing
G-244 Zebra mussels clog a water intake pipe, Detroit Edison's Monroe Plant photo Ron Peplowski, courtesy of Detroit Edison
G-518 Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco Bay photo David W. Hamilton/The Image Bank
G-92 Algal bloom International Maritime Organization guidelines advise ships to avoid taking on ballast water in heavily silted areas or waters with algal blooms. photo Norbert Wu
G-486 background photo Sand crabs in salt marsh, Sapelo Island, Georgia, 1989 photo S. C. Delaney/courtesy of Environmental Protection Agency
G-87 Red and black mangroves, Belize Thickets of mangrove roots are perfect nurseries for wild shrimp and fishes. An added bonus, the roots protect coasts from wind and wave erosion. Most tropical countries have lost more than half of their mangrove forests to logging, urban development, or conversion to rice fields, cropland, or fish-farming ponds. photo Tony Rath
G-524 White ibis The Everglades' sawgrass fields, dry pinelands, "islands" of trees, and mangrove forests once supported over 600 kinds of animals and 900 of plants. In the past 50 years, pollution or water-flow disruption and complete drainage in some areas have disturbed or destroyed many habitats. Wild populations, especially of birds, have plummeted; the number of wading birds that nest in the national park has dropped by more than 90 percent. [photo credit]
G-526 Planting projects play a major role in saving Louisiana's coastline Vegetation helps hold the mud together and prevents it from washing away. Smooth cordgrass, a salt-tolerant plant, is widely used. photo Louisiana Department of Natural Resources
G-379 background photo Snorkelers and cruise ship, Caribbean islands, 1988 Coral reefs in 90 of 109 countries are being damaged by cruise-ship anchors and sewage, by tourists breaking off chunks of coral, and by commercial harvesting for sale to tourists. photo Dan Ham/Tony Stone Worldwide
G-40 Splitting headaches What happens when a ship drops anchor? The anchor, which may weigh up to 5 tons, can break coral heads, like this one broken by a freighter in the Turks and Caicos islands, and the long swaying anchor chain can crush coral in its wide swing. Just one anchoring in calm seas with no wind can do damage that will take a reef 50 years to repair. photo Doug Perrine
G-85 Bumps and bruises Strolling snorkelers in Belize may not know they've stepped out of line. Just walking on a reef can damage coral that takes years to regrow. photo Tony Rath
G-430 Nicks and Cuts Boat propellers leave visible scars on the ocean bottom. Sea-grass meadows, scraped and clogged with silt stirred up by propellers, may take decades to recover. Less visible are effects on fish and nesting birds. Noise from personal watercraft, like these in the Florida Keys, scares them away. photo Catherine Karnow/Woodfin Camp & Associates
G-171 Manatee, Crystal River, Florida, 1986 A typical adult manatee, a marine mammal, weighs 800 to 1200 pounds (363-544 kg). Perhaps two thousand of them still live in the southeastern U.S. photo Jeff Foott
G-182 Propeller-scarred manatee, Crystal River, Florida, 1986 Researchers have identified 900 manatees with distinguishable propeller scars on their backsides. Watercraft kill about 40 animals a year--a quarter of all manatee deaths. photo Jeff Foott
G-354 Divers installing mooring buoy, Florida, 1989 With help from the National Marine Sanctuaries Program and the grass-roots organization Reef Relief, Greenpeace divers learn how to install a type of single-hole mooring used by boats transporting divers and snorkelers. Reef Relief has installed more than a hundred mooring buoys in Key West. photo Robert Visser/Greenpeace
G-504 Sea otter, one of the more popular residents of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary Monterey Bay is the largest federally regulated marine sanctuary. Its diverse habitats range from rocky shores and sandy beaches to sandy sea floor and thelargest and deepest underwater canyon off the continental U.S. It also includes the largest kelp forest in the U.S. photo Tom Campbell
G-393 background on right Indopacific goldfish above a healthy coral wall covered with sea anemones, Balayan bay, Philippines, 1992 photo Dale Glantz
G-208 Heavily silted reef, Philippines photo Lynn Funkhouser
G-501 Taking down a tropical- forest tree, Papua New Guinea, 1983 During the 1980s over 381 million acres (154 million hectares) of tropical forests were lost--an area almost three times the size of France. Clearing continues for logging, farming and ranching, and rural development. photo James Blair/National Geographic Society
G-186 background on left Sockeye salmon swimming upstream to spawn, Brooks River, Katmai National Park and Preserve, Alaska, 1990 photo Jeff Foott
G-467 Mature second-growth forest logged to the border of a salmon-spawning stream, near Botany Bay, Vancouver Island, British Columbia photo Doug Wechsler/Animals Animals
G-531 Logging old-growth sitka spruce, Lyell Island, British Columbia Old-growth logging may cost more jobs in the salmon industry than jobs at risk from restrictions on logging. Fishing on the Pacific coast of North America is a $10 billion industry that employs as many as 200,000 Americans and Canadians annually. photo Steve Jackson/URSUS
G-433 Bonneville Dam, completed in 1938 Before the 56 Columbia River dams were built for irrigation and hydroelectric power, 16 million wild salmon swam upriver each year. Today, streams and tributaries yield only 2.5 million salmon, most bred in hatcheries. photo Gary Braasch/Woodfin Camp & Associates
G-515 photo on pull-down panel San Joaquin/Sacramento Delta, San Francisco Bay More than a hundred dams and water-diversion systems built to provide irrigation and reclaim cropland have transformed the watersheds that feed San Francisco Bay. Water withdrawals have depleted the San Joaquin River's flow by up to 90 percent. photo California Department of Water Resources pulled down: Salinity has spread into the delta. Combined losses of salmon, striped bass, shad, and other estuarine fisheries have exceeded $3 billion. Control structures have been built to reduce the amount of salt water entering the delta.
G-412 photo on pull-down panel Aswan High Dam, Nile River, Egypt, 1983 In the early 1960s Egypt dammed the Nile to generate electricity and provide year- round irrigation for agriculture. During droughts, the Aswan High Dam diverts up to 95 percent of the Nile's normal water flow, holding back silt. photo Robert Caputo pulled down: The dam has deprived the Nile Delta and Mediterranean shores of more than 1 million tons of nutrient-rich silt. Sardine and shrimp fisheries in the southeastern Mediterranean have declined sharply.
G-516 San Joaquin/Sacramento Delta, San Francisco Bay New regulations sharply reduce pumping from the estuary system during fish migrations. photo California Department of Water Resources
G-571 Traditional toilets turned in under a rebate program, Los Angeles, 1993 Although Los Angeles County spent $100 for each turned-in toilet, the state will save millions of gallons of water as residents switch to low- flow toilets that use less than 2 gallons per flush. photo Rick Rickman/National Geographic Society
G-495 Subsurface drip irrigation developed by USDA scientist Claude J. Phene Although drip irrigation systems are expensive to install, they are a good investment. Farmers have doubled their yield with only half the water other growers use. photo James A. Sugar/Our Changing Earth Photo caption:
G-212 Fishing boats, Friday Harbor, San Juan Island, Washington photo Wolfgang Kaehler
G-350 Mattanza! (landing a giant bluefin tuna), Favignana, Italy, 1990 Bluefin tuna, Thunnus thynnus, are migratory and among the largest and fastest marine fish. An adult may weigh 1500 pounds (680 kg) and can swim in spurts of up to 55 miles per hour (88.6 kph). photo Jeff Rotman
G-338 Frozen tuna, Tsukiji fish market, Tokyo, 1993 Bluefin tuna is a highly prized delicacy in exclusive Japanese sushi restaurants. photo Jeff Rotman
G-411 Farming Atlantic salmon, Faroe Islands, Denmark, 1991 photo Jos Azel/Aurora
G-407 Checking the mesh size of a fish net. Nets with improper or illegal mesh size capture and kill younger fish and non-target species. photo U.S. Coast Guard
G-404 Load of cod, near Fogo Island, Newfoundland, before the cod fishery was closed, July 1990 photo Gordon Peterson
G-314 Exhausted fishermen rest after the halibut "derby" In 1992, fishermen landed about 60 million pounds (27.2 million kg) during the 48-hour halibut season. photo Bob Sacha
G-312 Regardless of weather and exhaustion, fishermen race against time and each other in the dangerous halibut "derby," Alaska, 1993 Most halibut hooked weigh between 20 and 100 pounds (9.1-45.4 kg), but when a 300- pounder is on the line, the whole crew must help land it. photo Bob Sacha
G-418 16,000 pounds of pollock in one haul More pounds of Alaskan pollock were caught in 1993 than any other fish in the U.S. Steller sea lions also prefer pollock. photo National Atmospheric and Oceanic Administration
G-245 Steller sea lions fishing for pollock, Alaska Low birth weights and less healthy adults indicate that food shortages may be limiting Steller sea-lion and harbor- seal populations in some areas of the North Pacific. photo Kennan Ward/Natural Selection
G-491 A haul mostly of skates instead of cod, Georges Bank photo Richard Howard Photography
G-390] Emperor penguin, one of many antarctic species that could suffer from overfishing of krill photo Ben Osborne
G-195 Krill, a vital link in the antarctic food web In 1991 a limit was set on krill catch after CCAMLR evaluated the impact of the krill harvest not only on the krill population but also on other species that depend on these tiny shrimp-like animals for food. photo Flip Nicklin/Minden Pictures
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G-180 Cyanide fishing, Luzon, Philippines Fishermen squirt sodium cyanide into reef crevices where fish hide. Almost 80 percent of the marine aquarium fish sold internationally come from the Philippines, many caught by cyanidefishing. Although the practice has been outlawed, and many importers refuse cyanide-tainted fish, widespread use of cyanide continues. photo Howard Hall/[HHP?] photo Jeff Foott
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G-200 Blast fishing, Philippines, 1987 Blast fishing is also common in Guam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Tanzania. Blasting has caused reef damage in half of the countries in the South Pacific. A beer-bottle-sized bombexploding near the bottom will shatter all stony corals in a circle 10 feet (3 m) wide. A gallon-sized bomb takes out an area about 33 feet (10 m) in diameter. photos Lynn Funkhouser
G-322 background photo, shallow water photo Helmut Horn
G-572 Bottom-trawler, off the coast of Denmark Trawlers often scrape the same area several times each year. Sea-floor species can be displaced, and the types and availability of nutrients changed. Sediments whipped up by trawling can make water a thousand times cloudier than normal, limiting resettlement and feeding of plants and animals. photo Danish Fishing Museum
G-426 Net-training class for tropical-fish collectors, Luzon, Philippines, 1992 photo Steve Robinson/Sea of Cortez Handcaught Marines, Inc.
G-427 Anti-cyanide campaign banner, Luzon, Philippines, 1992 photo Steve Robinson/Sea of Cortez Handcaught Marines, Inc.
G-512 Replanted mangroves, Negros, Philippines, 1993 photo Don Hinrichsen
G-298 background photo A shrimping crew culls the by-catch, Gulf of Mexico Commercial marine fisheries in the U.S. alone toss away up to 20 billion pounds of by-catch each year--twice the commercial and recreational catch combined. photo Robert W. Parvin
G-480 Sorting catch and by-catch on a shrimpboat deck, Georgia, 1986 Shrimpers tow nets that collect shrimp, and many other animals in their path. Red snapper, croaker, mackerel, seatrout, spot, drum, and other fishes --up to nine times more than the shrimp catch--are dumped overboard, already dead or dying. photo John Domont/courtesy of Center for Marine Conservation
G-477 Dead by-catch from shrimp trawlers, Texas coast, Gulf of Mexico, 1993 photo Bob Cranston
G-100 Driftnetting in the North Pacific, August 1990 When strung together, driftnets could sweep almost 40 miles (60 km). photo Lorett Dorreboom/Greenpeace
G-75 Drowned white-sided dolphin, North Pacific, 1990 During the peak years of driftnetting in the late 1980s, more than ten thousand dolphins and whales and millions of sharks were killed annually. photo Roger Grace/Greenpeace
G-102 3-mile-long Japanese driftnet displayed on the National Mall, Washington, DC, October 1990 photo Robert Visser/Greenpeace
G-386 background Oceans would affect and be affected by worldwide warming. photo Luc Cuyvers
G-253 Storms would rage If oceans grow warmer, more and stronger hurricanes and typhoons could hit coastal North America and the Far East. photo Mark J. Rauzon
G-341 Shores would be submerged Water expands as it warms up. If polar ice caps melt, sea level will rise. A rise of only a few feet would devastate low-lying islands and coastal cities. photo Jeff Rotman
G-473 Coral reefs would die back Coral's colors (and energy) come from algae that live within the coral tissue. Warmer temperatures stress the coral, which expels the algae. photo Bob Cranston
G-532 Compact fluorescent bulbs use only one-fourth as much electricity as conventional incandescent bulbs. Although socket-type fluorescent bulbs are more expensive, they last about thirteen times longer and save about three times more money than they cost.
G-408 background Adlie penguins on antarctic ice floe Like falling dominoes, each level in the antarctic food web could be hit by increased ultraviolet radiation. Ultimately the supply of seafood for penguins (and humans) could change. photo Jos Azel/Aurora
G-196 Krill under ice Are CFCs krill killers? Reactions set off by increased ultraviolet radiation in the Antarctic could move up the food chain, from algae to small animals that krill eat, with far-reaching results in a food web that includes 120 species of finfish, 80 species of seabirds, 6 species of seals, and 15 species of whales and dolphins--not to mentionhumans. photo Flip Nicklin/Minden Pictures
G-549 A sea of CFC-cooled refrigerators awaits recycling photo James A. Sugar
G-493 SMUD team safely removes CFCs The Sacramento Municipal Utilities District removes CFCs from old refrigerators, returns the coolants to the manufacturer for recycling, and sells the metal for scrap. During the program's first four years, SMUD recovered 21,000 pounds (9,500 kg) of freon, a type of CFC. photo James A Sugar
G-414 Barrier-island development crowds New Jersey's Island Beach State Park Coastal development does have down sides: more and more roads, water, and sewer facilities must be built, all of which are susceptible to storm damage. Shoreline erosion often follows, lowering water quality and reducing wildlife habitats. photo Robert Perron
G-415 A nor'easter tore through barrier-island housing, Westhampton Beach, New York, 1992 Since 1982, federal subsidies, including federal flood insurance and grants for infrastructure, have been prohibited by law on designated barrier islands and beaches. photo Robert Perron
G-397 photo David Harp
G-409 Key Biscayne, Florida, then and now A photograph taken in the 1950s or 1960s shows a bare beach, but the man holding the photograph stands on the last vacant lot in the same area, in March 1984. photo Jos Azel/Aurora
G-525 Tourists enjoy the Mediterranean, near Cannes, France, 1991 photo Natalie B. Fobes
G-112 Fourth of July weekend, Absecon Island, New Jersey, 1983 photo Michael Baytoff/Black Star