Oceans

Oceans are the largest of all ecosystems on Earth. They contain 97% of all water on earth. At its deepest point the Pacific Ocean is over six and a half miles deep. The ocean is an amazing place. Underwater volcanoes erupt from the ocean floor and many plants live and animals swim in its water. It truly is a wonderful place.
Oceanographers (scientists that study the ocean) have divided the ocean into three different zones: the sunlight zone, the twilight zone and the midnight zone. The sunlight zone contains all the water from the surface to 300 ft. below and about 90% of all ocean life. The twilight zone is all the water 301 to 3,000 below the surface. Only dim blue light reaches to this part of the ocean. Plants can’t grow and fewer animals live here. Some animals in this zone go up into the sunlight zone to catch a meal. Others eat dead plants and animals that drift into this zone. The midnight zone it is everything 3,001 ft. and under. This zone includes three-fourths of the total ocean water. Midnight zone animals are strange looking creatures.
Scientists have also have divided marine life into three groups: plankton, nekton and benthos. Plankton are animals that float in the water like krill. Nekton are those that swim in the water and are usually bigger than Plankton, such as sharks and squid. And Benthos are the luminous deep sea prawn that prefer the darkness and cold of the deep.
The Anglerfish (Suborder Ceratioidei) is one example of a Benthos. It is a carnivore that lives in the very bottom of the Atlantic and Southern oceans up to a mile below the surface (the midnight zone). Anglerfish are usually dark gray or dark brown in color and have huge heads and mouths. Some Anglerfish grow to 4 feet long, but many never get that long. They are easy to recognize because the females have a piece of dorsal spine that hangs above their mouths. Males don’t have this feature because the male searches until he finds a female and then latches on to her until he merges with her losing most of his internal organs. He also merges with her skin and bloodstream. A female will carry many males at once. Anglerfish (just like many other deep sea animals) have large stomachs that allow them to eat almost anything that comes within reach, which is essential in the deep sea where food is very hard to find.
It is very easy to harm the ocean. People pollute the water every day. Oil spills can damage the water; it only takes 1 quart of oil poured on the ground to ruin 250,000 gallons of drinking water. Another thing that damages ocean life happens when people forget to cut the rings on the plastic soda can holders. This can strangle seabirds. The ocean is a very beautiful place but it is also in great danger.
The ocean is a very important ecosystem that needs to be protected. There are many more amazing and incredible animals in the ocean. Scientists have also found out that our heart rates slow down in the water and that supports most of their theories that human evolution began in water. With work and time the carelessness that damaged the ocean in the first place can be repaired.
 
Bibliography
1) BBC Nature Site, http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/blueplanet/factfiles/fish/angler_fish.shtml

2) Imagequest Site, http://www.imagequest3d.com/pages/current/pictureoftheweek/deepseaangler/anglerfish.htm

3) National Geographic Animals Site, http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/fish/anglerfish.html


4) Su, Adrienne, “Oceans,” Kids Discover, New York: Kids Discover, 2006

5) Sands, Stella, “Oceans 2,” Kids Discover, New York: Kids Discover, 2008

6) Woodward, John, Oceans Atlas: An Amazing Aquatic Adventure, London: Dorling Kindersley Limited, 2007