All dressed up
Ribbon seals live in the Sea of Okhotsk and the Bering Sea.
These seals are black with four white bands. Ribbon seals live
alone. They eat about 20 pounds (9.1 kg) of squid, octopus,
and fish every day. Their main predators are polar bears and
killer whales.
Lights and color
Comb jellies have no bones. They have eight rows of comblike
structures that flutter. This is how they swim. They are bio-
luminescent, which means they can glow. Most comb jellies
dangle long tentacles below their bodies. Copepods and oth-
er small
crustaceans
stick to the tentacles. Comb jellies eat
jellyfish, too.
M
y favorite animal is the Antarctic krill. I have investigated the
ecology
and
physiology
of these fascinating small animals for many years. The Antarc-
tic krill play a critical role in the Southern Ocean
food web
. They are the
primary prey for many predators. And they are being
commercially
fished.
— Dr. Kendra L. Daly, Biological Oceanographer, University of South Florida
ASK A
SC I ENT I ST
What is your favorite animal in the Southern Ocean?
11
InfinIte Wonders
