Changes in ecosystems. That was today’s topic of conversation, involving changes in temperatures, currents, and waves. We learned about everything from how the moon changes the tides due to the pull of the moon’s gravity, to how saltwater that is closer to the equator has a higher concentration of salt. The reason for this is the equator is the part of the earth that is closest to the sun, which means that more water evaporates there, leaving a higher concentrate of salt behind. We also discussed how water that has currents traveling towards the equator, get heated and rise at the equator creating a convection current. So naturally, we ask the question again, what on earth does this have to do with marine biology? The answer is that often times due to temperature changes close to Peru, storms called El Nino can wipe out entire species of fish. Fisherman knew about these storms long before the media spread the word. Also, as seen in the movie, “Finding Nemo,” some fish use currents to travel from place to place. As always I am looking forward to tomorrow’s class.
