journeys with habitat helpers - THE AQUARIUM

Welcome to Journeys with Habitat Helpers!

If you've been with us from the start, you'll understand that this is a new feature we're adding. Journeys are when we visit places that are hubs of environmental awareness, such as aquariums, zoos, gardens, and more. On Friday, if you've read the tech glitch post [WE ADVISE YOU READ IT], you'll recall that we went to the aquarium, and as stated there, we will NOT state the name.

We went to a sea lion showdown, saw lots of sharks, pinnipeds, fish, jellyfish [my favorite was the white-spotted jellyfish], & more! We also saw schools of fish in action and an injured fish inside a cage. We also saw stingrays, and Cat Clara even touched one!

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Back to the post—Let's see if you know what pinniped means! Please type your answer in the comments. We will reply to this question next week.

ANYHOW, here are 3 facts about really cool marine life!

1. White-Spotted Jellyfish [the scientific name is Phyllorhiza punctata] - They are actually invasive species. It is unknown how they got to certain regions, such as the San Diego area, but it is theorized that the polyps may have attached themselves to ships. Since they are invasive species, they have become a threat to certain species of shrimp!

2. Groupers - They are a species of fish that are apex predators! However, due to overfishing, their populations are declining. Some threats include mangrove loss. Young groupers spend their first few years hiding in mangrove forests which are now being destroyed by coastal development, so the "nursery" for the next generation disappears.

3. California Sea Lion - The California Sea Lion population is so large that it is close to carrying capacity (the maximum population size of a biological species that can be sustained). The estimated population is 238,000–241,000 for the U.S. or Pacific Temperate stock, 75,000–85,000 for the Western Baja California or Pacific Tropical stock, and 31,393 for the population in the Gulf of California.

PLEASE COMMENT BELOW WHETHER YOU WOULD LIKE A VIDEO ON WHICH OF THESE TOPICS:

1. THE WHITE-SPOTTED JELLYFISH - HOW THEY ARE INVASIVE

2. GROUPERS - ALL THE THREATS TO THEM

3. THE CALIFORNIA SEA LION - HOW THEY HAVE ALMOST REACHED THE CARRYING CAPACITY

IF WE GET NO COMMENTS, WE WILL DO A RANDOM ONE OF THESE OR DO SOMETHING DIFFERENT.

Thanks for reading!

- Sincerely, Habitat Helpers

Image of a white-spotted jellyfish