Bony Fish

Hey it is me, Willard and I am going to talk about, how bony  fish float, the role of each fin, what a lateral line is, how fish breathe, what does cold blooded mean, what do most fish like to eat, and cool facts about three bony fish called theViperfish, the Electric Eel, and the Atlantic Salmon. So lets get started with how bony fish float.


There are more than 24,000 species of bony fish. Some may weigh more than two tons and others may weigh a fraction of an once. Bony fish live in every imaginable water habitat, from ocean surfaces to the dark ocean floor and from lakes to rivers.
These fish have bony skeletons and their bodies are covered with scales.  They have gills which allow them to breath in water and an internal float which allows them to float.  Your may be wondering what are gills. Well, gills are organs which allow a fish to breathe the oxygen that is in the water.  It is that same way that lungs allow humans to breathe in oxygen from the air.  Take a look at the gills.




Their shapes of bonny fish depend on where they live.  Bony fish are cold blooded animals.  Cold blooded means that their body temperature changes according to the surrounding temperature.  If they are in freezing water their bodies become cold and if they are in warm waters their bodies become warm.  Bony fish usually lay eggs that are fertilized in the water and they typically leave they young to take care of themselves.  I guess that they are not the best parents to have. 


                                               How Bony Fish Float

Bony fish float because they have some thing in their bodies called a swim bladder. Swim Bladders expand and deflate to allow them to float.  It is sort of like having a balloon inside of you.  When the balloon is filled with air you float and when the air is let out of the balloon you sink.  This is what the swim bladder looks like.





You wonder why does a fish float to the top of the water when it dies, that is because its swim bladder is      deflated and it can not control it anymore.

  What do Bony Fish Eat

Bony fish eat different types of food.  Some bony fish are herbivores, omnivores carnivores.  They can eat all sizes of plants and animals from microscopic plant plankton to the largest marine animals.  Some of the common foods are worms, snails, mussels, clams, squid, crustaceans, insects, insects, birds, amphibians, small mammals and other fish.






Now it is time to introduce you to my three bony fish. I have nicknamed them the Good, the Bad and the Ugly just like that old Western movie my parents watch.


Let's start with the Good. You may have heard of the Atlantic Salmon because you most likely may have had it as a meal.  Salmon is one of may favorite fish to eat especially when it is grilled.  That is why I called it the Good.  The Atlantic Salmon is a large and very powerful fish.  It life begins in the river where it eats insects larvae and worms.  When it has grown about six inches it moves from the river to the sea.  The Adult salmon will roam the Atlantic ocean for up to two years before it returns to fresh water to lay is eggs.  Once the female laid her eggs she returns to the ocean , leaving her young to grow up on their own.  This is picture of the Salmon.  Tell me which you like better.











The bad is the Electric Eel.  Electric eels have snakelike bodies and they look very different from other fish and they are not not even true eels at all.  The Electric Eel is a South American river fish that can produce strong electric currents which are powerful enough to kill a human.  When it is hunting it will stun other fish with a shock up to 550 volts.  Once a fish has been stunned the eel turns off its current and swallows its prey.   The electric Eel uses special muscles as batteries.  These batteries extend all the way down its body.  Imagine carry your own power with you where ever you go and that is why the Electric Eel is know as the Bad.  This is a picture of the Electric Eel.


 Now on to the Ugly.  You will never see this fish in a fashion show or on the cover of a beauty magazine.  The Viperfish is not a model and when you see it you will know why I named him the Ugly.  The Viperfish got its name from its long fangs that stick out from its jaws even when its mouth is closed.  Not even braces can help this fish.  Its body is black and one of its fins has a long spine with a lighted tip which it uses to lure other animal to its mouth.  This fish looks scary.  Get your cameras out!  Here comes the Viperfish.




I hope that you have enjoyed my latest post.  Come back to visit soon.

Why Do We Have Seasons?

Thanks for coming back to read my latest post.  I am going to talk about "Why we have seasons." If your thinking seasons and salt and pepper come to mind, well that is actually seasonings and that is not what I am talking about.  I am talking about Spring, Summer, Fall also known as Autumn, and Winter.

 

I know you have noticed the change from season to season every year.  In November, here in Georgia, we are currently in the Fall season and there are lots of falling leaves everywhere.  I do not like the falling leaves because it means I will be spending a lot of time raking leaves around my house.  My favorite season is winter.  I love winter because I enjoy the cold weather and also Christmas is in Winter.

Look at the beautiful colors of Fall!  The leaves are beginning to fall from the trees.

But, have you ever wondered what causes the seasons to change?  Well, I once read that, "The reason for seasons lies in space".  You maybe wondering what does that all mean.  Well I am going to explain.

Our planet Earth makes a path through space that takes it around the Sun.  This path is also known as as an orbit.  The Earth takes one year to orbit around the sun. The Earth's seasons are not caused by the differences in the distance from the Sun throughout the year, but it is caused by the tilt of the Earth's axis.   You maybe wondering what on Earth does the words obit and tilt mean.  Hold on and let me explain.  Take a look at these pictures!





The obit is the path of gravity taken by Earth around the sun.  Earth just goes around the Sun  and gravity helps it stay on the right path.






The best way to explain tilt is to imagine a top just before it stops spinning.  Remember how it leans closer to the ground.  Well a tilt is sort of like a lean.  What I am trying to say is that our planet earth is leaning while orbiting around the sun . The Earth's axis is tilted by 23.45°. This tilting is what gives us the four seasons of the year called Spring, Summer, Fall also known as Autumn and winter. Since the axis is tilted, different parts of the Earth are facing closer towards the Sun at different times of the year.

Because the earth is tilted, over the year the poles learn at different times toward the sun . In June for example, the North pole leans towards the sun and the sun heats the northern half of the Earth and there is summer. In December the South Pole leans towards the sun. Places in the southern half of the world , such as Argentina, have summer. At the same time, places in the northern half, such as Canada, and right here in Georgia have winter.  This picture will make it easy to understand.





Summer is warmer than winter in both hemispheres because the Sun's rays hit the Earth at a more direct angle during summer than during the winter.  This means that the Suns' light does not spread out that much, therefore maximizing the amount of energy that hits an area.  Also the days are much longer than the nights during the summer, which means that the Sun is hitting Earth for a longer time.

Winter is cold because the Sun's rays hit the Earth at an extreme angle. This means, the Sun's light spreads out therefore, minimizing the amount of energy that hits an area.   Also, the days are very short, which means that the Sun is hitting the Earth for a shorter time.  However, countries around the equator do not have seasons.  You maybe saying, how could this be possible.  Well, the sun hits the equator at about the same angle all year round.  Which means, there is summer everyday of the year.  Places like the Caribbean islands have no seasons.

One of the most interesting things I learned when researching for this post, is that seasons start at different times every year.  Take a look at the times for 2011 and 2012.  If you ever wanted to know the start of a season check out the Farmer' Almanac.           

Seasons of 2011:
SPRING EQUINOX	March 20, 7:21 P.M. EDT
SUMMER SOLSTICE	June 21, 1:16 P.M. EDT
FALL EQUINOX	September 23, 5:05 A.M. EDT
WINTER SOLSTICE	December 22, 12:30 A.M. EST

Seasons of 2012:
SPRING EQUINOX	March 20, 1:14 A.M. EDT
SUMMER SOLSTICE	June 20, 7:09 P.M. EDT
FALL EQUINOX	September 22, 10:49 A.M. EDT
WINTER SOLSTICE	December 21, 6:12 A.M. EST

The temperature from season to season are different.  You might be wondering how hot or cold can it get.





Here in Georgia, during the summer, the temperatures may range from 70 to 100 degrees Fahrenheit.  If summer is not hot enough for you in Georgia, well you need to visit Libya or Death Valley, California. These places have recorded the two hottest temperatures ever recorded on the planet during the summer.  The hotest day ever recorded was  on September 13, 1922, in Libya which was 136 degress Fahrenheit.  California's Death Valley had the second-highest temperature recorded of 134 degrees Fahrenheit in 1913.

How cold can it get in the winter?  In Georgia, the temperature range form 36 to 56 degrees fahrenheit in the winter.  The coldest temperature ever recorded on earth is -128.5 degrees Fahrenheit in the Antarctica on July 21, 1983.
I hope that you have enjoyed and learned a lot about seasons from my post.  Come back to visit!