How Nutrient From The Sea Ended Up In The Forest?

Chum salmon swimming their way back to their breeding place. Photo by: Thomas Kline, Salmonography.

It’s hard to believe that trees deep in the forest get their nutrients far-far away from the sea. That what the wonder on nature when they work together accordingly. One of examples that we can see is the returning of salmon during the breeding season.

Salmon is one of few species of animals that start their life in the freshwater and spend their growing time in the sea then return back only to lay their eggs. As they return their journey back to the deep forest that might take few thousand kilometres as example of chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta) that travel the longest journey far up to Yukon River and deep into the Amur River basin where the journey will take more than 3,200 km (2,000 mi).

Alaskan brown bear with chum salmon. Photo by: Alan Vernon

Salmon alevin. Photo by: OpenCage

Within their journey they will become meals for numbers of other animal species such as eagle, otter, water birds, and bear that waiting for their returning from the sea. Then for the surviving salmon will continue their journey to their breeding place far into the forest. Their journey up the river requires them to have strong muscles, with it they are capable to leaps more than 2 meters height.

Travelling far from the sea will make salmon lost lots of energy all of them will die after spawning their eggs. Their carcases might be taken by other animals out of the water and left the remaining alone. Then the remaining will become home to blow fly’s larvae that will eat on the remaining flesh.

Once they are ready, the maggots will buried themselves in the soil until they emerge as adult flies. These flies again will do another important thing for plants and trees in the surrounding areas; pollinating the flowers to make sure they can produce seeds for their next generation.

Dying salmon after the breeding season. Photo by: Ned Rozell

Death salmon releasing nutrients from the sea. Photo by: fishbio.com

We might think that salmon just one species of animal and maybe important to those few animals that eat them. With closer observation we can see how all the ecosystem intertwine together with every single piece of them nourishing one another.

Even though each female salmon can carry from 2,500 to 7,500 eggs depending on size and species, only some of them will hatched. From that numbers less than 2 percent will return to the same location to spawn again in the next 6 to 7 years.

Micro Post: The Sand Tiger Shark

Sand Tiger Shark, the most popular aquarium shark.

The sand tiger shark (Carcharias taurus), the most popular shark in the aquariums since it’s doing very well in captivity. Sand tiger shark also known as grey nurse shark, spotted ragged-tooth shark, or blue-nurse sand tiger they inhabits subtropical and temperate waters worldwide. The sand tiger shark rarely attacks human with no confirmed human fatalities.

The size of adult sand tiger shark range from 2 m (6.5 ft) to 3.2 m (10.5 ft) in length while weighing around 91 kg (200.6 lb) to 159 kg (350.5 lb). The shape of its head is pointy and opposed to round, while the snout is flattened with a conical shape. The sand shark has well built body and bulky with its easily seen extends beyond the eyes. They usually swim with its mouth open displaying three rows of sharp-pointed teeth. Besides its docile temperament, it’s become the most suitable shark to use as display in many aquariums.

Sand Tiger Shark with its meal.

Eating their smaller aquarium mate (aquarium in Seoul, Korea).

For their diet, most of their prey creatures are demersal (i.e. from the sea bottom), that consist of crustaceans, squid, skates and small bony fish. They prey also changes according to their stages of life, where when it getting larger they will start to take more benthic prey.

Other special characteristic of sand tiger shark includes the ability of breath air from the surface which allows it to float near the surface with ease. They have small eyes with no eyelids. While during pregnancy their young might eating each other while they still in their mother’s body.

Sharper teeth to easily catch its prey.

Arrays of 3 layer teeth can easily be seen.

As they doing very well in captivity, the sand tiger shark is listed vulnerable on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List. It would be nice if we know more about this gentle creature as they might get closer to your beach. Kindly share if you have any additional information about sand tiger shark in the comment below.

Micro Post: River Lamprey

More like eel than fish, lamprey lack of fins.

European river lamprey (Lampetra fluviatilis), also known as river lamprey or lampern is one type of the lampreys family live in the fresh water in Russia, Scotland, Norway, Finland and other European coastal waters and rivers.

Lampreys are known for their sucker mouth with sharp teeth to attach itself to its prey. The size can range from 25 to 40 cm (10 to 16 in) for the sea-going forms while just to 28 cm (11 in) for the lake forms. Not like any other fish, lampreys lack of paired fins while having sucking disc instead of jaws.

Sucking disc instead of jaws.

There's also North American species.

Lampreys are also anadromous (sea going) same as salmon and only back to the river during the mating seasons. This migration to the spawning areas will take place during autumn and winter. The spawning activity will be active during the spring time, and the adult will die soon after this process.

Even though lampreys look kind of scary with its sucking mouth and eating on flesh of others fish, it should be considered as normal in the nature. Anyway, the introduction of this species into new location (rivers or lakes) might cause unhealthy effect to the balance of the local fish.

Otter enjoying its meal.

Water bird with its catch.

More food for crayfish too.