Project G. L. A. D. La Habra City School District California Ocean Habitats Level 4 Idea Pages
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Down in the DeepDown in the deep, within the sea--- That’s not the place for you and me! ‘Cause way down there, so I’ve been told. It’s dark as night and freezing cold. But in this place, down in the deep, Strange creatures swim and crawl and creepAnd tiny monsters blink and glow, Down in the deep, way down below. Narrative Input Chart Text Adapted from Sea Otter Rescue: The Aftermath of an Oil Spill By Roland Smith
2. On the evening of March 23, 1989, a supertanker named the Exxon Valdez left the Valdez oil terminal and headed out through the treacherous waters of the sound, carrying within its huge dark storage hull more than 42 million gallons of thick, toxic crude oil. Warning of disaster came just before midnight. The ship was dangerously off course. The seaman alerted the officer in charge. Moments later the tanker shuddered to a halt. Loaded with crude oil, it had run into a reef in Alaska’s Prince William Sound. The thick, smelly cargo began gushing to the surface from gashes in the ship’s hull. 3. The accident happened at 12:04 a.m. on March 24, 1989. Confusion and lack of training and equipment caused delays in responding. Twelve hours passed before the oil stopped gushing. By then the damage had been done. Eleven million gallons of crude oil had leaked into the sound. The oil drifted some 550 miles and fouled 1,200 miles of shoreline. For the people and animals of the sound, the event spelled catastrophe. It was being called the largest oil spill in United States history. As the oil spread through Prince William Sound, the animals that lived along the shores had no idea what was coming their way. All of their lives were in jeopardy, but especially threatened was the sea otter. To understand why, we need to know something about sea otters and how they live. 4. Because of the characteristics of the sea otter’s fur, its grooming habits, and the large amount of time that it spends on the surface of the water, the sea otter is very vulnerable to an oil spill. Direct exposure to oil causes severe soiling of the fur, which can lead to hypothermia (lowering of the body temperature). 5. When its metabolic rate (the amount of energy it has to use in order to stay warm) increases, a sea otter will sometimes stop eating. Without food, the sea otter loses weight. Then it must expend more energy in order to stay floating on the surface of the water, since its body has lost some of the fat which gives it buoyancy. In addition to this, a sea otter may inadvertently swallow oil as it is trying to get it off its fur. Crude oil is toxic and can affect the sea otter’s internal organs, like the lungs, liver, and kidneys. 6. Within twenty-four hours after the spill, animal rescue experts from all over the United States began to arrive in Valdez. A scientist from Hubb’s Sea World Research Laboratory was hired by Exxon to coordinate the sea otter rescue. He recruited veterinarians, zoo biologists, pathologists, toxicologists, plumbers, and carpenters from all overt the country to help with the rescue. 7. The primary victims of past oil spills had been birds. Because very few sea otters had ever been affected by an oil spill, rescuers did not know exactly how to help the animals. At first they made do with what was available and, as they gained experience, they modified what equipment they had. They built otter washing stations out of plastic barrels cut in half with screens over the tops of them, so that the oil could go down drains as the otters were being washed and rinsed. They constructed holding cages out of “fish totes,” which are used by the fishing industry to transport fish to the marketplace. Plumbers piped in hot water so that rescuers could wash the otters in warm water, which helped break down the crude oil and warmed up the otters. 8. Once the otter had been rinsed, it was towel dried and moved to the drying room. In the drying room, heavy duty air blowers were used to complete the drying process, which could take as long as an hour and a half. 9. When the sea otters recovered, they were first taken to large floating pens just outside the Rescue Center. A floating pen has a net underneath it and on the sides, so that the otters cannot escape. The sea otters were watched closely in this pen for a few days. If they seemed healthy, the otters were caught, inoculated with antibiotics, put into crates, and flown to floating pens that had been built in little Jakolof Bay. In these pens the otters were fed live food. The next step for these sea otters was freedom, but sometimes catching an animal is easier than letting it go. 10. It was finally decided to take a few of the healthy sea otters and release them with radio transmitters implanted in their bodies, so biologists could follow their movement. The rescuers were worried that the sea otter would travel back into the contaminated areas. The biologists determined that the implanted sea otters were staying in the safe area where they were released. This meant that the other healthy sea otters could be released back into the wild. 11. By the time the Exxon Valdez oil spill was over it had traveled across over 550 miles of water. No one knows for sure how many animals were lost, but it is estimated that will over a thousand sea otters and 32,000 birds (including over a hundred bald eagles) died as a result of the oil spill. Seventy-five percent of the sea otters that were brought into the Otter Rescue Centers were saved. 12. It is estimated that there are currently 13,000 sea otters living in Prince William Sound today. Many researchers believe it will take another twenty years for the sea otters to reach their pre-spill population. The rest are still recovering from that terrible accident that happened four minutes past midnight on March 24, 1989. Sperm Whale Expert Groups The sperm whale lives in the mesopelagic or twilight zone which is located from to 650 to 3,300 feet underwater. Sperm whales actually live at the surface of the water, but dive up to 4000 feet deep to catch giant squid. 
Sperm whales are carnivores that eat mostly giant squid. They also eat fish, octopus, and skate. The sperm whale has the largest head of any animal and has many scars from the suckers of the giant squid.
Sperm whales produce ambergris, a type of cholesterol, in their lower intestine which helps protect the sperm whale against the stings of the giant squid. Being a toothed whale, they can eat lots of giant squid with their uniform teeth. The upper jaw of the whale has teeth that fit perfectly into sockets with the lower teeth. The lower teeth can measure up to seven inches long.
Sperm whales are mammals since they give live birth and milk their young. They are one of the seventy-six cetacean species.
Sperm Whale Expert Groups The sperm whale lives in the mesopelagic or twilight zone which is located from to 650 to 3,300 feet underwater. Sperm whales actually live at the surface of the water, but dive up to 4000 feet deep to catch giant squid.
Sperm whales are carnivores that eat mostly giant squid. They also eat fish, octopus, and skate. The sperm whale has the largest head of any animal and has many scars from the suckers of the giant squid.
Sperm whales produce ambergris, a type of cholesterol, in their lower intestine which helps protect the sperm whale against the stings of the giant squid. Being a toothed whale, they can eat lots of giant squid with their uniform teeth. The upper jaw of the whale has teeth that fit perfectly into sockets with the lower teeth. The lower teeth can measure up to seven inches long.
Sperm whales are mammals since they give live birth and milk their young. They are one of the seventy-six cetacean species.
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