CLEAN BEACHES & OCEANS

Formation of the Gyres 5 Major oceans have these gyres. (Actually spin in a circle) Between the winds and rotation of the earth you get big currents that create these motions. It takes all the debris and circulates and they end up in the middle of the ocean and there is lack of wind (it is calm and still ) that is why things stay there forever.

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch A giant, growing zone of floating trash: twice the size of Texas 90% plastic Zoning into the middle of the pacific ocean. All the yellow dots represents the trash. Giant zones of floating trash. It’s the size of 20 Nicaragua’s. Its not an island that you can walk on. Its trash floating around.

6 x more plastic than plankton There is 6 times more plastic than plankton in the North Pacific gyre. Captain Charlie Moore (from Los Angeles, CA)– The ocean is blue and doesn’t look trashy but if you scoop up the water this is what he finds. This is what the birds and the fish are eating thinking it is food. 6 x more plastic than plankton AMRF

The Black-footed Albatross 12 foot wing span. Huge beautiful birds. They only spend one month on land. They are always out at sea and so far out in the ocean. So they are eating trash more often food. Jay Holcomb-IBRCC

2 researchers trying to figure out what the green thing is in the mouth of the chick. http://news.bbc.co.uk

http://news.bbc.co.uk

It was a hook for a bag at the market It was a hook for a bag at the market. Something this small is still very dangerous to the fish and birds. They don’t have hands to remove it.. (Go back to slide 8 to look at it again) http://news.bbc.co.uk

What do you see in the stomach of this albatross chick? Explain where the eyes are so they understand what they are looking for. The researchers wanted to find out why the birds were dying and they opened the tummy to see. They caps, combs, toys, bottle caps. A lot of red and yellow because they think that they are shrimp. Their stomachs are full of trash and they starve because there is no room for food. Photo: Cynthia Vanderlip What do you see in the stomach of this albatross chick?

And this one… Gregg Segal Another Albatross. The carcass will decompose and the trash will end up back in the ocean. Gregg Segal

Rainbow Runner 17 fragments of plastic in its stomach

All of this (more than a half-pound of trash) was removed from the stomach of an albatross, a large sea bird

Turtles often mistake plastic bags for jellyfish. What does this look like? Turtles eat jelly fish. The plastic bags look like jelly fish. Many kinds of animals are hurt from plastic bags blown out to sea.

Do you think plastic six pack holders REALLY strangle animals? YES… plastic is very, very strong. (note the strength of the plastic) NOAA

©Dino Ferri http://www.auduboninstitute.org/zoo The turtle was a baby when it walked through a plastic ring from a milk container and he couldn’t take it off and he grew. This is how strong plastic is. ©Dino Ferri http://www.auduboninstitute.org/zoo

What Can You Do? Throw your trash in the trash cans Pick up the trash off the floor You can reuse your bags Tell your friends what you learned Beach clean up parties Throw your trash in the trash cans. Pick up the trash off the floor. You can reuse your bags. Tell your friends what you learned. Beach clean up parties.

Thank you for taking the time to learn about our oceans and sea animals.