November Video of the Month - Green Crab

European green crabs (Carcinus maenas) are the most common crab found on the shores in our local area.  However, they are an invasive species that originally came to North America from Europe in the 1800s.  They are an aggressive and territorial crab that is able to withstand long periods out of water and changes in salinity.  Green crabs are omnivores that can eat clams, mussels, other crabs, fish, dead plant and animal debris, and it has been shown that they can learn to prey on new food items.

Here at the Huntsman we have been monitoring the local green crab population with the help of students taking part in our field courses.  Data such as size and gender are gathered.

The below video shows a green crab eating herring in a tank in our teaching lab.  Note the claws are used to hold the food and move it closer to the mouth where the specialized mouth parts process the food.

Whale Behaviours

When we take students whale watching in the Bay of Fundy we never know what we will get the opportunity to see.  Below are some of the interesting whale behaviours that we have seen over the years.

Surface active group (SAG) - right whales socializing 

and possibly courting. 

Lobtailing - lifting tail out of the water and 

then slapping the surface with the tail

Breaching - jumping out of the water

Breaching humpback coming down.

Skim feeding - right whales feed by skimming through the water 

with mouth open to filter plankton from the water

Peduncle throw - lifts tail out of the water and swings it sideways

Spyhop - pokes head above the water to see 

what is going on above the surface

Flipper slap - slapping the surface with a pectoral fin

Harvey Elementary

The grade 2 and 5 classes from Harvey Elementary came to the Huntsman Fundy Discovery Aquarium for a tour today.  Here are some pictures from the fun day!  Snorkel and Loki said, "Come back and visit again"!

Learning about the high tides of the Bay of Fundy.

Sea star suction cups.

Checking out the salmon tank.

Dance party with the Bay of Fundy fishes!

Kisses from Loki.

One of the students found a sea star that is growing back two arms,

Beautiful little blood star.

Echinoderm Diversity

Echinoderms are a group of totally marine animals that share the characteristics of spiny skin, radial symmetry (usually 5-sided) and a water vascular system for movement, respiration and food and waste transport.

It is amazing to watch these animals move and feed with the understanding that they have no brain!

Check out the diversity of echinoderms that we have found when exploring the marine environment with students.

Basket star dried specimen (Gorgonocephalus arcticus) 

Daisy brittle stars (Ophiopholis aculeata)

Dwarf brittle star as seen under the microscope (Axiognathus squamata)

Common sea star (Asterias vulgaris)

Forbes' asterias (Asterias forbesii)

Blood star (Henricia sanguinolenta)

Mud star (Ctenodiscus crispatus)

Winged sea star (Pteraster militaris)

Purple sunstars (Solaster endeca)

Spiny sunstar (Solaster papposus)

Silky cucumber or tufted synapta (Chiridota laevis)

Orange footed sea cucumber (Cucumaria frondosa)

No common name for this sea cucumber (Thyonidium drummondii)

 

Green sea urchin (Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis)

Sand dollar (Echinarachnius parma)

Harbour View High

Students from the Harbour View High School Marine Biology class arrived on campus this morning excited for their field course.  While here the students went out on our research vessel, the Fundy Spray to collect specimens, studied marine invertebrates in the lab, and conducted a behaviour experiment with echinoderms.  They are now headed back to school with a jar full of live plankton they collected while out on the boat.  It was a quick and intense day but lots of fun!

Measuring a sand dollar.

Biological drawing of a scallop.

The students using their powers of observation to describe the animals.

Behaviour lab with sea stars and urchins.

A sea urchin in the processes of flipping over.