Deep sea FAQ

Miscellaneous Fish

• Is life found at all depths in the ocean?
• How many fish species are there?
• Which is the oldest fish?
• What is the world's largest fish? The smallest?
• What is the most common fish in the sea?
• Do fish sleep?

• What is an anadromous fish? A catadromous fish?
• Why do scientists classify fish?
• How is the age of a fish determined?
• How long do fish live?
• Do some fish give birth to living young?
• Do fish breathe air?
• How do fish swim? How fast?
• Can fish swim backwards?

• Do all fish swim in the horizontal position?
• Do fish chew their food?
• Can fish distinguish color?
• Are all fish edible?
• How can poisonous fish be distinguished from edibleones?
• Are there any poisonous snails?
• Are any snails commercially caught for food off the coasts of the United States?
• Why do food fish sometimes have a strong odor?
• Is there much salt in fish?
• What is the blood-like material found along the backbone in the body cavity of most fishes?
• What is the true description of a sardine?
• How many kinds of tuna are there, which kind makes up the biggest catch?

• Do tunas have scales?
• Are saltwater catfish good to eat?
• What is the fish listed as "scrod" in New England restaurants?
• What are menhaden?
• Where are Atlantic menhaden spawned, where do they go after hatching?
• What do herring eat?

• Are the eyes of flatfishes on the right or left side?
• How large do ocean sunfish get?
• How do porcupine fish inflate themselves?
• What is an "exotic" fish?
• What fishes are named after other animals?
• What kind of fish is a "Bombay Duck"?
• How much electricity does an electric eel generate?

• What are moray eels and where are they found?
• What is pearl essence?
• What is the sand collar that one often sees on beaches at low tide?
• What is chitin?
• What are some confusing fish names?
• Why is fishing sometimes called angling?
• What is the biggest bivalve mollusk, cephalopod mollusk, and crustacean known to man?

• Will fish I catch and release die anyway?
• What are factory ships?
• Where can I find out about maintaining aquariums?
• What is the largest sturgeon on record?

• Where can I learn more about endangered species?
• What exactly is Persistent Marine Debris, and why is it important?
• Are there any good field guides to marine mammals available?

Salmon Faqs


• How many species of Pacific salmon are there?
• Is it true that salmon return to spawn in freshwater areas where they were born?
• what is the difference between the Atlantic salmon and the Pacific salmon?
• Are steelhead (rainbow trout) trout or salmon? Q: Where do salmon go in the ocean?
• What is a kokanee, or silver trout?
• Do landlocked Pacific salmon die after spawning?
• How large do salmon get?
• What is the oldest known age of salmon and steelhead (in completed years)?
• Is a steelhead a salmon or a trout?
• How old are salmon when they migrate from fresh water to the ocean?
• How many eggs do salmon have?
• What are salmon fed in a hatchery?
• How many of the young salmon released from hatcheries come back as adults?
• Why are fishladders constructed?

Lobster Faqs


• How many kinds of lobsters are there in this country, why are different varieties called lobster?
• Does the deepwater northern lobster population differ from that found just off the coast?
• How far do lobsters travel?
• What color is a lobster's blood?
• What is "tomalley"?
• What is the coral colored material often seen in a cooked lobster?
• How does a lobster grow?
• How many times must a lobster molt before it reaches market size?
• How old is a one-pound lobster?
• How many one-pound lobsters are needed for a pound of lobster meat?
• How long can a lobster live out of water?
• Can a lobster be kept alive in fresh water with ice?
• Why does a lobster turn red when cooked?
• How can one tell if a boiled lobster was alive when cooked?
• Have people been poisoned by eatlng lobsters that were allowed to die before being cooked?
• Is it possible to raise lobsters on a commercial basis?
• What are some other names for lobsters?
• Where are lobsters caught?
• What do lobsters eat?
• How is the health of the lobster resource?
• Where do lobsters live?
• When do lobsters mate?
• Are lobsters different colors?
• Can lobsters grow new legs?
• Do lobsters have teeth?
• Can lobsters smell their food?
• Do lobsters lay eggs?
• Do many young lobsters survive to old age?
• What is the largest lobster ever caught?
• If a lobster gets in the trap first does it chase crabs out?
• Have Maine lobsters been successfully transplanted to the west coast?
• I've heard that lobsters molt, but I've never seen a cast-off shell. Why?

Crab Faqs


• Can crabs swim?
• How do crabs grow?
• How much does a blue crab increase in size on molting?
• What is the difference between soft and hard shell crabs?
• How old does a blue crab get?
• What is a "coconut crab"? Where do they live?
• Is a stone crab harmed when its large claw is broken off?
• What are the small crabs found inside oysters?

Shark Faqs


• Can shark meat be used as food for humans?
• Is the blue shark really blue?
• What attracts sharks? Which are most dangeous?
• What sea creatures other than sharks may be dangerous to swimmers?
• Do sharks have bones?
• Do sharks have good eyesight?
• Are sharks always hungry?
• Are sharks considered to be a fish?
• Do sharks only eat meat?
• How many senses do sharks have?
• If sharks have cartilage instead of bones how can they fossilize?
• Are Most sharks have to keep swimming to breathe?

Shrimp Faqs


• How do prawns, crayfish, and shrimp differ?
• Is there more than one kind of shrimp?
• How big do shrimp grow?
• How long do shrimp live?
• How many eggs does a shrimp produce in one spawning?

ShellFish Faqs


• What do oysters and clams eat?
• Clams seem to squirt water through their siphons. What purpose does the siphon serve?
• What causes a reddish color in the liquor of shucked oysters and clams?
• How does the consumer know that shellfish are safe to eat?
• How does a clam shell grow?
• How do clams establish themselves on the sea bottom?
• How do clams reproduce?
• How are soft-shell clams harvested?
• How are scallops caught?
• What are oyster borers?
• How do oysters produce pearls?
• What is oyster spat?
• Is it safe to eat oysters during the months without R's?
• How does a scallop move?
• What purpose do the holes along the edge of an abalone shell serve?
• How unsafe are shellfish from polluted waters?
• Will cooking make sewage-polluted shellfish safe to eat?
• Is it possible to purify shellfish from sewage polluted water for safe eating?
• Do shellfish contain mercury levels dangerous to man's health?

Cetacean Faqs


• What is a cetacean?
• How big is a Blue Whale?
• What does a Bowhead Whale eat?
• What is the 2nd largest whale?
• Which whale would I most likely see whale watching?
• What do whales eat?
• How many young does a whale give birth to at one time?
• What are the main threats to whales these days?
• Where do harbor porpoise live?

Pinniped Faqs


• What are Pinnipeds?
• How many Pinnipeds are on the Endangered Species List?
• Are Hawaiian monk seals coming back?
• How many Caribbean monk seals are left?
• How are Steller Sea Lions doing?

Turtle Faqs


• What is is the rarest of all sea turtles?
• Do turtles get stranded like whales?
• How long can sea turtles stay underwater?
• Where do sea turtles breed?
• Are sea turtles endangered?
• Where does the green sea turtle live?
• What is the major cause of the continued decline of of the hawksbill sea turtle?
• What is the largest sea turtle?
• What is a Turtle Excluder Device (TED)?