Beautiful Fish At The Vancouver Aquarium

We love snorkeling in the tropics and seeing fish in their natural habitat, but not everyone has that opportunity. Aquariums are a great place to take kids and introduce them to the wonders of our oceans and to teach the importance of conservation and environmental responsibility. The oceans belong to all people of the world and as such it is all our responsibility to save the oceans and the wide variety of life that depends on water for existence. On the day that Cindy and I visited the Vancouver Aquarium it was full of school kids, and hearing their excited voices at each new discovery was awesome. I wish we could persuade the government to fund more projects like the Vancouver Aquarium and to bring more school kids to discover the wonders of the sea than giving money to large businesses and industries that find themselves in trouble due to bad management. I can only hope. Arapaima (as known as the Paiche) is one of the largest freshwater fish in the world reaching lengths up to 14 ¾ feet

Deadly Jellyfish – Vancouver Aquarium [HD]

Jellyfish, beautiful and deadly. We just saw a nature program that showed tiny jellyfish which can kill an adult in minutes and that jellyfish are spreading all over the oceans including cooler waters where they were not found before. Forget the fear of sharks…the Jellyfish invasion is on. ‘Tashmika’ by HunterFoxz www.looperman.com

Vancouver Aquarium Tropical Fish (HD)

Vancouver Aquarium Tropical Fish. Check out the many species of tropical fish at the Vancouver Aquarium.

Cute Otters! Snakes catching tropical fish HD endangered threatened Español Monterey Aquarium

Watch in High Definition Read in Spanish (Español) and English (pause the video!) Threatened Asian small-clawed Otters! – Asian vine snakes catching fish as they hang (like vines) from vegetation – Tropical Fish: Paradis fish, betta, pearl gourami – at the Monterey Aquarium in California.

The Asian otters are “threatened” animals (not yet endangered or extinct).

Southeast Asian river

Otters and breeding fish depend on healthy Asian rivers

Asian small-clawed otters swim with carfish, gouramis and other tropical fish in ht elazy rivers of Southeast Asia. Looke for the bettas – they’re ancestors of the incredibly showy Siamese fighting fish bred for the pet trade.

Non-native ferns keep wild bettas from breeding

Bettas and gouramis have a special way of reproducing – they lay their eggs in “bubble nests” at the surface of the water. In parts of Asia, invasive ferns grow so thick that the fish can’t reach the surface to make their nests.

Rio del sureste asiatico

Las nutrias y los peces dependen de rios asiaticos saludables

La introduccion de helechos impide la reporduccion de los betta silvestras

The movement of swift-running rivers fools us – even rushing rivers are vulnerable!

Meet Satu, Tiga, Empat and Dua!

These four Asian small-clawed otters come to us from the Singapore Zoo. They’re part of the Species Survival Plan, a breeding program for endangered wildlife. The two pairs of bachelor brothers have lived together since 2004.

Handlike paws are perfect for picking up prey

Small-clawed otters are one of the few mammals to use their front paws with skill that’s close to ours. Their handlike paws dig in the mud, turn over rocks, pick up small shrimp and nab crabs and fish.

These otters mate for life

These truly social otters mate for life and raise their pups together. As pups grow up, they help take care of their brothers and sisters too. But when a parent dies, the siblings split up and venture off alone to find mates of their own.

All work and no play? No way!

Asian small-clawed otters play more than any otter species – in the wild and on exhibit. Watch for our playful otters juggling their favorite toys – pebbles! You might also see them diving for small stones or hiding them from each other.

These otters stay in touch with sound

Asian otters communicate with a wide variety of sounds, from squeaks and snorts to chirps and hums. With up to twelve different calls, the otters vocalize often and loudly to stay in touch. The dominant otter usually starts the calling.

Hear the sound of a minor squabble between our four otters

Hear our hungry otters crunching their kibble

Hear our otters yelp, yip and sueal with excitement

Otters are semi-aquatic (or in one case aquatic) fish-eating mammals. The otter subfamily Lutrinae forms part of the family Mustelidae, which also includes weasels, polecats, badgers, as well as others. With thirteen species in seven genera, otters have an almost worldwide distribution. They mainly eat aquatic animals, predominantly fish and shellfish, but also other invertebrates, amphibians, birds and small mammals.

Etymology and terminology

The word otter derives from the Old English word otr, otor or oter. This and cognate words in other Indo-European languages ultimately stem from a root which also gave rise to the English words water, wet and winter.

An otter’s den is called a holt. Male otters are dog-otters, females are es and babies are cubs or pups. The collective noun for otters is pack or sometimes romp, being descriptive of their often playful nature.

Characteristics

Otters have long, slim bodies and relatively short limbs, with webbed paws. Most have sharp claws on their feet, and all except the sea otter have long muscular tails.

They have a very soft underfur which is protected by their outer layer of long guard hair. This traps a layer of air, and keeps them dry and warm under water.

Diet and behavior

Otters do not depend on their specialized fur alone for survival in the cold waters where many live: they also have very high metabolic rates. For example Eurasian otters must eat 15% of their body-weight a day, and sea otters 20 to 25%, depending on the temperature. In water as warm as 10°C (50°F) an otter needs to catch 100 grams (3 oz) of fish per hour to survive. Most species hunt for 3 to 5 hours a day, and nursing mothers up to 8 hours a day.

For most otters, fish is the primary staple of their diet. This is often supplemented by frogs, crayfish and crabs. Some otters are expert at opening shellfish, and others will feed on available small mammals or birds. Prey-dependence leaves otters very vulnerable to prey depletion.

Duration : 0:4:4

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