Fishy Trivia with Annette Makino
Clams have teeth and frequently take long walks. A "Fathom" is a nautical measurement of depth and literally means an "embrace." This came when it was defined by an act of the English Parliament as "the length of a swain's arms around the object of his affections." The red fire-fish can fly and emits sounds like a crow. The Canary Islands were named for a dog. A seal only sleeps at intervals of 1 1/2 minutes. Fish can get seasick when kept aboard a rolling ship just as much as people. The flute was named after the Flauta, a Sicilian eel which it resembles. The more sardines that are placed in a can, the greater the profit as sardine oil costs more than the sardines. Talk about taking a "dive." Back in 1918, Alex Wickham of the Solomon Islands dove off an Australian cliff from a height of 205'9", a height comparable to a 20 story building. Although Wickham lost consciousness before hitting the water, he did survive. His bathing suit though, was torn off his body due to the sheer force of the landing and his entire body was covered with black and blue marks for several weeks. There are no records of any further dives for Wickham in the future so, obviously he had had his "fill" of the briny deep. The beaked chaetodon, a fish found in rivers emptying into the East Indian and Polynesians seas, uses his lengthy snout just like a gun. He "shoots" insects above the water by emitting tiny drops of water and stunning them. Betta fish can be persistent as they have been known to fight each other to the death. for periods as long as 6 hours. The first navigable submarine was believed to be invented in 1620 by Cornelis J. Drebbel from the Netherlands. He constructed a rowboat covered over with leather. It was operated by twelve oarsmen whose oars touched the water by means of flexible leather closures. The boat was able to remain underwater for up to 15 hours because Drebbel figured out how to produce oxygen from saltpeter. This is thought to be the very first use of the gas. The most prolific of all forms of animal life, the fish, has been since antiquity, designated as some kind of sacred symbol over fertility. Due to that, it is often used as a symbol of motherhood and in ancient times was thought sacred to the goddess Venus. In fact and due to this belief, Friday which is named after the goddess, Frigga, eventually came to symbolize a day when the fish would be honored. In ancient times, people either ate much fish on this day or abstained from eating any of it. As this custom was refined and integrated into religious beliefs, it was chosen that fish should always be eaten on this day and that one should abstain from eating meat. Due to a spiny protrusion on its tail, the surgeon fish can make a cut just like a surgeon's scalpel. Thus, its name. Parrots live in the sea, parrot fish, that is. These marine creatures have beaks on them just like parrots which they use to skin algae from the coral reefs in the sea for food. What is a goat fish? Simple. One that has two growths under its mouth which look very much like goat's whiskers. There is a fish known as a trigger fish since they have rigid spines which can lock on cue when the creature feels endangered. When in such a state, the fish becomes so rigor mortis-like that it cannot even be bent! Squirrel fish have large and deep brown eyes just like our little tree squirrels. And that is why they are called squirrel fish. There is a fish deep in the ocean that has deadly spines on its body which emit a poisonous substance when attacked. Aptly so, it is called the scorpion fish. Then again, there is a fish that may have descended from some prehistoric form of flying fish since it is able to execute long glides over the water. It us called a half-beak fish since it has long and slender upper jaws and almost no lower jaw at all. The lower jaw would aerodynamically interfere with its "flying." What has a thick but soft skin, is clumsy to watch, is about eight inches long and has a soft and cartilaginous skeleton? Also, when laid on a flat surface, it flattens out to suit its surroundings? Give up? The fish known as elephantichthys. I don't know though, if it likes peanuts. A fish which appears to have been the result of a bad joke is the rattling fish or aptocyclus. Its appearance resembles a hastily disorganized mess of vital organs, haphazardly crammed into a bag. It gets its "rattling" name from the fact that when its body is not filled with water, its insides actually rattle around. Although this fish is capable of moving about, perhaps due to its fragile and questionable structure, it prefers to secure itself to flat stones on the bottom of the ocean and catch food as it swims by. Why complicate matters even further? As if we aren't plagued with enough of these above the water, deep in the ocean is a creature called the rat fish. It got its name from the way its body tapers down to a long and pointed extension, similar to a rat's tail. In the past and while exploring the ocean depths, oceanographers going down to around 3200 feet, came upon a very queer type of shrimp. The creatures were equipped with long claws which appeared to be razor sharp and able to slash their victims to death. It was lucky for the explorers that the shrimp were quite small. Other strange fish spotted at that depth were groups of flat fish that had both eyes on one side of the head, one on the upper portion and one on the lower. There was even something that they named the "hunchback" fish since it had a body that was shaped like that resembling the human condition. One of the oddest fish they encountered was something they dubbed the "snout fish," so-called because the snout was almost as long as the rest of its body. The mouth was found at the end of the snout. The spider crab is not very fussy about his wardrobe. He just cuts out his new set of clothing by slicing off pieces of living sponge and tossing them on his back. (Any old thing will do, I guess.) As the living sponge settles on the crab's back, it mingles with minute hairs protruding through the crab's back. As these hairs grow, they cover the under part of the crab's body and legs. Eventually, the crab looks like one big walking sponge which serves as a disguise from his enemies. When the crab is ready to shed his shell again, he throws off the living sponge which in turn, attaches itself to a rock and continues to grow. There is a fish known as the sea robin which is quite versatile, considering its environment being that of the ocean bottom. Not only does this creature look like something out of a Jules Verne novel, with its wide and flat jaw line, bony plates covering its large head and a set of leg-like fins, but it also can walk about on the ocean floor by means of these leggy fins! An eight foot long seal which lives in the Antarctic, can, when attacked by predators, pull its head right down into its thick neck. This action is usually enough to scare off its enemies. Did you know that the electric eel, which lives in the South American rivers (thank goodness!), generates enough electricity to light more than a dozen light bulbs. It is able to discharge up to 625 volts at a current of around two amperes, 40 times a second. This defense weapon is used to kill fish and frogs and also to keep predators at bay. The electric shock, which only lasts for a second, is created or generated from thousands of linked cells found in the eel's tail. The electric eel, which can grow as big as six feet long, belongs to the South American knife fish family. As such, it is closer in relation to the carp than to the eel. An area you should try to avoid is in Indio-Pacific waters since something called the stonefish dwells there. This under water creature is capable of injecting a neurotoxic poison through 13 spines in its back. Such stings result in extreme pain, mental disorientation and sometimes, even death. A next door neighbor, so to speak, is something called the cone shell. This awful creature, upon stinging its prey, injects a toxin through a needle-like tooth, the effects of such, which can have a paralyzing and even fatal outcome. The skeletal frame of whale flippers are very similar to our upper arms, forearms, wrists and fingers. Further, the average blue whale, the largest known mammal in the world, grows to 100 feet in length or more, and can weigh 150 tons or more. They develop 600 hp and are able to travel great distances, going 20 knots or more per hour. Surely, these wonderful mammals are one of nature's finest creations. Piranha fish, certainly not your sociable type of aquatic creature, often swim and attack in schools of 1000 or more. As such, they are capable of stripping an animal the size of a horse, in mere minutes. Found in the waters of eastern and central South America, these creatures are known to eat their own kind and in some parts of the world, are considered a delicacy. Sturgeon is considered the largest of all freshwater fish and have weighed in at 2,250 pounds. In the Sahara Desert, fish have been caught in streams that flow beneath the surface. These fish seem to have brains as who wants to swim in boiling hot surface water! Hiccup fish of Brazil, for whatever the reason, swallow large gulps of air causing hiccups when released. These make a sound like a human hiccup and when these fish reach their adult length of 12 feet, such hiccups can be heard for a mile! It is known that fish have a keen sense of smell but possess poor hearing ability. However, they have sort of a "sixth sense" about them which enables them to feel vibrations better than they can detect sounds. Some fish can even distinguish colors while others have "four eyes" - when a fish is swimming on the surface of the water, apparently two half eyes are able to see above the water line and two half eyes can see below it. In Japan they have a fish known as the "puffer" ( tetraodon). Because of its lethal poison, it is also known as the "deadly death puffer fish." Its skin, muscles and even its internal organs contain a lethal poison for which no known antidote is available. Even with this, its flesh is thought to be a great delicacy in Japan and special cooks are hired to handle and prepare the fish for eating. However, consuming this fish is still like playing "Russian roulette" since it is a big cause of food poisoning in this country. Most fish have scales and jaws. The lamprey however, is such a primitive fish that it has neither. In order to catch a meal and then consume it, this creature must cling to its prey with mouth suckers and gnaw away at its flesh. The mud skipper fish is at home in water or out of it. This little guy can breathe air as well as water and is able to crawl along by using its front fins. At low tides it can be seen crawling around the mud of tropical swamps, having the time of its life, no doubt. The smallest fish in the world are probably the pygmy gobies found in the Marshall Islands and the Philippines. They measure about half an inch or 12 mm long. They are also the smallest vertebrates. The fastest fish in the world has to be the sailfish (Isophorus platypterus), spotted off the coast of Florida. This fellow can breeze along at a clip that has been clocked at 68 mph or 110 kph. The stickleback is probably one of the few or perhaps the only fish known to build a nest under water for its eggs. The heaviest known mollusk or invertebrate, is the Atlantic giant squid (Architeuthis princeps). From this creature tales of the legendary sea monster of sea lore or the ferocious sea kraken have arisen. One of the larger specimens found had a head and body of 20 feet or 6 meters, and tentacles 35 feet or 10 meters long. Snails have been known to retire and sleep in their shells for long periods of time. This is believed to enable them to survive dry weather spells. In 1805, a gentleman by the name of Rev. W. Bingley, wrote of a little snail waking up after 15 years in his snail collection. Now, that's a pretty long snooze! Scary as a shark can be, it makes them more so when you realize that this creature has no real bones in its body. Its skeleton is really made of gristle and thousands of little spines cover its body. Such spines are in reality, small teeth and the shark is the only creature that has these kind of skin-teeth. If the above isn't bad enough, there is something called the porcupine fish which you would do well to avoid during a dive. This creature has sharp spines which resemble quills. When threatened by an enemy, this fish puffs itself up into a ball which in turn, makes all of its spines stick out. Few larger fish manage, or prefer to eat this fish. On occasion though, a shark will swallow one and that could be a fatal mistake as the porcupine fish can gnaw its way out of the shark by means of its extremely sharp teeth! The rarest shell in the world is found in the Philippines. It is the white-tooth cowrie (Cypraca leucodon) and only around three of them have been found so far. Of the more than 40 varieties of electric fish, only the eel and the torpedo ray are capable of injuring mammals as large as man. All of the rest are relatively harmless to humans. Furthermore, fossil fish have been found to have what seems to be identical electricity-producing structures, although less sophisticated, than our modern day eel. A small sea perch (Serranellas subligarius) found in the reefs off Florida, practices cross fertilization. When spawning season comes up, one fish assumes the male role and fertilizes the eggs of another fish who takes the role of the female. That done, the two fish then reverse their roles. The giant clam (Tridacna gigas), also called the killer clam or man-eating clam, is found in the seas off East India. It can grow to over four feet long and weigh more than 500 pounds. That's a lot of clam! Despite its reputation for being "ferocious," many experts claim that this is generally nonsense. The giant clam can be easily spotted due to its brightly colored mantle and it does not snap its shells shut quickly like an animal trap. However, should you find yourself clamped inside one of these large creatures, simply take your knife out and sever the adductor muscles which the animal uses to close its shell. That should do it. One of the oddest fish in the great deep has to be old "big eye fish," more commonly known as Johnsonia eriomma. Each of its two eyes is about a fifth as long as the whole diameter of its body. It also has two false eyes on its sides and near its tail. They appear to be about the same size and pattern as the other two eyes although, in reality, they are simply colored patterns on the fish's body. Interestingly, this fish was discovered around the turn of the century and from a depth of between 150-300 fathoms. The teeth of the tiger shark sit or rest on sort of a spring, since when its mouth is closed, the teeth are pressed firmly back against its gums. But, when the mouth is opened for action, the teeth spring out ready for anything that comes its way - like you or me. The white shark (Carcharodon sp.) has teeth that rank on a scale of hardness with steel. Further, the shark is the only creature in the sea that has no natural enemies. In fact, even the killer whale generally stays away from it. Perhaps because it doesn't think of anything else, other than preying for food, a shark can survive brain damage better than any other animal in the world. Maybe researchers should study the shark since it never seems to get sick. This is because it has strange antibodies that give it immunity to almost every kind of known bacteria. It is also one of the very few animals known to be completely immune to cancer. Sharks can hear sounds a mile away so while you're diving around, try and be very quiet. A shark is always hungry no matter how much it devours. Because its appetite is never satisfied, it lives in a state of constant hunger, so be very, very quiet when swimming around one. On a more pleasant subject, Atlantic salmon are able to leap as high as 15 feet. It has been found that most tropical marine fish would be able to survive in a tank filled with human blood! I cannot imagine what kind of significance this fact would have, can you? Minnows have teeth in their stomach. The better to digest their food, I presume. The very strange lungfish is able to exist out of water, in a state of suspended animation, for a long as three years. A marine catfish is able to taste with any part of its body, further, the female catfish hatches her eggs, in her mouth. An electric eel is born blind and uses its electricity to find food in much the same way as we use radar. The lanternfish, so-called due to a glowing spot on the front of its head, looks like a miner's lamp while swimming around. In fact, this 'lamp' is so powerful that it can shed light for a distance as far as two feet. Research has shown that when this fish is confined to an aquarium, it can produce enough light for a person to read a book in an otherwise darkened room. There are creatures known as pogonophores in the deep, who apparently reproduce through their imagination. That is, these sea creatures spend all of their lives encased in their individual tubes. Marine animals having a worm-like appearance, they seem to live inside chitinous tubes which have rings on the outside. Primitive organisms as such, they do not seem to possess a mouth or any other specialized organs. Found on muddy areas of the sea bed, these creatures remain throughout their lives, encased in their protective tubes. Although microscopic examination has turned up the presence of a blood vascular system rich in hemoglobin, there seems to be a complete absence of any type of digestive system. As mentioned, reproduction also poses a mystery as some creatures examined contained eggs and some, packets of spermatophores, however, no real clue as to how these creatures reproduce. As they all are trapped inside their tubes, contact would seem impossible. Perhaps - if wishes were fishes, works for them.......... If something spews a jet of water at you, perhaps you have come in contact with a sea squirt. These little creatures are found in all of the Seven Seas. Although there are numerous species, these creatures like to hang around tropical waters and coral reefs and are always fixed to a rock for support. Even more intriguing, some squirts like to live a hermit type of existence, others seem quite sociable and as such, live in colonies. Because the sea squirt's body is enclosed in a firm jelly-like coating or tunic, the name of "tunicate" is given to them. Interestingly, two orifices or siphons for breathing in are used just like snorkels. This enables the sea squirt to gather its food. Sensitive to feel, when a sea squirt is touched or brushed against, it contracts suddenly and ejects a long squirt of water. Although varying species of sea squirts live at different depths in the sea, they are also found in harbors and in shallow beaches. Some species though, prefer greater depths, even down to the abysses of the sea. In fact, some sea squirts of the Abyssascidia species have been found attached to nodules of manganese at depths of 15,000 ft. Although the sand dollar is technically a cake urchin, he's a pretty strange little guy. Differing from his sea urchin kin, he's a flattened 'biscuit ', minus the characteristic spiny needles. Instead he has fine, short needles giving him a velvety look and the impression that he is hairless. Found along sandy coasts and preferring shallow waters, the sand dollar likes calm waters as rough waves could break his shell. Most of his existence is spent buried in the sand. In fact, some species, of which there are many, bury themselves completely. This creature manages to eat by creating little whirlpools which draw in food particles in a suspension in the water, reaching its mouth along special food tracts in a current filled with mucus. How he reproduces, is anyone's guess. Somehow, nature equips all creatures, great and small, with that ability. Fishy Names: The clam is so named since this word originally was a "clamp" with a pair of clams being called a pair of pincers. From the Greek we get the term ostrakon which means "hard shell" from which we derive the name of "oyster." The name of "shrimp" comes from the Germanic word of schrumpfen which means to "shrivel." Originally used to describe a small person, later it was applied to the small shellfish many of us relish as an appetizer or as a main dish. Sources: 2201 Fascinating Facts, Two Volumes in One by David Louis, Greenwich House, 1983, Strange Stories, Amazing Facts, 1976, Reader's Digest Assoc., Inc.; The People's Almanac, by David Wallechinsky and Irving Wallace, 1975, Doubleday & Company, Inc.; The Answer Book, by Mary Elting, 1975, Grosset & Dunlap; 1976,; The Book of Facts and Records, 1977, A Harbor House Book; The Strangest Things in the World, by Thomas R. Henry, 1958, Ace Books, Inc., The World Almanac Book of the Strange, 1977, New American Library; originally published under the title of Curiosities and Wonders, Volume One, in 1942; The Great and Wide Sea, R.E. Coker, 1954, Chapel Hill; The University of North Carolina Press; The Sea, Robert C. MIller, Random House.
Diving Trivia - Compiled by Bernie Chowdhury Reprint from Divers Digest March 1994 1. Who invented SCUBA and in what year? 2. Who invented underwater photography? 3. When were the world's first underwater photographs taken? 4. What was the first book on underwater photography? 5. What was nitrogen narcosis first called? 6. What was the name of the first film Cousteau entered in the Cannes Film Festival? 7. What was the name of the 1956 underwater film that won an Oscar in the U.S. and the Grand Prize at the Cannes Film Festival? 8. Which two men are credited with descending beyond the visible range of light, when did they do it and how deep did they go? 9. John Scott Haidane came up with the first set of dive tables, in 1907. What was the name of the committee that commissioned him to come up with a set of tables? 10. Who came up with the idea for saturation diving? [Saturation diving theory states that, once a diver's body has become saturated with inert gas, stage decompression no longer increases] 11. What is the name of the civil war ironclad wreck that Gary Gentile fought the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). for 5 years for the rights to dive on? Answers: 1. Jacques Cousteau and Emil Gagnan invented Self Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus (SCUBA) in 1943. 2. Louis Boutan - a zoologist. 3. In 1892 by Louis Boutan. (By 1895, he was producing decent photographs at 165 feet!) 4. Undersea Photography by Louis Boutan, published in 1900. 5. Nitrogen narcosis was first called "Rapture of the Deep" by Cousteau and his fellow divers. 6. "Sixty Feet Down." 7. Cousteau's "The Silent World." (A book of the same title was written. by Cousteau and published in 1953.) 8. William Beebe and Otis Barton descended to 3,028 feet in the open ocean off Bermuda in a bathysphere. They did this in 1934. 9. The British Admiralty Deepwater Diving Committee commissioned Haldane to look into the problem of averting decompression sickness in divers. 10. George Bond, a U.S. Navy diving physiologist. 11. The Monitor.