WhaleTimes Creep into the Deep: Karen Arthur

Creep into the Deep^{™

Virtual Research Mission to the Deep-Sea}

Hey Kids,

Jake, the SeaDog here, I caught up marine biologist, Dr. Karen Arthur as she prepares for her first deep-sea research cruise. She's not new to ocean research, though, read on to find out about her cool career in science....

Karen, what is your favorite animal? The leatherback turtle is my favorite animal because they can grow to the size of a VW car and dive to 1000m. They travel all the way across the ocean from the cold water of the arctic where they gorge themselves on jellyfish to the warm waters of the tropics where they lay their eggs on the beach.

What do you study in the deep? I am new to deep sea research and this cruise will be my first time out to study the deep sea. I am very excited to learn about this part of the ocean and see how similar or different it is compared with the shallow water where I normally do my research.

How did you get interested in the deep-sea? We know more about the surface of the moon than we do about the ocean floor. I am excited to find out about something that is so close to home and about which we know so little!

What's your most amazing experience with an ocean animal or in the ocean? I recently had the chance to work with the Crittercam guys from National Geographic. We put video cameras on the back of some green turtles and released them to watch how they eat. It was brilliant to see a turtle’s eye view of the world. (Here's me weighing a turtle. Some sea turtles are really big, as you can see. It was released unharmed.)

One of turtles was swimming through the water and suddenly dived and spiraled its way to the bottom where it sat very still. Next thing I knew there were two sharks circling the turtle. They eventually swam away without attacking the turtle, but I could imagine being the turtle and watching my only predator (other than humans) swim away. Phew!

What is the coolest animals you've seen in the deep-sea? I will tell you after my first dive this week.

What are you hoping to learn/discover on this research cruise? I would like to know who eats who in the deep sea.

What are two things do you do in your home to help the environment? When I go to the store I take re-useable bags instead of getting more plastic bags that just end up in landfill or in the ocean. I also have a worm farm in my back yard where I put all my biodegradable waste (like veggie peelings) that the worms eat and turn into dirt for my plants.

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