Over Fishing and its Environmental Impact
When clownfish are collected from the wild, fisherman either dynamite the reefs or inject cyanide into the water in order to stun the fish, making them easier to catch. Dynamite kills the reef along with the plants and animals that inhabit it, and the ones that survive are left without a home. When using cyanide, fishermen inject it into the water and the reef, they then pull the reef apart catching the fish while they are too stunned to move. The poison kills about 90% off the reef as well as its inhabitants, and some of what survives is then killed when the divers pull the reef apart.
Global Climate Change and Humans' Impact on the Reefs
Coral are very sensitive to changes in temperature, and as earth’s temperature increases, corals become stressed. When corals are stressed, they expel their zooxanthellae (symbiotic algae that live within the coral, providing them with most of their energy and color), this is known as "coral bleaching". If conditions return to normal, sometimes corals can recover, but often they cannot, destroying the reef and habitat for many plants and animals.
Excess nutrients also have an impact on the reefs. This commonly occurs along the coast due to residential communities or commercial activities nearby. The resulting increase in nutrients can induce an algal bloom, sometimes this bloom can be so intense that it blankets the reefs, smothering them and blocking necessary light from reaching them.
Educational Standards
• | Populations, resources, and environments (Grades 5-8) |
• | Structure and function in living systems (Grades 5-8) |
• | Environmental quality (Grades 9-12) |
• | Natural and human-induced hazards (Grades 9-12) |
• | Interdependence of organisms (Grades 9-12) |
Additional Resources
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Symbiosis
Clownfish and Sea Anemones
Symbiosis is a relationship between two organisms in which both organisms benefit in some way. Clownfish and sea anemones have such a relationship. The clownfish get a safe place to live, as they are the only fish that aren’t affected by the sea anemone’s stinging tentacles. This is because clownfish have a covering of protective mucus. In return the clownfish cleans the anemone and gives it better water circulation by waiving its fins.
Educational Standards
• | Regulation and behavior (Grades 5-8) |
• | Diversity and adaptations of organisms (Grades 5-8) |
• | Interdependence of organisms (Grades 9-12) |
• | Behavior of organisms (Grades 9-12) |
Additional Resources
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Coral Reef Food Web
Clownfish eat any uneaten prey in the sea anemone’s tentacles, however they are only one part of a much larger food web. You can build on the need for clownfish to get pigments from primary producers as a lead in to broader discussion of how material and energy flows through a food web.
Educational Standards
• | Systems, order, and organization (Grades 5-8) |
• | Structure and function in living systems (Grades 5-8) |
• | Populations and ecosystems (Grades 5-8) |
• | Systems order, and organization (Grades 9-12) |
• | Matter, energy, and organization in living systems (Grades 9-12) |
• | Interdependence of organsims (Grades 9-12) |
Gender Determination
Clownfish first develop into males first, and the largest, most dominant fish develops into a female. If something happens to that female, the next largest and dominant then becomes female. Clownfish will pair up, one male and one female, becoming a mating pair, and they remain monogamous throughout their lifetime.
Educational Standards
• | Reproduction and heredity (Grades 5-8) |
• | Regulation and behavior (Grades 5-8) |
• | Diversity and adaptations of organisms (Grades 5-8) |
• | Behavior of organisms (Grades 9-12) |
Pigments, Carotenoids and Human Nutrition
Carotenoids are an important part of human nutrition (e.g., role as antioxidants) and like clownfish we derive them from the food we eat. They also provide the red, orange, and yellow hues of plants, flowers, and animals.
Educational Standards
• | Personal health (Grades 5-8) |
• | Regulation and behavior (Grades 5-8) |
• | Personal and community health (Grades 9-12) |
• | Behavior of organisms (Grades 9-12) |
Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC)
IACUC is a committee that must be established by institutions that use laboratory animals for research or instructional purposes to oversee and evaluate the care of the animals. Any research or instruction using animals must be approved by the committee where the research/instruction is being performed.
Classroom Exercises | Aquaculture Research
