Salty Sam’s Fun Blog for Children
Number 438
Sea Mammals
Hello Everyone
l was talking about swimming in my blog post last week and l got to thinking that although l have told you about lots of sea creatures in my blog posts, there are still some l have not told you about.
l thought it was about time l told you some more about sea creatures.
But first l have a question for you.
ls a whale a mammal or a fish?
Well, l know you know the answer is that a whale is a mammal.
Whales are mammals that feed their babies on milk.
Whales also need to come to the surface of the sea at times in order to breathe air into their lungs. Whales do not take oxygen from the water through gills like a fish does.
There are other mammals in the sea too, but unlike whales and dolphins actually spend some time on land – like seals.
When you see seals moving about on the land they look very awkward and clumsy. lt seems to be a real struggle to bounce up onto a beach and manoeuvre around by using the muscles in their bodies and their flippers.
But when you see them swimming under the water it is a very different story.
Their bodies have a very sleek line. They can swim through the water with ease and speed and twist and turn in a masterful way due to their streamlined bodies. They are very playful animals.
When you are walking near seals which are resting on land, you must be very careful not to spook them. lf they get frightened and rush to the water to get away from you, they can injure themselves horribly and there will be no vet to help them; you may leave them in terrible pain.
There are very often notices to tell you if you are approaching a site where there are likely to be seals. So take great care.
Seals seem to be very curious of humans and even sometimes like to play with them underwater, but in contrast are very frightened of them when they are on land.
Seals have a lot of fat around their bodies called blubber and this keeps them warm in cold sea water. Most species of seal favour cooler waters.
There are 32 species around the world.
They really were designed to be at their best underwater. And of course they need to be fast in the water in order to catch food to eat. They like eating fish. They also eat squid, octopus and shellfish.
Seals, like whales and dolphins, need to breathe air above the water but can dive down under it for extremely long periods of time.
Their lungs have evolved to be able to do this. Their lungs are so different from other creatures that vets have to especially learn how to put them under anaesthetic in a certain way when they want to operate on them.
Walruses and sea lions are very similar to seals – sea lions have ears and seals don’t, that is how you can tell the difference.
Another mammal that lives in the sea is the manatee.
lt doesn’t come up on land like seals. lt spends its whole life in water.
lt mostly eats plants; unlike seals.
lt uses flippers to move through the sea like seals and sometimes uses its flippers to ‘walk’ along the sea floor as it looks for food. lt doesn’t live in colonies like seals but mostly has solitary life – apart from when a mother spends time looking after her calf.
Because manatees spend most of their life grazing they are sometimes called sea cows.
They sleep for about half the day and are mostly quite slow moving. They need to surface for air.
Surprisingly, they are related to elephants and when you look at their faces from the front, you can see the resemblance. Elephants have lungs which indicate at one time in evolution they were water creatures.
Manatees live in warm waters. They live in the tropical part of the Atlantic along the east coast of America and the west coast of Africa. They also live in the Caribbean Sea.
There are some that are fresh water manatees and they live in rivers in Africa and South America.
Manatees are often hurt by being hit by boats or jet skis and some kind people watch out for them and try to treat their injuries.
lf baby manatees are orphaned, they can be taken to manatee rescue centres.
Some of these centres are open to the public and you can go and visit them.
lf you like my blog, please support it by telling all your friends and followers about it.
Thank you!
And see you again next Fun Friday!
Love and kisses
Salty Sam
www.christina-sinclair.com
Bill and Bob’s Joke of the Week
Bill: So there are two sea lions in a tank.
Bob: And one says to the other, “How do we drive this thing?”
Salty Sam © Christina Sinclair 2015
Unauthorized use and/or duplication of material from this blog without express and written permission from this blog’s author and owner is strictly prohibited.
Links may be used to www.christina-sinclair.com
Picture Gallery
Seal
Sea lion
Walrus
Manatee
THE SALTY SAM NEWS DESK
It is a sad fact, but Bill and Bob’s dad does not like his job.
There have been many changes in his workplace lately and he has a new boss that he doesn’t like and for some weeks now he has been utterly miserable.
He used to like his job.
He didn’t much like the long drive to get to it but at least he did quite like his work when he got there.
Bill and Bob’s mum – that is my sister, asked why he didn’t find another job.
He said he had been there a long time and he had a good pension scheme and of course he had bills to pay.
It was a good job and he had bills to pay.
Bill and Bob’s mum asked if a job could be called ‘good’ when it was making him so unhappy.
She said that most illnesses start with stress and unhappiness.
She said that being healthy was important too.
And, what is more, when parents are unhappy, it affects their children.
But everything plodded on the same way as the weeks went by.
Until last Saturday, when Bill and Bob’s mum went up to Farmer Jenkins’ farm to buy some of Mrs Jenkins lovely cheeses to put in the larder.
At first, she couldn’t find Mrs Jenkins, she was nowhere to be seen, but eventually she came rushing out from behind the dairy, very flushed and flustered.
Mrs Jenkins apologized for keeping a valued customer waiting but explained that she always had so much to do, everything was getting a bit much and to be quite honest a bit on top of her.
It was ironic really, her cheese-making business was doing so well she should be pleased but all the work she had to do was becoming a bit of a burden. It was difficult for her to work on the farm and also always be there for customers who came to buy eggs and milk and cheese.
What was more, she had just had a meeting the day before with Adam Upp the accountant who lived down in Rocky Bay and he told her that he was thinking of retiring in the next year or two.
He was such a help to Farmer Jenkins and his wife with their cash flow sums and tax returns and all that kind of thing she was a bit worried about what they would do without his support and advice.
Bill and Bob’s mum walked back home with her shopping and was thinking hard all the way.
It is a funny thing but sometimes when you have a problem and start looking for answers they fall upon your path.
You can find new opportunities.
And then you just have to think how best you can turn a situation to your advantage.
To be honest, she wasn’t too happy at work either. She was a dental nurse and was now working in a small, cramped room with a grumpy dentist who often snapped at her. The room she worked in didn’t even have any windows in it!
She liked meeting patients but never had a chat to them.
It wasn’t possible; they always had their mouth jammed open!
She lived near a beautiful beach and never went there.
She was always at work, or doing housework, or collapsed in an armchair in front of the television too exhausted to move.
Ideas were beginning to formulate in her head.
Then they started coming thick and fast.
She would need to talk to a few people about them!
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Quick Quiz
Can you answer these questions?
- What are the four seas that are named with colours?
- What does the word Mediterranean mean?
- Which is the saltiest sea?
- Where is the Hawaii?
- Which sea is to the west of lndia and which is to the east?
- What is the name of the sea between Australia and New Zealand?
- What is the sea between the Atlantic and the Pacific north of Panama?
The Mediterranean Sea
lt’s the Weekend!
HOW TO MAKE BEACH BAG BAGS
Do you have one of those see-through bags and you want to keep the contents a bit more private?
Or maybe you just want to get your stuff organized inside a big beach bag?
Here are five bags in pastel, summery colours to keep your sunnies, money, watch, phone and toiletries/sun tan lotion in.
The pattern for moss stitch is:-
Slip 1 (knit 1, purl 1) repeat the last 2 stitches to the end of the row
GLASSES BAG (KNIT TWO)
Using 4mm knitting needles and dk yarn cast on 21 stitches
Knit 8 rows of stocking stitch
Knit 10 rows of moss stitch
Knit 36 rows of stocking stitch
Knit 4 rows of garter stitch
Crochet 50 chains into a length of yarn to create a cord for the top of the bag
TO MAKE UP
Using over-sew stitching and with right sides together sew bottom and side seams
Turn right sides out
Thread the cord around the top of the bag and knot the ends
MONEY BAG (KNIT TWO)
Using 4mm knitting needles and dk yarn cast on 21 stitches
Knit 8 rows of stocking stitch
Knit 10 rows of moss stitch
Knit 12 rows of stocking stitch
Knit 4 rows of garter stitch
Crochet 60 chains into a length of yarn to create a cord for the top of the bag
TO MAKE UP
Using over-sew stitching and with right sides together sew bottom and side seams
Turn right sides out
Thread the cord around the top of the bag and knot the ends
WATCH BAG (KNIT TWO)
Using 4mm knitting needles and dk yarn cast on 15 stitches
Knit 8 rows of stocking stitch
Knit 10 rows of moss stitch
Knit 10 rows of stocking stitch
Knit 4 rows of garter stitch
Crochet 40 chains into a length of yarn to create a cord for the top of the bag
TO MAKE UP
Using over-sew stitching and with right sides together sew bottom and side seams
Turn right sides out
Thread the cord around the top of the bag and knot the ends
PHONE BAG (KNIT TWO)
Using 4mm knitting needles and dk yarn cast on 21 stitches
Knit 8 rows of stocking stitch
Knit 10 rows of moss stitch
Knit 30 rows of stocking stitch
Knit 4 rows of garter stitch
Crochet 60 chains into a length of yarn to create a cord for the top of the bag
TO MAKE UP
Using over-sew stitching and with right sides together sew bottom and side seams
Turn right sides out
Thread the cord around the top of the bag and knot the ends
MAKE-UP BAG (KNIT TWO)
Using 4mm knitting needles and dk yarn cast on 23 stitches
Knit 8 rows of stocking stitch
Knit 10 rows of moss stitch
Knit 22 rows of stocking stitch
Knit 4 rows of garter stitch
Crochet 65 chains into a length of yarn to create a cord for the top of the bag
TO MAKE UP
Using over-sew stitching and with right sides together sew bottom and side seams
Turn right sides out
Thread the cord around the top of the bag and knot the ends
Please note that the material on this blog is for personal use and for use in classrooms only.
It is a copyright infringement and, therefore, illegal under international law to sell items made with these patterns.
Use of the toys and projects is at your own risk.
©Christina Sinclair Designs 2015
Quick Quiz Answers
- What are the four seas that are named with colours? White Black Red Yellow
- What does the word Mediterranean mean? ln the middle of the earth
- Which is the saltiest sea? The Dead Sea but there are some lakes that are saltier
- Where is the Hawaii? ln the middle of the Pacific
- Which sea is to the west of lndia and which is to the east? The Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal
- What is the name of the sea between Australia and New Zealand? The Tasman Sea
- What is the sea between the Atlantic and the Pacific north of Panama? The Caribbean Sea
The Dead Sea and the Red Sea
The Yellow Sea is to the west of Korea
The Black Sea is between Ukraine and Turkey
The white Sea is the north-west of Russia
