Amazing and interesting fish of the oceans and seas. Edible fish of the Indian Ocean There are fish in the Pacific and Indian Ocean

The fish world of the Indian Ocean is rich and varied due to its location.

It is located in the southern and tropical zones. The climate here is different, which has affected the number of fish species living in the ocean.

Fauna of the Indian Ocean

In the shelf areas of the ocean, such fish live:

• anchovy;
• mackerel;
• sardanella;
• rock and reef perch;
• horse mackerel;

The mackerel family is represented by mockerel and tuna. Numerous detachments of anchovies, flying fish and sailboat fish.

It is impossible to list all the species, since scientists count several hundred of them in the ocean.

Here are just a few of them:

• Australian Bonito;
• white sarg;
• sixgill shark;
• longfin tuna;
• Indian lionfish;
• bluefish and others.

For lovers of extreme types of fishing, there is also something to do here. There are different types of sharks in the ocean. Sea snakes and swordfish also live here.

The fauna of the ocean is represented by shrimps and lobsters. There are many squids and cuttlefish.

Temperate fish

This area of ​​the ocean is characterized by large individuals, such as:

• sea ​​Elephant;
• dugong;
• blue and toothless whale;
• seal.

There is enough plankton in the ocean, which serves as an excellent food for the huge representatives of the reservoir.

Dangerous inhabitants

The underwater world of the ocean is not only interesting, but also dangerous. Here you can meet a killer whale or a whale.

The bite of a predatory moray eel is equivalent to the bite of a bulldog. Coral reefs reliably shelter fish - zebra or lionfish.

Fish-stone lives in shallow water. Her appearance is unsightly, her body is covered in growths, and there are more than ten poisonous needles on her back.

We must pay tribute: she never takes the initiative first and does not attack a person.

But if you just touch her, then the reaction, despite her outward clumsiness, will be instantaneous.

The sea urchin is distinguished by species diversity. They number about six hundred.

Their location is the tropical and subtropical regions of the Indian Ocean.

First of all - about the fish. There are many of them here. The open ocean has the most flying fish, tuna, dolphins, sailfish and glowing anchovies. And remember, we talked about creatures dangerous to humans: about a poisonous jellyfish and an octopus? So, these "treasures" - inhabitants of the Indian Ocean. And it also has a lot of poisonous sea snakes and a variety of sharks (also, by the way, not a great gift for lovers of swimming in warm water).

There are also marine mammals in the ocean: primarily whales and dolphins. Fur seals live on rocky islands, where it is not so hot, and in shallow water - huge, clumsy and very peaceful dugongs.

The real owners of the airspace over the ocean, in addition to numerous gulls, are giant albatrosses. Just imagine - the wingspan of an adult albatross can reach three meters ...

Lots of corals*. Where marine polyps have lived for thousands of years, coral reefs have formed over time. At low water, they appear on the surface. Because of their abundance, even one of the seas was named Coral. It is in it that the largest accumulation of corals in the world is located - the Great Barrier Reef, off the eastern coast of Australia, which stretches for 1260 miles.

Near corals, underwater life is usually in full swing. Thousands of bright tropical fish scurry about. Predators hide in crevices among stones and corals.

There are many islands in the Indian Ocean and it is rather difficult to list them all. The largest among them. There are archipelagos, for example: Andaman Islands, Sunda, Nicobar and others. There is a group of islands of three reefs - Rauli Reefs, named after the captain who was the first European to discover one of them. There are also many isolated islands.

Most of the islands of the Indian Ocean lie in fertile subtropical and tropical zones - white sandy beaches, lush tropical vegetation and majestic mountains. Small islands, as a rule, are of volcanic origin and are of extremely interesting flora and fauna. animal world, both on the islands themselves and under the azure waves of quiet lagoons ...

But not everything is so simple and peaceful in this earthly paradise. Residents of Reunion Island, part of the Mascarene Islands, have long remembered the 1986 eruption of the Piton de la Fournaise volcano. Hot lava flows burned down some of the houses in the village, located on the slopes of the volcano. A relatively short time passed, and in the spring of 2007 the volcano woke up again. Scientists from the volcanological station located on the island say they have never seen such a strong eruption. Sometimes the volcano threw out stones and red-hot magma to a height of two hundred meters ... Streams of molten lava flowed along the slopes at a speed of about sixty kilometers per hour and fell into the sea with thunderous explosions, whistling and hissing. The fiery river cut the main highway of the island. Burning palm and vanilla plantations. Forest fires have started. The inhabitants of the nearby village were evacuated… Experts call the actions of the awakened volcano “the eruption of the century”.

In the most “wild” corners of the Earth, to this day, there are a few peoples who, by their own decision, desire, or by some coincidence, live without contact with the outside world and modern civilization. They are called so - "non-contact peoples." Attempts to get acquainted with them are fraught with many dangers both for guests and for the hosts themselves. Aboriginal people may suffer from imported diseases to which they have no immunity, and guests who are not familiar with the customs of non-contact peoples may be exposed to danger due to their own negligence.

There are islands in the Indian Ocean, the natives of which categorically refuse contact with modern civilization. Such, for example, are the Sentinelese from the Andaman Islands and a number of tribes in New Guinea.

To complete this topic, let us recall that similar native tribes have survived in South America, in the Amazon basin, small tribes and nationalities in the Nahua-Kugapakori reserve in Peru. There are probably other places as well. It’s just that no matter how much we talk about “flying to the moon” and “space stations circled all the planets of the solar system”, it would be wrong to say that we have studied our Earth up and down.

Komodo is a small island in Indonesia. Its area is only three hundred and ninety square kilometers. Its population at best is two thousand people. Interestingly, most of the native inhabitants are the descendants of former exiles sent by the colonial authorities to the island. Once settled, they mingled with native tribes from neighboring islands. This small island is famous for being part of Komodo with its huge Komodo monitor lizards - land crocodiles, as they are sometimes called. In addition, the underwater world of Komodo is extremely interesting - its clear waters attract scuba divers from all over the world.

A lot can be said and told about the Greater and Lesser Sunda Islands, about the Cocos Islands and the island of St. Mauritius, about the Nicobar Islands and about two very small coastal islands called Pi-Pi. And what is the underwater world on the reefs of the Indian Ocean! But let's leave these miracles to tourist prospectuses and move on to a curious story. the largest island in the Indian Ocean - Madagascar.

Original taken from billfish561 in Beautiful, but dangerous inhabitants of the seas and oceans.

A lot of creatures live in the sea and ocean waters, meeting with which can cause trouble to a person in the form of injury or even lead to disability or death.

Here I tried to describe the most common inhabitants of the sea, which should be wary of meeting in the water, relaxing and swimming on the beach of some resort or diving.
If you ask any person "... What is the most dangerous inhabitant of the seas and oceans?", then almost always we will hear the answer "... shark.... But is it so? Who is more dangerous, a shark or a seemingly harmless shell?

moray eels

Reaches a length of 3 m and weight - up to 10 kg, but as a rule, individuals are found about a meter long. The skin of the fish is naked, without scales. They are found in the Atlantic and Indian Oceans, are widespread in the Mediterranean and Red Seas. Moray eels live in the bottom layer of water, one might say at the bottom. During the day, moray eels sit in crevices of rocks or corals, sticking their heads out and usually moving them from side to side, looking out for passing prey, at night they get out of their shelters to hunt. Usually moray eels feed on fish, but they attack both crustaceans and octopuses, which are caught from ambush.

Moray eel meat after processing can be eaten. It was especially valued by the ancient Romans.

Moray eels are potentially dangerous to humans. A diver who has become a victim of a moray eel attack always somehow provokes this attack - sticks his hand or foot into the crevice where the moray eel is hiding, or pursues it. The moray eel, attacking a person, inflicts a wound that looks like a barracuda bite mark, but unlike the barracuda, the moray eel does not immediately swim away, but hangs on its victim, like a bulldog. She can cling to the arm with a bulldog death grip, from which the diver cannot be freed, and then he may die.

It is not poisonous, but since moray eels do not disdain carrion, the wounds are very painful, do not heal for a long time and often become inflamed. Hiding among underwater rocks and coral reefs in crevices and caves.

When moray eels begin to feel hungry, they jump out of their shelters with an arrow and grab a victim floating by. Very voracious. Very strong jaws and sharp teeth.

In appearance, moray eels are not very pretty. But they do not attack scuba divers, as some believe, they do not differ in aggressiveness. Isolated cases occur only when moray eels have a mating season. If the moray eel mistakenly takes a person for a food source or he invades her territory, then she can still attack.

barracudas

All barracuda live in tropical and subtropical waters of the oceans near the surface. There are 8 species in the Red Sea, including the great barracuda. There are not so many species in the Mediterranean Sea - only 4, of which 2 moved there from the Red Sea through the Suez Canal. The so-called "malita", which has settled in the Mediterranean Sea, provides the bulk of the entire Israeli catch of barracudas. The most sinister feature of barracudas is the powerful lower jaw, which protrudes far beyond the upper one. The jaws are equipped with formidable teeth: a row of small, razor-sharp teeth dot the jaw on the outside, and inside there is a row of large dagger-like teeth.

The maximum recorded size of a barracuda is 200 cm, weight - 50 kg, but usually the length of a barracuda does not exceed 1-2 m.

She is aggressive and fast. Barracudas are also called "live torpedoes" because they attack their prey with great speed.

Despite such a formidable name and ferocious appearance, these predators are practically harmless to humans. It should be remembered that all attacks on people happened in muddy or dark water, where the moving arms or legs of the swimmer were taken by the barracuda for swimming fish. (It was in this situation that the author of the blog got into in February 2014, when he was vacationing in Egypt, the Oriental Bay Resort Marsa Alam 4 + * (now called Aurora Oriental Bay Marsa Alam Resort 5*) Marsa Gabel el Rosas Bay . Medium-sized barracuda, 60-70 cm, almost bit off the 1st f alangu of the index finger on the right hand. A piece of a finger dangled on a 5mm piece of skin (dive gloves saved from complete amputation). At the Marsa Alam clinic, the surgeon put 4 stitches and saved the finger, but the rest was completely ruined ). In Cuba, the reason for attacking a person was shiny objects such as watches, jewelry, knives. It will not be superfluous if the shiny parts of the equipment are painted in a dark color.

The sharp teeth of the barracuda can damage the arteries and veins of the limbs; in this case, the bleeding must be stopped immediately, since the loss of blood can be significant. In the Antilles, barracudas are more feared than sharks.

Jellyfish

Every year, millions of people are exposed to "burns" from contact with jellyfish while swimming.

There are no especially dangerous jellyfish in the waters of the seas washing the Russian coast, the main thing is to prevent contact of these jellyfish with mucous membranes. In the Black Sea, it is easiest to meet such jellyfish as Aurelia and Cornerot. They are not very dangerous, and their "burns" are not very strong.

Aurelia "butterflies" (Aurelia aurita)

Medusa Cornerot (Rhizostoma pulmo)

Only in the Far Eastern seas lives enough dangerous for humans jellyfish "cross", the poison of which can even lead to the death of a person. This small jellyfish with a pattern in the form of a cross on an umbrella causes severe burns at the point of contact with it, and after a while causes other disorders in the human body - difficulty breathing, numbness of the limbs.

Jellyfish-cross (Gonionemus vertens)

the consequences of the burn of the jellyfish-cross

The farther south, the more dangerous the jellyfish. In the coastal waters of the Canary Islands, a pirate is waiting for careless swimmers - the "Portuguese boat" - a very beautiful jellyfish with a red crest and a multi-colored bubble-sail.

portuguese boat (Physalia physalis)

The "Portuguese boat" looks so harmless and beautiful in the sea ...

And so, the leg looks like after contact with the "Portuguese boat" ....

Many jellyfish live in the coastal waters of Thailand.

But the real scourge for bathers is the Australian "sea wasp". She kills with a light touch of multi-meter tentacles, which, by the way, can wander on their own without losing their deadly qualities. You can pay for acquaintance with the "sea wasp" at best with severe "burns" and lacerations, at worst - with life. More people have died from the sea wasp jellyfish than from sharks. This jellyfish lives in the warm waters of the Indian and Pacific Oceans, especially numerous off the coast of Northern Australia. The diameter of her umbrella is only 20-25 mm, but the tentacles reach a length of 7-8 m and they contain poison, similar in composition to cobra venom, but much stronger. A person touched by a "sea wasp" with its tentacles usually dies within 5 minutes.

Australian cubic (box) jellyfish or "sea wasp" (Chironex fleckeri)

sting from jellyfish "sea wasp"

Aggressive jellyfish also live in the Mediterranean and other waters of the Atlantic - the "burns" caused by them are stronger than the "burns" of the Black Sea jellyfish, and they cause allergic reactions more often. These include cyanidea ("hairy jellyfish"), pelagia ("little lilac sting"), chrysaora ("sea nettle") and some others.

jellyfish Atlantic cyanide (Cyanea capillata)

Pelagia (Noctiluca), known in Europe under the name "purple sting"

Pacific sea nettle (Chrysaora fuscescens)

Medusa "Compass" (coronatae)
Jellyfish "Compass" chose the coastal waters of the Mediterranean Sea and one of the oceans - the Atlantic as their place of residence. They live off the coast of Turkey and the United Kingdom. These are quite large jellyfish, their diameter reaches thirty centimeters. They have twenty-four tentacles, which are arranged in groups of three each. The color of the body is yellowish-white with a brown tint, and its shape resembles a saucer-bell, in which thirty-two lobes are defined, which are colored brown along the edges.
The upper surface of the bell has sixteen V-shaped brown rays. The lower part of the bell is the location of the mouth opening, surrounded by four tentacles. These jellyfish are poisonous. Their venom is potent and often results in wounds that are very painful and take a long time to heal..
And yet the most dangerous jellyfish live in Australia and its adjacent waters. Burns of box jellyfish and "Portuguese man-of-war" are very serious and often fatal.

stingrays

Trouble can be delivered by rays of the stingray family and electric rays. It should be noted that the stingrays themselves do not attack a person, you can get injured if you step on him when this fish is hiding at the bottom.

stingray "stingray" (Dasyatidae)

Electric Stingray (torpediniformes)

Stingrays live in almost all seas and oceans. In our (Russian) waters you can meet a stingray or otherwise it is called a sea cat. It is found in the Black Sea and in the seas of the Pacific coast. If you step on a stingray buried in the sand or resting at the bottom, it can inflict a serious wound on the offender, and, in addition, inject poison into it. He has a thorn on his tail, or rather a real sword - up to 20 centimeters in length. Its edges are very sharp, and besides, jagged, along the blade, on the underside there is a groove in which dark poison from the poisonous gland on the tail is visible. If you hit a stingray lying at the bottom, it will hit with its tail like a whip; at the same time, he sticks out his thorn and can inflict a deep chopped wound. A stingray wound is treated like any other.

The sea fox stingray Raja clavata also lives in the Black Sea - large, it can be up to one and a half meters from the tip of the nose to the tip of the tail, it is not dangerous for humans - unless, of course, you try to grab it by the tail, covered with long sharp spines. Electric rays are not found in the waters of the seas of Russia.

Sea anemones (anemones)

Sea anemones inhabit almost all the seas of the globe, but, like other coral polyps, they are especially numerous and diverse in warm waters. Most species live in coastal shallow waters, but they are often found at the maximum depths of the oceans. Sea anemones Usually, hungry sea anemones sit completely still, with tentacles widely spaced. At the slightest change in the water, the tentacles begin to oscillate, not only they stretch out to prey, but often the whole body of the sea anemone leans. Having grasped the prey, the tentacles contract and bend towards the mouth.

Anemones are well armed. Stinging cells are especially numerous in carnivorous species. A volley of fired stinging cells kills small organisms, often causing severe burns in larger animals, even humans. They can cause burns, just like some types of jellyfish.

Octopuses

Octopuses (Octopoda) are the most famous representatives of cephalopods. "Typical" octopuses are representatives of the suborder Incirrina, demersal animals. But some representatives of this suborder and all species of the second suborder, Cirrina, are pelagic animals that live in the water column, and many of them are found only at great depths.

They live in all tropical and subtropical seas and oceans, from shallow water to a depth of 100-150 m. They prefer rocky coastal zones, looking for caves and crevices in the rocks. In the waters of the seas of Russia they live only in the Pacific region.

The common octopus has the ability to change color to adapt to its environment. This is due to the presence in his skin of cells with various pigments, capable of stretching or contracting under the influence of impulses from the central nervous system, depending on the perception of the sense organs. The usual color is brown. If the octopus is scared, it turns white, if angry, it turns red.

When approaching enemies (including divers or scuba divers), they flee, hiding in crevices of rocks and under stones.

The real danger is the bite of an octopus with careless handling. The secret of poisonous salivary glands can be introduced into the wound. In this case, acute pain and itching are felt in the area of ​​​​the bite.
When bitten by an ordinary octopus, a local inflammatory reaction occurs. Excessive bleeding indicates a slowdown in the clotting process. Usually after two or three days recovery occurs. However, cases of severe poisoning are known, in which symptoms of damage to the central nervous system occur. Wounds inflicted by octopuses are treated in the same way as injections from poisonous fish.

blue-ringed octopus (Blue-ringed Octopus)

One of the contenders for the title of the most dangerous marine animal for humans is the octopus Octopus maculosus, which is found along the coast of the Australian province of Queensland and near Sydney, is found in the Indian Ocean and, sometimes, in the Far East. Although the size of this octopus rarely exceeds 10 cm, it contains enough poison to kill ten people.

Lionfish

Lionfish (Pterois) of the Scorpaenidae family are of great danger to humans. They are easily recognizable by their rich and bright colors, which warn of effective defenses in these fish. Even marine predators prefer to leave this fish alone. The fins of this fish look like brightly colored feathers. Physical contact with such fish can be fatal.

Lionfish (Pterois)

Despite its name, it cannot fly. The fish got this nickname because of the large pectoral fins, a bit like wings. Other names for lionfish are zebra fish or lion fish. She got the first because of the wide gray, brown and red stripes located throughout the body, and the second - she owes long fins, which make her look like a predatory lion.

The lionfish belongs to the scorpion family. Body length reaches 30 cm, and weight - 1 kg. The coloration is bright, which makes the lionfish noticeable even at great depths. The main decoration of the lionfish is the long ribbons of the dorsal and pectoral fins, it is they that resemble the lion's mane. These luxurious fins hide sharp poisonous needles that make the lionfish one of the most dangerous inhabitants of the seas.

The lionfish is widespread in the tropical parts of the Indian and Pacific Oceans off the coast of China, Japan and Australia. It lives mainly among coral reefs. lionfish Since it lives in the surface waters of the reef, it therefore poses a great danger to bathers who can step on it and injure themselves on sharp poisonous needles. The excruciating pain that occurs in this case is accompanied by the formation of a tumor, breathing becomes difficult, and in some cases, the injury leads to death.

The fish itself is very voracious and eats all kinds of crustaceans and small fish during night hunting. The most dangerous are pufferfish, boxfish, sea dragon, hedgehog fish, ball fish, etc. We must remember only one rule: the more colorful the coloring of the fish and the more unusual its shape, the more poisonous it is.

stellate pufferfish (Tetraodontidae)

Cube body or box fish (Ostraction cubicus)

hedgehog fish (Diodontidae)

fish ball (Diodontidae)

In the Black Sea, there are relatives of the lionfish - the noticeable scorpionfish (Scorpaena notata), it is no more than 15 centimeters in length, and the Black Sea scorpionfish (Scorpaena porcus) - up to half a meter - but such large ones are found deeper, further from the coast. The main difference between the Black Sea scorpionfish is long, similar to rag patches, supraorbital tentacles. In the conspicuous scorpion, these outgrowths are short.

conspicuous scorpionfish (Scorpaena notata)

black sea scorpionfish (Scorpaena porcus)

The body of these fish is covered with spikes and outgrowths, the spikes are covered with poisonous mucus. And although the poison of the scorpionfish is not as dangerous as the poison of the lionfish, it is better not to disturb it.

Among the dangerous Black Sea fish, the sea dragon (Trachinus draco) should be noted. Elongated, snake-like, with an angular large head, bottom fish. Like other bottom predators, the dragon has bulging eyes on the top of its head and a huge, greedy mouth.

sea ​​dragon (Trachinus draco)

The consequences of a poisonous injection of a dragon are much more serious than in the case of a scorpionfish, but not fatal.

Wounds from the thorns of a scorpion or dragon cause burning pain, the area around the injections turns red and swells, then - general malaise, fever, and your rest is interrupted for a day or two. If you have suffered from the thorns of a ruff, consult a doctor. Wounds should be treated like normal scratches.

The "stone fish" or Wartyfish (Synanceia verrucosa) also belongs to the scorpion family - no less, and in some cases more dangerous than lionfish.

"fish stone" or warty (Synanceia verrucosa)

sea ​​urchins

Often in shallow waters there is a risk of stepping on a sea urchin.

Sea urchins are one of the most common and very dangerous inhabitants of coral reefs. The body of a hedgehog the size of an apple is studded with 30-centimeter needles sticking out in all directions, similar to knitting needles. They are very mobile, sensitive and instantly react to irritation.

If a shadow suddenly falls on the hedgehog, he immediately directs the needles in the direction of danger and puts them together in several pieces into a sharp, hard pike. Even gloves and wetsuits do not guarantee complete protection against the formidable peaks of the sea urchin. The needles are so sharp and fragile that, having penetrated deep into the skin, they immediately break off and it is extremely difficult to remove them from the wound. In addition to needles, hedgehogs are armed with small grasping organs - pedicillaria, scattered at the base of the needles.

The venom of sea urchins is not dangerous, but causes burning pain at the injection site, shortness of breath, rapid heartbeat, transient paralysis. And soon redness, swelling appear, sometimes there is a loss of sensitivity and a secondary infection. The wound must be cleaned of needles, disinfected, to neutralize the poison, hold the damaged part of the body in very hot water for 30-90 minutes or apply a pressure bandage.

After meeting with a black "long-spined" sea urchin, black dots may remain on the skin - this is a trace of pigment, it is harmless, but it can make it difficult to find needles stuck in you. Seek medical advice after first aid.

Shells (clams)

Often on the reef among the corals there are wavy wings of bright blue.

clam tridacna (Tridacna gigas)

According to some reports, divers sometimes fall between its wings, like in a trap, which leads to their death. The danger of tridacna, however, is greatly exaggerated. These mollusks live in shallow reef areas in clear tropical waters, so they are easy to spot due to their large size, brightly colored mantle, and ability to splash water at low tide. A diver captured by a shell can easily free himself, you just need to stick a knife between the valves and cut the two muscles that compress the valves.

Poison Clam Cone (Conidae)
Do not touch beautiful shells (especially large ones). Here it is worth remembering one rule: all mollusks that have a long, thin and pointed ovipositor are poisonous. These are representatives of the cone genus of the gastropod class, having a brightly colored conical shell. Its length in most species does not exceed 15-20 cm. The cone inflicts a prick as sharp as a needle with a spike that protrudes from the narrow end of the shell. Inside the spike passes the duct of the poisonous gland, through which a very strong poison is injected into the wound.

Various species of the cone genus are common in coastal shallows and coral reefs of warm seas.

At the moment of injection, a sharp pain is felt. At the injection site of the spike, a reddish dot is visible against the background of pale skin.

Local inflammatory reaction is insignificant. There is a feeling of acute pain or burning, numbness of the affected limb may occur. In severe cases, there is difficulty in speech, flaccid paralysis quickly develops, and knee jerks disappear. In a few hours, death may occur.

With mild poisoning, all symptoms disappear within a day.

First aid is to remove fragments of the thorn from the skin. The affected area is wiped with alcohol. The affected limb is immobilized. The patient in the supine position is taken to the medical center.

corals

Corals, both living and dead, can cause painful cuts (be careful when walking on coral islands). And the so-called "fire" corals are armed with poisonous needles that dig into the human body in case of physical contact with them.

The basis of the coral is polyps - marine invertebrates 1-1.5 mm in size or slightly larger (depending on the species).

Barely born, the baby polyp begins to build a cell house, in which he spends his entire life. Microhouses of polyps are grouped into colonies from which a coral reef eventually appears.

Hungry, the polyp sticks out tentacles with many stinging cells from the "house". The smallest animals that make up plankton encounter the tentacles of a polyp, which paralyzes the victim and sends it into the mouth opening. Despite their microscopic size, the stinging cells of polyps have a very complex structure. Inside the cell is a capsule filled with poison. The outer end of the capsule is concave and looks like a thin tube twisted in a spiral, which is called a stinging thread. This tube, covered with the smallest spikes pointing backwards, resembles a miniature harpoon. When touched, the stinging thread straightens, the "harpoon" pierces the body of the victim, and the poison passing through it paralyzes the prey.

Poisoned "harpoons" of corals can also injure a person. Among the dangerous ones is, for example, fire coral. Its colonies in the form of "trees" made of thin plates have chosen the shallow waters of tropical seas.

The most dangerous stinging corals of the Millepore genus are so beautiful that scuba divers cannot resist the temptation to break off a piece as a keepsake. This can be done without "burns" and cuts only in canvas or leather gloves.

fire coral (Millepora dichotoma)

Talking about such passive animals as coral polyps, it is worth mentioning another interesting type of marine animals - sponges. Usually sponges are not classified as dangerous inhabitants of the sea, however, in the waters of the Caribbean there are some species that can cause severe skin irritation in a swimmer upon contact with them. It is believed that the pain can be relieved with a weak solution of vinegar, but the unpleasant effects from contact with the sponge can last for several days. These primitive animals belong to the genus Fibula and are often referred to as touchy sponges.

Sea snakes (Hydrophidae)

Little is known about sea snakes. This is strange, since they live in all the seas of the Pacific and Indian Oceans and are not among the rare inhabitants of the deep sea. Maybe it's because people just don't want to deal with them.

And there are serious reasons for this. After all, sea snakes are dangerous and unpredictable.

There are about 48 species of sea snakes. This family once left the land and completely switched to an aquatic lifestyle. Because of this, sea snakes have acquired some features in the structure of the body, and outwardly they are somewhat different from their terrestrial counterparts. The body is flattened from the sides, the tail is in the form of a flat ribbon (for flat-tailed representatives) or slightly elongated (for dovetails). The nostrils are not located on the sides, but at the top, so it is more convenient for them to breathe, sticking the tip of the muzzle out of the water. The lung stretches throughout the body, but these snakes absorb up to a third of all oxygen from the water with the help of the skin, which is densely penetrated by blood capillaries. Under water, a sea snake can stay for more than an hour.

The venom of a sea snake is dangerous to humans. Their poison is dominated by an enzyme that paralyzes the nervous system. When attacking, the snake quickly strikes with two short teeth, slightly bent back. The bite is almost painless, there is no swelling or hemorrhage.

But after some time, weakness appears, coordination is disturbed, convulsions begin. Death occurs from paralysis of the lungs in a few hours.

The high toxicity of the venom of these snakes is a direct result of aquatic habitation: in order for the prey not to run away, it must be instantly paralyzed. True, the poison of sea snakes is not as dangerous as the poison of snakes that live with us on land. When bitten by flattails, 1 mg of poison is released, and when bitten by a dovetail, 16 mg. So, a person has a chance to survive. Of the 10 bitten by sea snakes, 7 people remain alive, of course, if they receive medical assistance on time.

True, there is no guarantee that you will be among the latter.

Among other dangerous aquatic animals, especially dangerous freshwater inhabitants should be mentioned - crocodiles that live in the tropics and subtropics, piranha fish that live in the Amazon River basin, freshwater electric rays, as well as fish whose meat or some organs are poisonous and can cause acute poisoning.

If you are interested in more detailed information about dangerous species of jellyfish and corals, you can find it at http://medusy.ru/

The richest source of life diversity is the ocean. Any of the five oceans that exist on our planet is a real storehouse of the organic world. Moreover, if all land animals are known to science, then some inhabitants of the depths remain still undiscovered, skillfully hiding in the depths of the ocean.

This only spurs the interest of zoologists, oceanologists and other scientists. The study of the ocean, from its physical characteristics to the diversity of life in it, is at the forefront today. Consider the organic world of the Indian Ocean as one of the richest living systems.

Characteristics of the Indian Ocean

Among other oceans, the Indian is in third place in terms of the occupied water area (after the Atlantic and Pacific). The properties of the Indian Ocean can be characterized by several main points:

1. The territory of the ocean is about 77 million km 2.
2. The organic world of the Indian Ocean is very diverse.
3. The volume of water is 283.5 million m 3.
4. The width of the ocean is about 10 thousand km 2.
5. Washes on all sides of the world Eurasia, Africa, Australia and Antarctica.
6. Bays (straits) and seas occupy 15% of the entire ocean area.
7. The largest island is Madagascar.
8. The greatest depth near the island of Java in Indonesia is more than 7 km.
9. The average general water temperature is 15-18 0 С. In each separate place of the ocean (near the borders with islands, in seas and bays), the temperature can vary markedly.

Exploration of the Indian Ocean

This water body has been known since ancient times. He was an important link in the trade in spices, fabrics, furs and other goods between the peoples of Persia, Egypt and Africa.

However, the exploration of the Indian Ocean began much later, during the time of the famous Portuguese navigator Vasco da Gama (mid-15th century). It is to him that the merit of the discovery of India belongs, after which the whole ocean was named.

Before Vasco da Gama, it had many different names among the peoples of the world: the Eritrean Sea, the Black Sea, Indicon Pelagos, Bar el Hind. However, back in the 1st century, Pliny the Elder called it Oceanus Indicus, which is translated from Latin as "Indian Ocean".

A more modern and scientific approach to the study of the structure of the bottom, the composition of the waters, the inhabitants of animal and plant origin, began to be carried out only from the 19th century. Today, the fauna of the Indian Ocean is of great practical and scientific interest, as well as the ocean itself. Scientists from Russia, America, Germany and other countries are actively working on this issue, using the most advanced technology (underwater devices, space satellites).

Picture of the organic world

The organic world of the Indian Ocean is quite diverse. Among the representatives of flora and fauna there are such species that are very specific and rare.

In its diversity, the biomass of the ocean resembles that of the Pacific Ocean (more precisely, in its western part). This is due to the common undercurrents between these oceans.

In general, the entire organic world of the local waters can be combined into two groups according to their habitat:

1. Tropical Indian Ocean.
2. Antarctic part.

Each of them is characterized by its own climatic conditions, currents, and abiotic factors. Therefore, organic diversity also differs in composition.

Diversity of life in the ocean

The tropical area of ​​this water body abounds in a variety of planktonic and benthic species of animals and plants. Algae such as unicellular Trichodesmium are considered common. Their concentration in the upper layers of the ocean is so high that the overall color of the water changes.

Also in this area, the organic world of the Indian Ocean is represented by the following types of algae:

• sargasso algae;
• turbinaria;
• caulerps;
• phytotamnia;
• chalimedes;
• mangroves.

Of the small animals, the most widespread are the beautiful representatives of plankton that glow at night: physalia, siphonophores, ctenophores, tunicates, perydenea, jellyfish.

The Antarctic region of the Indian Ocean is represented by fucus, kelp, porphyry, galidium, and huge macrocystis. And from the representatives of the animal kingdom (small), copypods, euphuazids, diatoms live here.

unusual fish

Often the animals of the Indian Ocean are rare or simply unusual in appearance. So, among the most common and numerous fish there are sharks, rays, mackerels, dolphins, tuna, notothenia.

If we talk about unusual representatives of the ichthyofauna, then it should be noted such as:

• coral fish;
• parrot fish;
• White shark;
• whale shark.

Fish of commercial importance are tuna, mackerel, dolphins and notothenia.

Diversity of animals

The fauna of the Indian Ocean has representatives of the following types, classes, families:

1. Fish.
2. Reptiles (sea snakes and giant turtles).
3. Mammals (sperm whales, seals, sei whales, elephant seals, dolphins, toothless whales).
4. Mollusks (giant octopus, octopuses, snails).
5. Sponges (lime and silicon forms);
6. Echinoderms (sea beauty, holothurians, sea urchins, brittle stars).
7. Shellfish (crayfish, crabs, lobsters).
8. Hydroids (polyps).
9. Mshankovye.
10. Coral polyps (form coastal reefs).

Animals such as sea beauties have a very bright color, live at the very bottom and have a hexagonal shape with radial symmetry of the body. Thanks to them, the bottom of the ocean looks bright and picturesque.

The giant octopus is a large octopus, the length of whose tentacles extends to 1.2 m. The body, as a rule, is no more than 30 cm in length.

Lime and silicon sponges play an important role in the formation of the bottom of the Indian Ocean. Along with benthic species of algae, they form whole deposits of calcareous and silicic deposits.

The most terrible predator of these habitats is the white shark, whose size reaches 3 meters. A ruthless and very agile killer, she is practically the main thunderstorm of the Indian Ocean.

Very beautiful and interesting fish of the Indian Ocean - coral fish. They are bizarrely and brightly colored, have a flat, elongated body shape. These fish are very clever at hiding in the thickets of coral polyps, where not a single predator is able to get them.

The combined conditions of the Indian Ocean make it possible for its fauna to be so diverse and interesting as to attract those wishing to study it.

Vegetable world

The contour map of the Indian Ocean gives a general idea of ​​what it borders on. And starting from this, it is easy to imagine what the plant community of the ocean will be like.

Proximity to the Pacific Ocean contributes to the wide distribution of brown and red algae, many of which are of commercial importance. are also present in all parts of the Indian Ocean.

Thickets of giant macrocystis are considered interesting and unusual. It is believed that getting into such thickets on a ship is tantamount to death, because it is very easy to get entangled in them and it is completely impossible to get out.

The main part of the plant is made up of unicellular benthic, planktonic algae.

Commercial value of the Indian Ocean

Fishing for animals and plants in the Indian Ocean is not as fully developed as in other deep oceans and seas. Today, this ocean is the world's source of reserves, a reserve of valuable food sources. A contour map of the Indian Ocean can show the main islands and peninsulas on which fishing is most developed and valuable species of fish and algae are harvested:

• Sri Lanka;
• Hindustan;
• Somalia;
• Madagascar;
• Maldives;
• Seychelles;
• Arabian Peninsula.

At the same time, the animals of the Indian Ocean, for the most part, are very valuable species in terms of nutrition. However, this water body is not very popular in this sense. Its main meaning for people today is access to different countries of the world, islands and peninsulas.

From the tropics to the ice of Antarctica

The Indian Ocean is located between four continents - Eurasia (the Asian part of the continent) in the north, Antarctica in the south, Africa in the west and east with Australia and a group of islands and archipelagos located between the Indochinese Peninsula and Australia.

Most of the Indian Ocean is located in the southern hemisphere. The border with the Atlantic Ocean is determined by a conditional line from Cape Igolny (the southern point of Africa) along the 20th meridian to Antarctica. The border with the Pacific Ocean runs from the Malay Peninsula (Indochina) to the northern point of Sumatra, then along the line. connecting the islands of Sumatra, Java, Bali, Sumba, Timor and New Guinea. Between New Guinea and Australia, the border passes through the Torres Strait, south of Australia - from Cape Howe to Tasmania and along its western coast, and from Cape Yuzhny (the southernmost point of Tasmania) strictly along the meridian to Antarctica. The Indian Ocean does not border the Arctic Ocean.

You can see a complete map of the Indian Ocean.

The area occupied by the Indian Ocean - 74917 thousand square kilometers - is the third largest ocean. The coastline of the ocean is slightly indented, so there are few marginal seas on its territory. In its composition, only such seas as the Red Sea, the Persian and Bengal Bays (in fact, these are huge marginal seas), the Arabian Sea, the Andaman Sea, the Timor and Arafura Seas can be distinguished. The Red Sea is the inland sea of ​​the basin, the rest are marginal.

The central part of the Indian Ocean consists of several deep-sea basins, among which the largest are the Arabian, West Australian, African-Antarctic. These basins are separated by long underwater ridges and uplifts. deepest point Indian Ocean - 7130 m located in the Sunda Trench (along the Sunda island arc). The average depth of the ocean is 3897 m.

The bottom relief is rather monotonous, the eastern part is more even than the western one. There are many shoals and banks in the region of Australia and Oceania. The bottom soil is similar to the soil of other oceans and represents the following types: coastal sediments, organic silt (radiolar, diatom) and clay - at great depths (the so-called "red clay"). Coastal deposits are sand located in shallows to a depth of 200-300 m. Silt deposits can be green, blue (near rocky coasts), brown (volcanic areas), lighter (due to the presence of lime) in areas of coral buildings. Red clay occurs at depths greater than 4500 m. It has a red, brown, or chocolate color.

In terms of the number of islands, the Indian Ocean is inferior to all other oceans. The largest islands: Madagascar, Ceylon, Mauritius, Socotra and Sri Lanka are fragments of ancient continents. In the central part of the ocean there are groups of small islands of volcanic origin, and in tropical latitudes - groups of coral islands. The most famous groups of islands: Amirante, Seychelles, Comorno, Reunion, Maldives, Cocos.

water temperature in the ocean currents are determined by climatic zones. The cold Somali Current lies near the coast of Africa, here the average water temperature is + 22- + 23 degrees C, in the northern part of the ocean the temperature of the surface layers can rise to + 29 degrees C, at the equator - + 26- + 28 degrees C, according to as you move south, it drops to -1 deg. C off the coast of Antarctica.

The flora and fauna of the Indian Ocean is rich and varied. Many tropical coasts are mangroves, where special communities of plants and animals have formed, adapted to regular flooding and drainage. Among these animals, one can note numerous crabs and an interesting fish - the mudskipper, which inhabits almost all the mangroves of the ocean. The shallow tropical waters are home to coral polyps, including many reef-building corals, fish and invertebrates. In temperate latitudes, in shallow water, red and brown algae grow in abundance, among which the most numerous are kelp, fucus and giant macrocysts. Phytoplankton is represented by peridineans in tropical waters and diatoms in temperate latitudes, as well as blue-green algae, which form dense seasonal aggregations in some places.

Among the animals living in the Indian Ocean, most of all are rhizopods, of which there are over 100 species. If we weigh all the rootpods in the waters of the ocean, then their total mass will exceed the mass of all its other inhabitants.

Invertebrates are represented by various molluscs (pteropods, cephalopods, valvular, etc.). A lot of jellyfish and siphonophores. In the waters of the open ocean, as in the Pacific Ocean, flying fish, tuna, dolphins, sailboats and luminous anchovies are numerous. There are many sea snakes, including poisonous ones, even a combed crocodile is found, prone to attacking people.

Mammals are represented by a large number and variety. Here there are whales of different species, and dolphins, and killer whales, and sperm whales. Many pinnipeds (fur seals, seals, dugongs). Cetaceans are especially abundant in the cold southern waters of the ocean, where krill feeding grounds are found.

Among those living here sea ​​birds frigatebirds and albatrosses can be noted, and in cold and temperate waters - penguins.

Despite the richness of the fauna of the Indian Ocean, fishing and fishing in this region are poorly developed. The total catch of fish and seafood in the Indian Ocean does not exceed 5% of the world catch. Fishing is represented only by tuna fishing in the central part of the ocean and by small fishing teams and individual fishermen of the coasts and island regions.
In some places (off the coast of Australia, Sri Lanka, etc.) pearl mining is developed.

Life is also present in the depths and bottom layer of the central part of the ocean. In contrast to the upper layers, more adapted for the development of flora and fauna, the deep-sea areas of the ocean are represented by a smaller number of individuals of the animal world, but in terms of species they surpass the surface. Life in the depths of the Indian Ocean has been studied very little, as well as the depths of the entire World Ocean. Only the contents of deep-sea trawls, and rare dives of bathyscaphes and similar devices into many kilometers of depths, can approximately tell about the local life forms. Many forms of animals that live here have forms of bodies and organs that are unusual for our eyes. Huge eyes, a toothy head larger than the rest of the body, bizarre fins and outgrowths on the body - all this is the result of animals adapting to life in conditions of pitch darkness and monstrous pressures in the depths of the ocean.

Many of the animals use luminous organs, or the light emitted by some benthic microorganisms (benthos) to attract prey and protect themselves from enemies. So, a small (up to 18 cm) platytroct fish, found in the deep zones of the Indian Ocean, uses luminescence for protection. In moments of danger, she can blind the enemy with a cloud of glowing slime and safely flee. Many living creatures that live in the dark depths of the deep-sea regions of the oceans and seas have similar weapons. great white shark. There are many shark-hazardous places in the Indian Ocean. Off the coast of Australia, Africa, the Seychelles, the Red Sea, Oceania, shark attacks on people are not uncommon.

There are many other animals dangerous to humans in the Indian Ocean. Poisonous jellyfish, blue-ringed octopus, cone molluscs, tridacnids, poisonous snakes, etc. can cause serious communication problems for a person.

The following pages will tell about the seas that make up the Indian Ocean, about the flora and fauna of these seas, and, of course, about the sharks living in them.

Let's start with the Red Sea - a unique inland water body of the Indian Ocean basin