Marine Mammal: Importance and Facts

Marine mammals are major consumers of production at most trophic levels. Larger marine mammals such as polar bears, killer whales, etc. are thought to have a major influence on the structure and function of some communities. All marine mammals influence their ecosystem in some way. Usually, many of us won’t realize their importance until they are gone and that’s why we must make sure there is awareness now before it’s too late. Significant ecological effects of marine mammals are understood from their great abundance, high trophic status, and high metabolic rates.

Many marine mammal species have been reduced through over exploitation for protein, oil and other products. If marine mammals are crucial drivers of ecosystem structure and function, the ecological effects resulting from these changes in their abundance could be significant.

Species like sea otters, walruses, and dugongs structure their habitat . Other marine species such as the killer whales, and leopard seals play key roles as high order predators and their nonexistence can affect prey resources of other marine mammals, bird and fish populations .

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Whales affect largely nutrient recycling, with nutrient transport from deep ocean feeding areas to the surface. These ecosystem level effects can be critical for maintaining a diverse and productive ecosystem. Changes in the patterns of food consumption by marine mammals, especially large whales, can result in overexploitation of marine mammals. Ecological interactions concerning marine mammals and their prey vary depending on the nature of the food web in which predation occurs. By knowing the morality rate, we can analyze how predation responds to changes in prey abundance and prey dynamics .

It is believed that large cetaceans play a huge role in nutrient recycling, even after their death. It is due to the downward transfer of nutrients to benthic communities.

Marine mammals structure communities in different ways, every marine mammal has its purpose. For example: Sea urchins graze kelp which is a major component to near shore environments. The ecological interactions of sea otters, kelp and sea urchins have been studied and scientist have noticed that when sea otters are present, kelp forest can develop because otter predation on urchins reduce kelp grazing. Allowing kelp forests to grow can go a long way, it can go on to developing new ecosystems and increases the marine fauna density and diversity. It is believed that marine mammal predators are likely to have played a role in shaping the behavior of their prey in both ecological and evolutionary time but, is has not been thoroughly investigated. It is believed that marine mammals such as the gray whale may have played a role in the physical restructuring of the benthos. Walruses are highly specialized consumers of infaunas bivalves. In the process of feeding, they produce many pits and furrows in soft sediments. Walruses may construct the benthic fauna by selectively feeding on older individuals of a few species of bivalve mollusks. Ingestion and defecation of these walruses could result in major redistribution of sediment which could favor colonization of new species.

Climate change can affect a marine mammal’s role to its ecosystem in various ways. The overall health of an individual animal is the result of a complex interactions among immune status, body condition, pathogens, toxicant exposure, and the various elemental conditions that interact with these factors. Indirect effects of climate change on an animal’s health will include variations in pathogen transmissions due to a variety factors, and effects on body conditions due to changes in the prey base/ food web. The degree to which climate change will influence marine mammal health will also vary among species, with some species more sensitive to these factors than others. These drastic changes to the health of these mammals can cause a huge decline and imbalance in the ecosystems if they cannot perform their roles to their fullest. Those changes can potentially start shifting and causing problems in other ecosystems and eventually because a bigger problem that can affect other animals besides the marine mammals.

It is up to us to create a system to conserve those marine mammals that are endangered and on the brink to extinction. By saving these animals we can keep the balance of their ecosystem intact and prevent dramatic and serious changes to other ecosystems. This a tool that could be used for the preservation of biodiversity. Although there are different preservations and sanctuaries there is little evidence that show this would be effective.