Copepods and Transient Orca! Friday April 17th, 2009.

T103 Transient Orca

Copepods are a group of small crustaceans found in the sea and nearly every freshwater habitat. Many species are planktonic (drifting in sea waters), but more are benthic (living on the ocean floor), and some continental species may live in limno-terrestrial habitats and other wet terrestrial places, such as swamps, under leaf fall in wet forests, bogs, springs, ephemeral ponds and puddles, damp moss, or water-filled recesses (phytotelmata) of plants such as bromeliads and pitcher plants. Many live underground in marine and freshwater caves, sinkholes, or stream beds. Copepods are sometimes used as bioindicators (see particle (ecology)).


Report by Cpt. Trev, from todays tour;

"Cool day on the water...besides seeing T103 in 3-4' seas...the water was also filled with Copepods that were being scooped out of the water by thousands of Mew Gulls...the Copepods were in swarms literally by the millions colouring the water with a spring bloom..."