Mammals that rely on marine environments for feeding
A humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae)A leopard seal (Hydrurga leptonyx)
Marine mammals are mammals that rely on marine (saltwater) ecosystems for their existence. They include animals such as cetaceans (whales, dolphins and porpoises), pinnipeds (seals, sea lions and walruses), sirenians (manatees and dugongs), sea otters and polar bears. They are an informal group, unified only by their reliance on marine environments for feeding and survival.
Marine mammal adaptation to an aquatic lifestyle varies considerably between species. Both cetaceans and sirenians are fully aquatic and therefore are obligate water dwellers. Pinnipeds are semiaquatic; they spend the majority of their time in the water but need to return to land for important activities such as mating, breeding and molting. In contrast, both the sea otter and the polar bear are mostly terrestrial and only go into the water on occasions of necessity, and are thus much less adapted to aquatic living. The diets of marine mammals vary considerably as well; some eat zooplankton, others eat fish, squid, shellfish, or seagrass, and a few eat other mammals. While the number of marine mammals is small compared to those found on land, their roles in various ecosystems are large, especially concerning the maintenance of marine ecosystems, through processes including the regulation of prey populations. This role in maintaining ecosystems makes them of particular concern as 23% of marine mammal species are currently threatened.
Marine mammals were first hunted by aboriginal peoples for food and other resources. Many were also the target for commercial industry, leading to a sharp decline in all populations of exploited species, such as whales and seals. Commercial hunting led to the extinction of the Steller's sea cow, sea mink, Japanese sea lion and Caribbean monk seal. After commercial hunting ended, some species, such as the gray whale and northern elephant seal, have rebounded in numbers; conversely, other species, such as the North Atlantic right whale, are critically endangered. Other than being hunted, marine mammals can be killed as bycatch from fisheries, where for example they can become entangled in nets and drown or starve. Increased ocean traffic causes collisions between fast ocean vessels and large marine mammals. Habitat degradation also threatens marine mammals and their ability to find and catch food. Noise pollution, for example, may adversely affect echolocating mammals, and the ongoing effects of global warming degrade Arctic environments.
Marinemammals are mammals that rely on marine (saltwater) ecosystems for their existence. They include animals such as cetaceans (whales, dolphins and...
A military marinemammal is a cetacean or pinniped that has been trained for military uses. Examples include bottlenose dolphins, seals, sea lions, and...
A marinemammal park (also known as marine animal park and sometimes oceanarium) is a commercial theme park or aquarium where marinemammals such as dolphins...
The MarineMammal Protection Act (MMPA) was the first act of the United States Congress to call specifically for an ecosystem approach to wildlife management...
The MarineMammal Center (TMMC) is a private, non-profit U.S. organization that was established in 1975 for the purpose of rescuing, rehabilitating and...
Marinemammals are a food source in many countries around the world. Historically, they were hunted by coastal people, and in the case of aboriginal whaling...
The U.S. Navy MarineMammal Program (NMMP) is a program administered by the U.S. Navy which studies the military use of marinemammals - principally bottlenose...
The interactions between marinemammals and sonar have been a subject of debate since the invention of the technology. Active sonar, the transmission equipment...
semiaquatic mammals are a diverse group of mammals that dwell partly or entirely in bodies of water. They include the various marinemammals who dwell in...
Marinemammal training refers to the training and caretaking of various marinemammals, including dolphins, orcas (killer whales), sea lions, and walruses...
The MarineMammal Laboratory, formerly the National MarineMammal Laboratory (NMML), is a United States research laboratory that undertakes research into...
A mammal (from Latin mamma 'breast') is a vertebrate animal of the class Mammalia (/məˈmeɪli.ə/). Mammals are characterized by the presence of milk-producing...
BJ (April 1991). "A method for estimating mass of large pinnipeds". MarineMammal Science. 7 (2): 157–164. Bibcode:1991MMamS...7..157H. doi:10.1111/j...
MarineMammal Regulations (MMR) is a set of rules that govern the taking (fishing, hunting) and treatment of marinemammals in Canada. The regulations...
Marinemammals comprise over 130 living and recently extinct species in three taxonomic orders. The Society for Marine Mammalogy, an international scientific...
on the façade of the theatre. In 2009, the New Balance Foundation MarineMammal Center opened on the rear of the aquarium. This open-air exhibit lets...
in how marinemammals hear compared with land mammals. The differences in auditory systems have led to extensive research on aquatic mammals, specifically...
distributed and diverse clade of carnivorous, fin-footed, semiaquatic, mostly marinemammals. They comprise the extant families Odobenidae (whose only living member...
The marine otter (Lontra felina) is a rare and relatively unknown South American mammal of the weasel family (Mustelidae). The scientific name means "feline...
marinemammal park, such as Marineland of Canada, or a large-scale aquarium, such as the Lisbon Oceanarium, presenting an ocean habitat with marine animals...
due to prey depletion, habitat loss, pollution (by PCBs), capture for marinemammal parks, and conflicts with human fisheries. In late 2005, the southern...
A dolphin is an aquatic mammal within the infraorder Cetacea. Dolphin species belong to the families Delphinidae (the oceanic dolphins), Platanistidae...
dolphins perform for the public, others are part of larger parks, such as marinemammal parks, zoos or theme parks, with other animals and attractions as well...
ocean warming on marinemammals, the global vulnerability of marinemammals to global warming is still poorly understood. Marinemammals have evolved to...
MarineMammal Science is a quarterly peer-reviewed scientific journal covering all topics about or related to marinemammals. It is published by Wiley-Blackwell...
Atlantic MarineMammal Commission (NAMMCO) is an international regional body for co-operation on conservation, management and study of marinemammals in the...
This is the list of marinemammals found in Australian waters. It is a sub-list of the list of mammals of Australia. Conservation status listed follows...
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