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Any interactives on this page can only be played while you are visiting our website. You cannot download interactives. Marine ecosystems contain a diverse array of living organisms and abiotic processes. From massive marine mammals like whales to the tiny krill that form the bottom of the food chain, all life in the ocean is interconnected. While the ocean seems vast and unending, it is, in fact, finite; as the climate continues to change, we are learning more about those limits.
Explore these resources to teach students about marine organisms, their relationship with one another, and with their environment. Whether a description of a keystone species or the impact of the Pacific garbage patch, these articles provide insight into a breadth of important issues facing our world today, including the environment, civic engagement, and history.
Plastic is ubiquitous in our everyday lives. Some plastics we can reuse or recycle—and many play important roles in areas like medicine and public safety—but other items, such as straws, are designed for only one use.
In fact, more than 40 percent of plastic is used only once before it is thrown away, where it lingers in the environment for a long, long time. It often breaks down into smaller and smaller particles, called microplastics, which can be ingested by both animals and people. Fortunately, there are things we can do to help—like stop using plastic bags, straws, and bottles, recycling when we can, and disposing of waste properly.
Use these classroom resources to teach about ocean plastics and check back for more coming later this year! Use this idea and suggested resources to build the perfect lesson or activity on plastic pollution and ocean circulation for your classroom.
Join our community of educators and receive the latest information on National Geographic's resources for you and your students. Skip to content. Twitter Facebook Pinterest Google Classroom. Encyclopedic Entry Vocabulary. The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is a soupy collection of marine debris—mostly plastics. Worldwide Garbage Patches.
The Atlantic and Indian Oceans both have trash vortexes. Even shipping routes in smaller bodies of water, such as the North Sea, are developing garbage patches. The following are just a few of the strange items that have washed up on shores: In , five shipping containers of Nike sneakers and work boots were lost to the Pacific in a storm. People in Washington and Oregon snatched up the shoes on shore, holding swap meets to find matched pairs to wear or sell.
In , rubber duckies floated in the Pacific when a ship lost tens of thousands of bathtub toys. The ducks were accompanied by turtles, beavers, and frogs. In , a ship lost 34, pieces of hockey gear, including gloves, chest protectors, and shin guards. Emerging Explorer. Also called a food cycle. Great Pacific Garbage Patch. West Coast. A new commentary published Dec. Gyres of ocean plastic form when surface currents drive plastic pollution from the coasts into regions where rotating currents trap the floating objects, which accumulate over time.
The world has at least five plastic-infested gyres, or "garbage patches. While "garbage patch" is a misnomer -- much of the pollution consists of microplastics, too small for the naked eye to see -- floating debris like nets, buoys and bottles also get swept into the gyres, carrying organisms from their coastal homes with them.
The authors call these communities neopelagic. Scientists first began suspecting coastal species could use plastic to survive in the open ocean for long periods after the Japanese tsunami, when they discovered that nearly species had rafted all the way across the Pacific on tsunami debris over the course of several years.
But until now, confirmed sightings of coastal species on plastic directly in the open ocean were rare. For this discovery, Haram teamed up with Ocean Voyages Institute, a nonprofit that collects plastic pollution on sailing expeditions, and a pair of oceanographers from the University of Hawai'i at Manoa. The oceanographers, Jan Hafner and Nikolai Maximenko, created models that could predict where plastic was most likely to pile up in the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre.
They shared that information with Ocean Voyages Institute. One advantage of the institute, Haram -- now a fellow at the American Association for the Advancement of Science -- pointed out, is the low carbon footprint of its vessels.
There, Haram analyzed the species that had colonized them. She found many coastal species -- including anemones, hydroids and shrimp-like amphipods -- not only surviving, but thriving, on marine plastic. For marine scientists, the very existence of this "new open ocean" community is a paradigm shift. The new discovery shows that both ideas do not always hold true.
Plastic is providing the habitat. And somehow, coastal rafters are finding food. Ruiz said scientists are still speculating exactly how -- whether they drift into existing hot spots of productivity in the gyre, or because the plastic itself acts like a reef attracting more food sources. It is also difficult to estimate the size of these "patches," because the borders and content constantly change with ocean currents and winds.
Regardless of the exact size, mass, and location of the "garbage patch," manmade debris does not belong in our oceans and waterways and must be addressed. Debris found in any region of the ocean can easily be ingested by marine species causing choking, starvation, and other impairments. What is the Great Pacific Garbage Patch?
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