Astonishing Animal
By Michael Frangos
Introduction
What is blue-gray in color and cruises at 5 miles per hour under the sea? A blue whale, of course! This outstanding organism has an appealing appearance, an enthralling habitat, and a pretty repulsive diet.
Appearance and Body Structure
The blue whale’s appearance and body structure are probably the most spectacular things about the blue whale. This baleen whale is the largest animal on earth. They can weigh up to 200 tons, or 400,000 pounds! It is a lot heavier than a piano, 500 pounds. These awesome animals can grow up to 85-105 ft long. Compared to a school bus, 37ft, these huge mammals are about two and a half times longer than a school bus. These whales are sometimes called sulfur bottom because in the winter, diatoms may stick to its underbelly. One of the special features of the blue whale are lungs so it can breathe underwater. It also has a dorsal fin and a whalebone, which are plates in its mouth. Surprisingly, the blue whale has two blowholes! Miraculously, this massive whale has about 14,000 pounds, or 7 tons of blood circulating around in its body. These amazing animals are gulpers, meaning they gulp their prey rather than chewing it up. Their tongue can weigh up to 8000 pounds, or 4 tons! The colors of this animal are blueish gray with light gray splotches. The heart of the blue whale can weigh up to 1,540 pounds and thats 3 times the weight of a piano! This organism is toothless so it cant chew it’s food. Blue whales are as blue as the cool Carribean waters on a sunny evening. Certaintly, the blue whale’s appearance and body structure is fact-filled and informational.
Habitat
The blue whale has an astonishing and fascinating habitat. This miraculous mammal lives at the surface of the ocean and is found in all oceans. Blue whales migrate towards the equator in the winter and in the summer they inhabit polar seas. They are found in pairs or pods which are groups of whales. The blue whale zips through the ocean at 5 miles per hour but can accelerate to 20 miles per hour when it is aggitated. Blue whales take lengthy migrations from polar seas to tropical seas. For sure, the blue whales habitat is astonishing and filled with amazing facts.
Diet
These astounding animals have a very strange and disgusting appetite.
The blue whale eats krill, plankton and other small fish. Krill are shrimplike crustaceans. This magnificent mammal is a carnivore, meaning it only eats other animals. It also eats copepod and other crustaceans. These massive animals eat about 2,000-9,000 pounds of plankton each day! These bluish-gray whales obtain food by gulping large ammounts of water and then it uses baleen plates to push the water out of the gulp and then they eat the krill and other crustaceans remaining. The whalebone traps plankton when water is expelled through the mouth. Due to the fact that there are a lot of whalers around, the population of blue whales have went down from 400,000 to 12,000 so they have now been put on the endangered list. The blue whale’s diet can be very eerie and disgusting.
Conclusion
Think Tank
Blue Whale Haiku
Blue Whales are awesome
They grow to eighty five feet
Krill is prey for them
Australia Haiku
Australia is cool
Ayers Rock is really big
Dingos live there too
Chef's Corner
Pavlova is a meringue cake that has a light and delicate crisp crust and a soft sweet marshmallow center. This lovely dessert is served with whipped cream and fresh fruit. There is a long standing debate about whether New Zealand or Australia invented this dessert, which has yet to be resolved. What we do know is that the name, Pavlova, was chosen in honor of the Russian ballerina, Anna Pavlova, who toured both New Zealand and Australia in 1926
Ingredients
4 large (120 grams)egg whites
1 cup (200 grams) superfine (castor)sugar
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1/2 tablespoon cornstarch (corn flour)
Topping:
1 cup (240 ml) heavy whippingcream
1 1/2 tablespoons (20 grams) granulated whitesugar(or to taste)
1/2 teaspoon purevanilla extract
Fresh fruit - kiwi, strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, passion fruit, peaches, pineapple, or other fruit of your choice
Directions:
Preheat oven to 250 degrees F (130 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and draw a 7 inch (18 cm) circle on the paper. Turn the parchment paper over so the circle is on the reverse side.
In the bowl of your electric mixer, with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites on medium speed until they hold soft peaks. Start adding the sugar, a tablespoon at a time, and continue to beat, on high speed, until the meringue holds very stiff and shiny peaks. (Test to see if the sugar is fully dissolved by rubbing a little of the meringue between your thumb and index finger. The meringue should feel smooth, not gritty. If it feels gritty the sugar has not fully dissolved so keep beating until it feels smooth between your fingers). Beat in the vanilla extract. Sprinkle the vinegar and cornstarch over the top of the meringue and, with a rubber spatula, gently fold in. Spread the meringue inside the circle drawn on the parchment paper, smoothing the edges, making
sure the edges of the meringue are slightly higher than the center. (You want a slight well in the center of the meringue to place the whipped cream and fruit.)
Bake for 60 to75 minutesor until the outside is dry and is a very pale cream color. Turn the oven off, leave the door slightly ajar, and let the meringue cool completely in the oven. (The outside of the meringue will feel firm to the touch, if gently pressed, but as it cools you will get a little cracking and you will see that the inside is soft and marshmallowy.)
The cooled meringue can be made and stored in a cool dry place, in an airtight container, for a few days.
Just before serving gently place the meringue onto a serving plate. Whip the cream in your electric mixer, with the whisk attachment, until soft peaks form. Sweeten with the sugar and vanilla and then mound the softly whipped cream into the center of the meringue. Arrange the fruit randomly, or in a decorative pattern, on top of the cream. Serve immediately as this dessert does not hold for more than a few hours.
Kuhil Loach
Length: 4"
Bloodfin Tetra
Length: 2" each
Buenos Aires Tetra
Length: 3" each
Go FIsh
I chose one clown fish, two blood fin tetras, one angelfish, one Buenos ares tetra, and one Kuhil Loach to make my five fish. I spent $249.28 and my budget was $250. I will need 19 gallons to support my fish. My theme was an Asian, Greek them. I got a small Greek column for $1.49 to put in the Greek section. I also got an incline beta plant for $2.99 so the fish could have some plants. In addition to that, I got a rock garden lava rock so they could hide and play in. For the Asian section, we got an Asian gazebo and a Balinese dragon. I also bought forgotten ruins and an LED volcano to put in the Greek themed side. Adding on to that, I got a coral replica, a barnacle barrel, and a Sunken horse ship to also add to the Greek theme