mystikalgo
Sept. 15, 2003 â Cheetahs chomp hard and even humans can bite through an ear, but one animal reigns supreme when it comes to possessing the strongest bite â the alligator.
American alligators, Alligator mississippiensis, have the most powerful bite force ever measured. According to a recent study published in the Journal of Zoology of London, alligators snap their strong jaws shut with a force of 2,125 pounds, or with about as much force as a mid-size sedan falling on top of someone.
The 2,125-pound measured bite came from a 12 1/2 foot alligator weighing 665 pounds, appropriately named Hercules. Since completion of the study, that impressive record was broken.
"Bite force is linked to the size of an animal," explained Kent Vliet, a University of Florida zoologist who headed up the study. "Since the report was published, we measured the bite of a wild gator, even bigger than Hercules at 13 1/2 feet in length missing the end of his tail. He bit down with a force of 2,960 pounds."
Measuring the champion chompers took Crocodile Hunter tactics, since the otherwise mellow alligators would not voluntarily attack the metal "bite bars" created by Vliet and his colleagues. Similar to tuning forks, the bars contained strain gauges that measured force.
Vliet had to lasso his subjects and secure them to a backboard. The process understandably annoyed the alligators, which caused them to bite down with defensive strength.
"We covered the bars with leather to prevent tooth damage, but in our videotapes you can see small chips and slivers of teeth flying off, which tells us the alligators were approaching their biting limits," Vliet told Discovery News.
To put the record measurement into perspective, hyenas, which are bone-crushing mammals, have a bite force of 1,000 pounds, slightly more than the 940 recorded for lions. Dusky sharks manage 330 pounds of force, and a common dog, the Labrador, bites with 125 pounds of force. Humans surprisingly beat out the pet dog, and measured in at 170 pounds of force.
It is still not a good idea to mess with a shark or lion.
"There is a lot more to biting and feeding ecology that brute jaw force," explained Vliet. "Lions, for example, have scissor-like teeth, while those of an alligator are blunt and pointed."
While it is unclear why alligators have such powerful jaws, Vliet said it could help them to incapacitate prey and munch on one of their favorite foods, turtles. When consuming turtles, gators eat both the shell and meat.
The study may also reveal information about dinosaurs.
"Crocodilians, such as the alligator, are the closest living relatives to dinosaurs," said Gregory Erickson, a professor of anatomy and vertebrate paleobiology at Florida State University in Tallahassee. "Their jaws, teeth and musculature provide an excellent model for the feeding biomechanics of these extinct beasts."
Erickson and Vliet indicated that small theropods, or bipedal carnivorous dinosaurs, bit down with no more than 450 pounds of force, but Tyrannosaurus rex may have been the world's most impressive biter with a force of around 3,300 pounds
Answer
I just fished out January 2009's Discover magazine and found that large great white sharks have a more powerful bite: "The bite of the largest of white sharks turns out to be not only the most powerful for any living species yet measured, but probably amongst the most powerful even for any extinct species." The article later states that a shark measuring 21 feet long and weighing 7,300 pounds could bite with a force of 4,000 pounds. I'm still impressed that an alligator can bite with more pounds of force than it weighs, though.
I just fished out January 2009's Discover magazine and found that large great white sharks have a more powerful bite: "The bite of the largest of white sharks turns out to be not only the most powerful for any living species yet measured, but probably amongst the most powerful even for any extinct species." The article later states that a shark measuring 21 feet long and weighing 7,300 pounds could bite with a force of 4,000 pounds. I'm still impressed that an alligator can bite with more pounds of force than it weighs, though.
What Type Of Jellyfish Did I see?
Hi my name is Jessie and today I went to the beach with my mom and brother and me and my brother went into the water and we saw a jellyfish that was about the size of this, without the strap included: http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://shopelegantwomansstoreofbeauty.com/images/Black-and-White-Print-Canvas-Purse-DPRSKA31.jpg&imgrefurl=http://shopelegantwomansstoreofbeauty.com/index.php%3FcPath%3D102&usg=__nXWQAmZpAJlbK4f_O3Jo34RxThU=&h=800&w=800&sz=66&hl=en&start=17&tbnid=TfAU98TFW73HfM:&tbnh=117&tbnw=120&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dpurse%26hl%3Den%26biw%3D1362%26bih%3D528%26gbv%3D2%26tbs%3Disch:10%2C317&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=113&vpy=192&dur=16&hovh=225&hovw=225&tx=128&ty=161&oei=PvZpTP7kGIbUtQP3noDmBQ&esq=2&page=2&ndsp=27&ved=1t:429,r:9,s:17&biw=1362&bih=528
It was whitish/clearish, and it had like lightish darkish patches on it. Sorry I could explain it a bit clearer, but as soon as I saw it I ran out of the water, so I didn't get a very clear view. My brother also saw it, and we told our mom. I'm 13 and he's 14, btw. We're not lying or making this up. The color of the head thingy was this: http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.atpartsonline.com/shop/a/autopartsprofessionalonline/img-lib/spd_20080519215709_b.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.atpartsonline.com/product-en-0-1600219-Auto%2BPro.%2BNew%2BLH%2BClear%2BWhite%2BColor%2BBlinker%2BLamp%2BMercedes%2BBenz%2BW123%2B230%2B240D%2B300D%2B230E%2B280E%2B(Depo).html&usg=__r3wN3C4cX4yLbYIgSphkRa7rjq0=&h=480&w=640&sz=52&hl=en&start=0&tbnid=CmVyGQVz9YaJiM:&tbnh=136&tbnw=183&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dclearish%2Bwhitish%2Bcolor%26hl%3Den%26biw%3D1362%26bih%3D528%26gbv%3D2%26tbs%3Disch:1&itbs=1&iact=rc&dur=390&ei=rvZpTOryFInEsAO66JHmBQ&oei=rvZpTOryFInEsAO66JHmBQ&esq=1&page=1&ndsp=12&ved=1t:429,r:2,s:0&tx=121&ty=58
and the patches was like this color: http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.glassblower.info/Tony-Patti-2008-Glass-Art/light-blue-dark-blue-closed-bowl.JPG&imgrefurl=http://www.glassblower.info/Tony-Patti-2008-Glass-Art/Tony-Patti-2008-Glass-Art.html&usg=__XZ5Irvt-i8PjrFsv2aDAZIBSH4A=&h=2280&w=2245&sz=527&hl=en&start=0&tbnid=n7odqfN-isT6qM:&tbnh=122&tbnw=120&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dlightish%2Bdarkish%2Bblue%26hl%3Den%26biw%3D1362%26bih%3D528%26gbv%3D2%26tbs%3Disch:1&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=115&vpy=188&dur=483&hovh=226&hovw=223&tx=149&ty=102&ei=0fZpTOOoGpP2tgPom5HmBQ&oei=0fZpTOOoGpP2tgPom5HmBQ&esq=1&page=1&ndsp=24&ved=1t:429,r:8,s:0
Do you know what type of Jellyfish this is? I'm like shaken up right now because I also saw two sharks today. we were at the del mar beach today in san diego and the whole shark thing was on the news, so im not lying. also, the shark was like a dark grey or black color and all i saw was its back and fin on its back area. what type of shark was it? is it deadly? it didnt attack anyone because there were a lot of surfers around it. i think i saw two sharks, but maybe just one. it bobbed in and out of the water a lot and it was really scary. so, heres the major question:
1. what type of jellyfish was it?
2. Is it deadly/dangerous?
3. what type of shark was it? it looked pretty big and i know its not a great white
4. is it deadly/dangerous?
and also my 8 y/o cousin went to the beach with his mom and bro and he got stung by a stingray at the same beach, and i just wanted 2 know why all these creatures have been coming so shallow these days. thank you so much i appreciate it and im not lying!! thanks! no rude answers please!
Answer
first off, sorry this is such a long answer, but please read the whole thing because i want you to understand something that i will talk about later on in my answer. to identify the jellyfish and sharks you saw, i would need a more specific description, sorry. but if the jellyfish was completely clear with coloring and the lightish darkish patches were just thinner layers of the jellyfish and not red or anything then it's completely harmless. colorless jellyfish can't sting you. many of them wash ashore and you can just pick it up and throw it back in, but you HAVE to make sure there's no coloring on it. there are about 400 different species of sharks and majority of them have a dark grey color, so i can't really identify it for you. any coloring on the tips of the sharks fins, the shape of the tail would be a great help, but it's kind of hard to describe the tail. now here's what i want you to learn, i'm going to tell you right now, and you may think i'm crazy but it's true: sharks are generally passive, non-agressive creatures. they are not interested in you and if they are, they're just curious. you are more likely to get KILLED by a coconut than a shark; more people die a year from getting hit with coconuts than shark attacks. you are more likely to get bitten by another human being than a shark. and one of the more famous ones, you are more likely to get struck by lightning than getting bitten by a shark. sharks don't deserve their man-eating reputation because those shark attacks happened probably because the shark thought they were seals. i mean have a friend lie down on a boogie board with their arms and legs sticking out, you'll see they look somewhat like a seal. other shark attacks happen because the sharks are just curious. they don't have hands to feel with and we can't communicate with them, so their "hands" is their mouth and nose. i'm typing all this info up because i don't want anyone to be afraid of sharks, instead, we should be afraid FOR them. pretty much all sharks are on the endangered species list, and some are close to going extinct. sharks are SO important to the ocean, and we're killing them off and giving them man-eating reputations they don't deserve. you can think i'm crazy, or believe what you want and think sharks are man-eating creatures, but think about what they think of us. us humans kill about 26-73 MILLION sharks EACH YEAR, and sharks kill maybe 4-10 people each year, which isn't much considering there's about 6 billion of us. instead of being afraid of sharks, PLEASE stand up for them. i know this whole thing isn't what you asked for in your question, but i'm just trying to save and conserve and spread the word that sharks need our help and we shouldn't be afraid of them. however, if a shark DOES get close to you, is circling around you, or you feel threatened by it then be prepared to punch the nose which is one of the most sensitive parts of their body or poke the shark's eye if it gets close enough. also to answer your last question about stingrays, stingrays do live in shallow waters, so they sort of belong there. however, the recent occurance with sharks near the shallows is a mystery. scientists just don't know why yet.
first off, sorry this is such a long answer, but please read the whole thing because i want you to understand something that i will talk about later on in my answer. to identify the jellyfish and sharks you saw, i would need a more specific description, sorry. but if the jellyfish was completely clear with coloring and the lightish darkish patches were just thinner layers of the jellyfish and not red or anything then it's completely harmless. colorless jellyfish can't sting you. many of them wash ashore and you can just pick it up and throw it back in, but you HAVE to make sure there's no coloring on it. there are about 400 different species of sharks and majority of them have a dark grey color, so i can't really identify it for you. any coloring on the tips of the sharks fins, the shape of the tail would be a great help, but it's kind of hard to describe the tail. now here's what i want you to learn, i'm going to tell you right now, and you may think i'm crazy but it's true: sharks are generally passive, non-agressive creatures. they are not interested in you and if they are, they're just curious. you are more likely to get KILLED by a coconut than a shark; more people die a year from getting hit with coconuts than shark attacks. you are more likely to get bitten by another human being than a shark. and one of the more famous ones, you are more likely to get struck by lightning than getting bitten by a shark. sharks don't deserve their man-eating reputation because those shark attacks happened probably because the shark thought they were seals. i mean have a friend lie down on a boogie board with their arms and legs sticking out, you'll see they look somewhat like a seal. other shark attacks happen because the sharks are just curious. they don't have hands to feel with and we can't communicate with them, so their "hands" is their mouth and nose. i'm typing all this info up because i don't want anyone to be afraid of sharks, instead, we should be afraid FOR them. pretty much all sharks are on the endangered species list, and some are close to going extinct. sharks are SO important to the ocean, and we're killing them off and giving them man-eating reputations they don't deserve. you can think i'm crazy, or believe what you want and think sharks are man-eating creatures, but think about what they think of us. us humans kill about 26-73 MILLION sharks EACH YEAR, and sharks kill maybe 4-10 people each year, which isn't much considering there's about 6 billion of us. instead of being afraid of sharks, PLEASE stand up for them. i know this whole thing isn't what you asked for in your question, but i'm just trying to save and conserve and spread the word that sharks need our help and we shouldn't be afraid of them. however, if a shark DOES get close to you, is circling around you, or you feel threatened by it then be prepared to punch the nose which is one of the most sensitive parts of their body or poke the shark's eye if it gets close enough. also to answer your last question about stingrays, stingrays do live in shallow waters, so they sort of belong there. however, the recent occurance with sharks near the shallows is a mystery. scientists just don't know why yet.
Powered by Yahoo! Answers
No comments:
Post a Comment