Fish out of Water

There are many different ways in which humans and animals interact. It is very popular for people to keep domestic pets. These pets can become part of the family and sometimes they are even treated like humans. Some people choose to keep more exotic, wild pets. These pets are not necessarily part of the family but are more for show. Animals are not just pets though; the majority of species are actually wild. It is very common for people to travel to see animals in their natural environment. Whale watches, safaris, and natural reserves are just a few examples of this. There are many groups that are formed to protect these creatures that we coexist with, while scientists study animals and their behavior for a living. Life would be very different without these organisms that we interact with on a daily basis.

Sometimes animals get into trouble and people come to their aid. One of these situations came about in late July 2002. On July 30, a group of animals got themselves into an unfortunate and life-threatening situation. This occurred in Dennis, a town on the south coast of Cape Cod in Massachusetts. In Dennis, there is a beach called Chapin Beach. At about 6:30 in the morning, a pod of 56 pilot whales took a turn for the worst and headed in to shallow waters. It is still unknown why this occurred. The whales could have been sick, lost, or just chasing food. However, the whales ran into trouble because the tide was moving out around this time leaving the whales stranded. The whole pod was stuck in the sand as the tide went further and further out. A group of volunteers from all over the Cape came to the aid of these whales. Many people created a bucket line to help keep the whales’ very fragile skin wet and ward off sunburn. By 10 o’clock, the tide was completely out and the whales were beached. Scientists from organization like Woods Hole Oceanography Institute and veterinarians from the area came to assess the whales and their condition so people could help the whales with the best chance of survival. Whales, when beached, actually work against themselves. Due purely to the weight of their bodies and the fact that the water is no longer there to suspend them, their internal organs start to get crushed. On top of that, when whales are out of water for an extended period of time they suffer from dehydration. The volunteers kept the whales as wet as possible with ocean water and wet beach towels. Once the tide began to come back in, the leaders had the volunteers try and maneuver the whales away from the beach and out toward the bay. As the tide rose, the whales left the beach and swam away. After the event, there were only 10 pilot whales that had died. Scientists did not know the exact cause of these deaths, however they think it might have been a mixture of dehydration, shock, and of course Darwin’s theory natural selection. The people who volunteered did not have to help these animals. Pilot Whales are not an endangered species. In fact, the species is thriving, especially around the Cape. This rescue was not out of necessity or saving an entire species but rather out of human kindness. This event was one of human-animal interaction with a positive outcome.

I was on the Cape spending some time with my family during the week of July 30. I was staying in Yarmouth, which is the neighboring town of Dennis. I heard about this unimaginable event and had to see it. I was just a spectator, but it was still an incredible encounter with an animal that is not usually out of the water. I looked out down the beach scattered with enormous, black, and shinny bodies. All of the people were chaotic and loud, shouting directions and running around. The humans were in such contrast to the calmness of the whales. Obviously in distress, the whales were mostly silent with the occasional sigh and breath. I watched as people worked tirelessly to run water back and forth from the wave break. It was amazing to watch the whales swim back out into the bay when high tide hit. They swam out to the bay so fast that it was unbelievable to think that they were out of water, their natural habitat, for about eight hours. I will never forget the two sides of this event. I loved watching the little black dorsal fins of the whales bob in an out of the bay as they swam away. However, the sight of the other ten whales just lying there in the sand and shallow water motionless was very tragic.

Animals and humans often interact whether it is in a domestic setting or in a wild setting. The situation with the beached whales on the Cape is just one example of a human interaction in the wild. Whether it is walking a pet dog or helping to push a whale back into the bay, human interaction and encounters with animals are very important.

Picture Credits:

Whale picture with caption

Whale in water

Ocean Dependent

Four hours east of New York City, half an hour north of Providence, forty minutes south of Boston, and west of nothing but Europe, lies a small piece of the United States that I call home. Southeastern Massachusetts is different from anywhere else on earth. It has the fast pace feel of big cities mixed with the relaxed feeling of living on a beach. The coast is lined with small seaside villages from Westport to Provincetown. The Cape is one big suburb of Boston, and holds many valuable assets unique to the area. One of the unique qualities of the Cape is that it is surrounded by water on three sides. The ocean has an enormous impact on the area. The economy, recreational activities, even the way we build our houses, all depend on the water that surrounds us.

The economy of the Cape is based around the ocean. The major industries associated with the southeast are seafood and cranberries. These two things seem like they would come from very different areas however, that is not the case. It is so beautiful to drive along the roads in the early morning to see all the fog rising off the bogs; however, the best view is from the air, fly over the Cape in the fall and see the red checkerboard made by the bogs.These bogs are so successful because of the very high water table in the area, due to the proximity to the ocean. The bogs get plenty of water and damp soil to allow growth, while the weather of the area stays cool to chill in the fall. The bogs explode into berries, ripe for picking, giving the farmers opportunity for great profit. One of the biggest cranberry companies in the world, Ocean Spray, is based on the Cape. Cranberries are not only profitable but also well loved as a food on the Cape. They are in everything from chocolate covered to breads and muffins, to just plainly dried. The other major industry is much less surprising. Seafood obviously comes from the ocean and that is something of which the Cape has no shortage. The most common seafood, excluding shellfish, is white fish like haddock, sol, and of course cod along with bigger fish like swordfish. Shell fishing is also a popular industry. Scallops, clams, quahogs, mussels, lobsters, crabs, are all found in abundance. The two most important industries on the Cape, cranberries and seafood, depend on the Ocean.

There are many things to do in Southeastern Massachusetts that one can take part in for fun that involve the Ocean. There are beaches everywhere. The whole coastline is open for beachgoers and there is even an area consisting of over 40 miles of protected beaches called Cape Cod National Seashore. At the beaches, swimming, surfing, skim boarding, kite boarding, sailing, kayaking, and almost anything else dealing with the water is available for participation. The beaches are not the only water-based activities; the Cape Cod Canal also draws a crowd. This man-made canal breaks the Cape off from the main state of Massachusetts. It is a narrow canal that allows boats to cut through without having to sail around. Along the Canal is a trail that allows walking, running, biking, and rollerblading. There is also a train that crosses the canal on a type of Drop Bridge. All of these activities bring in a lot of tourists, which also supplements the economy, which once again can be traced back to the ocean.

Houses are one thing that is necessary everywhere. The ocean shapes the houses that are built. Although the high water table is conducive to growing cranberries, it is not for building houses. Basements are almost an impossible unless they are built on top of the ground soil. Digging any deeper than 3 feet will draw water and is unsuitable for building a foundation. Houses close enough to the shore will be built on stilts. These stilts are to raise the house off the ground in order to protect it from nor’easters or hurricanes or floods. The water does not limit house building indefinably it just limits the choices. Either a really tall house built on top of the ground or a sprawling layout that covers a lot of land. This is not necessarily a bad thing just a different way to build houses.

Cape Cod is a very unique area that is completely dependent on the ocean. Its economy would be nothing. No cranberries, no shellfish, no tourists would equal very low profit which in turn would lower the value of the area. The recreational activities also involve the water. No matter what season there is always an activity to do, like ice fishing for winter, kayaking for spring, swimming for summer, and surfing for fall. The ocean even affects how the houses are built. Stilts and no basement are the norm for the area. All of these things make the Cape unique. Without the ocean it would not be the same. I think that the ocean has shaped me as well. I will never stray far from the ocean.