The Mediterranean Sea

1. The Mediterranean Sea Made By Luke Sammut Form 3P St. Augustine’s College

2. Index • Brief History on the Mediterranean Sea. • Facts about the Mediterranean Sea. • Organisms that are found in the Mediterranean. • Brief information about some organisms found in the Mediterranean sea. • Pollution in the Mediterranean. • The Maltese Islands. • References

3. Brief History About the Mediterranean Sea • Before the Mediterranean Sea was created, there was the so called Tethys Sea. • This sea was much larger in size than the Mediterranean. • The picture below shows the Tethys Sea.

4. Facts and General Information about the Mediterranean Sea • The Mediterranean is 2,400 km long with a maximum width of 1,600 km; its greatest depth is 4,400 m, off Cape Matapan, Greece. • The Mediterranean is then divided into: the Tyrrhenian, Adriatic, Ionian, and Aegean seas. • There are about 400 species of fish found in the Mediterranean.

5. Some Organisms Found in the Mediterranean • Adder Pike • Stargazer • Sting Ray • Moray Eel • Barracuda

6. The Adder Pike • This fish varies in length from 10cm to 20cm. • The dorsal fin of this fish has five poisonous spines. • Its operculum are covered with a poisonous spine. • The diagram below shows a typical boney or osseous fish.

7. The Stargazer • The fish’s head is quite robust and is found in a cuboid shape. • Its eyes are at the top of its head. This is why the name of ‘stargazer’ is given since it is continually gazing at the stars. • Its colours are mainly brown or blackish with yellow. • Something interesting about this fish is that it takes a very long time die, even when it is out of the sea. It may live up to 5 hours.

8. The Sting Ray • Most of the species of sting rays found are harmless apart from their huge size. • However a few species of sting rays are armed with a tail which has stinging, serrated spines ( this is why they are called sting rays). Some of which are also electric. • The picture shows how people usually encounter these organisms and are harmed with the tail.

9. The Moray Eel • Being long and snake-like, it can easily be distinguished from other fish. • This fish can grow up to 1 to 2 metres. • Its colour is that of a black one with golden spots. • Its mouth is equipped with very sharp teeth and when it bites its prey, it is very difficult to get it off. • The picture shows the sharp teeth of the moray eel.

10. The Barracuda • The barracuda’s body is elongated and its mouth is equipped with sharp teeth. • The length of the adult Mediterranean barracuda is about half to one metre. • Colours vary from black to dark green and sometimes silver. • These fish like to be in shoals and are very well known for killing swimmers when they are in large numbers. • The picture shows a shoal of barracudas

11. Pollution in the Mediterranean Sea • This sea is frequently used for oil transport and up to one million tons of oil are let out from accidental spills, illegal bunkering and cleaning practices. • There is also pollution in river systems such as Po, Ebro and Nile which carry a substantial number of indutrialised wastes. The Mediterranean is almost land-locked making the pollution more sensitive as water renewal takes very long.

12. The Maltese Islands • Malta is approximately located at the centre of the Mediterranean, south-east of Sicily with an area of about 316km2. • Malta is one of the islands that use freshwater resources due to sea pollution in the Mediterranean. It is estimated that by 2025 one out of every 2 countries in the Mediterranean will be using fresh water resources.

13. References • www.searchmalta.com • www.explorecrete.com • www.wikipedia.com • www.yahoo.com