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The Sun’s Cycle Transforms the Sea

In The Sun’s Cycle Transforms the Sea, narrator Sir David Attenborough describes the most productive food chain that happens off the coast of Alaska. The Sun creates a phytoplankton bloom which attracts herring and larger animals. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Blue Planet, a definitive documentary series diving into the mysterious depths of the sea to discover the natural history of the world’s oceans and the rarely seen marine life that reside there.

Video Details
Location:
Alaska
Grades:
Program:
Blue Planet I
Time:
2:19
Subject:

Lesson Express

Q: What happens in the water in Alaska in the spring?
A: The Sun transforms the sea and creates a bloom of phytoplankton, turning the water green.

Q: Who is at the top of the food chain?
A: The humpback whale is at the top of the food chain and gets most of its food in Alaska.

Q: What makes the food chain in Alaska so productive?
A: The return of the Sun means that an abundance of phytoplankton attract herring which in turn attract other larger animals.

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