Marine Life with Brenda

The green sea turtle (Chelonia mydas) of the Cheloniidae family is a genus of large sea turtle. It is the only species within the Chelonia genus. Its range stretches all over the world across tropical and subtropical seas, with two distinct populations in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, but is also present in the Indian Ocean.  Adult green sea turtles prefer to live near seaside grass beds, mangroves and coral reefs while younger ones live further away from shore. Green sea turtles are one of the largest turtle species in the world, weighing about 65-130 kg and ranging between 1-1.2 m in length. Animals have a thick shell of tear-drop shape, called a' carapace,' covering most of their body except for their head and four flippers. Their carapace can contain shades of various colours, including dark brown, green, olive, yellow, and black.  Chelonia mydas  is classified by IUCN and CITES as endangered and is protected from exploitation in most countries. Collecti...

Dolphins are mammalian animals which live in an aquatic environment and can be found in almost all marine environments. These creatures are incredibly intelligent and are able to communicate using language (which takes the form of the beautiful sounds they emit). Being under water with dolphins in their natural habitat is a wonderful experience. I love dolphins and I always get excited whenever I spot them.  Author: Brenda Moita 

Mufete  This article is from a series of post on the topic of "What can the sea give us?".  Mufete is a dish of Angolan origin, more specifically, yes you guessed it, Luanda island. It is composed of grilled fish, banana bread, manioca, sweet potato and is accompanied palm oil bean. All those ingredients are from the island's natural resources and are therefore ethical and nonetheless incredibly delicious. Mufete is by the way one of my favourites dishes of the Angolan cuisine.  Author: Brenda Moita 

In biological terms  every group of fish which remains together for practical reasons is shoaling, and if the group swims in a coordinated manner in the same direction, they're schooling.  Evolutionary biologists suggest that some fish have evolved to swim in schools in order to protect themselves from predators, to strengthen their foraging and to swim faster. Different to shoaling, where fish only swim together loosely manner, schooling includes coordinated postures and a movement which is synchronised.  Author: Brenda Moita 

Mussulo's Fauna  Mussulo is an island (peninsula) on the southern coast of Luanda in Angola. Mussulo's fauna possess a immense biodiversity as a wide range of creatures have this island as their natural habitat. The mangroves forest in Mussulo provide the nests for several marine creatures such as leader back turtles, green turtles, the common dolphin, sharks, octopus, squid, jelly fish, green swordtail, tetra, etc. These animals migrate to other parts of the globe according to the season, their life and reproductive cycle. From my experience I have seem a variety of fish, birds, crabs which are yet to be reported and even pigs. I have no doubts that are many more animals living there.   Author: Brenda Moita 

I love going to the beach and for me it is quite difficult to find a reason no to go. Whenever I'm there I enjoy snorkelling with my siblings and finding crustaceans, fish, some fossils and when lucky, dolphins. In medical terms, someone should go to the beach because it is a very easy way to get vitamin D which is important to absorb calcium and promote bone growth.  Furthermore, several types of cancer have been associated with lack of vitamin D e.g. breast cancer, colon cancer, prostate cancer, etc. so getting that extra supply of vitD could be a way to prevent disease. However, one should also be careful about the time and amount of sun exposure they have since the UV light can cause cellular damage and result in skin cancer. Other benefits linked to going to the beach include making beautiful memories in a gorgeous place with our loved ones, enjoying a wonderful sunset, exploring the local fauna and flora and finally, being more relaxed, less tired and happie...

Many people have given up on meat due to its impact on the environment. Although years ago being a pescatarian appeared to be a sustainable alternative, the damaging impact that industrial fishing has caused to several marine ecosystems has raised the awareness of individuals, research organisations and several environmental activist groups which resulted in the reduction in consumption of a marine based diet. As a consequence one could easily come to the conclusion that fishing is bad, should be banned and meat consumption should completely cease.  However, indigenous  people have a vary varied diet that includes the consumption of met and fish, and they hunt and fish without harming the ecosystem in which they live in. Natives from Mussulo for example, live in perfectly equilibrium with the environment while having a diet that includes meet and fish. Perhaps, this is the sort of life that someone  extremely concerned about the environment sho...