Marine and Green
By Jackie Lindsey, Vertebrate Ecology Lab
Happy St. Patrick's Day from all the critters wearing green under the sea!
![Florida manatee (Photo by Keith Ramos, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)](https://mlml.sjsu.edu/student-life/wp-content/uploads/sites/75/2015/03/manatee_green.jpg?w=450)
Florida manatees swim so slowly (3-5 miles per hour) that they can accumulate an algae coat on their skin.
![http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/animal-guide/invertebrates/giant-green-anemone](https://mlml.sjsu.edu/student-life/wp-content/uploads/sites/75/2015/03/giant-green-anemone.jpg?w=450)
Giant green anemones consume algae, and produce their own green color to match.
![Photo: Courtesy of Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve](https://mlml.sjsu.edu/student-life/wp-content/uploads/sites/75/2015/03/otter-story-1-2014.jpg?w=450)
Southern sea otters wrap themselves securely in algae, so they don't drift away while they sleep.
![http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1679-62252010005000003](https://mlml.sjsu.edu/student-life/wp-content/uploads/sites/75/2015/03/aop0310f01cd.jpg?w=450)
Green turtles can have green algae (as well as red and brown) growing on their hard shells, which provides a tasty snack to reef fishes.
![http://www.arkive.org/green-sawfish/pristis-zijsron/#src=portletV3api](https://mlml.sjsu.edu/student-life/wp-content/uploads/sites/75/2015/03/green-sawfish-swimming.jpg?w=450)
Green sawfish, found off the coast of Australia, have a naturally greenish tinge to their skin. No algae required!
Do you want to know more about these animals and algae? Come ask a marine scientist at Moss Landing Marine Lab's Open House: April 11th and 12th