The Maouri Dolphin: This dolphin, commonly known as the Hector dolphin, is one of the smallest and rarest in the world. Hector's dolphins are endemic to the coastal waters of New Zealand. They are found mainly around the South Island, particularly along the eastern and southern coasts, and in some parts of the North Island of New Zealand.

Hector's dolphins primarily feed on small fish, squid, and crustaceans. They use echolocation to locate their prey, emitting high-frequency sounds that bounce off objects in their environment, allowing them to navigate and hunt.

Cultural significance:

Article:

This article provides some insight into the monetary and environmental benefits of conserving whale populations. It is said that with the whale's ability to intake carbon, their species value would equal 1 trillion dollars. (Which, in some context, can seem a bit odd due to animals being autonomous creatures). It also mentions that when whales die, they take large amounts of carbon with them to the bottom of the sea.

Article:

The article describes the dolphin as difficult to describe due to its shared characteristics, but it further points out that it expresses these characteristics through its behavior. Clymene dolphins are known for their acrobatic behavior, including leaping out of the water and spinning. They often travel in groups or pods.

This section of the chapter covered the related health instances and the author's connection with the Bowhead whale. A notable aspect of how the whale's ability to take nutrients from their bones to grow their baleen to be able to eat more relates in a sense to the author's ability to take her own struggles with scoliosis and create new growth in her own personal life. "I do have so much fat to earn and love to offer. Wisdom even. In these bones." (39)

Article:

In choosing this article, I saw a connection to the type of theme the author wanted to put forth over our innate abilities in overcoming the struggles of life and our own abilities to gain strength from within. I think Disabled athletes do a great job representing this theme amid the Bowhead whale and the author.

"What if school, as we used it on a daily basis, signaled not the name of a process or institution through which we could be indoctrinated, not a structure through which social capital was grasped and policed, but something more organic, like a scale of care. What if school was the scale at which we could care for each other and move together. In my view, at this moment in history, that is really what we need to learn most urgently." (43)

This chapter discusses the idea of "Schools" and their associations with the idea of community. I found it interesting how the connection between Striped Dolphins and the example of the 1990 disease inadvertently made them disperse for the time being and allowed them to reorganize and continue to keep a moderately sized School of Dolphins to which they themselves can help each other survive. (I think, in many ways, this idea of community or the people in our lives truly do uplift us when hard times come.)

Article:

This idea of community came to mind when the theme of schools was mentioned. I think the Black Panther movement and the ability the community has to overcome struggle is truly something to consider. The school lunch program seems like an idea in which caring for one another far imposes the idea of our own responsibility or desire to care for others in the name of love. The author states, " What if school was the scale at which we could care for each other and move together."

"I wonder why sometimes we congregate with those who have been hurt in ways that look similar to how we have been hurt. About how we sometimes (me too) name identities and even whole organizations based on our scars. And how sometimes those of us with similar vulnerabilities are the ones who scar each other. I wonder sometimes about what keeps us close, in a hurting world shaped by intimate violence. In a world that cuts systemically and deep."

This chapter looked at the similarity between the Pacific White-sided dolphins, their shared experiences of being treated poorly in the ocean, and how they tend to congregate together. I would say the author's point of view, in which we tend to stick to those who we share scars with, is a real experience and idea.

Article:

In choosing an article over the concept of intergenerational Trauma and the impacts it has had on the Black Community. I think it is a true example of how even in our own shared fight against the powers of evil and oppression, even our community is stuck with the hate and bitterness caused by others and inadvertently spreads to our loved ones without even a second thought.

"Alexis De Veaux teaches of reflection and Black feminist solidarity. Of how the self is not an individual unit for success within the system that exists, but a collective Black interface seeking something else. Listening darkly. It is an invitation to find in each “other” exactly what we are afraid of finding in our “selves.”

Article: In reading chapter 7 and looking at the theme of being present, I thought it would be cool to look into Black feminist solidarity and the related topics of social economy. In the context of the article, I could see how the expression and fight to be in a social economy is essential when considering the lack of help or desire to acknowledge the struggle for people's identity.

"So whereas the Miami Seaquarium says that an orca named “Lolita” is a beloved attraction for all ages, and is safer in the smallest cell to ever hold an orca than she would be in her resident home in the Salish Sea, I add my voice to the voices of her Lummi relatives and say, that’s not her name. And it never was. This summer the Lummi had a naming ceremony for this whale, who is sometimes known as Tokitae. Her new and sacred name is Sk’aliCh’elh-tenaut, a name that refers to a native village near the range in which she would live if she had never been captured, a group of people with whom she could have been in a tangible sacred relationship, a name, which as I read it, means home." (57)

This chapter discussed resilience extensively. I think this article on the story of Native American children and the stripping of identity is quite closely related to the name/identity of the Orca mentioned in this chapter. Also, the aspects of the Weddell seal also give light to the animal being its authentic self amid its own circumstances.

It seems that the author brings to the point that even amid external change, ultimately, it is we who decide to keep being ourselves. (just as how the article explains the lives of the native children)

"How would we spend our time if we realized that the conflicts we are experiencing now urgently demand that we create a more loving world as soon as possible?"

This chapter discussed conflict; for the better part of the chapter, I was pretty curious about how sea lions fight. But nonetheless, it is interesting to see how sea lions continue to perpetuate conflict. The video linked above demonstrates, well, sea lions fighting.

"According to Morin, the whale is so mysterious that it has never been seen alive. He told the BBC that it is rare to wash up on shore if it dies. “If they do die…” he said, “they are far away from shore.” (Does that mean he thinks that it’s possible that they don’t die?) I’m here for the mystery as much as anyone else. But I wonder sometimes about the manufacture of novelty. " (69)

In looking at chapter 10 and its theme of boundary, I thought it was interesting to see its mention of sleep and its ability to be used as a torture device. Overall, the idea of a sleepful boundary in the context of a social setting was also something that I had never considered. I think, in general, the idea of a boundary is true to protect ourselves; the example of the Giant Beaked whale comes to mind when looking at its caution in going to the shore.

Article:

In looking at the article it details the numerous devices used to torture individuals suspected of terrorism after 9/11.

It details methods like sleep deprivation and threats to family. The detainees, "Mohammed Ahmed Mohammed al-Shoroeiya and Khalid al-Sharif, stated that they were denied sleep by continuous, deafeningly loud Western music played from speakers right next to their ears."

Article:

This article explains how walruses use their sensory organs and eating habits to survive. It details their reliance on whiskers for hunting, the powerful suction they use to feed, and their adaptation to cold environments.

Nonetheless, Walruses have poor eyesight but compensate with excellent hearing and sensitive whiskers. They use these to locate and consume prey like clams, often consuming thousands in one sitting. Global warming threatens their habitat by reducing ice shelves, crucial for resting between dives.

Article:

The article discusses how human overfishing has led to the depletion of fish stocks, causing starvation in marine animals like dolphins, sharks, and seabirds. This ecological imbalance highlights the urgent need for sustainable fishing practices to protect marine biodiversity. Human overfishing significantly impacts marine life by depleting the primary food sources for dolphins, sharks, and seabirds. This overexploitation of fish stocks leads to starvation and a decline in these species populations.

Article:

In summarizing this article, Minke whales' have streamlined bodies and pointed heads make them agile swimmers capable of quick movements. They have a diverse diet, feeding on a variety of fish and krill. They are found globally, with distinct populations in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. Their population is relatively stable despite threats from whaling and environmental changes. It is interesting to see how, amid the minke's abilities and agility, it is actually an animal that is hard to find and study.

Article: In choosing this article over the tucuxi dolphin, the idea of surrender came to mind with how intentional these small dolphins are when interacting with the differing levels of water. The quote, "What if I could do that? Time the water inside me to the greater cycle of tides, to the memory of flood, to the ebb of my context. What if I could keep nurturing this possibility while the river contracts? Could I cultivate faith that rain will return to my life when I need it? That the resources are gathering somewhere beyond where I swim?". In a sense, this quote adds to that surrendering aspect to nature and allows its healing or harmonizing effect to impact us.

However, the article's related contents, which detail facts about the Tucuxi Dolphin, its migratory habits, and acrobatic capabilities, are quite interesting. Especially when considering how Freeing they seem to be.

Quote:

"And what about us? How do we stay deep when distracting distractions distract us (like racists being racist for racist reasons)? How do you keep your swim bladder level right so you don’t float out of school formation?" (97)

Article:

Looking at the academic Book Elements of Marine Ecology, one of the chapters heavily focuses on the aspects of DSL (Deep scattering layer), which chapter 15 of Undrowned mentions. Overall, the article closely touches upon DVM (diel vertical migration) and the importance of DSL in showing the existence of zooplankton migrating at certain times of the day. It was interesting to see how the Author connected the idea of a layer sustaining us even if we aren't sure of its existence.

Article

In looking at chapter 16 and seeing many reoccurring themes of family and chosen family I thought it was interesting to see the connection in which the dolphins represented with Black culture. Nonetheless, I decided to do some more research on the aforementioned dolphins adopting other species of dolphins. It's quite interesting to see how Dolphins have attachment habits just as much as humans do.

She has learned to wait for water. She may be ready for how long it takes for us to remember the conditions of our breathing. Can she wait for us to stop selling our children out from under us? Can she wait for us to stop selling the air out of our lungs? Can she wait for us to learn to be at home?" (109)

Article: This article analyzes the increase in fires across the Amazon rainforest in 2019. The article features interactive maps and data visualizations to illustrate the spread and intensity of the fires. It explores the causes behind the fires, particularly highlighting the role of deforestation and human activities. The Amazon rainforest's crucial role in regulating the global climate and its biodiversity is emphasized, along with the environmental and climate consequences of these fires. I think that connecting this article to the chapter, the question of human intervention and the time it will take for us to stop our impacts on the lungs of the earth is a question that needs to be asked. But nonetheless, how can we slow down and wait just as the manatees mentioned? Only so much waiting can cause nothing.

"Crabeater seal families nourish and protect each other. A baby seal gains up to 175 pounds in the three weeks that they are nursing. A male-assigned seal (not the biological father) plays a lookout role, while all this fat transfer of life happens. They remain, on the lookout for leopard seals who would love to eat a crabeater seal pup before she grows too quick to catch, too sure to swallow. Researchers note that this role of having a mother’s back may be just as important as mating itself, may be exactly the adaptation that makes this seal the most abundant on Earth. Could we be that diligent? Could we remember that protecting each other is our only future?"

In looking at the Chapter and the theme of taking care of our blessings, the recurring mention of motherhood was something that was put forth through the perspectives of the sea animals. I think it is interesting to see the importance that our family, especially our mothers, have on us. Certainly we ought to believe that we ourselves are blessings to those who care for us. Their love for us has the power to influence our lives for the better either through encouragement, motivation, or even nourishment and healing. The article I linked further expanded on how mothers take care of us.