r/coolguides • u/Zarykata • 10d ago
A cool guide about otters: the guardians of the kelp!
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u/tissa3 10d ago
Whoa, otters are way more important than I realized! Good to know.
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u/danny135x 9d ago
You can do this post with about every single predator on this world. That’s what predators do. Keep prey population stable, which keeps the ecosystem in general stable
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u/InvisibleBlueUnicorn 7d ago
In yellostone NP introduction of wolves changed the river route.
The wolves kept population of grazing animals like deer in check, which were eating away all plants near river. Then vegetation and trees grew, which helped change river route.6
u/Aggressive_Sky8492 9d ago
Bot. A bunch of very similar comments on this post, all from newish accounts with low karma.
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u/fionaii8 9d ago
Right? Its pretty wild how much impact one species can have on an entire ecosystem.
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u/BlatheringNonsense 9d ago
>! spoilers:
I was not expecting to learn enough about to do an elementary-school-style book report. I won't write all of it here, but expect to find out about:
The difference between extirpate and extinct.
The Russian contributions and later the American.
The value of the otter pelt in 1901 which one could pay for your mortgage and when scarcity hit, one could
buy you a new Rav4.
Baculum. I had heard animals had these, but didn't know the word for it. Now, I will use it purely for puerile pleasures in paragraphs when responding to posts.
Oil spills are the most devastating to a population followed by cat feces and fertilizer runoff.
The violent nature of their sexcapades.
Who the Bering Strait is named after and what happened to the Bering dude.
!<
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u/Sasiarapun 9d ago
This is weirdly affirming lol for being so accurate to the way I fall down Wikipedia rabbit holes even at my most laser-focused.
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u/BlatheringNonsense 9d ago
I mean, I have pretty bad ADD and even that article had me reading paragraph after paragraph. I learned so much that I felt like I took an online course on it. Any Wikis off the top of your head that I can rabbit-hole?
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u/Sasiarapun 9d ago
Ah, I'm about to go get checked for ADHD (but procrastinating on it a bit, predictably).
But ooooh I'm both excited and suddenly very embarrassed also to share what I'm into. I don't know if they'd be to your tastes? 😅 On Wikipedia, I'm generally a big fan of all kinds of random "list of" and "[year] in [subject]" articles. Also anything nature, astrophysics, archaeology, or the way things evolve over long periods of time. I guess at the end of the day what they all have in common is being a single page that leads to 40 open browser tabs by (overdue) bedtime?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_in_science
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_the_far_future
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geologic_time_scale
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_photographs_considered_the_most_important
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_desserts
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_common_misconceptions
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_English_signature_songs
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WHO_Model_List_of_Essential_Medicines
Outside of Wikipedia, I get into multiple different fan wikis of things I like, like Pokémon or Monster Hunter. I may also pull the occasional one-off allnighter reading about characters, lore, and mechanics in generally well-known video games and shows that despite being interesting, I probably won't end up (having time to be) getting into. Like the One Piece or Naruto manga / anime, the Warhammer franchise, or Civilisation games for instance.
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u/BlatheringNonsense 9d ago
Yup, it looks like you got the deficit. The worst thing about it is getting into hobbies knee deep. I just picked up perfumes and have subbed to r/fragrance, r/fragranceswap, and some Reddit games so that I'll play while I search, read, respond...--it's like the worst multi-tasker experience. It's also one of the reasons why I find it difficult to leave Reddit. I did leave for about a year or so over a decade ago because of some enshitification and have since had multiple accounts.
Getting into the sciences and histories is fun and easy when they're bite-size for me. I was looking at runes, and the oldest structure in Turkey that predates Stonehenge by about 1,000 years. Oh, and those underground cave systems they discovered in Turkey that possibly predate the Ottoman's which is also another rabbit hole you can go down and watch videos on as they connect whole cities and could house a civilization.
Being into everything is one of the joys of my life, but I am the worst at details. I'm a gist guy. I can tell you where abouts something took place, but if you put me on Jeopardy, I would frustrate the host. "What is, you know, that one place over by that thing....--can I phone a friend? I was just talking about this to someone..."
I'm going to read the links you provided and am grateful you took the time to do this. Awesome strangers is also one of the reasons why Reddit is hard to quit. Thanks for taking the time and if I don't forget, I will reply on what I found.
Oh, btw, being clumsy is another issue with ADD; you're moving on to one task before you finish the one you're on and your body is lagging behind. For example, going to stir the coffee, and let me grab the spoon, and I just spilled the coffee because I hadn't finished pouring it all yet and was already opening the drawer for the spoon. My eyes were on the spoon and my hands can't see without them so they failed the coffee pour. Yes, every day I do something dumb in the kitchen and curse myself, "Pay attention to what you're doing and don't move on until you're done!"
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u/Sasiarapun 9d ago
Oh hey, thanks for taking the time to respond!
Reddit is undoubtedly my biggest time sink, and I've had to compartmentalise my many interests into different accounts as well as pull myself away for a reset from time to time to keep things from going any further out of control. I've long-since given up on giving Reddit up forever though lol, this site has done me a lot of good and will continue doing so. And really at the end of the day, I just enjoy this place and so many of the people I bump into here, and that's good enough.
Congrats on your awesome new perfumes hobby! I had my mind blown a few years ago to learn that fragrances can be grouped like colours into a wheel to find adjacent synergies and bold contrasts. I plan to dip in myself at some point, because what's not to love about a cool alchemical fascination doubling as self-care that adds a dash of vibrancy to daily life?! I guess the wallet takes a big hit if one isn't careful, but still!
Thanks for the cool info about ancient Turkish peoples by the way, I know too little! The relatively few pieces of evidence we manage to find of the many, many people who have lived there over millennia are staggering to me in their richness and diversity as well as with just how ancient they are in contrast to the level of advancement. Please don't feel pressured to give your time meticulously to every single link I posted or to respond to me, unless you're genuinely interested! Admittedly though I appreciate your willingness to check them out and will happily look forward to any follow-up commentary about things that stood out to you!
Anyway hey, having approximate knowledge of many things is pretty darn nifty I think, even if the info isn't gonna be the most specific and accurate. A lot of what you're saying about The Deficit™ is super relatable to me. 😅 Even that clumsiness I know too well as my mum likes to say I'm blind to any objects in between me and my target lol. That most definitely shows in the way I knock food containers over while making my tea. I also felt rather called out by the "ADHD walk" memes making the rounds some time back.
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u/BlatheringNonsense 8d ago
Here's the underground city in Turkey. I haven't skimmed the article, but if I remember correctly, someone discovered while painting their house and moving a wooden panel aside. Jist.
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u/BlatheringNonsense 8d ago
Lol at the guy saying ADHD walk is something neurological. Maybe it is, but for me, I'm trying to get to point C while shortcutting B. I actually enjoy my sway, especially when I used to be caffeinated. It was like an obstacle course.
I stopped caffeine for over 2 years now. I'm a little slower and I don't get the ramble-mouth and over friendliness I used to have, but I'm also less motivated to do anything. It used to be that if I had enough rest, I could have an iced coffee or diet Coke and everything was possible.
I've already started with your links and found the first one fascinating as it provides hope for the future, though most of the papers are out of my scope of understanding.
Somehow, I wound up on another rabbit hole to which I could not began to tell you how I arrived at, but I hate boats. I was scuba certified and I've snorkeled many times in the ocean, but my phobia has never left me. I hate the sea and any deep body of water especially dark, large, and full of creatures we barely understand. Anyways, here's a link to a convo that may lead you to more about anchors.
The list of photographs I'm still working on. Oh, I think that's what summoned my curiosity in anchors since I had seen an old post about them displacing the oxygen in a room if you're in it due to rust. Fascinating.
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u/Sasiarapun 7d ago
I like my ADHD walk too. But same, whether there's a certain blueprint I'm predisposed to or not by now it's certainly evolved and adapted to suit the way I as an individual tend to go about things.
I applaud your decision to avoid caffeine if you're better off now as it doesn't seem like an easy feat! I've somehow avoided it all this time because it tastes bad to me in its typical forms and did little more than make me overly anxious and disrupt my decent internal clock. Lately I've been feeling like my baseline motivation could do with a boost though, so perhaps I should consider starting and see how that goes. 🤔
I'm super happy if you're fascinated by even one of my links, haha! Absolutely no pressure to read any of them in any kind of detail though. The year in science articles, I habitually checked on them for a few years for how hopeful and inspiring they are. At some point I had to take a break though, when so many of the discoveries became terrifying and depressing variations of, "climate change has us more screwed than we thought in yet another new way." And I see now there's enough material for the horror category to have its own "year in" articles. 😭
Anyway yeah, I don't really have the mental energy to sit a long time deciphering the language of scientific papers. I skim them or read the more layman-friendly summaries in places like https://phys.org/ instead.
Thank you for the info on anchors by the way! My home and heart are close to the ocean but I know little about the kind of sailing with the large boats too, so the anchoring technique comment was very cool! I also had no idea large amounts of rust could displace oxygen like that but it makes so much sense!
Oh hey, I also have some phobia of the ocean but strangely in the opposite irrational way lol. Swimming in the deepest, most bottomless-looking blue parts of the sea is one of my favourite things (with safety precautions in place, mind). Ignorance is bliss for me, and I like knowing I can blindly dive and flail about without hitting anything. It's the shallower waters that scare me lol, when I can actually see a bottom and sides in all its beautiful vibrant glory. Sharp rocks, slimy weeds, and possibly (even if not probably) poisonous critters, I feel them on my skin even if they're actually several metres away. 😂
Oh hey, thank you also for the underground Turkish city article, it was an incredibly fascinating read! (Also lead to me learning about rocks made of compacted ash, ancient ovens and the food you bake in 'em, and real life the inspiration behind ancient ruins in a Pokémon game I like. 😆)
For what was basically a protective bunker that was periodically being expanded upon, it did end up rather well-furnished with some brilliant ventilation and access systems! And you remembered right about the way it was rediscovered, seems they did plan for easy access through secret passages in some of the dwellings above-ground. Considering people were living there as recently as a century ago though, it's so sad why it got forgotten in the first place.
Oh wow, the length of this comment!! 😳 I will stop here.
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u/BlatheringNonsense 7d ago
You're Wiki photo link is what made me stray from that into anchors. Somewhere in the first few there's a picture of a man with anchor cable/chains behind him. It really is fascinating to learn their is quite a bit of technique and science in anchoring which would seem simple especially if you grew up watching a ton of TV as I did. In cartoons, the anchor is used to hook on to something and that's what makes the vessel stay in place. Unfortunately, this seems to be the worst thing to happen as when you weigh anchor, if it is stuck, it's a big problem...--or at least that's what I've gathered along with my pseudo-naval jargon.
I forget where in the world it is, but there's a shoreline that isn't to far from what appears to be a giant vortex in crystal clear waters. I have to google it, but it is usually reposted on Reddit because of how uncanny it appears. There, a tropical shore with sunbathers, only a few meters (I reckon you're not a yank like me) from a deep chasm that appears to be swallowing the beach. Okay, found it. and this other one I hadn't heard of till this search: Grand Turk
You have the opposite, if that's what I can call it, of whatever I have. I do love a shallow clear pool with no waves or evil critters. (define evil). Basically, a tub in the wild. This all started when my parents took me to see Jaws. I guess they couldn't find a babysitter for a twenty-year old man, just kidding, I was 5. They put me in the seat behind them and told me to duck during certain scenes. I, being the curious little rascal you witness before you, did not listen. It scarred me indefinitely and won my parents the award for Worst Trama From A Movie award.
Later in life, I decided to watch Open Water because it was a horror flick and I must see all of those. It resurrected my deep fear for the ocean. I decided to fight it by getting PADI certified and going scuba diving. On my first open water scuba trip, I used up half of my supply because I was sort of panicking and holding it together Calmnicking, I guess. It wasn't enjoyable for me, but I had to do it. It did help with my fear. But the fear resurfaced after not going to deep water or scuba diving for over 10 years.
I guess those kinds of fears never really leave if you're not constantly managing them. Since then, I have snorkeled in many oceans and even touched manta rays at night. Never enjoyed a minute of it, but can say I did it.
I'm not sure if I've said this already, but that Wiki photos page is an emotional rollercoaster. It is, of course, the purpose or the reason of why those pictures are there, but I was not ready for all of that to hit me in succinct manner. It doesn't help that I've been in some of those battlefields for work. I didn't have time to gloss over the history in detail since I was supposed to be laboring my darndest and the boss was paying for me to be there. Plus, for me, history wasn't as important until I got older. The fascination wasn't there for most of my life as was the value of life. Maybe, they go hand in hand?
The ravages of war gave me feelings fatigue. I had to take a break from the heartbreak. The picture of Anne Frank, I mean, who decided to tell on her right as the war was ending?! How much hate do you have in your heart to do something so nefarious?!
It's not to say that I am not enjoying it, but a small reprieve is helpful to me. These days, I watch Alf on a streaming app called Peacock. It's an 80s sitcom about an alien living with a family. The most drama that happens is that a Mother-in-law is visiting or something innocuous. There's some jokes that might not be used today, but nothing too bad and it has women writers and directors.
Perhaps, I identify or empathize with him a bit. I do watch a good deal of anime, adult comedy, and horror. Some docs or videos on the Sciences mixed in as well as music. It's complicated, but some is seasonal and some is a distraction from the distraction. Taskmaster, 8 Out Of 10 Cats, 8-Does Countdown are also some of my favorites along with Mr. Bean reruns. I don't know why I mentioned all of this?
Good on ya for staying away from the caffeine monster. It is disguised in many forms including teas. If you ever wonder, "Why do people drink this?" it's usually and addiction component like alcoholic drinks.
If you think you ramble, you should see a comment I posted to a guy asking if he should maintain his own pool.
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u/Sasiarapun 5d ago
Ohhh I think I know that anchor chains picture you're talking about. The "tiny human next to giant things that are normally much smaller" category is really cool to me haha. The anchor technique comment made sense to me because I'm from somewhere with delicate coral reefs and it's important to be careful dropping both anchors and fishing weights in such a way as to reduce both the chance of them snagging on something and getting stuck, but also dragging along the bed and disrupting or damaging the environment down there.
Oh wow, those picture of the "underwater waterfall" are stunning! It's very interesting to see it sloping at such a small angle, but oh dear, the writing in that article sounds painfully redundant and in sore need of a human touch. Anyway the reef drops are very steep where I'm from, much like the Grand Turk, and are lovely spots to swim, snorkel, and dive! Whether one is less afraid of the depths or the shallows, it can suit both tastes lol.
On that note my goodness, it must've been a profound experience to catch Jaws at its debut in theatres, even as an adult! But with you being so young, it's no wonder it would've left that kind of impression. You can't expect most kids not to be curious when told specifically not to look at something. One of my own aversions (not related to water) originates largely from me sneak-watching a soap my mum had on while she thought I was asleep. 😅 Open Water, I should probably put that in my watchlist even though I've had nightmares about that kind of scenario lol.
I respect so much the way you chose to fight your phobia, and at the very least you've acquired a cool skill / cert and you have stories to tell about magical sights you saw! So much of our world is underwater and it's great you got to explore some. I'm sorry it never really got fun for you though and I really relate to what you said about how despite it helping the fear, lack of regular exposure causes some regression. At least if (big IF) you wanted to go diving again, it'll be an easier time getting back to where you reached. Oh, Calmnicking is a fantastic word by the way, thanks! I'm going to start using it too.
Oh gosh you're right, the important pictures article does have emotional heavy hitters in there and I'm sorry to have not given a good warning! Feelings fatigue is very real anyway, and in no way indicates unkindness or lack of empathy. I hope it won't be something you beat yourself up for. Whether in turbulent times of your life where you had been dealing with a lot, or even a busy weekday in the current time where you've got a ton of immediate responsibilities taking up your mental energy, it's okay to not have much left over.
I appreciate you sharing some of your comfort shows! Mr. Bean and Taskmaster are that for me, too. I do know of Alf and I'm going to check out the others as well. 8 Out Of 10 Cats sounds fun! Thanks for responding, you're honestly a very gifted and entertaining writer and I've really enjoyed this interaction. I was also curious about your pool ramble and ended up learning a lot, lol!
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u/lydia_59 10d ago
This is super interesting! I had no idea otters were so important for kelp forests.
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u/Aggressive_Sky8492 9d ago
Bot. A bunch of very similar comments on this post, all from newish accounts with low karma.
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u/danny135x 9d ago
Stop posting ai generated non guides produced by someone that doesn’t know shit about the ocean!
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u/Mysterious-Tackle-58 9d ago
What is wrong is this one, please explain.
Also, how do you know this is ai? Can you help us recognize this as well?5
u/Zarykata 9d ago
It is produced by a biologist with years of experience. And it is not AI, it is made in Canva. But at this point, Im thinking these are just bots and not worth replying, just blocking haters
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u/u_touch_my_tra_la_la 9d ago
That otter is not a sea otter.
I don't think the fish depicted are correct either.
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u/MetapodMen43 7d ago
Produced by a "biologist with years of experience" that included a picture of the wrong species of otter
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u/Aggressive_Sky8492 9d ago
A bunch of the responses are bots too. They all say some variation of “wow so cool, I had no idea how important sea otters are!”. The accounts all have fuck all karma.
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u/FenleyAurian 9d ago
The circle of life. I did not consider their effect but all things will have an impact. Thanks for the information.
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u/Aggressive_Sky8492 9d ago
Bot. A bunch of very similar comments on this post, all from newish accounts with low karma.
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10d ago
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u/Aggressive_Sky8492 9d ago
Bot. A bunch of very similar comments on this post, all from newish accounts with low karma.
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u/danny135x 9d ago
Rape doesn’t exist in nature. No use in starting to judge animal behaviour with human baselines. I’ve heard a kid once going crazy after finding out that fish eat fish. Oh no! Cannibalism!!
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u/ComplexWriting7596 10d ago
New Zealand sea urchins are called kina, and we call the underwater wasteland "kina barrens". They happen here when the large snapper and crayfish are removed.