ROTP Movie Synopsys

Log-line

Explore Puget Sound's changing seasons underwater as you swim with our underwater neighbors, from ratfish to dogfish, from seastar to seaspider.

3-LINE SYNOPSIS

Seasons change, even underwater. Join a marine biologist to explore the rise and fall of some of the microscopic biomass and its place in the larger food web. From ratfish to dogfish, from seastar to seaspider, see who eats whom, when, and how.

125-WORD SYNOPSIS

'An educational must for novices and seasoned marine enthusiasts,' says Dr. Gloria Snively, author of Exploring the Seashore.

Have you heard rumors of colorful and vibrant life in the watery world beneath the waves? Did you ever wish you could see what's below the surface?

Art and science come together in an exciting half hour video journey underwater near Seattle, Washington. The journey begins in Spring when the plankton bloom benefits filter feeders like anemones, barnacles and tubeworms. In summer, the plankton population thins, but exploration of the food web continues as the divers witness the capture of a crab by an Giant Pacific octopus. In fall, a harbor seal and a dogfish look for food along the bottom of Eagle harbor. In winter focus shifts to fish guarding eggs and taking refuge in the rocky shelves created by the fault between Bainbridge Island and Seattle. In early spring the young fish hatch in time to take advantage of the return of the plankton.

250-WORD SYNOPSIS

Have you heard rumors of colorful and vibrant life in the watery world beneath the waves? Did you ever wish you could see more from the ferries and bridges than just the surface?

Art and science come together in an exciting half hour video journey underwater in Puget Sound. The journey begins under Agate Passage Bridge, Bainbridge Island, where the spring plankton bloom benefits filter feeders like anemones, barnacles, tubeworms, clams and oysters. In summer, the plankton population thins, but exploration of the food web continues as the divers witness the capture of a crab by an Giant Pacific octopus. In fall, a harbor seal and a dogfish look for food along the bottom of Eagle harbor. In winter focus shifts to fish guarding eggs and taking refuge in the rocky shelves created by the fault between Bainbridge Island and Seattle. In early spring the young fish hatch in time to take advantage of the return of the plankton.

A bassoon and timpani composition by Pulitzer Prize winner Charles Wuorinen highlights some of the dramatic passages of the movie, while works by local musicians fill in the rest. The movie's climax is reached with an improvisation on Native American flute and drum recorded in the acoustically rich ferry terminal building on Bainbridge Island.

Bruce Claiborne, Biology and Marine Science teacher at Bainbridge High took the lead as divemaster and science advisor for the 27 minute video. His experience as a teacher of more than 30 years and his knowledge as a marine biologist give the project focus and information beyond the usual.

'An educational must for novices and seasoned marine enthusiasts,' says Dr. Gloria Snively, author of Exploring the Seashore and instructor at University of Victoria, BC.

DIRECTOR STATEMENT

When I emerge from the water, it is common for perfect strangers to ask me what I saw while I was diving. Since the oceans provide almost 100 times more inhabited space than the continents, our ignorance of their mysteries is a serious problem, both scientifically and culturally. It is heartening that so many people are interested. The aim of Return of the Plankton is to introduce people to some of the beautiful and almost unbelievable creatures that live in Puget Sound and even more importantly, to help people realize that the health of our complex marine ecosystems must be considered in our planning for the future.

500 WORD SYNOPSIS

Return of the Plankton, a 27- minute video, exposes viewers to the wealth of life in Puget Sound ecosystems by following two scuba divers through the seasons underwater. They discover the role of plankton as the basis of the Puget Sound food web. Supplementary materials provide study aids for classroom use.

The DVD menu makes it possible to choose one season at a time for viewing. Each season's segment runs approximately 7 minutes.

In spring increased sunlight and the nutrients, accumulated over winter, make it possible for phytoplankton to multiply rapidly, doubling in numbers every few hours and clouding the water. The currents carry plankton to myriad animals who have attached themselves to hard sufaces and simply wait for the food to come to them.

In summer the water clears because the supply of nutrients in the water diminishes with succeeding generations of phytoplankton. Animal larvae have consumed many of the diatoms and are making a good start at consuming each other, passing the energy of the sun along the food web. Some of the plankton, such as barnacles, drift temporarily then settle to the bottom and take on a new life.

In fall tattered kelp, bacteria and plankton fall to the bottom providing food for detritus eating bottom dwellers and the larger animals that live on them. Many creatures are searching the bottom for a meal, like sand dollars that eat the algae and detritus from the surface of the bottom. Moon snails leave a trail in their search for clams. Sea slugs devour a plankton-eater, the sea pen. Moon snails, crabs, sea stars, sand dollars, clams, oysters, barnacles, shrimp and seaweeds all spend part of their lives as plankton.

In winter, many creatures are spawning and guarding their eggs until spring when the new generation hatches in time to take advantage of the plankton bloom. However, some of the most numerous plankton are present in the water all year round. Copepods never graduate from a planktonic existence. They are, along with diatoms, the great treasure of the sound, two of the major supports of the Puget Sound food web.