Chapter 16: Marine and Coastal Systems

1. Chapter 16: Marine and Coastal Systems Resources, Impacts and Conservation www.irreplaceablewild.com

2. Oceans • salinity • is due to runoffs and evaporation • can vary → different areas evaporate at different rates • vertically structured • temperature • density • salinity

3. Currents: Horizontal Variation www.aw-bc.com/Withgott

4. Upwelling • diverging of currents • cold displaces warm waters • rich in nutrients from bottom • high primary productivity

5. Seafloor Topography • complex www.aw-bc.com/Withgott

6. Marine Ecosystem • Open Ocean • pelagic primary producers→phytoplankton • primary consumers→ zooplankton • secondary consumers→ free swimming animals (fishes, whales, jellyfish) • tertiary consumers (predators)→birds, fishes, turtles, sharks www.aw-bc.com/Withgott

7. Kelp Forest • brown algae • temperate coasts • shelter and food • protect shores from erosion by waves • industry uses alginates as thickener www.aw-bc.com/Withgott

8. westworld.com Coral Reefs • member of the hydra, jellyfish and anemonies phylum • CaCO3 exoskeletons • colonies • symbiotic algae • barrier reefs and atolls • protect shorelines • biodiversity www.aw-bc.com/Withgott

9. Coral Bleaching • zooxanthellae leave the coral • deprives nutrition to coral • lose color and die • increase in temperature? • influx of pollutants? • sandstorms from Africa • runoffs • invasive algae www.aw-bc.com/Withgott

10. Other Factors Affecting Corals • cyanide used for fishing • capture for food use • capture for pet trade • acidification of the sea resulting of climate change → production of H2CO3 from reaction between air CO2 and sea water • trawling

11. Intertidal Zone • ocean meets land • affected by tides • exposed to the air and submerged in water causes: • changes in temperature • changes in salinity • exposure to waves • exposed to sun • marine and land predators www.wallawalla.edu

12. Salt Marshes • gently sloping sand or silt • creating the marshes flats • herbaceous plants • high primary productivity • habitat for shorebirds, waterfowl, commercial fishes and shellfish • filter pollution • destruction due to coastal development www.aw-bc.com/Withgott

13. Estuaries • deltas of rivers • fluctuation of salinity • shorebirds, commercial fishes • transition for anadromous fishes (salmon) • urban and coastal development • water pollution • habitat alteration • overfishing pickledbeets.net

14. Human Use and Impact • transportation • mining • pollution

15. Transportation • ballast water • invasive species • oil transportation • oil spills when discharging www.join.co.kr Corpus Christy, 6/2006 www.piersystem.com

16. Mining • crude oil • natural gas • methane hydrate • crystals of methane • Arctic seafloor • should it be used as energy? • minerals from the seafloor • uneconomical so far

17. Pollution • sink for waste and pollution • oil • plastic • industrial waste • sewage • excess nutrients (fertilizers)

18. Pteropods' demise • tiny mollusk, salmon feeds on it in the ocean. • been affected by ocean pH • cannot build its shell www.ipyeaso.aari.ru

19. www.geog.ucsb.edu Nets and Plastic • not biodegradable • drifts for decades • wash up in beaches • animals get tangled • animals mistake them for food • Marine Debris research, Prevention, and Reduction Act, 2006

20. Oil • spills • more stringent standards for tankers • tugboats escorts • have decreased due to prevention • accumulation of smaller sources • leakage of smaller boats • runoffs • seeps from natural seafloor deposits www.greenexpander.com

21. Toxic Pollutants • mercury • bioaccumulates in tissue • biomagnifies up in the food chain • found in seafood • not recommended for pregnant women • swordfish, albacore tuna, shark www.cityofportsmouth.com

22. Toxic Pollutants • algal blooms are due to excess fertilizer use • red tides • illness and death to • plankton • birds • fishes • marine mammals • people www.whoi.edu

23. Emptying the Oceans • half marine population is fully exploited • 25% of the marine population are overexploited→ driven to extinction • prediction of collapsation by 2048 • overfishing www.aw-bc.com/Withgott

24. Industrialization • factory fishing • huge nets • drifnetting→ pelagic schools of fishes • long lining→ baited hooks to capture predators • bottom-trawling→ bottom dwelling fishes

25. Effect on Nontarget Animals and Ecosystems • known as by-catch • drifnetting • dolphins and turtles • longlining • turtles, sharks and albatrosses • bottom-trawling • destruction of ecosystems like coral reefs

26. Depletion of Marine Life • fishing seems to be stable but: • fleets now travel longer distances • fishing is now done in deeper waters • fleets spend more time at sea • boats are setting out more nets • sonar mapping equipment to detect schools • aerial spotters (planes) to detect schools of fishes

27. Fishing Down the Food Chain • size and age of caught fish is declining • smaller and less desirable species are targeted now because of the lack of the commonly fished in the past • to prevent this, consumers can chose which product to buy according to fishing practices

28. Loss of Marine Biodiversity • due to • overfishing • pollution • habitat change • related to reduction in detoxification of water leading to • algal blooms • dead zones • fish kills • beach closures

29. Marine Conservation • fisheries management • surveys • study population biology • monitor catches • determines when and how much to catch

30. Marine Conservation • protected areas • doesn't necessarily protect, fishing is allowed • need to be changed to reserves or national park status • fish population will increase if it is protected in some areas • great opposition from industrial and recreational fishing

31. Benefits of Marine Reserves • studies done in 2001 • rapid and long term increases in abundance, biodiversity and productivity • decrease mortality • decrease in chances of species disappearance • individuals from protected areas spilled t • unprotected ones • "seeding the seas" • ecotourism increased • THE END