Chapter 16: Marine Ecosystems

1. Chapter 16: Marine Ecosystems Oceanography 2014

2. Chapter 16 Vocabulary • Biotic • Abiotic • Community • Population • Ecology • Habitat • Microhabitat • Niche • Ecosystem • Biomelarge geographical area of distinctive plant and animal groups, which are adapted to that particular environment • Detritus • Antarctic Divergence • Eutrophication • Littoral Zone • Meiofauna

3. Levels of Ecology

4. Biomes: A Review Aquatic Biomes Freshwater Marine WORLD BIOMES Tundra Rainforest Savanna Taiga Temperate Forest Temperate Grassland Alpine Chaparral Desert Aquatic

5. Community vs. Population <<< Community: Multiple species that interact Population: >>> Group of ONE species in a given area

6. Habitats ecological or environmental area that is inhabited by a particular species of animal, plant, or other type of organism Examples: Clown Fish Habitat = Sea Anemones in an area of a coral reef Fiddler Crab Habitat = Sandy areas of a salt marsh

7. Finding your Niche… • Unique way of life specific to an organism • Individual role of a species in an ecosystem • No two species can occupy the same niche in an ecosystem without one outcompeting each other EXAMPLE: Remoras are small fish that live on sharks. Their niche is their role cleaner fish for specific shark species.

8. Food Chains & Webs Food Web: all the food chains found within an ecosystem, shows all possible paths for energy to move Food Chain: one part of a food web starting from producers ends at decomposers Trophic Levels • Producers • 1st level in the trophic system • Make their own food (autotrophs): Photosynthesis or Chemosynthesis • Examples: Plants and phytoplankton • Consumers • 2nd/3rd/4th levels of the trophic systems: primary, secondary, tertiary • Primary consumers are herbivores • Secondary consumers eat herbivores • Tertiary consumers eat the secondary consumers • Decomposers • Last level of the trophic system as dead animals are broken down • Examples: mushrooms and bacteria

9. Ecosystem Types • Coral Reefs • Estuaries • Salt Marshes • Mangroves • Kelp Forests • Beaches / Tidal Zones • Polar • Hydrothermal Vents • Abyssal

10. Coral Reef Ecosystem • Located in waters between the Tropic of Capricorn and the Tropic of Cancer • Require water temperatures to be warm and stable year-round (64-86 F) • Individual coral polyps build the reef's calcium carbonate structure • As a single polyp dies, its soft tissue decays, but the calcium carbonate cup remains • Other polyps build on top of the cup • Over time, this process creates larger and larger coral reefs

13. Estuary Ecosystem • Partially enclosed body of water where fresh water mixes with salt water • areas of transition between the land and sea • Examples: bays, harbors, inlets or sounds • Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuarine system in the US

14. Salt Marsh Ecosystem • Coastal wetlands that are flooded and drained along with tides • Soil composed of deep mud and peat. • Peat is made of decomposing plant matter that is waterlogged and very spongy • They provide food, refuge, and nursery habitat for more than 75 percent of fisheries species • Found within estuarine systems

15. Mangrove Ecosystem • Tree systems with roots submerged in water • Thrive in hot, muddy, salty conditions that would quickly kill most plants. • How do they do it? Through a series of adaptations • a filtration system that keeps out much of the salt • a complex root system that holds the mangrove upright in loose, sandy sediments

16. Kelp Forest Ecosystem • Giant kelp • Species of brown macro-algae • Grow along rocky coastlines • Depths from 2 m to 30 m + • Nutrient-rich, cool water • Temperature from 5o to 20o C • Clear water conditions through which light penetrates easily • Often found in regions where upwelling occurs

18. Beach / Tidal Ecosystem • Beach has habitats such as dunes, intertidal region, and tide pools • Seawater trapped in depressions in the rocks forms tide pools • Shallow pools are extreme environment with changing water levels and temperatures • Home to many types of plants and animals

19. Polar Ecosystem • Artic and Antarctic • Cover 20% of Earth • Covered by areas of thick ice • Coldest habitats in the world • Plankton are an essential part of the ecosystem

20. Hydrothermal Vent Ecosystem • Deep-sea hydrothermal vents form due to volcanic activity on the ocean floor • Water leaks through cracks in the Earth's crust • dissolves metals and minerals and becomes super-heated from magma. • Water can be as hot as 400o C • Chemosynthesis: relies on hydrogen sulfide instead of sunlight • 300+ unique species live in these environment

21. Abyssal Ecosystem • Abyssal Zone: 3,000 to 6,000 meters deep • Cold temperatures, and high pressure • Animals in this region relay on dead animals from above that sink to the bottom as their main food source • Some animals exhibit bioluminescence

22. Notes Quiz • Put the following in order from smallest to largest: Community, Individual, Ecosystem, Biosphere, Population • Is this a community or a population? • Remoras that serve as cleaner fish on sharks are an example of what aspect of ecology? • What is the 1st level of the tropic system? • Name 3 ecosystem types.

23. Oceanography May 13, 2014 • What do estuaries, salt marshes, and mangroves have in common? • What type of animals would you expect to find in a polar ecosystem? • What type of marine ecosystem is the local watershed?

24. Oceanography May 21, 2014 • Give an example of an animal with a specific niche. • What role do dead things play in ecosystems? • What does a coral polyp look like? Sketch a basic diagram.