Marine Plants Producers Chapter 5 & 6

Marine “Plants” Most photosynthetic marine organisms are members of kingdom Protista – not kingdom Plantae. Protists do not have specialized tissues and organs. Plants do have specialized tissues (ex: vascular and dermal tissues)

Plant cell specialization and tissues

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Features Plants Share with Green Algae Pigments: Chlorophyll a & b; carotenoids Food Reserve: Starch Cell Walls: Cellulose Cell Division: Cell Plate Body Structure: Multicellular Life Cycle: Heteromorphic Alternation of Generation Sexual Reproduction: Oogamy

Phytoplankton  Plant-like protists  Usually single celled (unicellular algae)  Perform nearly all of the photosynthesis in the oceans (more than seaweeds, algae, etc.)  Produce half the O 2 in the atmosphere  Examples: diatoms and dinoflagellates

Diatoms Unicellular phytoplankton, enclosed in a shell made of silica (SiO 2 ) Glassy shell is called a frustule Frustule is made of two halves that fit tightly together like a box Frustule is clear so light can penetrate for photosynthesis

Dinoflagellates  Unicellular autotrophs, have two flagella  One flagella acts as a tail, the other wraps around the body for steering  Cell is surrounded by a cell wall made of plates of cellulose (theca plates)  Plates may have spines or other ornaments

Harmful Algal Bloom (HAB) Rapid growth and bloom of dinoflagellates or diatoms Commonly referred to as a red tide – May not be red or any color at all; has nothing to do with tides Can be toxic and cause fish kills. Shellfish store the toxin and can then pass it on to humans. Often caused by Eutrophication (the addition of excess the nutrients nitrogen and phosphorous to an aquatic environment) Eutrophication leads to hypoxia. – Bacteria feed on dead algae – Bacteria consume all the Oxygen, making the water hypoxic/anoxic – Anoxic/hypoxic conditions kill all other animal life.

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Not every eutrophic coastal area is represented on this map. Why might that be?

Film: Eutrophication and Hypoxia Write a paragraph: – 1) Explain how eutrophication causes hypoxia. – 2) How are hypoxic/anoxic conditions bad for the environment? – 3) Speculate upon the threat of eutrophication and hypoxia to the City of Goose Creek.

Primary Production

Primary production is the total amount of carbon (C) in grams converted into organic material per square meter of sea surface per year (mg C/m 2 /yr) Productivity varies greatly in different parts of the ocean in response to the availability of nutrients and sunlight.

Primary productivity varies from 25 to 1250 gm C/m 2 /yr in the marine environment and is highest in estuaries and lowest in the open ocean. In the open ocean productivity distribution resembles a “bull’s eye “ pattern with lowest productivity in the center and highest at the edge of the basin. Continental shelves display moderate productivity between 50 and 200 gm C/m 2 /yr because nutrients wash in from the land and tide- and wave- generated turbulence recycle nutrients from the bottom water. 10-3

In the tropics and subtropics sunlight is abundant, but it generates a strong thermocline that restricts upwelling of nutrients and results in lower productivity. High productivity locally can occur in areas of coastal upwelling, in the tropical waters between the gyres and at coral reefs. In temperate regions productivity is distinctly seasonal. Polar waters are nutrient-rich all year but productivity is only high in the summer when light is abundant. 10-2

Film: Blue Planet Seasonal Seas Write a paragraph that describes: – 1) The effect of sunlight and nutrient availability on phytoplankton. – 2) Global distribution of phytoplankton during each of the seasons.

Seaweeds - Multicellular algae Parts: – Blade – absorbs nutrients, does photosynthesis – Stipe – provides support – Air bladders – keep blades afloat – Holdfast – anchors seaweed to surface

Types of Seaweed Three major groups: 1.Chlorophytes – green algae 2.Phaeophytes – brown algae 3.Rhodophytes – red algae

 Chlorophytes –green algae  May be unicellular or multicellular  Thought to be direct ancestors of higher plants  Ulva make use of sewage outfalls  Phaeophytes-brown algae  Multicellular  Include kelp – largest algae  Can grow 50cm a day, reach lengths of 60m  Rhodophytes-red algae  High commercial value  Can thrive in dim light

Economic Importance of Seaweeds Extracts from Seaweeds are used in many products Algin – As a stabilizer and emulsifier in dairy products – As a thickener in shampoo, shaving cream, pesticides, plastics

Carrageenan As an emulsifier in dairy products and processed foods Agar Forms a jelly Used to protect canned meats Used in laxatives Medium for growing bacteria

Hunt’s Pudding Danimals Yogurt Brownie Mix

Foods with Algin, Agar, Carrageenan, or Beta carotine Brownie mix Candy Bars Cheese Chocolate milk Coffee creamer Cottage cheese Egg substitute Evaporated milk Frosting Frozen foods and desserts Frozen yogurt Hostess Fruit Pies Ice cream Lunch meat Margarine Mayonnaise Ramen Noodles Orange Juice Pot pies Pudding Relishes Salad dressing Sauces and gravies Sour cream Vinegar Whipped topping Whipping cream Yogurt

Biodiesel Diesel fuel made from natural, renewable sources. As part of the photosynthesis process algae produce oil and can generate 15 times more oil per acre than other plants used for biofuels, such as corn and switchgrass. Algae can grow in salt water, freshwater or even contaminated water, at sea or in ponds, and on land not suitable for food production.

Seaweed Tasting Written Reflection Write a paragraph describing: – What you learned about the use of seaweed extracts in foods. – your impressions on sushi making and eating whole seaweed. ALLERGY WARNING: If you are allergic to shellfish do not eat the crabstick or the seaweed salad!

Evolutionary steps for the colonization of land: How to take up water and nutrients from below ground – roots How to take up CO 2 from the air – stoma How to transport water and nutrients long distances – Zylem and phloem school.net.th

terra.dadeschools.net

Recolonization of aquatic environments by plants Terrestrial plants evolved from aquatic green algae. Some terrestrial plants have returned to the water. True aquatic plants retain many of those terrestrial plant characteristics. What challenges might there be in recolonizing saltwater environments?

Kingdom Plantae: Angiosperms “flowering plants”  Halophytes : Plants that grow in saline environments  Halophytes generally:  Have roots that extract nutrients  High salt tolerance  Actively excretes salt through salt glands on epidermis  Grow along estuaries and salt marshes, shallow marine environments, or desert soils with high salt content

Spartina alterniflora “Smooth Cordgrass” Marsh Plants – tolerant to fluctuations in salinity and water availability due to tides. / / Juncus roemerianus “Black needlerush”

Marsh plants Limonium carolinianum “Sea lavender” Salicornia fruiticosa “pickle weed” badgerbushcraft.com

Sea Grasses Grow totally submerged in saltwater Reproduce asexually and sexually with flowers and current dispersed pollen Require shallow, clear water conservationmagazine.org

Turtle grass (Thalassia testudinum) Shoal grass (Halodule wrightii) Manatee grass (Syringodium filiforme)

Mangrove Tree images/mangrove-2.jpg Mangroves – Saltwater swamps inhabited by large flowering trees – Grow in tropical regions in bays and lagoons – Thick roots that prop the trees up