An ocean-wide safari: Journey into the ecosystems of our seas

Session outline: Background on habitats and adaptations A look at the diversity of life in our seas Threats to marine ecosystems and how these are monitored - Rocky shores - Open ocean - Deep sea - Coral reefs - Polar seas This slideshow is designed as a whistle stop tour of the ecosystems populating our seas; the life that lives there; how this life is adapted to its environment, and information on the threats facing these ecosystems and how scientists go about monitoring them. Click one We will start with a bit of a background on what habitats and adaptations actually are by definition Click two We will then move on to look at the diversity of life living in our seas, and in particular organisms living on rocky shores, in open oceans, deep seas, coral reefs and in our polar seas. Click three We will then look at the threats facing these marine ecosystems, largely caused by the actions of humans, and finish off by looking at how scientists go about monitoring these threats in each of the ecosystems we explore.

Sit back and hold on tight! We will be taking a whistle stop tour of marine ecosystems First stop, close to home – the rocky shores of the UK coastline… …but first, lets make sure we give ourselves a bit of background on habitats and adaptations so we understand how and why life in our seas lives where it does So sit back and hold on tight! Then click and read off slides

What is a habitat? The place where an organism (animal or plant) lives is called its HABITAT The surrounding conditions in a habitat is called the ENVIRONMENT The physical environment includes conditions such as light or temperature

What is an adaptation? Every organism has certain features or characteristics that allow it to live successfully in its habitat. These features are called ADAPTATIONS and we say that the organism is ADAPTED to its environment Organisms living in different habitats need different adaptations…

How do animals and plants cope with living in the marine environment? The marine (sea) environment is very different from the terrestrial (land) environment How do animals and plants cope with living in the marine environment? By having adaptations of course! Click one Read off slide Click two

Water world Oceans cover 71% of the Earth’s surface 80% of all life is found in the oceans > 300,000 species because of huge variations in habitats and life that evolved here billions of years ago Lets first look at the characteristics of our planet as a whole Click one The oceans cover a massive 71% of the Earth’s surface, leading our planet to be regarded largely as a water world. Click two To match this, over 80% of all life in our planet is found in the ocean’s Click three with over >300,000 species discovered so far and counting! because of the huge variation in habitats that occur in our seas. NASA

Coral Reefs Rocky Shores Deep Seas Open Oceans Diversity of life Marine Environment Diversity of life Rocky Shores Deep Seas This is just a taster of the diversity of organisms in the marine environment. Our seas contain a huge diversity of life, from the tropical organisms of coral reefs, to the strange and wonderful organisms that inhabit our deep seas. Could ask pupils to name some of the organisms if you wanted. From top left going clockwise – Loggerhead sea turtle, hammerhead shark, Clownfish, Deep sea angler fish, mussels and lobsters on hydrothermal vents (refer to module D ocean wide safari for information on life in the deep sea), deep sea skate, tuna fish, bioluminescent comb jelly (refer to Module D ocean wide safari for information on life in the deep sea), limpets, sea urchin, blue velvet swimming crab. Open Oceans

Stop 1 The Rocky Shore Extreme environment Lets start by exploring the rocky shore in detail first of all. Rocky shores are largely found on temperate coastlines across our planet. Many organisms have to hold on tight to their rocky home to avoid being washed away by the tides and waves crashing over. Extreme environment

Rocky shores: habitat profile - Intertidal - organisms are uncovered and covered by the tides daily - A ‘patchy’ ecosystem - Huge variations in temperature, salinity, pH, oxygen concentration, wave exposure and levels of light …and represent a special kind of ecosystem that is uncovered and covered by seawater on a daily basis. We call this environment ‘intertidal’ Rocky shores also represent a ‘patchy’ ecosystem in that there are many different habitats present with very different communities living there. Organisms living on the open bedrock for example, which is heavily exposed to the elements, have to be able to tolerate huge ranges in temperature and drying out. Animals living here for example therefore have hard shells to protect them from drying out. Organisms living on the lower shore must be adapted to resisting the actions of wave crash. The seaweed kelp for example has a tough holdfast which helps it cling on to the rocks and avoid being washed away. Rocky shore organisms have to adapt to being both covered and uncovered by seawater daily! Did you know?