NERITIC ZONE & OPEN OCEAN Conditions in the Neritic Zone: - located over continental shelf - kelp forest - low tide line to continental shelf - wide variety of organisms - receives a lot of sunlight - upwelling current provides steady supply of nutrients.

CORAL REEFS Environment of Coral Reefs: Ring-Shaped Reefs: Can only be formed in shallow tropical ocean water. Above continental shelf around volcanic islands Ring-Shaped Reefs: Atoll: ring shaped reef surrounding a shallow lagoon.

Coral Reef (cont.) Life Around a Reef: Coral Reefs and Humans: Shapes: Elkhorn Brain Plate Star: Organisms: Coral Spiny lobsters Shrimp Octopuses Fish Coral Reefs and Humans: Protects coast lines Divers damage reefs

Life in a kelp forest Environment of Kelp Forest: Providing A Habitat: cold Neritic waters with rocky floor Kelp large heavy algae Kelp contains air bladders that help it float. Providing A Habitat: Young gray whales Sea slugs and snails Sea otters

Conditions in the Open ocean begins at the edge of the Neritic zone to the edge of the continental shelf. Only a small part receives sunlight Fewer nutrients The Surface Zone: (Photic zone) Surface to as far as sunlight reaches Organisms: krill, crabs, mollusks and fish.

Conditions in the Open ocean (cont.) 2. The Transition Zone: - bottom of surface zone to 1 kilometer. 3. The Deep Zone or Aphotic zone: - darkest and coldest - few organisms - many produce their own light - Bioluminescence: the production of light from a living organism via chemical reactions. - Chemosynthesis: the production of organic material by energy from chemical reactions rather than light.

Hydrothermal vents hot water rising out of cracks in the ocean floors.