Aquatic Biomes

Water on the Earth  75% - 78% of the Earth’s surface is covered in water

Why are oceans important?  Covers 71-75% of earth’s surface  Make up 99.5% of earth’s habitable volume  Contain 250,000 known species of plant and animals  Provide important and ecological and economic services  Almost half the oxygen in the atmosphere comes from photosynthesis in the ocean.

Terrestrial Biomes  Terrestrial Biomes usually are determined by three major factors: Latitude Latitude Rain Rain Temperature Temperature However, this is not the case for aquatic biomes. However, this is not the case for aquatic biomes.

What factors influence the kind of life an aquatic biome contains?  Salinity  Depth  Speed of water flow

Types of Life in An Aquatic Biome

Major types of aquatic biomes  Salt Water Estuaries** Estuaries** Coastlines Coastlines Coral Reefs Coral Reefs Coastal Marshes** Coastal Marshes** Mangrove Swamps** Mangrove Swamps** Oceans Oceans ** May be brackish  Fresh Water Streams Rivers Lakes Ponds Wetlands (inland)

Saltwater Biomes

Zones

Intertidal zone   This is where the ocean meets the land   Tide and waves mean the communities are constantly changing.   Very few algae and plants can establish themselves due to mud and sand movement.   Flora: few species of algae and seaweed   Fauna: snails, crabs, sea stars, and small fishes.

Intertidal zone   KBY3cM KBY3cM  

Pelagic Zone   Includes those waters further from the land, basically the open ocean.   The pelagic zone is generally cold though it is hard to give a general temperature range   Flora: include surface seaweeds and plankton.   Fauna: include many species of fish, and mammals like whales and dolphins.

Benthic Zone   The area below the pelagic zone, but does not include the very deepest parts of the ocean. The bottom of the zone consists of sand, slit, and/or dead organisms. Temperature decreases as depth increases, due to a lack of light.   Flora: seaweed   Fauna: include all sorts of bacteria, fungi, sponges, sea anemones, worms, sea stars, and fishes.

Abyssal zone   The deep ocean. The water in this region is very cold (around 3° C), highly pressured, high in oxygen content, but low in nutritional content.   Fauna: many species of invertebrates and fishes. Chemosynthetic bacteria live near thermal vents These bacteria are thus the start of the food web as they are eaten by invertebrates and fishes.

Abyssal zone  omes/deep-sea-biome/ omes/deep-sea-biome/ omes/deep-sea-biome/

Plankton …..not what I had in mind …..not what I had in mind

Phytoplankton  “Plant Plankton”  Free Floating Microscopic Cynobacteria or algae  Producers  Contain cholorphyll - photosynthetic  Support most aquatic food chains and food webs

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Zooplankton  “Animal Plankton”  Non-photosynthetic  Consumers (herbivores) Feed on phytoplankton Feed on phytoplankton  Single Celled Protozoa to larger invertebrates such as jellyfish  Many zooplankton are larval stages of familiar animals

Larval Stages Adult Stages

Food Chain

Food Chains and Webs  Aquatic ecosystems tend to have more complex and longer food chains and food webs

This is a Grouper.  It can weigh over 600lbs…..(what does that look like??)

Like this..

And This..

How does it stay afloat?

Physical support from water buoyancy Organisms take advantage of water's buoyancy to transport themselves to nearby or distant habitats with little energy expenditure

 A fish will float on top of the water if it weighs less than the amount of water it displaces (pushes away).  Most fish weigh more than the water they displace and would sink to the ocean floor. But, most fish do not spend their lives on the ocean floor. 

 They can do this because of an organ called a swim-bladder ( a built-in gas filled chamber) that helps the fish get off the ground and up in the water.  Some fast-moving fish and sharks do not have a swim bladder and therefore must keep moving or they will sink.

Mangrove Swamps (Forest)  Mangrove swamps are found along tropical seacoasts on both sides of the equator

Estuaries Where river meets ocean Brakish water = salt and freshwater

Freshwater is water that has no salt in it. Examples included in freshwater are ponds and lakes, streams and rivers, and wetlands.

How much freshwater?  Of all the water available on Earth…  Only 3% is freshwater  Of the 3% freshwater, 2% is tied up in glaciers and icebergs…  Only leaving less than 1% available to humans.

Limnology The study of fresh water and its ecosystems The study of freshwater ecosystems can be divided into 2 systems 1. Lentic – standing water (little or no current) (little or no current) 2. Lotic – flowing water

Examples of Lentic Systems  Standing water Lakes Lakes Ponds Ponds Wetlands Wetlands MarshesMarshes SwampsSwamps bogsbogs

There are many different plants in a freshwater biome. A few examples are water lilies, algae, cattails, and duckweed. There are a variety of animals that live in freshwater biomes. A few examples are fish, birds, insects, turtles, and frogs. Water Lilly Cattail Fish Turtle

Freshwater Biomes Streams and Rivers  have low salt concentration  water flows down a slope the greater the slope, the faster the current and the lower the nutrients the greater the slope, the faster the current and the lower the nutrients  higher concentrations of O 2  plants include algae, cattails, shrubs,  animals include fish, birds, snails, flatworms, insect larvae,

Freshwater Biomes include ponds, lakes,  have low salt concentration (most freshwater biomes have less than 1% salt)  Flora: lilies, algae, rushes, cattails  Fauna: birds, fish, otter, beaver  two types: Eutrophic = rich organic matter and nutrients, and murky Eutrophic = rich organic matter and nutrients, and murky Oligotrophic = very little organic matter Oligotrophic = very little organic matter