EXPLORING MARINE ECOSYSTEMS All ecosystems contain biotic and abiotic factors Biotic = living features Abiotic = non-living physical features Relationship between biotic and abiotic factors is important to ecosystem health

CORAL REEFS Add Picture Many life forms Stony formation built from floor up Sunny Shallow, warm waters Colorful Biotic – coral, butterfly fish, parrot fish, reef shark, seaweed, barracuda Abiotic – sunlight, rocks, shells, shipwrecks

MANGROVE FORESTS Add Picture Warm temperatures Rich in organic material Tree roots covered with water in high tide Nursery to many growing organisms Biotic – red mangroves, snails, crabs, barnacles, oysters, plankton, snapper Abiotic – mud, shallow water, warm temps, many nutrients

DEEP SEA Add Picture No light, no photosynthesis Extreme pressure Cold water Biotic - angler fish, jellyfish, squid, octopus, giant clams, (no green plants) Abiotic – darkness, cold, deep water, high pressure

OPEN OCEAN Add picture Large schools of fish and mammals Sunlight No land nearby Biotic – whales, sharks, schools of fish, phytoplankton Abiotic – open space, sunlight, varying temperatures

KELP FOREST Add Pictures Sunny Looks like a dense forest Kelp growing from the seafloor to the surface Biotic – giant kelp, sea otters, sea urchins, mussels, crabs, snails Abiotic – sunlight, clear water, cool temps

POLAR SEA Add Pictures Cold water Little sunlight parts of the year Dominated by ice Biotic – polar bears, beluga whales, orcas, krill, seals, penguin, phytoplankton Abiotic – ice and snow, cold temps, summer sunlight

SALT MARSH Add pictures Wet and dry Long grass and thick mud Decomposition and nutrient cycling Biotic – tall grass, small fish, crabs, lobsters, shrimp Abiotic – tides, shallow water, sunlight, mud and sediment

ROCKY SHORE Add Pictures Harsh habitat between high and low tide Organisms alternating wet and dry Wave action Biotic – crabs, barnacles, mussels, seaweed Abiotic – rocks and sand, waves, sunlight, tides

Made possible with funding provided by and . ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Thank you to Kimya Louis, marine biology teacher at Vero Beach High School, for creating this PowerPoint for Kilroy Academy. Special thanks to Indian River Impact 100 for funding Kilroy Academy. Made possible with funding provided by and .