1. Introduction to Marine Life Finally!!!

2. LAND vs OCEAN Ocean is wetter than land –Materials can be dissolved in ocean water –gametes can be dispersed more easily –Harder for smaller things to move through water Ocean is more vast than land –Harder to find mates and food Ocean is more supportive than land –Body structure will be different than land animals Living in aquatic environment will shape biology and adaptations of marine life

3. Some Essential Characteristics of Life Made of cells Getting energy Growth and development Reproducing Respond to environment Maintaining homeostasis

4. Naturalseasponge.com

5. Classification of Living Things Taxonomy Every organism has a two part name unique to itself Genus species or Genus species –Prevents confusion if a species is known by many common names There are several ways to classify animals at higher levels of organization

6. 5 Kingdom Classification

7. Cellular Differences Prokaryotes – Kingdom Moneran / bacteria group –Lack a nucleus and membrane bound organelles Eukaryotes- All other kingdoms –Have a nucleus and membrane bound organelles http://io.uwinnipeg.ca/~simmons/1116/images/bactloco.gif http://www.biol.tsukuba.ac.jp/~inouye/ino/etc/dinoflagellates.jpg

8. FOOD WEBS Trophic level… position or feeding level Producers…base of the food web and create sugars from sun’s energy or chemical energy Consumers…eat other living things Food webs are the connection between many food chains in an ecosystem

9. Marine Food Chain Phytoplankton…single celled plant like orgs (diatoms) Zooplankton…tiny animal life that drift thru the water and graze on plankton (copepod) Secondary consumers…filter feed out zoo and phytoplankton (silverside or clam) Tertiary consumers…predators that feed on smaller fish in level below (bluefish) Apex predators…efficient hunters, opportunistic feeding habits (eat what is available) (tuna, sharks, billfish) Higher level consumers…predators that feed on smaller fish in level below (bluefish or flounder)

10. 10% Rule Higher trophic level orgs…larger in size and fewer in number than those at lower levels. each trophic level transfers 10% of its energy each level supports a smaller total biomass to compensate loss of food value. 90% loss is used for growth, reproduction, repair etc…

11. What Does 10% Rule Mean? 100,000 lbs of phytoplankton feed 10,000 lbs of copepods, 10,000 lbs copepods feed 1,000 lbs of silversides 1,000 lbs silversides feed 100 lbs of mackerel 100 lbs of mackerel feed 10 lbs of bluefin tuna tuna nourishes only one pound of apex predator

14. OTHER FOOD ROLES Decomposers… break down food and nutrients left over from predation or in dead orgs or waste Omnivores…feed on consumers and producers Microbial loop…bacteria help make available even smaller nutrients called DOM (dissolved organic matter) that would otherwise be lost

15. Lifestyles of Marine Orgs Planktonic Nekton Benthic

16. Plankton Most biomass on Earth consists of plankton Phytoplankton –Autotrophic (diatoms, coccolithophores) Zooplankton –Heterotrophic Bacterioplankton –The most abundant photosynthetic organism on earth Half of all the photosynthetic biomass in ocean Virioplankton –Viruses (mostly attack plankton)

17. Types of Plankton Holoplankton –Entire lives as plankton –Ex. copepod Meroplankton –Part of lives as plankton –Juvenile or larval stages –Ex. Blue crab

18. interactive.usc.edu/.../archives/2005/08/

19. Nekton Independent swimmers Ex…fish, marine mammals

20. Benthos Live on surface of sea floor or buried in sediments Most abundant in shallower water Ex. Marine worms, crabs, lobsters

21. GROWTH and DEVELOPMENT Life history…cycle from birth to reproduction Animals often look very different in early life history from their adult form Many marine orgs undergo metamorphosis dependent on environmental conditions Larval stages are often food for higher trophic levels

23. REPRODUCTION Animals in marine environment have many strategies for “success” Egg production is “costly” and there are tradeoffs for each strategy for reproduction R-strategy….produce many offspring with low probability of survival K strategy… produce less young but heavily invested in offspring so higher chance of survival

24. More on Reproduction Specific methods of producing offspring… Fission, budding, eggs hatching externally, eggs hatching internally, live births, some marine animals are born in freshwater, some are born on land, etc…

25. Physical Support Phytoplankton example Must life in the upper water column. Must remain buoyant. How to resist sinking?...take advantage of water’s viscosity. Be small…more specifically, have a small volume but larger surface area…think about an ant with a parachute! Sinking is a bigger problem in warm water because warm water is less viscous.

26. Staying Afloat Appendages to increase surface area Oil in micro-organisms to increase buoyancy Fewer support structures in cold rather than warm seawater

27. Physical Support Larger orgs (swimmers) are streamlined Flattened / tapered bodies Would you rather be a Ferrari, or a minivan?

28. Temperature Smaller animals live in warmer seawater More appendages in warmer seawater Tropical organisms grow faster, live shorter, reproduce more often More diversity in warmer seawater Total amount of life is greater in cooler seawater (lots of nutrients)

29. Temperature Stenothermal –Organisms withstand small variation in temp –Typically live in open ocean Eurythermal –Organisms withstand large variation in temp –Typically live in coastal waters

30. Salinity Stenohaline Organisms withstand only small variation in salinity Typically live in open ocean Euryhaline Organisms withstand large variation in salinity Typically live in coastal waters, e.g., estuaries

31. Saltwater vs Freshwater Fish Need to maintain body water Marine fish are at risk of ‘dehydrating’, and freshwater fish are at risk of having their cells burst from the uptake of too much water

32. RELATIONSHIPS IN THE OCEAN? CATEGORIES How and why organisms interact with one another Interactions between 2 members of the SAME species Reproduction Cannibalism Interactions between 2 members of DIFFERENT species Parasitism Mutualism Predation Competition A. SAME species B. DIFFERENT species C. BOTH CATEGORIES Competition

33. Interactions Male-Female… Female Choice Who has the darkest blue feet? A B C D

34. How many fish do you see? Male Female A. None B. One C. Two

35. How many fish do you see? Male Female A. None B. One C. Two

36. Which one is a barnacle? A B C D E=all of the above F=some of the above

37. lands externally burrows in grows internally: interna stage impedes growth feminizes male grows internally: interna stage impedes growth female Parasitic Barnacle Life Cycle externa opens infect new crab produces externa stage reproductive replacement.. castration

38. What is this shrimp doing?? B. committing suicide A. becoming lunch C. having lunch D. making a mistake

39. Interactions between organisms can influence the traits and behaviors of those organisms RELATIONSHIPS IN THE OCEAN Reproduction Male-Male interactions influence male size Male-Female interactions influence male courtship behavior & traits used in display male lifestyles Parasitism Host-parasite interactions influence traits parasites use to “control” hosts behaviors hosts use to avoid parasites… Mutualism Interactions that can help some species avoid other interactions!

40. As an organism gets larger it’s volume increases faster than it’s surface area. The S/V ratio is maximal at small sizes Small S/V ratios help fight against sinking but are also best for exchanging gases and nutrients