1. Notes for Marine Biology: Function, Biodiversity, Ecology
1 Sounding the Deep
Notes for Marine Biology: Function, Biodiversity, Ecology
By Jeffrey S. Levinton

2. Marine Biology-components
Functional Biology - How an organism carries out basic functions, e.g., reproduction
Ecology - Factors involved in distribution and abundance of organisms
Biodiversity - Controls on the number of species

3. Historical Background
Aristotle ( B.C.) and peers - Birth of natural history observation
Linnaeus ( ) - First systematic classification, identification of species
Georges Cuvier ( ) - Generalized classification of animals

4. Historical background
19th century - Important time for development of marine biology
Edward Forbes ( ) - Beacon sailed on Mediterranean, developed Azoic theory (no life deeper than 300 f = 1800 feet), first marine scientific hypothesis!
Michael Sars, 1850, disproved the Azoic theory

5. Historical background
Charles Darwin ( ) - Voyage of the Beagle, circumnavigated world, theory of coral reef subsidence (drilling in Enewetak partially confirmed hypothesis), barnacle classification
W.B. Carpenter and C. Wyville Thomson - Started large oceanogr. Cruises, Lightning, also falsified the Azoic theory

7. Historic Background 4
H.M.S. Challenger ( ), led by Wyville Thomson and John Murray, all seas but Arctic [F]
Challenger - tested Haeckel’s Bathybius theory (primordial slime), disproven
Other late 19th century voyages, including ones by Prince Albert I of Monaco, who founded Oceanographic Institute, later led by Jacques Cousteau

9. Historical Background 5
20th century - Founding of Scripps Inst. Of Oceanography (1903), Woods Hole Oceanographic Inst. (1930) - led to American superiority in ocean science
Late 19th century to 20th century: Founding of numerous marine stations (e.g., Naples, Friday Harbor Labs, Washington);

10. Historical Background 6
20th century - advances in technology, especially in vessels
Deep-diving submarines, remotely operated vehicles (ROVs)
Navigation and deep-water sampling
SCUBA diving
Ocean observatories, permanent stations connected to shore with optical cable

11. Knorr, Research ship of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

12. Alvin, deep-diving submersible, ported in Woods Hole, MA

13. Ventana, an ROV used by the Monterey Bay Aquarium
Research Institute

14. Ocean Observatory scheme for Monterey Bay

15. Hypothesis Testing
Science involves devising questions that are later explored by tests of hypotheses
What are hypotheses? Statements that are subject to testing.
What is a test? This is a difficult subject. But if you state a hypothesis and its prediction turns out to be wrong, the hypothesis is falsified.

16. Hypothesis Testing A hypothesis is a statement that can be tested:
Which of the following are testable:
Temperature increases the rate of oxygen consumption of crabs.
Mermaids can never be observed but they exist.

17. Hypothesis Testing
What is a test? Experiments preferred but distributional tests may be the only way to study certain things.
Experiment or distribution?
1. Crabs fail to see in the red end of the visible spectrum
2. Diversity declines near a power plant

18. Null Hypothesis and Field Experiments
Null hypothesis: There is no difference in predation rate on the lower and upper shore
Objective of Experiment: Is predation more intense on the lower shore, where we believe predators are more common, than on the upper shore?

19. Vertical rock face on a rocky shore of British Columbia, Canada
Vertical rock face on a rocky shore of British Columbia, Canada. Note seastars below mussels

20. Rocky shore predators

21. FIELD EXPERIMENT ON PREDATION
HIGH
Uncaged Fully caged Top-only cage Side-only cage
LOW
Uncaged Fully caged Top-only cage Side-only cage
Caging experiment, showing fully caged experimental condition,
with three types of controls - BARNACLE OR MUSSEL LARVAE
CAN ENTER CAGES, PREDATORS CANNOT GET IN FROM SIDE
Place on upper shore and lower shore

22. Low Hi Hi Hi Hi Hi Hi Hi Low Low = high density = low barnacle
or mussel density
HIGH Hi Hi Hi Hi
Uncaged Fully caged Top-only cage Side-only cage Hi Hi
Low
Low
LOW
Uncaged Fully caged Top-only cage Side-only cage
Caging experiment, showing fully caged experimental condition,
with three types of controls
Place on upper shore and lower shore

23. Low Hi Hi Hi Hi Hi Hi Hi = high density = low barnacle density HIGH
Uncaged Fully caged Top-only cage Side-only cage Hi Hi
LOW
Uncaged Fully caged Top-only cage Side-only cage
Starfish got into uncaged and top-only treatment

24. Life Habits of Marine Organisms

25. Depth-Habitat Terms Intertidal vs. Subtidal
Continental shelf = Neritic vs. Oceanic = Pelagic
Epipelagic = Pelagic environments, m depth
Mesopelagic = m depth
Bathyal = m depth
Abyssal = m depth
Hadal = trenches = > 6000 m depth

26. The End