Transcript Marine Ecosystems

By Chelsey and Kaila
Marine ecosystems includes:
1.Intertidal zone:
Sandy beaches, rocks, estuaries, mangrove
swamps and coral reefs. Many of the species
living in intertidal zones have adapted to
survive in the exposure of air and wave
action. Intertidal zones may support as many
as two thousand species.
2.Neritic zone:
This is the relatively shallow ocean that
extends to the edge of the continental
shelf, which is the seabed surrounding a
continent(up to 200 m deep). In neritic
zones planctonic algae are the primary
source of the food chain.
3.Oceanic zone:
Oceanic zones are located over the ocean.
Planctonic algae are the producers of the
food chain and life is limited to the
depths
that light can reach.
4. Abyssal plain:
The abyssal plain is located at the
bottom of the ocean. This dark region
is home to organisms that make up the
benthos(organisms that live at or near
the bottom of the sea). These
organisms depend on the organic
matter drifting down from the upper
part of the sea.
Artificial marine ecosystems
consists of human-made objects in
the ocean or sea. Like coral
reefs, artificial reefs frequently
attract marine animals from the
surrounding ocean areas.
Shipwrecks may have redeeming ecological value. The
ships often become artificial reefs and habitats,
providing shelter for the very creatures threatened
by human intrusion.
The presence of artificial reefs as an alternative
dive site can reduce the stress placed on the natural
reefs. Which means that artificial reefs will
decrease the total dives on natural reefs.
Artificial reefs can also start the development of
rare coral species that are not often found in
natural reefs.
Panasonic Malaysia teamed up with Coral
Malaysia to construct artificial reefs.
These manmade coral ecosystems help
sustain the wide variety of marine
organisms that call these reefs home.
South Carolina has created more than 40
offshore artificial reefs in the waters off
of its coast. The artificial reefs are
popular destinations for recreational
anglers and divers.
Artificial ecosystems also attract
invasive species. Invasive species move
to an environment where it is not
native, and becomes a nuisance
through rapid spread and increase in
numbers.
Increase in invasive
species of marine
invertebrates and
algae in the coastal
zone of the USA
over the last two
centuries.
The theory of Balanced Ecosystems states
that there is no growth or loss required in
an ecosystem. Therefore the population
should not go up nor down, causing the
ecosystem to remain in perfect balance. A
coral reef with a balanced ecosystem would
consist of the following:
-Coral reef that feeds on plankton and
nutrients found in water.
-The reef is then eaten by parrot fish that
in turn are eaten by larger fish including
barracudas and snappers.
There might be a problem with this
theory, since a coral reef must
constantly be expanding in order to
continue to support life and be healthy.
The larger a coral reef gets the more
life it can support and the number of
fish that eat the reef and fish that eat
smaller fish enlarges. Therefore the
population is on the rise, which then goes
against the theory of balance in
ecosystems.
A Balanced Ecosystem can be
better described as something that
is constantly changing that leads to
slow but gradual population
increases. Ecosystems separately
support life, but they must work
together in order to balance each
other.
Natural ecosystems operate by themselves
under natural conditions without any major
interference by man. For example:
Aquatic ecosystems which is further divided
as:
a. Freshwater, which may be Iotic (spring,
stream or river) or lentic (lake, pond, pools,
ditch, swamp, etc.)
b. Marine, e.g. sea or ocean (deep bodies)
and estuary (shallow bodies).
Marine ecosystems are a part of the
largest aquatic system on the planet,
covering over 70% of the Earth's
surface. Some examples of marine
ecosystems are: oceans, estuaries, coral
reefs, and coastal areas like lagoons etc.
Oceans
Coral Reefs and Other Tropical
Communities (Mangrove Forests)
Coastal areas like Lagoons, Kelp and Sea
grass Beds and Intertidal systems
(rocky, sandy, and muddy shores)
Estuaries and Salt Marshes
The oceans ecosystems are very diverse
from the tropics to the arctic. Only
certain organisms can survive in an
oceanic ecosystem due to the salt water.
There need to be a balance between the
sustainability of the ecosystem and the
oceanic life.
In the ocean the food chain begins with
the biggest predatory mammals and fish
and continues until it reaches the
smallest poly and coral life. The ocean
has a very complicated food web, if
organism goes off balance, the whole
chain could break.
Coral reefs are composed of hard corals;
organisms such as sponges break down
the coral into sediments (they fall to the
floor of the ocean). Coralline algae and
similar organisms take dead matter and
build upon it, composing the foundation of
the coral reef.
The initial source of energy for coral
reefs is through sunlight, this is
transferred into chemical energy by
phytoplankton, Algae etc. These are then
eaten by fish and other animals that
then absorb a portion of that energy.
Coastal ecosystems are the parts
where land and water meet, they
include salt marshes, wetlands,
estuaries, etc. Coastal ecosystems
are endangered due to human activity;
the smallest amount of pollution could
result in disaster.
The introductions of non-native
species and disasters such as
hurricanes have destroyed the food
chain in several coastal ecosystems.
Harsh chemicals pollute these areas
from the run off of factories and
plants.
Estuaries are considered open
ecosystems because they effect
the larger environment. Nutrients
are carried from land by rivers
and then by the sea to tides,
some of these nutrients are
carried by animals to an estuary.
Estuaries contain such organisms as;
phytoplankton (manufacture food by
photosynthesis and absorb nutrients from
the water), Detritus (Dead organic
matter), zooplankton and large animals
such as filter-feeder worms, shellfish,
etc.
Snails, crabs etc, live in the mud bed,
they feed off of the nutrients stored in
the mud, making them perfect food for
fish, birds and humans. The mangrove and
sea grass house vital nutrients around
their roots, allowing them to supply food
for over 30 different species of fish.
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