Transcript Week 16- Estuaries

Monday, December 7th
Pg. 70 RTW:
• Objective: I will be able to explain why marine life is more
abundant in coastal waters as compared to open ocean.
• Agenda
– Coastal Ecosystem Notes pg. 71
• Homework
– None 
Energy Flow and Nutrient Cycles
• Energy flow through the food web
affects an ecosystem by determining
how much energy is available for
organisms at higher trophic levels.
• carbon nutrient cycle
– is the basis for most of the biomass in all
ecosystems
Ecology and Ecosystems
• nitrogen nutrient cycle
– is thought to be more limited in marine
ecosystems than in terrestrial ecosystems
• temperate ecosystems have less overall sunlight,
but receive far more nutrients
– For this reason . . .
• the most productive marine ecosystems
are found in cold, temperate regions
>
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The Continental Shelf
 The neritic zone
 water between the low tide mark
and the edge of the CS
 is a significant marine ecosystem
because …
 it is the most productive region in
the ocean
Ecosystems in the Open Sea
 continental-shelf depth seldom
exceeds 200 meters (656 feet)
 this helps to keep nutrients in the
shallow photic zone and …
 helps retain heat from the sun
 nutrients come from river runoff
near shore and rise with currents
from deep water
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Upwellings
an upward vertical current
Ecosystems in the Open Sea
 upwelling
 plays a significant role in the balance of coastal ocean
ecosystems
 are important to open-ocean ecosystems because they
bring nutrients from deeper water to shallow, more
productive depths
 areas with the highest upwelling activity also have the
highest nutrient levels
 These areas correspond with many
of the ocean’s highest productivity
regions including:
▪
▪
▪
▪
Worldwide upwelling
waters offshore of Peru
the Bering Sea
the Grand Banks in the Atlantic
the deep water surrounding Antarctica
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14 - 4
Coastal Ecosystems
High Productivity Marine Environments
• Coastal ecosystems are highly productive ecosystems for
several reasons:
– 1. benefit from nutrient-rich runoff from land
– 2. being shallow, the benthic organisms in these ecosystems
live in the upper photic zone, instead of the bottom as in the
open sea
– 3. salt-tolerant plants can grow in the well-lit shallows,
providing shelter
– 4. these plants act as the foundation for several different types
of ecosystems that cannot exist in the open ocean
• a combination of nutrients, light, and shelter make coastal
ecosystems diverse and rich
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>
Coastal Ecosystems
High Productivity Marine Environments
 Human activities have wide-ranging potential effects on coastal
ecosystems.
 because people live near water . . .
 means that many of our activities potentially affect coastal
ecosystems
 we can’t always anticipate consequences to the ecosystems
 two examples are agricultural fertilizer and pollutants
 eutrophication
 an overabundance of nutrients that causes an ecological
imbalance
 it is a stimulus to some species and a detriment to others
 red tides are caused by eutrophication
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14 - 7
Pg. 70 S.T.A.R
1. What are two reasons that coastal
ecosystems are highly productive
ecosystems?
2. Where is the neritic zone located?
3. Why is it sometimes challenging for humans
to prevent damage to the coastal
ecosystems?
4. How is the Red Tide linked to
eutrophication?
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Tuesday, December 8th
Pg. 70 RTW: What does upwelling
do?
• Objective: I will be able to describe the classification system of
estuaries based off their location.
• Agenda:
– Brief estuary notes (pg. )
– Gather Estuary notes (pg. )
• Homework
– None 
Estuaries =
Coastal Ecosystems
partially enclosed water bodies where fresh and salt water mix
• estuaries serve as nurseries for more than 75% of the
commercial fish species
• estuaries contribute to the productivity of adjacent
marine ecosystems . . . .
– 1. by providing surviving juvenile species with
shelter for them to mature
– by increasing the number of individuals
that survive the hazardous larval and
juvenile stages
– 2. by providing nutrients to adjacent ecosystems
while trapping sediment and other materials in
runoff from rain and storms
– reduces eutrophication and other runoff
damage
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Plants and Animals of Estuaries
• Estuaries support many marine organisms because of
plenty of light and plenty of nutrients for both plants
and animals.
• The light and nutrients . . . .
– support large populations of rooted plants as well
as plankton
– plankton in turn provide food for fish
– fish can then be eaten by larger animals such as
dolphins
– oysters and clams live anchored to rocks and feed
on plankton
Threats to Estuaries
• are often used as places to dump waste and or
filled for building sites
• the pollutants that damage estuaries are
sewage, pesticides, fertilizers, and toxic
chemicals
– most of these break down over time
• estuaries cannot cope with the amounts of
pollutants produced by dense human
populations
Each person in group collects information &
then exchanges information with partners
1. Highly Stratified or Salt Wedge Estuary
2. Slightly Stratified
3. Vertically Mixed
For each record:
–
–
–
–
How are they characterized?
Where do they occur?
Example
In general what threats do estuaries face?
Wednesday, December 9th
Pg. 70 RTW: What is an estuary?
• Objective: I will be able to describe the classification system of
estuaries based off their location.
• Agenda:
– Finish researching assigned estuary
– Exchange information with partners
• Homework
– None 
Each person in group collects information &
then exchanges information with partners
1. Highly Stratified or Salt Wedge Estuary
2. Slightly Stratified
3. Vertically Mixed
For each record:
–
–
–
–
How are they characterized?
Where do they occur?
Example
In general what threats do estuaries face?
Thursday, December 10th
Pg. 70 RTW: How do estuaries
support marine organisms?
• Objective: I will be able to explain why oysters are considered
a keystone species and how they benefit the estuary
ecosystem.
• Agenda
– Oyster Facts
– Coastal Ecosystem Graphic Organizer
• Homework
– None 
Oysters' affect on water
Oyster Facts
• Typically a single oyster can filter up to 2
gallons (7.57 litres) of water an hour.
Google- “Oyster mats” & click on
1st link (nature.org)
Read the article and answer the following:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Why are oysters important?
What are oyster mats?
What do the oyster mats do?
Why are oyster reefs threatened?
What restoration has been accomplished so far?
Friday, December 11th
Pg. 70 RTW: Why are oysters keystone
species in estuarine ecosystems?
• Objective: I will be able to describe the abiotic and biotic
factors of the following coastal ecosystems, including:
– Mangrove swamps
– Salt marshes
– Sea grasses
• Agenda
– Coastal ecosystem research
– Graphic Organizer
• Homework
– None 
Coastal Ecosystem Project
• You will research the different types of coastal
ecosystems:
– Salt water marsh
– Mangrove swamps
– Sea grasses
• Create a graphic organizer answering the following:
–
–
–
–
What defines this ecosystem
Environmental conditions
How do organisms have to adapt to life here
Examples of organisms
Coastal Ecosystems
• Three types:
– Salt water marsh
– Mangrove swamps
– Sea grasses
Is it a marsh or a swamp?! (know the
difference)
• Marsh:
• little H2O movement
• lots of decomposers
• dominated by non-woody plants
• Swamp:
• poorly drained land
• reptiles are major predators
• dominated by woody plants
Salt Marsh
Mangrove Swamp
Salt Marshes
Biotic Factors
Abiotic Factors
• Plants:
• these have the highest
salinity of all the
ecosystems
• they also absorb
pollutants to help protect
inland areas
• grasses, sedges, and other
plants that have adapted to
continual periodic flooding
and are found primarily
throughout the temperate
and subarctic regions
• Animals:
• they support a community
of clams, fish, aquatic
birds, crabs, and shrimp
American Oyster
Catcher
Fiddler Crab
Great Egret
Salt Marshes
Coastal Ecosystems
• salt marshes exist in estuaries and along the coasts
– upper marsh
• includes the areas only rarely flooded by the tides
– lower marsh
• includes areas flooded by salt water and a regular
part of the tidal cycle
• organisms living here
must tolerate significantly
more osmotic stress than
species with niches in the
upper marsh.
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Salt Marshes
• halophytes
– plants that have adaptations that allow them to survive in salt water
• lower marsh halophytes
– deal with constant osmotic stress and have adaptations to deal with it
• adaptations include:
– pores in the leaves through which it breathes
– concentrates salts in its roots
– salt glands on leaves and stem
Coastal Ecosystems
• upper marsh halophytes
– have much reduced osmotic stress
• adaptations include:
– sacrificial leaves
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Mangroves
• cold-sensitive trees that grow near saline
waters along tropical & subtropical shores
• Daytona/St. Augustine is northern limit for
white mangroves
• three species
• (think Cuda colors )
– red mangrove- closest to water
– black mangrove
– white mangrove
Mangrove Swamps
• they are tropical or subtropical marine swamps
– characterized by the abundance of low to tall mangrove
trees
• the swamps help protect the coastline from erosion
and reduce the damage from storms
• they also provide a home for about 2,000 animal
species
• they have been filled with waste and destroyed in
many parts of the world. (In Florida it is now illegal to
cut/move/destroy mangroves)
Coastal Ecosystems
Mangrove Swamps
• all species of mangroves share two
important characteristics that make them
the basis of mangrove ecosystems
1. strong, tangled roots that provide
habitats for juvenile fish and
invertebrates
- this provides a nursery for nearby
marine ecosystems, particularly coral
reefs
2. due to size they hold the soil well,
protecting the habitat and coast from
erosion from storm surges, waves, and
weather
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Coastal Ecosystems
Mangrove Swamps
• red mangroves
– grow above the waterline on stilt-like
roots allowing oxygen to get to the roots
• black mangroves
– have roots that grow in the sediment
below the waterline
– they aerate their roots with snorkel-like
tubes that carry air from above to the
roots
• white mangroves
– lack special root adaptations
– they are very saltwater tolerant, but
>
thrive high on the tideline
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Red Mangrove
• protects
shoreline &
stabilizes
sediment
• propagule- long
& pencil shaped
seeds
Red Mangrove
-w/ propagule
(Seed)
Black Mangrove
• least cold
sensitive of all
mangrove species
• seeds resemble
lima beans
Black Mangrove
White Mangrove
• most cold sensitive
of all mangrove
species
• identified by two
glands on leaf stem
(Frankenstein’s
•
monster)
• leaf tip is rounded
w/ indention
• Small fruits with
wrinkled texture
White Mangrove
Seagrasses
marine plants covering extensive shallow underwater “meadows”
Coastal Ecosystems
• seagrasses differ from other halophytes in several
ways:
– they are the only plants, living entirely underwater except during
rare, very low tides
– they have no means of extracting fresh water from seawater
– they extract oxygen from the seawater and have internal air
canals
– they do not need to have a freshwater source because they have
an internal salinity the same as seawater
– they reproduce by releasing pollen into the water, much like
land-based plants release pollen into the wind
>
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Seagrasses
• seagrasses differ from other halophyte-based
ecosystems because:
Coastal Ecosystems
– they are edible and provide
food for ecosystem
inhabitants like microbes,
invertebrates, fish, turtles,
manatees, and dugongs
>
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S.T.A.R
• 1. What is one major difference between a
swamp and a marsh?
• 2. What are halophytes?
• 3. What is a major problem for estuaries?
• 4. Estuaries serve as a nursery to what % of
commercial species?
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