Aquatic Biomes

Water on the Earth 75% - 78% of the Earth’s surface is covered in water

Why are oceans important? Covers 71-75% of earth’s surface Make up 99.5% of earth’s habitable volume Contain 250,000 known species of plant and animals Provide important and ecological and economic services Almost half the oxygen in the atmosphere comes from photosynthesis in the ocean.

Terrestrial Biomes Terrestrial Biomes usually are determined by three major factors: Latitude Rain Temperature However, this is not the case for aquatic biomes.

What factors influence the kind of life an aquatic biome contains? Salinity Depth Speed of water flow

Types of Life in An Aquatic Biome

Major types of aquatic biomes Salt Water Estuaries** Coastlines Coral Reefs Coastal Marshes** Mangrove Swamps** Oceans ** May be brackish Fresh Water Streams Rivers Lakes Ponds Wetlands (inland) Salt water: 3.5% salt, Freshwater: 0.05%

Saltwater Biomes

Zones

Intertidal zone This is where the ocean meets the land Tide and waves mean the communities are constantly changing. Very few algae and plants can establish themselves due to mud and sand movement. Flora: few species of algae and seaweed Fauna: snails, crabs, sea stars, and small fishes.

Intertidal zone https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u64ppKBY3cM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DR1gP5S6Bsk

Pelagic Zone Includes those waters further from the land, basically the open ocean. The pelagic zone is generally cold though it is hard to give a general temperature range Flora: include surface seaweeds and plankton. Fauna: include many species of fish, and mammals like whales and dolphins.

Benthic Zone The area below the pelagic zone, but does not include the very deepest parts of the ocean. The bottom of the zone consists of sand, slit, and/or dead organisms. Temperature decreases as depth increases, due to a lack of light. Flora: seaweed Fauna: include all sorts of bacteria, fungi, sponges, sea anemones, worms, sea stars, and fishes.

Abyssal zone The deep ocean. The water in this region is very cold (around 3° C), highly pressured, high in oxygen content, but low in nutritional content. Fauna: many species of invertebrates and fishes. Chemosynthetic bacteria live near thermal vents These bacteria are thus the start of the food web as they are eaten by invertebrates and fishes.

Abyssal zone http://www.untamedscience.com/biology/biomes/deep-sea-biome/

Questions What is the biggest tidal range? Bay of Fundy. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EnDJ6_XpGfo How deep is the ocean/how far can we dive? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vd69Ot55POg

Plankton …..not what I had in mind

Phytoplankton “Plant Plankton” Free Floating Microscopic Cynobacteria or algae Producers Contain cholorphyll - photosynthetic Support most aquatic food chains and food webs

Zooplankton “Animal Plankton” Non-photosynthetic Consumers (herbivores) Feed on phytoplankton Single Celled Protozoa to larger invertebrates such as jellyfish Many zooplankton are larval stages of familiar animals

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7sACT0Dx0Q

Name that Plankton!! I will show you 4 images of different larva zooplankton. All you need to do is guess which type of animal it will grow up to be. If you get them all right you get a prize.

1 A. Fish 2 B. Snail 3 C. Sea Star D. Crab 4

C. Sea Star 1 2 A. Fish 3 D. Crab 4 B. Snail

Food Chain

Food Chains and Webs Aquatic ecosystems tend to have more complex and longer food chains and food webs

This is a Grouper. It can weigh over 600lbs…..(what does that look like??)

Like this..

And This..

How does it stay afloat?

Physical support from water buoyancy Organisms take advantage of water's buoyancy to transport themselves to nearby or distant habitats with little energy expenditure

A fish will float on top of the water if it weighs less than the amount of water it displaces (pushes away). Most fish weigh more than the water they displace and would sink to the ocean floor. But, most fish do not spend their lives on the ocean floor.

They can do this because of an organ called a swim-bladder ( a built-in gas filled chamber) that helps the fish get off the ground and up in the water. Some fast-moving fish and sharks do not have a swim bladder and therefore must keep moving or they will sink.

Just for Funzies… Ever wonder what happens when an underwater volcano erupts??? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dpz4fXH7nuo&feature=iv&src_vid=4mSDrAQp4dQ&annotation_id=annotation_61719

Estuaries and Mangrove Forests Estuaries and Mangrove forest have unique communities because both involve the mixing of freshwater and salt.

Estuaries Where river meets ocean Some land may isolate and protect some areas.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLumSN4G5P4

Mangrove Swamps (Forest) Mangrove swamps are found along tropical seacoasts on both sides of the equator.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mSDrAQp4dQ

Freshwater Freshwater has low concentrations of salt. Examples included in freshwater are ponds and lakes, streams and rivers, and wetlands.

How much freshwater? Of all the water available on Earth… Only 3% is freshwater Of the 3% freshwater, 2% is tied up in glaciers and icebergs… Only leaving less than 1% available to humans.

Limnology The study of fresh water and its ecosystems The study of freshwater ecosystems can be divided into 2 systems 1. Lentic – standing water (little or no current) 2. Lotic – flowing water

Examples of Lentic Systems Standing water Lakes Ponds Wetlands Marshes Swamps bogs

Plant Life Water Lilly Cattail There are many different plants in a freshwater biome. A few examples are water lilies, algae, cattails, and duckweed. Animal Life Turtle There are a variety of animals that live in freshwater biomes. A few examples are fish, birds, insects, turtles, and frogs. Fish