Marine Ecology

MARINE ECOLOGY

OBJECTIVES:

-Learn what comprises the marine biomes

-Differentiate the three zones of the open ocean

-Describe the marine life

-Learn what coral reefs are and its importance

-Describe the intertidal zones

-Describe mangrove swamps and its importance

-Get acquainted with the problems of the marine ecosystem

-Discuss red tide

-Learn how to protect the ecosystem

Marine regions cover about the three-fourths of the earth’s surface and includeoceans, coral reefs, intertidal zones, salt marsh, mudflats and mangroves. Marine algae supply much of the world’s oxygen and take in a huge amount of atmospheric carbon dioxide. The evaporation of the seawater provides rainwater for the land.

OCEANS

The largest of all the ecosystems, oceans are very large bodies of water that dominate the earth’s surface. The ocean regions are separated into zones: intertidal, pelagic, benthic and abyssal. These zones have a great diversity of species.

The intertidal zone is where the ocean meets the land. Sometimes it is submerged and at the other times exposed, as waves and tides come in and out. On the rocky coasts, the zone is stratified vertically. Where only the highest tides reach, there are only a few species of algae and mollusks. In these areas usually submerged during high tide, there is a more diverse array of algae and small animals, such as herbivore snails, crabs, sea stars and small fishes. At the bottom of the intertidal zone, which is only exposed during the lowest tides, many invertebrates, fishes and stratifies as in the rocky areas. Waves keep mud and sand constantly moving, thus very few algae and plant can establish themselves the fauna includes worms, clams, predatory crustaceans, crabs and shorebirds.

The pelagic zone includes those waters further from the land, basically the open ocean. The pelagic zone is generally cold. The flora in this zone includes surface seaweeds. The fauna...