Aquatic Enviroments Flashcards
ALL water covers what percent of Earth’s surface?
75%
Is aquatic or terrestrial ecosystems more prevalent on the earth’s ecosystems?
Aquatic
This is the process by which water travels from the air to the earth and back to the atmosphere
hydrologic cycle
Oceans cover what percentage of the Earth’s surface?
71%
What determines the distribution of marine organisms?
a. differences in temperatures
b. characteristics of the seafloor
c. light availability
d. interactions with other organisms
e. water column pressure
An area where the river meets the ocean is called….
estuary
What marine life is found in an estuary?
juvenile fish, shellfish, crabs and seagrass
This is where sediment accumulates near ocean shorelines
marshes
What are marsh rushes?
a plant resembling grass
What are marsh forbs?
a type of flowering plant
What type of animal life live in marshes?
fish, crabs, birds, and mammals
These are coastal ecosystems inhabited by salt-tolerant trees and shrubs
mangroves
What type of unique animals live in mangroves?
monitor lizards, monkeys, and manatees
This zone is the boundary of the ocean and the beach
intertidal zone
What type of marine life is found in a rocky intertidal zone?
mussels
A mussel is what type of organism in the intertidal zone
sessile or fixed
What does desiccation mean?
drying out
What type of marine life are found in tide pools?
crabs and sea stars
What determines high and low tides?
the gravitational pull of the moon
What life live beneath the sandy beaches?
clams, crustaceans, and polychaete worms
What do clams and crustaceans feed on?
plankton and detritus during high tide
The ecosystem is found in warm, shallow coastal regions
coral reefs
How deep are coral reefs
less than 50 meters
This is an aggregation of live organisms
coral
Corals are made up of what type of structure?
hard skeletons of dead polyps
What provides energy for polyps through photosynthesis?
algae
The coral reefs provide protection for what?
fish and other organisms
This is the part of the ocean that is offshore away from land
open ocean
These are microscopic plants in the open ocean
phytoplankton
These are microscopic animals and juvenile stages of larger animals
zooplankton
Phytoplankton and Zooplankton are found where?
near the waters surface
Name some common deep sea predators
large crustaceans, octopuses, and squid
What does the benthic zone mean
the ecological region at the lowest level of a body of water
What is the base of the benthic food chain?
detritus from dead phytoplankton, mammals, birds, fish that fall to the sea floor
What sea life graze on the organic matter on the sea floor?
worms, crustaceans, sea cucumbers, sea stars
This is the biochemical emission of visible light by living organisms to attract prey in the deep ocean
bioluminescence
Streams that originate at high elevations are called…
first order streams
Any stream over a sixth-order is called a ….
river
The largest river in the world by discharge is….
the Amazon River
Which order stream is the Amazon?
12th order
This is a fast moving portion of a river
riffles
Where can invertebrates be found?
pools
Where can fish be found in a river?
riffles
This is a deep, slow moving stretches of a river
pools
Headwater stream orders 1-3
a. steep rapids and waterfalls
b. cold and well shaded
c. aquatic insects that shred leaves and organic matter
d. organic matter on stream bottom
Medium streams orders 4-6
a. exposed to sun
b. water temp. high
c. elevation decreases
d. slowing water flow
e. vegetation and algae grow
Low level streams orders 6+
a. Stream channel becomes wide and slow moving
b. increased sediment
This is an Ecosystem that is on the boundary of land and water along rivers
riparian ecosystem
Floodplains, swamps, ponds and the edges of rivers and lakes are known as what?
freshwater wetlands
What type of plant can be found in wetlands?
cattails
Which animals are dependent of freshwater wetlands?
fish, amphibians, reptiles, and mammals
