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Coral Biology > Exam #1 > Flashcards

Exam #1 Flashcards

Belize History and Overview History of Taxonomy Iconic Ecosystems Where Corals Are Corals in Space and Time Types of Reefs Phylum Cnidaria

1
Q

Belize

A

It is located between Mexico and Guatemala. (means muddy water in Mayan)

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2
Q

Districts of Belize

A

Corozal, Orange Walk, Belize, Cayo, Stann Creek, Toledo

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3
Q

British Honduras

A

Former name from 1786-1973.

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4
Q

1 US dollar

A

2 Belizean dollars

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5
Q

Mayan Civilization

A

Center of Mayan Civilization

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6
Q

Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System (MBRS)

A

Second largest barrier reef system, UNESCO world heritage site

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7
Q

Mesoamerican Biological Corridor

A

is a significant conservation initiative aimed at preserving biodiversity and facilitating wildlife movement across Central America.

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8
Q

Continental slope/shelf

A

The steep line of land leading from the ocean floor to the continent/coast

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9
Q

They were the first country to ban…

A

bottom-trawling and gill nets

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10
Q

Prevailing winds and currents

A

winds that blow consistently in a given direction over a particular region on Earth

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11
Q

Biodiversity triangle

A

In the Indopacific

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12
Q

Algal mat

A

Intermediate areas of nutrient input such as along eastern coasts and lagoons of oceanic high islands will favor algae because they can respond quicker to pulses of nutrients. But corals can persist due to grazing of
algae mat by herbivores.

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13
Q

Charismatic marine megafauna

A

Larger animals: sharks, dolphins, turtles, whales

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14
Q

Second largest barrier reef

A

Mesoamerican barrier reef system

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15
Q

Kriol

A

culture composed of a people of mixed African, Caribbean, and Spanish heritage.

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16
Q

Garifuna

A

people are of Caribbean, people of lesser Antilles, and people of African descent

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17
Q

Paleozoic Era

A
  • In mid-Triassic, at least seven and possibly nine suborders of Scleractinia with no known common ancestor – possibly anemone-like – few fossils
  • Evolution of calcium carbonate went back and forth many times
  • Calcium carbonate crystal was calcite
  • First corals were small and solitary
  • The end-Triassic extinction ended in 18 out of 667 genera surviving and a hiatus in reef-building that lasted 4-10 million years. The end result was a substantially new fauna
  • Zooxanthellae symbiosis probably evolved independently in tertiary period
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18
Q

Mesozoic Era

A
  • In mid-Triassic, at least seven and possibly nine suborders of Scleractinia with no known common ancestor – possibly anemone-like – few fossils
  • The end-Triassic extinction ended in 18 out of 667 genera surviving and a hiatus in reef-building that lasted 4-10 million years. The end result was a substantially new fauna
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19
Q

Tertiary Period

A

Zooxanthellae symbiosis probably evolved independently in tertiary
period

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20
Q

Cretaceous Period

A
  • Contains the last great proliferation of corals destined for extinction
  • Time of major sea level change – decreasing sea levels
  • Decreased carbonate production
  • Warmer temperatures
  • All major families extant today were established
  • The extinction of most marine reptiles, both orders of dinosaurs, all ammonites, a major proportion of bivalves and forams, and radiolarians
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21
Q

Jurassic Period

A
  • Great proliferation probably due to first possible circum-global circulation
  • At beginning, not many genera, middle reef development proliferated in present-day Europe and Mediterranean, but late Jurassic probably maximum of coral diversity with 150 recorded in Tethys and 51 in Panthalassa.
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22
Q

Triassic Period

A
  • One supercontinent, Pangea, and one enormous sea, the Panthalassa, nearly twice as wide as the current equatorial pacific.
  • Global geography from then until now is based on the breakup of Pangea and the formation of three great ocean basins
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23
Q

Mass extinction

A

Cambrian era first mass extinction

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24
Q

Pangea

A

supercontinent

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25
Q

Panthalassa

A

the sea around Pangea

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26
Q

Tethys Sea

A

At beginning, not many genera, middle reef development proliferated in present-day Europe and Mediterranean, but late Jurassic probably maximum of coral diversity with 150 recorded in Tethys and 51 in Panthalassa.

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27
Q

Greatest proliferation of corals

A

In the Cretaceous destined for the extinction

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28
Q

Circus-global circulation

A

Currents moved them around the world

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29
Q

Glacio-eustatic

A

Worldwide changes in sea level – primarily due to the withdrawal and release of water by the growth and decay of polar ice caps and tectonic movements

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30
Q

Biogenic reef

A

Reef that is created by living organisms

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31
Q

Binders

A

things that actually settle on sediment and bind it - algae and bacteria

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32
Q

Coral reef

A

limestone structure caused by calcium carbonate deposition of scleractinian corals

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33
Q

Bafflers

A

things that create an area of slower moving water so sediments settle out (eel grass; coral reefs)

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34
Q

Bioherm

A

limestone buildup caused by biological activity

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35
Q

Foramol

A

made up of forminiferans and mollusks; also coralline red algae, sea urchin spine, bryozoans

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36
Q

Chloroalgal

A

remains of the calcareous green algae Halimeda

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37
Q

Chlorozoans

A

coral remains and calcareous algae

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38
Q

Bioeroders

A

contribute to rubble: bacteria, fungi, sponges, worms, clams, urchins, some fish

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39
Q

Reef formation

A
  • Series of constructive and destructive stages; destructive events can occur before death of a living colony
  • Surface is attacked by boring sponges and bivalves
  • Living coral can be attacked from below
  • Places abandoned by borers can be colonized by bryozoans and encrusting algae
40
Q

Reef growth

A

Rates of growth for reef-producing organisms far exceed the rate of growth of the reef itself, very slow

41
Q

Bioerosion

A

Bioerosion by a group of animals can range from 20 kg/year for urchins to 1000 kg/year for parrotfish.

42
Q

Fringing reef

A

surrounds islands and borders continents

43
Q

Barrier reef

A

separated from land by a lagoon

44
Q

Lagoon

A

a body of water separated from larger bodies of water by a natural barrier.

45
Q

Table reef

A

small open ocean reef with no central island or lagoon

46
Q

Cnidaria

A

phylum, class anthozoa

47
Q

Coelenterata

A

is now known as cnidarians

48
Q

Gastrovascular cavity

A

they have one body cavity with a single opening, hydra

49
Q

Planula

A

free swimming larvae

50
Q

Coelenteron

A

central body cavity

51
Q

Sensory and nerve cells

A

oriented at a right angle to epidermal surface, base of each cell gives rise to neuron process and distal end terminates in a sphere or sensory bulb – these are particularly abundant on tentacles

52
Q

Excretion by diffusion

A

At the cellular level by
diffusion

53
Q

Extracellular digestion/phagocytosis

A

Extracellulary by the
release of proteolytic
enzymes and then
intercellularly by
phagocytosis and
vacuoles

54
Q

Patch reef

A

irregular reefs that arise from lagoons behind barrier reefs or within atolls

55
Q

Fore reef

A

the outside part of a reef seaward of the reef crest (or reef edge) facing open sea.

56
Q

Back reef

A

the shallow lagoon between the shore and coral reef

57
Q

Reef flat

A

Shallow, between shore and reef crest, can have harsher conditions

58
Q

Reef crest

A

more active reef growth, high energy species

59
Q

Reef front

A

found at the furthest distance from shore

60
Q

Zooxanthellae

A

Corals are limited to the photic zone due to photosynthetic zooxanthellae

61
Q

Linnaeus

A

But scientific taxonomy and binomial nomenclature began with a Swedish botanist by the name of Linnaeus.

62
Q

Scala Natureae

A

first scale/form of taxonomy

63
Q

Stromatolites

A

The first reefs 3.5 billion years ago. They are widely distributed sedimentary structures consisting of laminated carbonate or silicate rocks, produced over geologic time by the trapping, binding, or precipitating of sediment by groups of microorganisms, primarily cyanobacteria.

64
Q

Low turbidity

A

Since they depend on light, corals are also limited to water with low turbidity and low productivity. eastern slopes and shallow waters.

65
Q

Photic zone

A

area that receives sunlight

66
Q

Hermatypic

A

reef-building corals

67
Q

Marine desert

A

The waters are oxygen-rich but oligotrophic (devoid of nutrients)

68
Q

Oligotrophic

A

devoid of nutrients

69
Q

30N and 30S

A

Areas of year-round sunlight

70
Q

Tentacles

A

obtain nutrients and food

71
Q

Oral

A

mouth

72
Q

Levels of Classification

A
  • Domain
  • Kingdom
  • Phylum
  • Class
  • Order
  • Family
  • Genus
  • Species
73
Q

Phylogenetic tree

A

Over time this came to include phylogenetic trees which shows relationships over evolutionary time

74
Q

Cladistics and cladograms

A

show last common ancestor

75
Q

Longitudinal differences

A
  • In equatorial regions, sunlight is more direct, water is warmer, and daylight is distributed more evenly throughout seasons.
  • Coriolis effect – as warmed air rises, it is replaced by cooler air from the north and south. Since the world spins east to west, the replacement air (or trade winds) moves westwardly. As the trades hit the continents, the spin-off northerly in the northern hemisphere and southernly in the southern hemisphere.
76
Q

Immense diversity

A

Coral reefs have immense diversity,
- Uncountable but estimates put between 1 and over 3 million species
- Only 10% described
- Home to 1 out of every four marine species

77
Q

Origin of zonation

A

size of the granules,
- Different coral species require different size substrate
- Algae may colonize a particular granule size and becoming a grazing area for herbivores
- Holothurians and echinoids may filter different areas

78
Q

Nematocysts

A

cnidocytes – interspersed in epidermis, unique and characteristic to cnidarians, contain everting organelles called cnidae which include the nematocysts or stinging structures

79
Q

Colonial

A

class

80
Q

Coriolis Effect

A

as warmed air rises, it is replaced by cooler air from the north and south. Since the world spins east to west, the replacement air (or trade winds) moves westwardly. As the trades hit the continents, the spin-off northerly in the northern hemisphere and southernly in the southern hemisphere.

81
Q

Atolls

A

rests on summits of submerged volcanoes

82
Q

Spur and groove

A

fingerlike projections of the reef pointed toward the surge to channel energy in a non-destructive way

83
Q

Reef slope

A

high energy, decreasing light, high competition, greatest diversity in intermediate depth

84
Q

Epidermis/endodermis

A

outer layer

85
Q

Gastrodermis/endodermis

A

lining of the gastrovascular cavity

86
Q

Mesoglea

A

could be connective tissue-like

87
Q

Cnidocytes

A

stinging cells

88
Q

Oral and aboral

A

mouth and anus

89
Q

Polyp

A

o typically a tube or cylinder with oral end directed upward
 tentacles
 aboral surface
 oral structure

90
Q

Medusa

A

o free swimming medusa usually a bell or umbrella shape with convex side up and concave side down with tentacles hanging down

91
Q

Epitheliomuscular cells

A

columnar in shape with base resting on mesoglea – contains a contractile fiber

92
Q

Interstitial cells

A

beneath the epidermal surface and wedged in between epitheliomuscular cells – act as germinal cells and give rise to sperm and eggs as well as any other type of cell

93
Q

Mucus-secreting cells

A

found in epidermis and also contain contractile extensions like epitheliomuscular cells

94
Q

Enzymatic cells

A

gland cells – often flagellated

95
Q

Nerve net

A

diffuse mesh of nerve cells that take part in simple reflex pathways, nerve cells interact with sensory and contractile cells

96
Q

Hydrostatic skeleton

A

corals have

Coral Biology (3 decks)

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