Lecture 3 -- Oceans Flashcards
- Why do marine organisms tend to have proportionally less bone than terrestrial organisms?
because of the salty water. the water is denser so they don’t have as much “gravity” which allows for lighter bone structures
- Compare/contrast in at least 5 ways, the biophysical characteristics of a pacific northwest forest ecosystem with the marine ecosystem off the coast of Washington. Which system has larger producers, larger herbivores, larger carnivores? Which has greater net primary productivity per square meter per year (think back to lecture on food webs)?
Largest Producer - Land
Largest Herbivore - Land (herbivores in the ocean are microscopic.
Largest carnivore - Ocean (Killer Whales)
NPP Per Sq Meter - Land
Ocean has very low NPP per meter, but overall it is the largest by far because of the sheer size
- What is the fastest growing macroscopic organism on the planet?
Bull Kelp, Giant Kelp
- Which is saltier, the pelagic zone of the open ocean or the pelagic zone of Puget Sound?
Open ocean
- Which light wavelengths penetrate deeper in the water, reds or blues?
Blues penetrate the furthest, especially in deep ocean.
- What are two ways in which oxygen is incorporated into ocean water?
Mixing with the atmosphere and photosynthesis
- Why do you think muddy bottoms would support more infaunal organisms than sandy bottoms?
Muddy sediments to support more infaunal organisms.
Mud attracts deposit feeders, sand attracts filter feeders
- What do diatoms build their shell walls from? (T/F Diatoms build CaCO3 shells)
False- Diatoms build there shells with Silica!
- Whats the difference between benthic and pelagic?
Benthic - Bottom of the ocean
Pelagic - In the water column of the ocean
- What is the littoral benthic zone?
The intertidal (between the tides) zone of the bottom of the ocean. It is the sandy beach when the tide is out…
- Explain why a clam is both benthic and planktonic.
Clams float around when they are young (planktonic) when the reach the right age/stage they settle into the ocean floor (benthic)
- What is the difference between plankton and nekton?
Plankton – float PASSIVELY, can swim a little but not against currents
Nekton – active swimmers (fish, reptiles, mammals)
- T/F: The following are benthic: rockfish, lobster, herring, starfish, whale, clam, flounder
Benthic (living in bottom) : Rockfish, Lobster, Starfish, Clam, Flounder
Nekton: Herring, Whale
T/F: The following are nekton: shark, crab, sea slug, cormorants (diving bird), diatom, dolphin, jellyfish
Nekton (swimmers) : Shark, cormorants, dolphin,
Planktonic: Sea Slug, Diatom, Jellyfish, crab
- T/F: Oceans don’t have bacteria or fungi.
False
