Marine organisms Flashcards
Learn some of the main groups of plankton, nekton, and benthos
What is the general name for those organisms that live free in the water but can’t successfully swim against the ocean currents (are ultimately at their mercy)?
Plankton
The drifters
- In terms of large scale movement, just go with the flow
- The key is their ability to move relative to the currents: it’s not that they can’t swim at all (although indeed many can’t), but rather that what swimming they can achieve isn’t enough to overcome an overall drifting with the currents
- Even those that can swim quite well for their size simply can’t cover the distance necessary to escape the currents
What is the general name for the photosynthetic plankton?
Phytoplankton
- Comprised of cyanobacteria (a type of photosynthetic bacteria) and various protists
What is the general name for the nonphotosynthetic (heterotrophic) eukaryotic plankton?
Zooplankton
- Comprised of various animals and protists
What is the general name for the prokaryotic plankton?
Bacterioplankton
- As a practical matter, this is typically meant to refer just to the nonphotosynthetic prokaryotic plankton (since the photosynthetic ones are functionally phytoplankton)
What is the general name for the viral (as in literally viruses) plankton?
Virioplankton
What is the general name for organisms that spend every stage of their life (their entire life cycle) as plankton?
Holopolankton
What is the general name for those organisms that only live a portion of their life (certain stages of their life cycle) as plankton?
Meroplankton
What is the general name for organisms that live free in the water and can successfully swim against the ocean currents (are not simply at their mercy–can go against the flow)?
Nekton
The swimmers
- Can cover enough distance to escape the currents and achieve movement independent of the water motion
What is the general name for those organisms that live in or on the seafloor?
Benthos
The bottom dwellers
What is the name for those organisms that swim independently of the currents, but are also strongly associated with the sea floor?
Demersal organisms
Nektonic, but also benthic
Generally speaking, what are plankton?
Drifters: organisms that live free in the water but can’t successfully swim against the ocean currents (are ultimately at their mercy)
- In terms of large scale movement, just go with the flow
- The key is their ability to move relative to the currents: it’s not that they can’t swim at all (although indeed many can’t), but rather that what swimming they can achieve isn’t enough to overcome an overall drifting with the currents
- Even those that can swim quite well for their size simply can’t cover the distance necessary to escape the currents
Generally speaking, what are phytoplankton?
Photosynthetic plankton
Generally speaking, what are zooplankton?
Nonphotosynthetic eukaryotic plankton
Generally speaking, what are bacterioplankton?
Prokaryotic plankton,
especially the nonphotosynthetic ones
Generally speaking, what are virioplankton?
Viral (as in literally viruses) plankton
Generally speaking, what are holoplankton?
Those organisms that spend every stage of their life (their entire life cycle) as plankton
Generally speaking, what are meroplankton?
Those organisms that spend only a part of their life as plankton
Generally speaking, what are nekton?
Swimmers: organisms that live free in the water and can swim against the ocean currents (are not ultimately at their mercy)
- Can cover enough distance to escape and achieve movement independent of the water motion
Generally speaking, what are benthos?
Bottom dwellers: organisms that live in or on the seafloor
Generally speaking, what are demersal organisms?
Organisms that swim like nekton, but are also strongly associated with the sea floor like benthos
What is the term for the main (most common) photosynthetic bacteria?
Cyanobacteria
- Mainly planktonic (= phytoplankton)
- Technically bacterioplankton as well, but nobody thinks of them that way (their importance is as contributors to photosynthesis)
What are the large unicellular photosynthetic eukaryotes with cell walls of silica (glass) called?
Diatoms
- Mainly planktonic (= phytoplankton), but some benthic
What is the name for the large phytoplankton that have two flagella in grooves, one longitudinal (down the length) and one transverse (encircling the waist)?
- This causes them to spin while swimming
Dinoflagellates
- Mainly planktonic and photosynthetic (= phytoplankton), but some are heterotrophic and/or endosymbiotic
- Their main, important role as a group is photosynthesis
- dino = “whirling” in this case
What is the name for the medium sized phytoplankton that are armored in a coating of overlapping calcium carbonate plates?
Coccolithophores
Which group are the single-celled nonphotosynthetic eukaryotes that extend threadlike pseudopodia through pores in their shell made of calcium carbonate or, less commonly, scavenged mineral particles?
Foraminiferans
- Mainly benthic, but some planktonic
(foraminifera, forams)
What is the name of the single-celled zooplankton that have skeletons of silica (glass) and pseudopodia that radiate out from their central mass?
Radiolarians
(radiolaria)
Which zooplankton are single-celled, ciliated, and shaped like a vase?
Tintinnids
What is the name for the group of large carnivorous zooplankton that are ovoid, globular, and transparent, usually with two sticky contractile tentacles and eight comb bands formed of fused cilia running down their bodies?
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Ctenophora
Ctenophores
(comb jellies)
What is the name for the group of etremely large, carnivorous zooplankton characterized by a “medusa” stage consisting of a bell or umbrella morphology with trailing tentacles full of stinging cells?
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Cnidaria
Jellies
- Also have a polyp stage that is frequently benthic
(jellyfish)
What is the name for the group of teardrop- or torpedo-shaped herbivorous zooplankton that are typically about 1-2mm long with two pronounced antennae?
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Crustacea
Copepods
- There are also some benthic and parasitic species
What is the name for the large (> 1 cm) zooplankton that look like glassy anorexic shrimp?
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Crustacea
Euphausiids
- Typically herbivorous
(krill)
What are the names for the large zooplankton with stalked eyes and sometimes a calcareous shell, with a flattened foot that acts as a fin for swimming?
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Gastropoda
with shell: Pteropods (sea butterflies)
and
without shell: Heteropods (sea elephants)
What is the name for the long, arrow-shaped carnivorous zooplankton with a head, trunk, and tail, often with one or two pairs of lateral fins?
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chaetognatha
Chaetognaths
(arrow worms)
What is the name for the very large barrel-shaped transparent zooplankton that propel themselves forward by squirting water out of their bodies?
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Salps
- Sometimes divide asexually via budding to form long chains (colonies)
What is the name for the group of multicellular algae that are typically yellowish-brownish to greenish in color, and includes the giant kelps?
Kingdom: Chromista
Division (Phylum): Ochrophyta
Class: Phaeophyceae
Brown algae
(phaeophytes)
What is the name for the group of multicellular algae that are typically reddish in color?
Kingdom: Archaeplastida (Plantae)
Division (Phylum): Rhodophyta
Red algae
(rhodophytes)
What is the name for the group of multicellular algae that are typically bright green in color?
Kingdom: Archaeplastida (Plantae)
Division (Phylum): Chlorophyta
Green algae
(chlorophytes)