Oceans - Intertidal Ecosystem: Plum Island Sand Saltmarsh, US CS Flashcards
What is a saltmarsh?
Vegetated areas of deposited silt and clays
What is a salt marsh an example of?
Low energy coastal environment, subject to tidal inundation and exposure twice daily
What are the 5 sections of a salt marsh?
- Mud flat
- Lower marsh
- Upper marsh
- Creek
- Shrubland
What is a mudflat?
Low lying areas of the shore composed of silt and clay that are submerged at high tide
Features of a mudflat?
- Minimum veg coverage
- Shallow elevation
- No decomposition
- Mineral - fluvial resources
Features of a lower marsh?
- Pioneer species - halosere
- High salinity
- Inundated by high tide twice a day
- Mud flat
Features of an upper marsh?
- More veg
- More elevated land
- High biodiversity
- Covered at high tide
Features of a creek?
- Channel starts from the sea inland
- Changes with the tide
Features of a shrubland?
- Increased biodiversity
- Increase in veg
- High tides do not reach it
- Trees
What are the two environments in a salt marsh?
- Pelagic
- Benthic
What are examples of producers in this ecosystem?
- Salt meadow cord grass
- Green algae
- Phytoplankton
Example of primary consumers?
- Grass shrimp
- Mussles
- Marsh snails
Examples of secondary consumers?
- Eel
- Atlantic killi fish
- Atlantic silver side
Example of Apex predators?
- Striped bass
- Great blue heron
- Spider
Food chain for Pelagic environment?
Boat shaped diatom -> eel worm -> algae -> dagger blade cord grass shrimp -> grey plover
Food chain for Benthic environment
Salt meadow cord grass -> detritus -> earth worm -> shrimp -> Atlantic killi fish -> heron
Is this ecosystem dominated by short or long food chains?
Long
Does it have a large amount of habitats?
Yes
What is the biodiversity compared with the Southern ocean?
Higher
What’s exposed during high water spring tide?
Upper border / shrubs
What submerged during low water spring tide?
Subtidal zone
Name the tides in order of high water height levels? Least -most
- Low water ST
- Low water NT
- High water NT
- High water ST
What is the nutrient supply in the upper border?
Decomposed organic matter
Where does subtidal get get its nutrient supply from?
Dissolved and solid nutrient transported fluvial + regular tide
What resides in the upper border?
- Leaf Hopper
- Foxes
- Deer
- Hawk
What resides in the upper marsh?
- Great blue heron
- Grey plover
- Spider
What resides in the tidal mudflat?
- Cope pod
- Eel worm
- Mussle
- Grey plover
What effects the ecosystem?
- Variations in light
- Variations in temperature
- Variations in nutrient supply
