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Marine biology > Test 1 > Flashcards

Test 1 Flashcards

1
Q

Why study marine biology?

A

It is the study of plants, animals, and other organisms that live in the ocean. Marine life represents an enormous source of human wealth such as food, medicine, raw materials (algae) and recreation.

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2
Q

How can marine organisms create problems for humans?

A

Shellfish poisoning; ciguatera poisoning; shark attacks; erosion of structures we build (piers, sea walls), fouling of ship bottoms

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3
Q

Fundamentals of Marine Bio

A

Marine life helps determine the very nature of our planet
Marine organisms produce much of the oxygen we breathe (helps the earth’s climate)
Shorelines are shaped and protected by marine life
- Calcium carbonate sand deposition
- kelp beds

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4
Q

How long ago did life appear in the ocean?

A

3.8 billion years ago

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5
Q

Animal and plant life?

A

Extant today, had ancestors that evolved 500 million yrs ago

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6
Q

How old is earth?

A

4.7 billion years old

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7
Q

Continental Drift

A

Supercontinent = Pangea: suggests that all the continents had once been joined

  • Glomar Challenger 1960’s
  • sediment cores (more sediment further away from ridges)
  • magnetic signature of crust
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8
Q

Plate Tectonics
Sea floor spreading?
Deep sea vents

A

Earth’s crust divided into a number of irregular plates;
2-16 cm/yr
Thermophilic and chemotrophic bacteria

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9
Q

Currents

A

The major wind fields of the atmosphere push the sea surface creating currents

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10
Q

The marine environment is divided into zones according to (3 things)

A

distance from land; water depth; and whether the organisms are benthic or pelagic

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11
Q

Neritic

A

pelagic environment that lies over the shelf (also called the coastal zone)

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12
Q

Oceanic zone

A

Pelagic waters beyond (seaward) the shelf break

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13
Q

Epipelagic

A

shallowest zone, plenty of light for PS

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14
Q

Mesopelagic

A

not enough light for PS

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15
Q

Bathypelagic

A

no light

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16
Q

abyssopelagic;

hadopelagic

A

flat abyssal plain; trenches

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17
Q

Benthic

A 
live on (epifauna) or buried in (infauna) the bottom
some are sessile (attached) some move around (mobile)
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18
Q

Pelagic

A

up in the water column

away from the bottom

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19
Q

Plankton move at the _

A

mercy of the currents

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20
Q

Phytoplankton

A

planktonic plants and other autotrophs are carried from place to place

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21
Q

zooplankton

A

animal plankton

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22
Q

Nekton

A

animals that can swim out of currents such as fish, marine mammals, squids, and large jellyfish

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23
Q

Water accounts for _% of the volume of most marine organisms;
Water provides _ and _ _ for

A

80-90;

buoyancy and body support for swimming and floating; reduced need for heavy skeletal structures

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24
Q

Properties of seawater

A

Water is a universal solvent
High heat capacity (slow change in temp)
Density temperature relationships (>4oC density increases with decreasing temperature)
<4oC density temperature pattern reverses
Increased viscosity (affects sinking)

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25
Q

Properties of seawater part 2

A

Heat capacity: In the sea heat is transferred from place to place by
convection (mixing)
subtle conduction (molecular exchange of heat, ie., photons impart energy to water molecules)

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26
Q

Light

A

Used by marine organisms for vision and PS (euphotic zone)

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27
Q

The _ of the _ _ is determined by how rapidly seawater _ _ and _ it to _ _.

A

depth; photic zone; absorbs light; converts; heat energy

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28
Q

Factors that diminish quantity/intensity of light available for PS activity include:

A 
suspended sediments
concentrated plankton populations
clouds, dust, fog
angle of incident light/reflection
dissolved substances
season, time of day, latitude
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29
Q

Temperature

A

High heat capacity: limits marine temperatures to a much narrower range than land temperatures.

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30
Q

Density _ as temperature _ or salinity _.

A

increases; decreases; increases

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31
Q

Why is most dense water found at the greatest depths?

A

Evaporation, cooling, freezing; dense water sinks from the surface
This sinking drives the circulation of water in the deep portions of ocean basins

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32
Q

Pressure

A

Land organisms are exposed to 1 atmosphere

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33
Q

With each 10m (33 ft) of depth _

A

1 atmosphere is added

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34
Q

The three most important gases for life in the ocean are

A

o2, co2, and N
They dissolve in seawater at the sea surface;
Gases dissolve better in cold water;
most solids dissolve better in warm water

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35
Q

Oxygen is added to near surface, seawater by

A

PS activity

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36
Q

Oxygen is consumed by

A

Respiration throughout the water column

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37
Q

_ + _ use oxygen as fast as it can be replaced in the oxygen minimum zone (200 - 1K meters)

A

animal respiration; bacterial decomposition

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38
Q

Adaptations of oxygen minimum zone

A

larger than usual gills, inactive, hemoglobin adapted to low oxygen concentration

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39
Q

Oxygen to deeper water

A

Dense water sinks
Sinking surface water carries oxygen to the deep sea bottom
Circulation caused by changes in water density (usually at poles) is called
thermohaline circulation

40
Q

Cooling, freezing, and salt concentration cause surface seawater to sink as _ increases; How?

A

density increases;

  • cooling by contact with cold air
  • formation of sea ice
  • evaporation leaves behind salts
41
Q

Ways to decrease seawater density:

A

warm it or dilute it with freshwater

42
Q

Shortages of _ and _ usually limits the overall _ of life in the sea, in fresh water and on land

A

P and N

43
Q

Phosphate ion is used to link larger molecules such as

A

nucleotides, DNA, RNA, ATP

44
Q

How is phosphorous distributed within the water column?

A

liberated from cells they smash
voiding partially digested feces
simple leakage through body surfaces
Bacterial decomposition: liberates PO4 and other nutrient atoms)
Liberation of any nutrient atom back to the water= regeneration or remineralization

45
Q

Phosphorous _ _ benefits the plants that have escaped being eaten.

A

Remineralization immediately

46
Q

When organisms _ and _: the _ they contain is _ in __

A

die and sink; phosphate; remineralized in deep water

47
Q

Nitrogen is a component of _, _, DNA, RNA, and many other biological molecules.

A

proteins, chlorophyll

48
Q

Sources of nitrogen

A

Nitrogen-fixing bacteria
Nitrate bacteria
Excretion of nitrogenous wastes (usually ammonium) in urine
Urea or uric acid

49
Q

Plants take up _, _, and _. Plant and animal _ releases _ and organic _.

A

Nitrate, nitrate, and ammonium.

decomposition; ammonium, nitrogen

50
Q

Phytoplankton characteristics (3):

A

free-floating
flagella, to swim short distances
Most are denser than water

51
Q

_ and _ availability are the major factors that determine new cell production
Population growth =

A

Light and Nutrient;

rate of new cell production - rate of cell loss

52
Q

Two ways cells are lost from populations:

A

Consumption by grazing animals

sinking (sedimentation)

53
Q

Smaller cells have a greater _

A

surface-to-volume ratio

54
Q

_ and other projections make the organism more difficult to eat.

A

Spines

55
Q

Purpose of zigzag back-and-forth

A

Keeps seawater flowing over cells surface
Renews the layer of water
Facilitates gas exchange, nutrient uptake and waste disposal

56
Q

Herbivore grazers

A

protozoa, rotifers, crustaceans, euphausiids, krill

57
Q

Near shore, benthic, suspension-feeding animals

A

barnacles and mussels

58
Q

Diatom characteristics

A

Siliceous wall called a frustule

surrounds their nonflagellated vegetative cells

59
Q

Frustule has 2 valves

A

_ is the older and usually larger valve (hypovalve; hypotheca)

60
Q

Two categories of diatoms

A

Centric and Pennate

61
Q

Blooms occur when _

A

5 million cells/liter is reached. Algae color the water

62
Q

Diatoms reproduce _ following mitosis

A

asexually

63
Q

Explain diatom reproduction. When?

A

The hypovalve of the parent becomes the epivalve of the other smaller daughter

  1. In cells that are less than half the maximum size for the species.
  2. When harsh environmental conditions predominate (light, temp., low nutrients).
64
Q

Two types of zooplankton

A

Holoplankton: spend their entire lives in plankton
Meroplankton: species that spend part of their life in the plankton;
- include large numbers of larvae of animals that live as adults on the bottom or swim as nekton

65
Q

Flotation mechanisms of zooplankton:

A

exclude heavy ions, retain NH4Cl, or actively exclude SO4 and replace with chloride ions
Gas or fluid filled floats
CO2 bubbles
Flat or spines

66
Q

Non-crustacean zooplankton

A

Transparent, planktonic larvaceans
Float inside a “house” made of mucus
Beat their tail
the larvacean pumps water in through passages in the house
food particles are caught in a complicated mucus net
that is secreted inside the house.

67
Q

Characteristics of Jellyfish and siphonophores:

A

large but weak swimmers
drift with currents
eat small fish and zooplankton
(Ctenophores (comb jellies): zooplanktivorous)

68
Q

Siphonophores: Cnidarian or coelenterate

A

A hydrozoan that forms drifting colonies.
Some polyps in a colony may be specialized as floats
(Portuguese man-of-war, Physalia physalis)

69
Q

Winds and currents are strongly influenced by the _ _.

A

Coriolis effect.

70
Q

Explain the Coriolis effect:

A

the earth is rotating from west toward east and anything moving over the surface tends to be bent toward one side rather than moving in a straight line

71
Q

The effect pulls things to the _ in the N. hemisphere and the to _ in the S. hemisphere.

A

right; left

72
Q

Wind that is generated in combination with Coriolis effect…

A 
Moves surface water away from coastline,
and deeper (<200m) water moves up to shallow water to replace surface water
73
Q

Wind-driven surface current influenced by the _ _ combine into huge gyres (e.g, _ _)

A

Coriolis effect; Pacific Ocean gyre

74
Q

What produces wind?

A

Differential heating of various regions of the earth’s atmosphere by the sun.

75
Q

Waves are _ _ _ of the sea surface. The _ and _ of waves are dependent on the wind’s _ _ _. 3 things waves are characterized by:

A

Periodic vertical disturbances; size and energy; Velocity, fetch, duration; Height, wavelength, period

76
Q

Seas

A

Wave crests w/sharp peaks with deep troughs

77
Q

Explain what happens when waves enter shallow water

A

They begin to encounter frictional resistance of the bottom
slow forward motion
wavelength decreases
increase in height and become steeper
When water depth is less than 1/2 the wavelength, the wave breaks
releasing the energy onto the shore

78
Q

Upwelling revisited

A

Equatorial upwelling
N. equatorial current (to right)
S. Equatorial current (to left)
Equatorial regions of the sea surface is being pulled apart, or diverging
Deep water moves up to fill the void
Nutrients support
phytoplankton, an array of copepods, anchovies, tunas, seabirds, other animals.

79
Q

Where is the greatest sustained Upwelling on earth?

A

The Antarctic Divergence
65 S latitude
belt of upwelling that circles the S. Hemisphere

80
Q

Tides

A

Only noticeable along ocean margins (coastlines), around islands.
Maximum elevation of the tide= high tide
Minimum elevation = low tide
Most coastlines experience two high and two low tides in a lunar day
=24 h and 50 min.
The vertical difference between consecutive high and low tides = tidal range
a few cm to 15 m in the narrow Bay of Fundy

81
Q

Define tides:

A

Periodic changes in water level which result from the gravitational attractions of the sun and moon. (solar tide about 1/2 as large as the lunar tide).

82
Q

Spring Tides:

A 
Sun, moon and earth in alignment
new and full moon
solar tide has an additive effect on lunar tide
creating extra-high tides
and lowest low tides
83
Q

Neap tides:

A

One week later
sun and moon at right angles to each other
solar tide partially cancels the lunar tide

84
Q

Tides are affected by the _ and the _ of the _ _.

A

shape; sea floor

85
Q

Tides vary from place to place depending on the (2)

A

location

the shape and depth of the basin

86
Q

Semidiurnal tides? Where?

A

2 high tides and 2 low tides a day; east coast of N.America, most of Europe and Africa

87
Q

Mixed semidiurnal tides? Where?

A

successive high tides of different height

most of the west coast of US and Canada

88
Q

Diurnal tides? Where?

A

only one high and one low tide every day

Gulf of Mexico, on the coast of Antarctica, parts of the Caribbean and Pacific

89
Q

Tide tables:

A

predicted time and height of high and low tides in a particular area

90
Q

How can weather patterns influence tides?

A

Strong winds can pile up water on shore and cause higher tides than predicted

91
Q

Three layered ocean

A

Stable water column: resists mixing
large density difference between deep and shallow water.
Thermocline: a zone of transition between warm surface water and the cold water below.
pycnocline parallels (mirror-image) thermocline

92
Q

Surface temperature varies with _
Deep-water temperatures are more _
In temperate and polar waters _ _ may develop

A

latitude; uniform; summer thermoclines

93
Q

El Nino

A

Refers to global change in atmospheric pressure that accompanies El Nino
- Normal years
High atmospheric pressure over the eastern Pacific
Low over the Indian Ocean
- El Nino years
Situation reverses
Atmospheric pressure shifts on a global scale.

94
Q

ENSO

A

Pacific trade winds weaken/stops/ & may weakly reverse direction
S. Equatorial current slows/stops/reverses
Cold water along the S. American/N. American coasts allowed to warm up.
Warm equatorial water from the mid-Pacific backs up against the American coasts
spreads N & S
Warm water now affects upwelling
cold nutrient-rich water is abruptly replaced by warm nutrient-poor surface water.

95
Q

La Nina

A

Unusually cold ocean temperatures in the Equatorial Pacific.
In the US, winter temperatures are warmer then normal in the Southeast,
and cooler than normal in the Northwest.

Marine biology (5 decks)

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