unit 8 PT

Question 1

_____ are the most common type of coral.

Answer 1

fringing

Question 2

One of the aspects of an ecosystem is water column, what is this criterion based on?

Answer 2

where the ecosystem is found in the water column, whether by the shore or at a specific depth in the open ocean noting the layer, temperature, and salinity of the water in which the ecosystem is found

Question 3

The most productive part of the photic zone is the ____ meters of the water column.

Answer 3

first 80 meters

Question 4

In Hawaii mangroves are considered a(n) ___________ species.

Answer 4

invasive

Question 5

What is a salt-wedge estuary?

Answer 5

It has a distinct layer of freshwater above a wedge-shaped layer of saltwater. This is because saltwater is denser than freshwater and sinks to the bottom of the estuary. It contains a river that flows into the ocean at a high speed, causing the ocean to experience weak currents.

Question 6

What is dredging?

Answer 6

is a process that involves the digging up and removal of bottom sediments from an environment

Question 7

What is most important to the existence of mangrove trees? Why?

Answer 7

water temperature, they can be found in areas where water is warm enough even if it is a temperate region

Question 8

The splash zone is ____.

Answer 8

the area of the shore above the high tide level, which is wetted only by spray from the crashing waves

Question 9

The Great Barrier Reef is located in the ____.

Answer 9

Coral Sea

Question 10

The Antarctic also contains _____ % of the world’s ice and ____ % of the world’s freshwater.

Answer 10

90; 70

Question 11

Why does dredging impact the health of coastal wetlands ecosystems?

Answer 11

It can kill organisms or make them vulnerable to predators. ; It can release trapped toxins in the sediment harming both water and organisms. ; It is a process that involves the digging up and removal of bottom sediments from an environment.

Question 12

What is a fjord?

Answer 12

It is a long, narrow inlet surrounded by cliffs. A type of estuary that has restricted flow due to channels carved by glaciers; freshwater and saltwater only mix in one direction.

Question 13

How much of the U.S. population lives within a 100-mile radius of the coast?

Answer 13

more than half

Question 14

What are tidal pools?

Answer 14

coastal ecosystems that are characterized by pools of water that form in rocky areas along the coastline

Question 15

What is an estuary?

Answer 15

where rivers meet the oceans

where freshwater mixes with saltwater

Question 16

Almost ____ % of commercially harvested fish come from estuaries and coastal wetlands.

Answer 16

50

Question 17

Corals that sit on top of volcanoes that are submerged underwater are ____.

Answer 17

atolls

Question 18

Which is NOT true about mud flats?

Answer 18

they give access to low-lying land

Question 19

In the 48 states of the continental United States, about ____ % of all wetlands are coastal wetlands.

Answer 19

40

Question 20

What is chemosynthesis?

Answer 20

the process of converting chemicals into an energy form usable by organisms

Question 21

The ____ receives enough light but not enough nutrients to be a productive ecosystem.

Answer 21

photic zone

Question 22

What are mud flats?

Answer 22

coastal ecosystems that are found in the tide zone that are full of sediments and clay from rivers

Question 23

What is a vertically mixed estuary?

Answer 23

Estuaries have an equal mixing of saltwater and freshwater at all depths of the water column. Estuaries are formed when the river flow is weak and the tidal currents are relatively strong.

Question 24

Which of the following statements is false?

Answer 24

Shingle shores contain more life the sandy beaches.

Question 25

The tidal zone is ____.

Answer 25

the area of the shore that experiences daily high and low tides, and therefore periods of both submersion and exposure

Question 26

How do scientists use hydric soils?

Answer 26

Scientists use them for wetland classification.

Question 27

Why are coral reefs called the rainforests of the ocean?

Answer 27

because so many species live in the cracks of the skeletons making them one of the most diverse ecosystems on earth

Question 28

How is sand’s color determined?

Answer 28

The color of the sand is dependent upon the type and color of the rocks and corals near the shore.

Question 29

Mangroves are called __________, which are salt-loving plants.

Answer 29

halophytes

Question 30

How are rocky shores ecosystems?

Answer 30

productive ecosystems, consist of rocky ledges, cliffs, boulders, pools of saltwater within the rocks, and pebbles that experience the pounding of the waves as they crash on the shore

Question 31

What are sand dunes?

Answer 31

Sand dunes are cliffs of sand created by wind.

Question 32

What type of relationship does the algae zooxanthellae have with coral?

Answer 32

symbiotic

Question 33

What is anaerobic?

Answer 33

able to live or survive in an environment with little or no oxygen

Question 34

What is productivity?

Answer 34

the rate at which new biomass is produced

Question 35

Cockles, spire shells and lugworms can be found in _____.

Answer 35

mud flats

Question 36

What is a slightly stratified estuary?

Answer 36

Estuaries circulate the freshwater and saltwater at all depths of the water column. However, due to the density of saltwater, the water in the bottom layers of the estuary tends to have a higher salinity than the layers at the top.

Question 37

Why are the aerial roots of mangroves important?

Answer 37

Aerial roots allow plants to avoid the toxic salt levels of the water and mud in the swamps.

Question 38

What is coral bleaching?

Answer 38

is the result of zooxanthellae becoming damaged or dying, leaving the white skeletons of the corals exposed ; is caused by disease, too much shade, and therefore not enough light to carry out adequate photosynthesis, changes in temperature, changes in salinity, and sedimentation

Question 39

Sandy beaches make up ____ % of the world’s coastlines.

Answer 39

75

Question 40

The ___________ is one of the largest ecosystems in the world.

Answer 40

Arctic

Question 41

Why do wetlands have extremely low oxygen levels?

Answer 41

because they have no currents, tides or rapids to oxygenate the water

Question 42

What is a coastal wetland?

Answer 42

a place where open water transitions into vegetated land

Question 43

What is a substrate?

Answer 43

a surface in which an organism lives or grows on

Question 44

What are estuarine systems?

Answer 44

those that exist where freshwater meets saltwater and are one of the most productive ecosystems on earth

Question 45

One of the aspects of an ecosystem is biogeographic, what is this criterion based on?

Answer 45

refers to the distribution of organisms in their physical setting, describes where an ecosystem is on the earth, what type of climate it has, the amount and types of precipitation it has, and its overall geology

Question 46

How is the shape and texture of the sand directly related to the slope of the beach?

Answer 46

the flatter the beach, the finer the sand ; the steeper the beach, the coarser, or more grating, the sand

Question 47

What factors are required for an ecosystem to have high productivity?

Answer 47

nutrients ; sunlight

Question 48

What are salt marshes?

Answer 48

coastal ecosystems that are characterized by vegetation that is flooded by tidal seawater

Question 49

One of the aspects of an ecosystem is geomorphology, what is this criterion based on?

Answer 49

looks at the characteristics of the sea floor or the coastal area in order to better define the ecosystem,whether the sea floor is sandy, muddy, or rocky