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Marine Biology > Week 13 > Flashcards

Week 13 Flashcards

1
Q

What are two main sources of marine pollution?

A

Direct dumping and indirect pollution via land and air.

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2
Q

How can pollution impact marine life?

A

It can cause injury or death, interfere with reproduction and productivity, and trigger toxic algal blooms.

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3
Q

What percentage of marine debris from coastal cleanups is plastic?

A

Over 60%.

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4
Q

What types of harm can marine animals experience due to pollution?

A

Mutilation, suffocation, drowning, starvation, and pain.

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5
Q

How much plastic enters the oceans annually?

A

Approximately 10 billion kilograms.

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6
Q

How long can a plastic six-pack ring last in the ocean?

A

Up to 450 years.

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7
Q

What marine pollution item is most commonly discarded globally?

A

Cigarette butts — 4.5 trillion are discarded annually.

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8
Q

How many elephants’ worth of plastic enter the ocean each year?

A

Equivalent to about 2 million elephants.

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9
Q

What is the Great Pacific Garbage Patch?

A

A gyre of marine debris in the North Pacific, mainly plastic particulates suspended in the water column.

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10
Q

What are POPs?

A

Persistent Organic Pollutants such as DDT and PCBs that persist in the environment.

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11
Q

How do toxins like mercury and POPs move up the food chain?

A

Through biomagnification.

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12
Q

What is biomagnification?

A

The accumulation of toxins at higher concentrations as they move up the food chain.

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13
Q

What level of PCBs is considered toxic waste in Canada?

A

Levels above 50 ppm.

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14
Q

How can toxins affect photosynthetic marine organisms?

A

They can inhibit photosynthesis, growth, and cell division.

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15
Q

What issue does DDT cause in seabirds?

A

Thin-shelled eggs that break during incubation.

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16
Q

What is nutrient pollution?

A

Pollution from fertilizers or sewage that increases dissolved nutrients in water.

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17
Q

What process does nutrient pollution often cause?

A

Eutrophication.

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18
Q

What are consequences of eutrophication?

A

Algal blooms, hypoxia (low oxygen), and fish death.

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19
Q

Name three pollutants often found in sewage.

A

Hormones, coliform bacteria, and pharmaceuticals.

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20
Q

What makes petroleum pollution especially harmful?

A

It contains many toxic compounds and is hard for microbes to degrade.

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21
Q

What are two major oil spills mentioned in the slides?

A

The Exxon Valdez (1989) and Deepwater Horizon (2010) oil spills.

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22
Q

How many barrels of oil were released during the Exxon Valdez spill?

A

About 240,000 barrels.

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23
Q

How many barrels were spilled during the Deepwater Horizon disaster?

A

Approximately 4.9 million barrels.

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24
Q

Why is crude oil harmful to marine organisms?

A

It’s persistent, toxic, and difficult for microbes to break down.

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25
How does oil affect seabirds?
It can impair swimming and flying and lead to hypothermia due to loss of insulation.
26
How does oil affect marine mammals?
It clogs ears and nostrils, irritates eyes, and can cause death through hypothermia or ingestion.
27
How does oil pollution impact invertebrates and algae?
It has toxic effects and can smother them.
28
What are the community-level impacts of oil spills?
Decreased species diversity, simplified food webs, and increases in oil-resistant species.
29
Name three methods used in oil spill cleanup.
Oil booms and skimmers, straw to soak and burn oil, and oil-digesting bacteria.
30
What innovative method is being tested for oil degradation?
Genetically engineered bacteria to degrade crude oil.
31
How does global warming affect ocean temperature?
It causes sea temperatures to rise, especially at higher latitudes.
32
How does warming impact marine species’ spawning?
It changes the timing of spawning events.
33
What effect does warmer water have on oxygen levels?
Warmer water holds less dissolved oxygen.
34
How does rising temperature affect larval survival and metabolism?
It can decrease larval survival and alter metabolic rates.
35
What is one major distributional shift in marine species caused by warming?
Many species shift their ranges toward the poles.
36
How does climate change increase competition among species?
Species migrate into new habitats and compete with native organisms.
37
What happens to disease prevalence with ocean warming?
Warmer conditions promote the spread of marine diseases.
38
What is coral bleaching?
Loss of symbiotic algae due to heat stress, which turns coral white and weakens it.
39
What causes sea level rise?
Melting glaciers and polar ice sheets.
40
How does climate change affect rainfall and wind patterns?
It causes more El Niño-like conditions, alters rainfall, and increases coastal flooding.
41
What does increased freshwater runoff lead to?
Local eutrophication and hypoxia in coastal areas.
42
How does climate change affect ocean currents?
It can disrupt larval and plankton transport, altering food webs.
43
What percentage of atmospheric CO₂ ends up in the ocean?
About 25%.
44
What chemical forms when CO₂ dissolves in seawater?
Carbonic acid (H₂CO₃).
45
What does carbonic acid do to ocean pH?
It lowers pH, making the ocean more acidic.
46
What is ocean acidification?
The process of oceans becoming more acidic due to CO₂ absorption.
47
How does acidification affect organisms like corals and mollusks?
It impairs their ability to build calcium carbonate shells and skeletons.
48
Name two groups of organisms vulnerable to acidification.
Coccolithophores and foraminifera.
49
What is the equation for ocean acidification?
H₂O + CO₂ → H₂CO₃ (carbonic acid).
50
Why is acidification a threat to marine biodiversity?
It weakens calcifying organisms, disrupting entire ecosystems.
51
What are nonnative species also called?
Alien, exotic, or introduced species.
52
What is a major concern with nonnative species in marine environments?
They can become invasive and disrupt native ecosystems.
53
Name one major method by which nonnative species are introduced to marine systems.
Ballast water discharge from ships.
54
What is another human-related source of nonnative species?
Aquaculture and accidental releases (e.g., broken aquariums).
55
Which invasive fish species was introduced to the Atlantic from a broken aquarium?
The lionfish.
56
Why are lionfish a problem in the Atlantic Ocean?
They have no natural predators and outcompete native fish.
57
How do nonnative species alter marine communities?
They change ecosystem structure and function.
58
What is one of the largest threats to global biodiversity?
The spread of nonnative species.
59
What can the introduction of nonnative species lead to in native populations?
Population decline or extinction.
60
What is a common outcome when invasive species dominate an ecosystem?
Reduced biodiversity and altered food webs.
61
Why are wetlands important to marine ecosystems?
They provide nutrients, shelter, and spawning grounds for marine organisms.
62
What human activities are destroying wetlands?
Draining, filling, and dredging for industry, ports, and real estate.
63
What impact does coastal development have on beaches?
It disturbs nesting sites of birds, sea turtles, and horseshoe crabs.
64
What are longshore currents?
Currents generated by waves that move parallel to the shore.
65
How do longshore currents affect sediment?
They transport sediment along the coast in a process called longshore transport.
66
What can interfere with natural sediment flow along coasts?
Structures like jetties and breakwaters.
67
What happens to southern beaches when sediment is blocked by coastal structures?
They lose sand and shrink due to erosion.
68
What often forms on the north side of a jetty?
Sediment builds up due to disrupted current flow.
69
Why is beach erosion a problem?
It leads to habitat loss and reduces storm protection for inland areas.
70
What is one solution to mitigate coastal erosion impacts in BC?
Programs like Green Shores that promote sustainable shoreline development.
71
What percentage of global fish stocks have collapsed?
Around 30%.
72
By what year could global fish stocks collapse if trends continue?
By 2050.
73
Why has fish/shellfish catch increased dramatically over the past 50 years?
Due to rising demand from a growing human population.
74
What does a recent decline in catch per unit effort indicate?
That fish stocks are declining and fishing is less efficient.
75
What is by-catch?
Non-target species caught unintentionally during fishing.
76
Why is by-catch a problem?
It wastes marine life and can damage ecosystems.
77
Which fishing method destroys benthic habitats and causes high by-catch?
Bottom trawling.
78
What is 'ghost fishing'?
When lost drift nets continue to catch marine life.
79
How does overfishing affect genetic diversity?
It removes large or mature individuals, reducing variability.
80
What is genetic drift in marine populations?
The loss of genetic diversity due to a small surviving population.
81
Give an example of a species impacted by loss of genetic diversity due to hunting.
The Northern Elephant Seal.
82
What happens when extirpated species (locally extinct) are lost from an ecosystem?
Their ecological role is lost, disrupting the ecosystem.
83
What is one wasteful fishing practice involving only partial use of the catch?
Shark finning.
84
How does feeding livestock with fish products reduce efficiency?
It adds unnecessary trophic levels, wasting energy.
85
What is the 10% rule in ecology?
Only about 10% of energy is transferred between trophic levels.
86
What is an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ)?
A 200-mile marine zone where coastal nations control fishing.
87
What ecological problem does the concept of EEZs help prevent?
The Tragedy of the Commons.
88
What is the 'Tragedy of the Commons'?
Overuse of shared resources because individuals act in self-interest.
89
What are some examples of new fisheries created due to traditional stock collapse?
Alaskan pollock (surimi) and Antarctic krill.
90
Why must we be cautious with new fisheries?
Newly targeted species may also become overfished.
91
What is aquaculture?
The farming of aquatic organisms such as fish, crustaceans, mollusks, and aquatic plants.
92
What coastal ecosystem is often destroyed for shrimp farms?
Mangrove forests.
93
Why is over-exploitation of feed fish a problem in aquaculture?
It depletes wild populations that are important for the marine food web.
94
What types of pollution are associated with aquaculture?
Antibiotics, pesticides, and excess nutrients.
95
How does aquaculture contribute to disease spread?
Diseases and parasites from farms can infect wild fish populations.
96
What genetic issue arises from hatchery-raised salmon?
Decreased genetic diversity compared to wild populations.
97
What’s a potential ecological consequence of escaped farmed fish?
They may compete with or breed with wild populations, weakening gene pools.
98
Why are shrimp and salmon aquaculture especially controversial?
Due to their high environmental and ecological costs.
99
What is one way aquaculture could be improved?
Use of sustainable practices and closed containment systems.
100
What does aquaculture reveal about the balance between food production and conservation?
That intensive production must be balanced with ecosystem health.

Marine Biology (6 decks)

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