Ocean Life
Major Ocean Life Zones:
Intertidal, pelagic, abyssal, and benthic. All four zones have a great diversity of species.
INTERTIDAL - lies between low- and high-tide lines
NERITIC - extends from low-tide line to end of continental shelf
BATHYAL - begins at continental slope down about 2000 meters
ABYSSAL - covers the large, flat abyssal plains of the ocean
INTERTIDAL - lies between low- and high-tide lines
NERITIC - extends from low-tide line to end of continental shelf
BATHYAL - begins at continental slope down about 2000 meters
ABYSSAL - covers the large, flat abyssal plains of the ocean
Layers, Layers, Layers, and More Layers
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The oceans are divided into two broad realms; the pelagic and the benthic. Pelagic refers to the open water in which swimming and floating organisms live. Organisms living there are called the pelagos. From the shallowest to the deepest, biologists divide the pelagic into the epipelagic the mesopelagic the bathypelagic the abyssopelagic and the deepest, the hadopelagic. The last three zones have no sunlight at all.
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The physical characteristics that deep sea life must contend with to survive are:
- Abiotic (non-living) ones, namely light (or lack thereof), pressure, currents, temperature, oxygen, nutrients and other chemicals; and
- Biotic ones, that is, other organisms that may be potential predators, food, mates, competitors or symbionts.
Why Are Plankton Important?
Plankton are an important source of food for larger animals. Phytoplankton are the first link in the food chain. They are known as primary producers because they produce the first forms of food. Zooplankton and other small animals that graze on the phytoplankton are known as primary consumers.
Phytoplankton are the foundation of the aquatic food web, the primary producers, feeding everything from microscopic, animal-like zooplankton to multi-ton whales. Small fish and invertebrates also graze on the plant-like organisms, and then those smaller animals are eaten by bigger ones
Phytoplankton are the foundation of the aquatic food web, the primary producers, feeding everything from microscopic, animal-like zooplankton to multi-ton whales. Small fish and invertebrates also graze on the plant-like organisms, and then those smaller animals are eaten by bigger ones