marine bio final

• 1. Continental shelf

  • Gentle slope: edge of continent currently underwater due to sea level
  • Depth 0m - 200m max (ranges per area)
  • “Coastal waters”: shallow parts of ocean above continental shelves
  • most productive/biologically rich (move nutrients, upwelling, sunlight, etc)
• 1. Continental Slope

  • Steep “hillside” edge
• An abyssal plain is an underwater plain on the deep ocean floor, usually found at depths between 3,000 and 6,000 metres. Lying generally between the foot of a continental rise and a mid-ocean ridge
• Mid-ocean Ridges: Continuous chains of underwater mountains (created by volcanoes) along tectonic plate boundaries where 2 tectonic plates separate

  Usually where you find hydrothermal vents mineral rich water some species are dependent on chemosynthetic productivity
• Seamounts: Isolated underwater volcanoes
• Unlike deep-sea trenches, which are found in areas where one tectonic plate slides beneath another, undersea canyons are found along the slopes of most continental margins
• Tectonic plates separate, hot magma rises to the crust's surface, cracks develop in the ocean floor, and the magma pushes up and out to form mid-ocean ridges.
• Secondary consumer

  • Predators that feed on primary consumers, such as small fish /carnivorous zooplankton
• Primary production

  The synthesis of organic compounds from atmospheric /aqueous carbon dioxide, primarily through photosynthesis /chemosynthesis
• Primary producer

  • Photosynthetic organisms like phytoplankton, seaweeds, & seagrasses
• Photosynthesis

  The process by which green plants & some other organisms use sunlight to synthesize foods with the help of chlorophyll, basic equation: CO2 + H2O -> O2 + C6H12O6
• Heterotroph


  Organisms that obtain energy by consuming organic substances produced by other organisms, cannot produce their own food
• Chlorophyll

  A green pigment found in the chloroplasts of plants, algae, & some bacteria, crucial in photosynthesis by capturing light energy & converting it into chemical energy
• Kingdom Protista

  A kingdom of eukaryotic organisms that are not plants, animals, /fungi, includes diverse organisms such as protozoans, algae, & slime molds
• Zooplankton

  • Planktonic animals that feed on phytoplankton /other zooplankton, ranging from tiny crustaceans like copepods to larger organisms like jellyfish
• Primary consumer

  • Organisms that consume primary producers directly, such as herbivorous zooplankton /grazing fish
• Chemosynthesis

  A process where certain organisms, particularly bacteria, use chemical energy to produce carbohydrates, can occur in the absence of light, utilizing chemicals such as hydrogen sulfide (H2S), methane, /ammonia as energy sources
• Decomposer

  Organisms, typically bacteria & fungi, that break down dead organic matter into simpler substances, releasing nutrients back into the ecosystem for reuse by other organisms
• Top predator

  • Predators at the highest level in the food web with no natural enemies, examples include large fish like sharks /marine mammals like orcas
• Productivity

  The rate at which primary production occurs over a given period of time, often measured as the amount of organic matter produced per unit area per unit time
• Phytoplankton

  • Microscopic, single-celled primary producers that drift with currents & perform photosynthesis, examples include diatoms, dinoflagellates, & cyanobacteria
• Domain Eukarya

  One of the three domains of life, consisting of organisms with eukaryotic cells, including plants, animals, fungi, & protists
• Autotroph

  Organisms that can produce their own food using energy from sunlight (photosynthesis) /inorganic compounds (chemosynthesis)
• Diatom

  Single-celled, photosynthetic protists with a silica cell wall
• Eukaryotic cells

  Their cells have a nucleus enclosed within membranes
• Kingdom Protista

  A kingdom of eukaryotic organisms that are not plants, animals, or fungi
• Meroplankton

  Organisms that spend only part of their life cycle as plankton, typically during their larval stage. Examples include the larvae of many marine invertebrates & fish
• Krill

  Small crustaceans that form an essential part of the marine food web, serving as a primary food source for many larger animals, including whales, seals, & fish
• Harmful Algal Bloom (HAB)

  A rapid increase in the population of algae, typically phytoplankton, which can lead to negative impacts on marine ecosystems, including the production of toxins that harm other organisms, oxygen depletion, & habitat destruction
• Foraminiferan


  Single-celled protists with a calcium carbonate shell, commonly found in marine environments
• Kingdom Protista

  • Protozoans
  • Algae
  • Slime molds
• Domain including plants, animals, fungi, & protists

  • Kingdom Protista
• Copepod

  Tiny crustaceans that are an important component of zooplankton, often serving as a food source for many marine organisms
• Holoplankton


  Organisms that spend their entire life cycle as plankton, such as copepods & many types of phytoplankton
• Biomagnification

  The process by which the concentration of a substance increases at higher trophic levels in a food chain
• Dinoflagellate


  Single-celled, photosynthetic protist, characterized by two flagella & a cellulose cell wall. Some species are bioluminescent