The Marine Aquatic Biome

WHAT IS THE MARINE AQUATIC BIOME?

• The word marine means "of our pertaining to the sea"
• The word aquatic means "living or growing in water"
• The word biome means "an ecosystem that has many species and similar characteristics"
• Therefore, a marine aquatic biome is an ecosystem that involves species in the water!

BIOTIC AND ABIOTIC FACTORS

• Biotic factors include plants, fish, and mammals
• Abiotic factors include depth, light, current, and temperature

CLIMATE

• Temperature and climate vary
• Since oceans and seas are vast, it all depends on region
• Example: Pacific Ocean
• -Although it borders the frigid temperatures of South Alaska, it also borders tropical Hawaii

PLANT AND ANIMAL LIFE

• Marine Aquatic has 4 zones
• (intertidal, pelagic, abyssal, and benthic)

INTERTIDAL ZONE

• Where the ocean meets the land
• Sometime's submerged and others exposed
• At the top: algae and mollusks
• In the middle: snails, crabs, sea stars, and small fish
• At the bottom: invertebrates, fishes, and seeweed

PELAGIC ZONE

• Water that is further from the land
• Has many species of fish and mammals (whales and dolphins)
• Generally cold
• Has thermal stratification
• (Constant mixture of cold and warm ocean currents)

BENTHIC ZONE

• Area below the pelagic zone
• Not the deepest part of the ocean
• Consists of sand, slit, and/or dead organisms
• Flora: seeweed
• Fauna: bacteria, fungi, sponges, sea anemones, worms, sea stars, and fish

ABYSSAL ZONE

• Very cold, highly pressured
• High in oxygen, low in nutrients
• Support many species of invertebrates and fishes
• Bacteria thrive because of large amounts of hydrogen sulfide

LOCATION

• Includes coral reefs, estuaries, and oceans
• Covers three quarters of the Earth's surface

!FUN FACTS!

• If all the ice glaciers melted, the sea level would rise 80 m (262 ft.)
• 90% of icebergs are underwater
• If the sea level would rise 3 m (10 ft.), many coastal cities would be underwater
• Although tap water freezes at 0 degrees Celsius, seawater freezes at -2 degrees Celcius