24.10.15 Aquatic biomes

Recall terrestrial biomes are defined by temperature and precipitation (rain)

Aquatic biomes are by definition underwater, so they are defined by

Depth: how deep is the deepest part, how much photosynthesis is possible
Distance from shore: shallow water has more life, more things to attach to, more biodiversity

We separate aquatic biomes into freshwater (lakes, rivers, streams) and saltwater (oceans, estuaries)
Freshwater biomes:

Riparian=river

Limnotic=lakes

Lakes:

Shallow shore area=littoral (means shallow), see the "littoral Navy", photosynthesis here (shallow, light shines through)
Open water area=limnetic zone, no rooted plants (too deep), phytoplankton here, only as deep as sunlight can penetrate
Deep water=profundal ("profound") or deep zone: no light penetrates, bacterial decomposition.
Bottom=benthic zone: mud, dark, cloudy

Ponds are much smaller, and may freeze in the winter, so their dynamics are different

Productivity: see also NPP (net primary productivity)

n.b. usually related to photosynthesis (plants)
Oligo (few) trophic=low productivity
Meso (middle) trophic=medium
Eutrophic (eu=good trephien=food)=lots of productivity (sometimes too much, like in "Poisoned Waters")
Freshwater wetlands-submerged most of the time (swamps, marshes, bogs) this is the history of all coal and oil we now use

Wetlands:

Freshwater wetlands-submerged most of the time (swamps, marshes, bogs) this is the history of all coal and oil we now use
Salt marsh: usually connected to the sea, act as a coastal buffer for Hurricanes, very productive, many nutrients, lots of organic material
Mangrove swamp: special adapted version of this in Tropical areas (e.g. Florida)
Intertidal zone: area between high and low tide or seasonal variations

Ocean zones:

Coral reefs-see coral bleaching, pH, temperature and salinity sensitive (see Hamakua coast vs. Puako)
Intertidal zone: between high and low tide
Photic (light) zone-shallow, photosynthesis, kelp, others
Aphotic (dark) zone-too dark for photosynthesis
Chemosythesis/thermosynthesis: deepwater steam vents, based on Sulfur instead of Oxygen, bacteria generate energy with methane (CH4) and H2S (instead of H20)
Benthic=deep ocean
Pelagic=open ocean (think of big sailing ships, whales, stuff like that)
Hadal zones: like Hades: deepest, darkest zones. Weird fish, no light...

Summary: (note open ocean is called Pelagic, and deep ocean zones are called Hadal)

Salt stuff:

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Terms to know: Review

Zones:
photic zone=light
aphotic=no light
benthic=really no light, never, ever ever. don’t even think about it.

Hadal=too dark to imagine, named after Hades (hell)

Marine animals:

aquatic mammals must surface for air
fishies don’t-they have gills
DO dissolved oxygen (very important) depends on plants (so depth) and temp (cooler water can hold more O2)
warm water has low O2 generally.
best place to fish: cool water after a waterfall (why?)

Rivers, ponds and lakes, oh my...

flowing water: rivers
standing water: ponds
lakes can become inland seas (drought lowers level, unable to drain, forms a lake)
littoral=shore, limentic=away from shore benthic=botttom

Wetlands:

terms: marshes, swamps, bogs and fens
marshes marshes marshes!-tall grasses
swamps-some trees
bogs-acidic, poor decomposition, floating stuff, decay slowly-ancient cheese story, peat moss
fens-freshwater spring underneath, less acidic, better nutrients

River stuff:

Oceans——

200 ft. of salt if all oceans evaporated
oceans were red (iron) then ppt out (iron range in WI, MI) (see PBS Nova episode)
salinity, wind and temperature determine flow
upwelling (recall Peruvian fisherpersons)
also downwelling

Photic (light) zones-again

intertidal zone-makes sense, between tides
neritic zone-close to shore, less than 200 ft. deep (not in Hawaii, we have no continental shelf-boo hoo)
open ocean (pelagic) zone
kelp forests-e.g. california coast
coral reefs-away from fresh water, coastal, photic
open ocean-scary stuff

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