Aquatic BiomesAquatic Biomes

• FreshwaterFreshwater–Ponds & LakesPonds & Lakes–Streams & Streams &

RiversRivers–WetlandsWetlands

MarineMarineOceansOceansCoral ReefsCoral ReefsEstuariesEstuaries

Freshwater

Ponds & LakesStreams & RiversWetlands

Freshwater

• Freshwater is defined as having a low salt concentration—usually less than 1%

• Plants and animals in freshwater regions are adjusted to the low salt content and would not be able to survive in areas of high salt concentration (i.e, ocean)

Ponds and Lakes

range in size from just a few square meters to thousands of square kilometersponds may be seasonal, lasting just a couple of months (such as sessile pools)lakes may exist for hundreds of years or more may have limited species diversity since they are often isolated from one another and from other water sources like rivers and oceans

Lakes and Ponds are divided into three different “zones” determined by depth and distance from the shoreline

littoral zonelimnetic zoneprofundal zone

Ponds and Lakes

Streams & Rivers• bodies of flowing water moving in one direction• found everywhere—they get their start at

headwaters, which may be springs, snowmelt or even lakes

• travel all the way to their mouths, usually another water channel or the ocean

Streams & Rivers

WetlandsWetlands are areas of standing water that support aquatic plants.

Marshes, swamps, and bogs are all considered wetlands

Freshwater Wetlands

• highest species diversity of all fresh water ecosystems.

• many species of amphibians, reptiles, birds (such as ducks and waders), and furbearers can be found in the wetlands

• There are also salt water wetlands and marshes.

Wetlands

Aquatic EcosystemsAquatic Ecosystems

MarineMarineOceansOceansCoral ReefsCoral ReefsEstuariesEstuaries

Marine Biomes

• cover about three-fourths (72%) of the Earth’s surface and include oceans, coral reefs, and estuaries

• algae supply much of the world’s oxygen supply and take in a huge amount of atmospheric carbon dioxide

• evaporation of the seawater provides rainwater for the land

Estuaries

• enclosed body of water formed where freshwater from rivers and streams flows into the ocean, mixing with the salty sea water

• estuaries and the lands surrounding them are places of transition from land to sea, and from fresh to salt water

• although influenced by the tides, estuaries are protected from the full force of ocean waves, winds, and storms

Estuaries• Estuaries are almost as abundant in life as tropical

rainforests.• Estuaries are sometimes called “marine nurseries”

– habitats for many juvenile organisms, especially for fishes

Oceans• largest of all the ecosystems• dominate the Earth’s surface• great diversity of species

Ocean Zones

• separate zones– Intertidal– Pelagic– Abyssal– Benthic

Intertidal Zonewhere the ocean meets the land

sometimes submerged and at other times exposed

Pelagic – Open OceanWaters deeper than intertidal leading all the way to open ocean.

Closer to shore is called the Neritic Zone.

Benthic Zone

• The Benthic Zone is just a deep layer of the Palagic Zone.

• The Benthic Zone holds deep water sea creatures.

Narcomedusa

Vampire Squid

Snake Dragon

Angler Fish

Amphi - crustacean

Ctenophore – voracious predator

Deepstaria very slow swimmers, no tentacles, close flexible bells (up to a meter across) around their prey

Big Red grows to over a meter across

Abyssal Zone

• Abyssal Zone is the deepest of the deep. Many creatures are not able to live in these conditions. Life is not abundant.

• It is the absolutely lowest section of the pelagic zone.

Deep Water Squid

Basketstar

Sea Pig Sea Spider

Shrimp

Winged Sea Cucumber Medussa

Deep Sea Smoker - 648°F648°F

Deep-sea Anemone Hydrothermal Vent

Oceanic Zones

• The Ocean does not receive light all the way to the bottom.

• The upper layer of the ocean that receives light is called the photic zone.

• The lower area that does not receive light is called the aphotic zone.

Bibliography

1. http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/glossary/gloss5/biome/index.html2. http://www.enchantedlearning.com/biomes/marsh/freshwater.shtml 3. http://mbgnet.mobot.org/ 4. http://www.runet.edu/~swoodwar/CLASSES/GEOG235/biomes/

intro.html5. http://archive.globe.gov/sda-bin/wt/ghp/tg+L(en)+P(seasons/

Miniinvestigation)6. http://www.panda.org/about_wwf/where_we_work/ecoregions/

global200/pages/home.htm7. “Coral Reefs.” World Book. Chicago: World Book, 1998. Vol. 4, p. 257. 8. “Coral Reefs.”

http://kidscience.about.com/kids/kidscience/cs/coralreefs/