marine life

Question 1

Three basic types:

Answer 1

floating, swimming, & bottom-dwelling.

Question 2

PLANKTON

Answer 2

-Floaters or weak swimmers. -Carried by currents.
-Include bacteria, gelatinous plankton, phytoplankton, &
zooplankton.
-Level at which they float is important & may be
controlled by organism using air or fatty tissue.

Question 3

PHYTOPLANKTON

Answer 3

-Single-celled plants.
-Most important autotrophs.

Question 4

Size 3 main divisions of Phytoplankton

Answer 4

Ultraplankton, Nannoplankton, & Microplankton

Question 5

Ultraplankton

Answer 5

<0.005 mm. So tiny

Question 6

Nannoplankton

Answer 6

~0.05 mm.
-Very common.
-Medium size.
-May be up to 80% of biomass in some areas.

Question 7

Microplankton

Answer 7

0.7-1.0 mm.

Question 8

Common Types og phytoplankton:

Answer 8

Diatoms “Net” plankton, Coccolithophores, Silicoflagellates, & Dinoflagellates

Question 9

Diatoms “Net” plankton

Answer 9

-most often caught in sampling nets used by biologists.
- Siliceous (SiO2) shells which contribute significantly
to ocean sediments.
- Often linked in chains.
- Reproduce very rapidly; some in less than a day.
- Form RESTING SPORES in unfavorable conditions. These may remain viable for years until conditions improve.

Question 10

Coccolithophores

Answer 10

Algae with shells made of calcareous
(CaCO3) rings or disks (coccoliths). Swim using
flagellae.

Question 11

Silicoflagellates

Answer 11

Flagellates w/ siliceous shells.

Question 12

Dinoflagellates

Answer 12

Heterotrophic/autotrophic combinations.
-Produce food by photosynthesis AND consume other organisms.

Question 13

ZOOPLANKTON

Answer 13

Tiny animals. Make up lower trophic levels of food web. Feed on other small plankton.
- Limited by: - supply of appropriately-sized food
- water temperature - Most capture whatever
floats by using protruding cilia, but some can propel
themselves in limited manner to pursue food.

Question 14

Holoplankton

Answer 14

Spend entire life cycle as floating plankton.

Question 15

Protozoans Single-celled holoplankton.

Answer 15

• Foraminifera Present everywhere (all depths). CaCO3 shells.
• Radiolaria Live mostly below 200 m. Mostly SiO2
  shells.

Question 16

Crustacea Multi-celled.

Answer 16

Most common type- ~70% of all zooplankton. Segmented bodies w/ chitinous (cellulose- like carbohydrate w/ Ni in structure) exoskeletons.
- Copepods Shrimplike crustaceans <10 mm. long. May be most common herbivore on Earth.
- Euphasids Larger shrimp-like crustacea. Includes KRILL
which is staple food for several types of whales.

Question 17

Pteropoda

Answer 17

Floating/swimming snails.

Question 18

Meroplankton

Answer 18

Pass through planktonic stage during life cycle. Includes many worms & fish.

Question 19

GELATINOUS PLANKTON

Answer 19

Medusae & Jellyfish, Siphonophores, & Ctenophores

Question 20

Medusae & Jellyfish

Answer 20

Basically a digestive cavity w/ mouth surrounded by stinging tentacles

Question 21

Siphonophores

Answer 21

Colonies of individual polyps, each of which has a specialized function w/in the colony: food capture, digestion, floatation, reproduction, etc.
Portugese Man-of War.

Question 22

Ctenophores

Answer 22

Gelatinous organisms w/ tentacles. Feed on crustacea & fish. Jellyfish-like. Adhesive tentacles. Male and female

Question 23

FEEDING

Answer 23

Most plankton are suspension feeders, removing food particles from surrounding water by straining it w/ sticky fibers or cilia. Many appear to be able to sense appropriate food nearby.

Question 24

the two types of REPRODUCTIVE STRATEGIES

Answer 24

Opportunistic/saturation and Slow-growing/Nurturing

Question 25

Opportunistic/saturation

Answer 25

In areas of abundant resources. Produce large number of small offspring. Easy prey- many die, but some survive.

Question 26

Slow-growing/Nurturing

Answer 26

In areas of limited resources, produce few large offspring w/ fewer potential predators & better able to defend themselves. May also be defended by adults.

Question 27

PLANKTON DISTRIBUTION Patchy distribution due to limiting factors:

Answer 27

1) REPRODUCTION Large groups exist, at least temporarily, where reproduction occurs (where eggs hatch). 2) CURRENTS Since plankton at mercy of currents, may be concentrated or disbursed by this mechanism. 3) NUTRIENTS Must be sufficient to support. 4) TEMPERATURE Range for each group.

Question 28

BIOLOGICAL PROVINCES

Answer 28

-Oceans divided into areas of characteristic ranges of these limiting factors. -Controlled largely by surface currents/gyres. -Phytoplankton are generally more adaptable & can exist almost anywhere, but zooplankton is more environmentally sensitive.

Question 29

NEKTON

Answer 29

Larger animals which swim well enough to control their location independently of currents.

Question 30

nekton characteristic SWIMMING

Answer 30

1) Must be efficient enough to overcome currents. Best adapted are streamlined to reduce drag w/ water & have efficient propulsion system (fins, water jets, etc.).

Question 31

nekton characteristic BOUYANCY

Answer 31

2) Living matter -usually has a density of 1.02-1.06g/cm3. Avg. seawater has density ~1.03 g/cm3. Most animals denser than sea water & would sink if they couldn't propel themselves. -Some have SWIM BLADDERS filled w/ gas to help.

Question 32

nekton characteristic VISION

Answer 32

3) Many nekton have large eyes to gather lots of light in relatively dark deeper water. Deep-water animals may have only vestigial eyes (don't need to "see"). May have other adaptations to help them find food/escape predation.

Question 33

FISHES

Answer 33

- Usually streamlined swimmers. Fast to avoid predators & catch food. - Others are camouflaged & sit on bottom waiting for unsuspecting dinner. - Some important commercially to humans as food source (Mackerel, Herring, Tuna, Cod)

Question 34

Antarctic Fish

Answer 34

Specially adapted to survival under extreme conditions: --High blood salinity & other body fluids may act as antifreeze (TF~-2°C) --Able to store fatty oils for consumption in winter when food is especially scarce. --Light-weight cartilaginous bones to conserve energy.

Question 35

Migration fish types and how

Answer 35

anadromous and catadromous. -Use sun, currents, magnetic field for navigation.

Question 36

anadromous

Answer 36

Spawn in fresh water & spend adult life in salt water- Salmon

Question 37

Catadromous

Answer 37

Spawn in sea & migrate to spend life in fresh water- N. Atlantic Eels

Question 38

Fisheries

Answer 38

Fish provide AVERAGE ~3% of total human dietary protein & ~10% of animal protein. More in some culture (~80% in Bangladesh).

Question 39

SHARKS

Answer 39

Many are large, swift predators, but some feed mostly on plankton. Very primitive cartilage rather than bones. No true scales, but denticles (small plates imbedded in skin). Hatch young internally. Human food source. Bad rap over past few years & overfished, putting some into endangered position.

Question 40

SQUID

Answer 40

Common in ocean mid-depths. Hard to capture, so relatively poorly known. Effective predators which can grow to 50 ft. in length. Propelled by water jets. Migrate vertically in water on diurnal schedule- near surface to hunt at night.

Question 41

MAMMALS

Answer 41

Warm-blooded & among largest animals on Earth. Born live & nursed by mothers.

Question 42

types of mammals

Answer 42

Sireneans, Pinnipeds, & Cetaceans

Question 43

Sireneans

Answer 43

Sea cows. Herbivores.

Question 45

Pinnipeds

Answer 45

("feather foot") Divide time between water & shore. Seals, walruses, sea lions.

Question 46

Cetaceans

Answer 46

Completely aquatic. Whales, dolphins, & porpoises. Seasonal migration to reproduce. Many hunted to near extinction. - Smaller cetaceans often feed by direct ingestion of fish, squid, etc (porpoises, dolphins, small whales). - Larger members stain mud & water using baleen to remove plankton (krill & other crustaceans in particular).

Question 47

REPTILES

Answer 47

Turtles, sea snakes, & a few lizards. Most are herbivores. Many hunted to near extinction or have had habitat & breeding grounds destroyed.

Question 48

SEA BIRDS

Answer 48

Live on or near ocean. Feed on/in ocean, but go ashore to breed.

Question 49

types of sea birds

Answer 49

Wading Birds, Oceanic birds, & Penguins

Question 50

Wading Birds

Answer 50

Long legs & bills. Feed in shallow water (Herons).

Question 51

Oceanic birds

Answer 51

Spend most of life on water. Breed on shore (Terns).