AQUATIC ECOSYSTEM

An aquatic system is an ecosystem in a body of water.

Communities of organisms that are dependent on each other and on
their environment live in aquatic system.
The two main types of aquatic systems are marine
ecosystems and fresh water ecosystem. The marine ecosystem is the
largest water ecosystem which covers 70% of the earth’s surface while
the fresh water ecosystem covers less than 1%.
The biotic components in an aquatic ecosystem interact with
the physical and chemical factors for their survival.
Learning Objectives
After the completion of the lesson on Aquatic Ecosystem, the students
will be able to
1. Describe an aquatic system
2. give the two types of aquatic ecosystem and describe them based on
the following
a. structure
b. components
3. appreciate the importance of aquatic system to
a. human
b. ecosystem
Course Materials
Aquatic Ecosystem:
 refer to any water based environment in which plants and
animals interact with the chemical and physical features of the
aquatic environment of the earth/
The Fresh Water ecosystem

 Freshwater ecosystem covers less than 1 percent of the Earth’s

surface and contain 0.009% of its total water
 Freshwater has very low salt content
 Freshwater contain 41% of the world’s known fish species
 Freshwater ecosystem has two fundamental types
1. Lentic ecosystems contain water that is not flowing or slow
moving water like lakes, ponds and the like
2. Lotic ecosystems are flowing streams , rivers and springs
LENTIC ECOSYSTEM
 Include all standing water habitats such as lakes, pond, bog,
swamp, marsh


ZONE OF LENTIC ZONES

 LITTORAL ZONE
It the zone adjoins the shore ( is the home of rooted plants)
>> the shallow zone near the shore . The water near the shore I
is usually muddy or turbid.
>> this topmost and warmest zone at the edge of water body is
home of snails, clams and insects , several crustaceans fishes
Amphibians , eggs and larvae of dragonflies.
 Limnetic zone
>> the open water zone at the top of the water body and
receives a good deal of light
>> This zone thrives the fishes which swim freely, with some
plants floating in water, algae and fungi
  PROFUNDAL ZONE
>> the bottom and deep water area of a lake which is beyond
the depth of effective light penetration

 Biotic components
- Algae, rooted and floating leaved plants
- Invertebrates like crabs and swims
- Amphibians such as frogs and salamanders
- Reptiles like alligators, water snakes
Lakes the Lentic Ecosystem
 Inland lakes cover approximately 2.25 million square kilometers
around the world.
 Lakes are formed by a number of processes
 Glacial activity
Gravity is the cause of glacier motion, the ice slowly flows and
deforms (changes) in response to gravity , when the glaciers
melted the water drained into these basins and became lakes.
  Geological activity
Associated with major movements in the earth’s crust.
Earthquakes occurring along or near fault lines can cause
significant amounts of land to drop to lower levels. Tectonic
activity has formed some of the deepest lakes on the planet,
the Rift Valley of East Africa.
- Change of the course of the moving water
Floods may shift the current into new channels leaving lakes in
the old river basin.
Philippine lakes have been formed by volcanic and tectonic
processing or a combination of both.
Like Laguna de Bay formed by tectonic processes in which faulting
and slight lifting of areas immediately to the north of the lake
isolated it from Manila Bay.
Lake Lanao an example of lava -damned lake where water piled
up in the north of a lava flow
Taal lake was formed by volcano by the large volcano and can be
termed as caldera lake

STRUCTURE OF THE LAKE

1. Trophogenic zone – is the upper layer
It has enough sunlight for photosynthesis
2. Tropholytic zone – below the trophogenic
3. Compensation point, dept where the rate of
photosynthesis by plants exactly balances respiration when
the absorption of sunlight has reduced the light available to
approximately one percent of the sunlight reaching the
surface of the lake.
The exact of the depth of the compensation light vary in the
following:
Amount of incident sunlight, turbidity of water, rate of
respiration
 4. Littoral zone – near the shore
Light can penetrate to the bottom and rooted plants survive.
5. Limnetic zone – located beneath the littoral zone and above
the compensation point.
6. Profundal zone – found below the compensation level
Photosynthesis is greatly diminished
Organisms that live here are microorganisms that depend
primarily upon the ran of organic matter from above as
energy sources
7. Benthic zone - the bottom layer

LAKE SYSTEMS COULD BE CLASSIFIED INTO

1. 1. EUTROPHIC LAKES 2. OLIGOTROPHIC LAKES

 EUTROPHIC LAKES
 Older, warmer, shallow waters that are high IN life and highly
productive ( high PP)
 Characterized by highly levels of nutrients and high rates of
photosynthesis , large populations of algae develop and provide a
steady supply of organic material for decomposing in the
profundal zone.
The hypolimnion maybe depleted by oxygen may the caused of
death of bottom dwelling fish
 OLIGOTROPHIC LAKES
 Newer, colder , deeper waters that are low in life and relatively un
Characterized by low nutrient content, especially phosphorous
Have small populations of algae and hence low photosynthesis
Low densities of algae result in less material for decomposition in
the hyperlimnion, hence higher concentration of oxygen,
LOTIC ECOSYSTEM
 ECOLOGY OF FLOWING WATER

Physical factors play a crucial law in lotic ecosystem

 The volume of water in the stream and the nature of the
resistance downstream control the rate of
of the lotic
 Shallow rivers and streams having stratified temperature
The amount of shading along the stream side vegetation affects
water temperature
 Greater content of oxygen than lentic
- The nature of lotic energy source is from outside sources
(allochthonous sources)

- Examples the Bugang River and Cagayan River

Bugang River is in Pandan Antique awarded as the cleanest river
in 2003

Activity 1 Fresh Water Ecosystem (Select three)

 1. How would you describe the biotic components in a Fresh
Water Ecosystem?
2. Compare the lentic ecosystem from lotic ecosystem of fresh
water ecosystem.
3. What is provided in each zone of the structure of the lake?
Explain your answer
4. Which types of lakes system do you preferred? Why?
5. What are the physical factors that affects the survival of the
lotic system of the freshwater? Why?
REFERENCES
ECOLOGY AND EARTH SCIENCE BOOKS
 Marine regions cover about three-fourths of the earth’s surface
include
Ocean, coral reefs, intertidal zones, salt, marsh, mudflats, and
mangroves
OCEANS
 Large bodies of water that dominate the earth’s surface.
 Biotic Components
Marine animals are divided into three groups
1. Zooplankton
- Drifting animals and are usually small like protozoans, some
grow in fairly large size such as jellyfish
2. Nekton
 - Free swimmers the dolphin, the whale which are classified as
sea mammals, the codfish and trout the true fishes
3. Benthos
Sea animal that spends its entire life on or in the ocean bottom.
It includes lobsters, starfish, oysters, various worms and the
like
 Structure
The ocean regions are separated into zones
1. Intertidal zone –
where the ocean meets the land, sometimes it is submerged
and at other times exposed as waves and tides comes in and
out.
2. Pelagic zone
Include those water farther from the land, basically the open
sea.
It is generally cold, the flora includes the surface seaweeds ,
the fauna include many species of fishes, mammals like whales,
and dolphins
3. Benthic zone –
Situated below the pelagic zone, The bottom of the zone
consists of sand, silt, and or dead organisms
Flora are primarily the red algae, fauna the bacteria, fungi,
sponges, sea anemones, worms , sea stars and fishes
4. Abyssal zone
The deep ocean, the water is very cold around 30C, highly
pressured, high in oxygen content, but low in nutritional
content. This region supports many species of invertebrates
and fishes, chemosynthetic bacteria live in the ocean floor due
to large amount of hydrogen sulfide and other mineral
 CORAL REEFS
 Formed by calcium carbonate produced by tiny coral polyps

 Three kinds of coral reefs

1. Fringing reef
Is formed where coral polyps settle and grow close to the shore
2. Barrier reef
Parallel shore lines along continents. If the land sinks or the
sea rises , the polyps build upwards , barrier reef is formed.
3. Atolls
Known as island of dead corals, form in a barrier reef
surrounding a sinking island
 IMPORTANCE OF CORAL REEFS
 Builders in tropical areas, forming islands and alternating
continental shorelines
Intertidal Zones
 Rocky, sandy or muddy shores
Protected by incoming swells . they are alternately exposed and
submerged by the tides.
 Life on the rocky shore is both autotrophic and heterotrophic,
many organisms such as barnacles depend on tides to bring them
food, such as periwinkles , graze on algal growth on the rocks
 Life on sandy and muddy beaches consists of epifauna and
infauna
Mangrove Swamps
 Replacing salt marshes on tidal flats in tropical regions
  They develop in coastal areas where wave action is absent,
sediments accumulate
 Mangrove forest are the habitat of numerous species of clams,
snails, oysters, crabs, prawns and fish
Coastal fisheries depend on mangrove swamps , provides man
with timber for firewood and charcoal and poles for pilling and
scaffolding

BENEFITS OF MARINE ECOSYSTEM

 CONTRIBUTE TO BEACH AND SHORELINE STABILITY

 ASSIMILATE AND PROCESS WASTES
 CONTRIBUTE TO QUALITY OF LIFE OF COASTAL PEOPLE
Activity 2 : Marine Ecosystem(Select two)
1. Describe the largest body of water in a marine ecosystem
2. In the marine life, which of the zone in the ocean regions do you
think the diversified fauna and flora found? Why?
3. What is to be done in the coral reefs to quantified its existence in
the marine ecosystem?
What made the coral reefs beneficial?
4. How knowledgeable you are about the mangrove swamps? Did
you have chance to see mangrove swamps?
Does it make a difference if there is a mangrove swamps along the
marine ecosystem? Why?

Activity 3 Aquatic Ecosystem

What made the aquatic ecosystem appreciated on the following:
a. Human
b. Industry
c. Environment

References:
Ecology books
Google about aquatic ecosystem