Marine Ecosystem

• Marine ecosystems are located mainly in coastal areas and in

the open ocean.
• Organisms that live in coastal areas adapt to changes in water
level and salinity.
• Organisms that live in the open ocean adapt to changes in
temperature and the amount of sunlight and nutrients available.
• There are different types of marine Ecosystems.
Let´s see some of them
 Coastal Wetlands
• Coastal land areas that are covered by salt water for all or part of the time are known as coastal wetlands.
• Coastal wetlands provide habitat and nesting areas for many fish and wildlife.
• They also absorb excess rain, which protects them from flooding, they filter out pollutants and sediments,
and they provide recreational areas for boating, fishing, and hunting.
 Estuaries
• An estuary is an area where fresh water from rivers mixes with salt water from the ocean.
• As the two bodies meet, currents form and cause mineral rich mud with many nutrients to fall to the
bottom making in available to producers.
• Estuaries are very productive because they constantly receive nutrients from the river and ocean while the
surrounding land protects the estuaries from the harsh force of ocean waves.
 Plants and animals of Estuaries
• Estuaries support many marine organisms because they receive plenty of light for
photosynthesis and plenty of nutrients for plants and animals.
• The light and nutrients support large populations of rooted plants as well as
plankton.
• Plankton in turn provide food for fish, which can then be eaten by larger animals
such as dolphins.
• Oysters and clams live anchored to rocks and feed by filtering plankton from the
water.
• Organisms that live in estuaries are able to tolerate variations in salinity because the
salt content of the water varies as fresh water and salt water mix when tides go in and
out.
• Estuaries also provide protected harbors, access to the ocean, and connection to
rivers.
• As a result, many of the largest ports have been built on estuaries.
• Six of the ten largest urban areas, including New York have been built on estuaries.
 Salt Marshes
• Salt marshes are maritime habitats characterized by grasses,
sedges, and other plants that have adapted to continual,
periodic flooding and are found primarily throughout the
temperate and subarctic regions.
• The salt marsh supports a community of clams, fish, aquatic
birds, crabs, and shrimp.
• Salt marshes, like other wetlands, also absorb pollutants to
help protect inland areas.
 Mangrove Swamps
• Mangrove swamps are tropical or subtropical marine swamps
that are characterized by the abundance of low to tall
mangrove trees.
• The swamps help protect the coastline from erosion and
reduce the damage from storms.
• They also provide a home for about 2,000 animal species.
• Mangrove swamps have been filled with waste and destroyed
in many parts of the world.
 Rocky and Sandy shores
• Rocky shores have many more plants and animals than sandy
shores do because the rocks provide anchorage for seaweed
that animals can live on.
• Sandy shores dry out when the tide goes out, and many
organisms that live between sand grains eat the plankton left
stranded on the sand.
• A barrier island is a long ridge of sand or narrow island that
lies parallel to the shore and helps protect the mainland.
 Coral Reefs
• Coral reefs are limestone ridges found in tropical climates
and composed of coral fragments that are deposited around
organic remains.
• Thousands of species of plants and animals live in the cracks
and crevices of coral reefs, which makes coral reefs among the
most diverse ecosystems on Earth.
• Corals are predators that use stinging tentacles to capture
small animals, such as zooplankton, that float or swim close to
the reef.
• Corals live only in clear, warm salt water where there is
enough light for photosynthesis.
 Oceans
• Because water absorbs light, sunlight that is usable by plants
for photosynthesis penetrates only about 100 m into the
ocean.
• As a result, much of the ocean’s life is concentrated in the
shallow coastal waters where sunlight penetrates to the
bottom and rivers wash nutrients from the land.
• Seaweed and algae grow anchored to rocks, and
phytoplankton drift on the surface. Invertebrates and fish then
feed on these plants.
 Plants and Animals in Oceans
• In the open ocean, phytoplankton grow only in areas where there is
enough light and nutrients, resulting in one of the least productive of
all ecosystems.
• The sea’s smallest herbivores are zooplankton, including jellyfish and
tiny shrimp, which live near the surface with the phytoplankton they
eat. • Fish feed on the plankton as do marine mammals such as whales.
• The depths of the ocean are very dark, so most food at the ocean
floor consists of dead organisms that fall from the surface.
• Decomposers, filter feeders, and the organisms that eat them live in
the deep areas of the ocean.
• Overall, the types of organisms that may be found in the layers of the
ocean at various depths is dependent on available sunlight.
Plants and Animals in Oceans
 Artic and Antarctic Ecosystems
• The Arctic Ocean is rich in nutrients from the surrounding landmasses and
supports large populations of plankton, which feed a diversity of fish in the
open water and under the ice.
• These fish are food for ocean birds, whales, and seals. Fish and seals then
provide food for polar bears and people on land.
• The arctic ecosystems at the North and South Poles depend on marine
ecosystems because nearly all the food comes from the ocean.
• The Antarctic is the only continent never colonized by humans.
• It is governed by an international commission and is used mainly for research.
• Even during the summer, only a few plants grow at the edges of the continent.
• So, as in the Arctic, plankton form the basis of the Antarctic food web,
nourishing large numbers of fish, whales, and birds such as penguins.