MNS 307 Lecture 12: The Living Ocean
Document Summary
Learning outcomes: chemosynthesis and photosynthesis, organism size and abundance, environmental factor affecting ocean life, how organisms adapt to different conditions, identify major zones. Looks do not distinguish classification - dna does. Size and abundance are inversely related in the oceans. Organisms span an incredible range of size and abundances, from microns to meters and millions/ml to hundreds/ocean basin. The smaller the size, the larger the number (general rule) Cell size and the surface to volume ratio are also linked. At the level of the cell, molecular transport is controlled by. Marine ecosystems are composed of diverse communities: plankton: live suspended in water (floaters and drifters, phytoplankton - microscopic plants, zooplankton - microscopic animals, bacterioplankton, nekton: free swimmers, benthos: live on bottom. Spatially, ecosystems can be divided into: the planktonic environment, the benthic environment, can be further divided. Photic zone - enough life for photosynthesis. Aphotic zone - below area of photosynthesis. Plants and "cold-blooded" animals - can"t regulate.
