Download Marine Life zones and biotic and abiotic factors chart information

Biotic
and Abiotic Factors of
the Ocean
MARINE LIFE ZONES
INTERTIDAL ZONES
*Intertidal areas: the place where the ocean
meets the land (shore); *organisms must be able
to live underwater (high tide) and out of water
(low tide) *must have adaptations that allow
them to hold on during the crashing of the
waves
*crabs, clams, snails, worms, plankton, algae
*Abundance of dissolved oxygen and nitrogen
*High salinity
*Very warm (summer) to freezing (winter)
*Depth of 5-10m (16-33 ft.)
*Turbulent water due to tides
*Low water pressure (shallow)
Neritic Zone – Coral Reefs
Warm, shallow, sunlit areas where tiny animals
called corals live in large groups *over time,
skeletons of dead corals build up and form a reef
*coral reefs are a thriving ecosystem of corals,
algae, sea stars, sea anemones, sponges,
plankton, dolphins and brightly colored fish
*Neritic zone
*High D.O. and CO2
*Stable salinity 32-38ppt (part per thousand)
*Lots of sunlight-stable temps 24 °C
*From surface down to about 200 ft.
*Affected by currents and waves
*Low water pressure
*Special structures that allow for attaching to the
reef (some of them)
OCEANIC ZONE
*Open ocean zone
*Lower Nutrient levels
*High levels of salinity
*Temperature decrease with depth
*As deep as 200m
*Water is constantly mixed by currents and
differences in density
*Water pressure increases with increasing depth
*Organisms are adapted to swimming
*Plankton, whales, squids, sharks etc.
BENTHIC ZONE
*Ocean floor
*Nutrients “rain down”
*Oxygen-deficient
*High salinity-most dense
*Continuous cold temps. 0-30degr.
*Depth varies ( bottom of the neritic and oceanic
zones)
*Water movement due to currents and density
differences – colder water and water with higher
salinity are more dense
*Highest water pressure
*Bacteria, worms, sea urchins, kelps; sea stars, sea
cucumbers; anglerfish
* must be able to withstand extreme water pressure,
cold temps and low D.O. and adaptations for
darkness