UNIT 4

Marine Ecology
 Biologists
early became intrigued with the
amazing variety of life to be found along
the shores and among the coral reefs.

 HMS Challenger (1872) – the first to be

specifically equipped for the study of the
sea.
There are 5!
Pacific Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
Artic Ocean
Indian Ocean
Antarctic Ocean
What is marine ecology?
 It is an interactive science that studies the basic
structural and functional relationships within and among
living populations and their physical-chemical environments
in marine ecosystems.

AKA- the study of biotic and abiotic interactions in marine

ecosystems.
Organizational Hierarchy
 Ecologists study different aspects of the interactions that take place in living systems. To that
end they look at living systems using various scales to help them understand the dynamics of
life on earth.
 These levels can be delineated generally by the following categories.
 Biosphere

 Biomes

 Ecosystems

 Communities

 Populations
 Species

 Individuals
 Ecological Interactions
 Competition  Autotrophic (Producers)
 Interspecies
 Photo-autotrophy
 Intraspecies
 Chemo-autotrophy

 Heterotrophic (Consumers)  Symbiosis

 Predator/Prey  Endo/Ecto(epi)-symbiosis
 Planktonivorous (insectivorous)  Parasitism
 Herbivorous  Commensalism (e.g. epiphytes)
 Scavengers, Detritivores,  Mutualism
Decomposers, D.O.M.  Mimicry (Batesian and Mulerian)
 Parasitism
 Photo-heterotrophy (bacterial light-
mediated ATP synthesis)
Predation
 Commensalism
• Relationship that involves two organisms wherein one organism benefits from
the relationship and the other is not harmed nor does it benefit. Symbolically
(+ : 0 )
 Mutualism
• Relationship (often symbiotic) that involves two organisms both of which
benefit from the relationship. Symbolically ( + : + )
Parasitism
• Relationship (often symbiotic) that involves two organisms one of which
benefits from the relationship at the expense of the other. Symbolically ( + : – )
Mimicry
Batesian: One organism mimics another
to gain the benefit of it’s characteristic.
For example; if the Mimic Octopus
mimics a sea snake it gains the benefit of
the threat posed by sea snakes.

Mullerian: Groups of organisms share

appearance in order to benefit from the
reinforcement of deterrence.
 Carrying Capacity/Limiting Resources
Carrying Capacity:
 In any system there is a finite supply of resources.
 Even seemingly limitless resources such as sunlight require surface area for organisms to be able to
exploit them and so there is a maximum number of organisms that can acquire that resource.
 The maximum number of organisms, of a single species, that any ecosystem can support is called
the carrying capacity.
 If the population exceeds the carrying capacity some of the members of the population will not
receive the necessary resources to survive and they will die.
Limiting Resources:
 The resource that determines the carrying capacity and therefore “limits” the growth of a
population is called a limiting resource.
 Limiting resources can be obvious types such as space or food. Or they can be subtle such as the
presence of trace elements or other nutrients.
Limiting Factors:
 Other elements within an ecosystem may affect the size of a population these may be obvious such
as predation and disease, or more subtle such a tolerances to environmental conditions such as
incubation temperatures.
Carrying Capacity

• Environmental factors can cause the carrying capacity to change, for example a
particularly rainy year may result in more forage for herbivores and alter the carrying
capacity for a wide number of interconnected organisms in a given system.

• Environmental change and human intervention can also result in extreme cases of
population growth and die-offs.
Features of Marine
Ecology
 Features of Marine Ecology
1. The sea is big – it covers 70% of the Earth’s
surface.

2. The sea is deep and life extends to all its depths

- Although apparently there are no abiotic zones in

the ocean, life is much denser around the margin of
continents and islands.
 Features of Marine Ecology
3. The sea is continuous, not separated as our
land and fresh water habitats.

4. The sea is in continuous circulation- air

temperature differences between poles and
equator set up strong winds such as the trade
winds (blowing steadily in the same direction the
year around) which, together with rotation of
the Earth, create different currents.
 2 types of water movement that
contributes to coastal fertility
 Upwelling- bringing to the surface cold water rich in
nutrients which have been accumulating in the
depths.

-The most productive marine

area is located in this region.

 Out-welling-occurs when nutrient-rich estuarine

water moves out to sea.
5. The sea is dominated by waves of many kind
and by tides produced by the pull of moon and
sun.
6. The sea is salty- the average salinity or salt
contents is 35 parts of salts by weight per 1000
parts of water, or 3.5%.

 Sea water has the pH of 8.2

 Is that basic, neutral, or acidic?
7. The concentration of dissolved nutrients is
low and constitutes an important limiting
factor in determining the size of marine
population.
8. The ocean floor is constantly
altered and renewed by tectonic
and sedimentary processes.

 the sea floor is slowly spreading

outward from mid-ocean ridges,
pushing continents apart as it
progresses.

Example: continental drift

The Marine Biota
 Plants!
Biota
Animals!

 The combined flora and fauna of a region.

 The animal or plant life of a particular region.

Examples of Marine Biota in the Pacific Ocean

Phytoplankton
Cuttlefish
Zooplankton

Brown Pelican

Medusa Jellyfish California Sea Lion

Chinook Salmon
Gray Whale
Example of
Marine Food
Web and Food
Chain
Zonation in the
Sea
 Zonation
Zonation is a bit of biological terminology
that refers to the way an ecosystem can be
divided up into zones based on a particular
factor, such as altitude or latitude.
Marine Environments
Life Zones in the Ocean

I. Horizontal zones
- Those extending from the sea.
A. Coastal (Intertidal) Zone:

• region in which tides expose the sea bottom

for some part of each day.
• The habitats are alternately submerged under
salt water and waterlogged for hours and then
exposed to the air and dried out for hours.
B. Pelagic Zone:

• located seaward of the coastal zone’s low-tide

mark, this contains the vast open waters of the
ocean. Two subdivisions are recognized:
a. Neretic Zone
• the water underlying the continental shelf. With the
exemption of Antarctica, these waters usually extend
to a depth of 600 ft. Sunlight penetrates the entire
water column.

b. Oceanic Zone
• the region of the sea extending to the edge of the
continental shelf, over the continental slope, and over
ocean floor.
• It is characterized by darkness and tremendous
pressure. Vertical line zones are significant here.
Life Zones in the Ocean
II. Vertical line zones of the oceanic zone
Defined by:
• How much light it receives
• Depth
• Amount of pressure
A. Neustic zone:
• the thin film or “skin” formed by surface tension at
the surface of the water.

B. Sunlight or Euphotic zone (Epipelagic):

• the top of the water column as far down as light is
available for photosynthesis. Depending upon water
clarity, the bottom of the euphotic zone is about 500
ft. below sea level.
• 90% of life lives here due to the availability of light!
C. Twilight or Disphotic zone:
• the water column below the euphotic zone.
Food chains usually begin with detritus
(dead stuff) or living algae and bacteria
sinking from above.
• Very little light => NO PLANTS!
https://youtu.be/xtgWo6h99Zg
Life Zones in the Ocean
III. Benthic Zone

­ his zone contains all the habitats of the sea

T
bottom, whether in coastal, continental shelf,
or deep sea environments. Organisms may live
within the bottom material or on its surface.
Mangrove and Coral
Reefs
Mangrove and Coral Reefs

 Emergent land plants that tolerate the

salinities of the open sea.
 This ecosystem traps and cycles various
organic materials, chemical elements, and
important nutrients. Mangrove roots act not
only as physical traps but provide attachment
surfaces for various marine organisms.

 Many of them attached to organisms filter

water through their bodies and, in turn, trap
and cycle nutrients.
It provides:

- Protection
- Food
- Shelter
- Extension coast
- Building islands
- Major energy input into fisheries
 Florida’s mangroves are tropical species;
therefore, they are sensitive to extreme
temperature fluctuations as well as
subfreezing temperatures.

 Research indicates that salinity, water

temperature, tidal fluctuations, and soil also
affect their growth and distribution.
 Coral Reefs

- Widely distributed in swallow waters of

warm seas.

- Among the most biologically productive,

taxonomically diverse and aesthetically
celebrated of all communities.
 Three types of Reef according to Darwin

a.Barrier reefs along continents

b.Fringing reefs around islands

c.Atolls, which are horseshoe-shaped ridges of

reefs and islands with lagoon in the center.
 In certain conditions coral reefs develop far
from the continents, around small islands, or
towards the edge of the continental shelf.

 Here the reefs do not join up to the mainland,

but grow upwards on all sides. Large, elongated
structures far offshores are called barrier
reefs. They are separated from the land by a
lagoon. When barrier reefs grow up in remote
ocean areas, they are termed bank reefs.
 Fringing Reef

A fringing reef is a type of coral reef that

extends outward from the shore of an island
or mainland, with no body of water separating
land reef.
 By submarine volcanic activity
- Pacific reef developed into basaltic rock.

 Biological deposition of calcium carbonate

is the means by which the reef builds up
to sea level.
 ESTUARY
I.DEFINITION AND TYPES
ESTUARY

 Semi-enclosed coastal body of water which has

a free connection with the open sea
 Strongly affected by tidal action
 Within it sea water mixed with fresh water
 Estuarine or blackish water is classified as
oligomeso or polyhaline according to average
salinity
 Physical condition in estuaries are stressful
with low species diversity

 The food conditions are also favorable that

the region is packed with life

 It belongs to the important class of

“fluctuating water-level ecosystems”
 CLASSIFICATIONS WILL BE PRESENTED
BASED ON:

a) GEOMORPHOLOGY

b) WATER CIRCULATION AND

STRATIFICATION

c) SYSTEMS ENERGETICS
 According to GEOMORPHOLOGY
1. DROWNED RIVER VALLEYS
are developed along coastlines with relatively
low and wide coastal plain

2. FJORD-TYPE ESTUARIES
are deep U-shaped coastal indentures gouged
out by glaciers and generally with a shallow sill at
their mouths formed by terminal glacial deposits.
3. BAR-BUILT ESTUARIES
are shallow basins, often partly exposed at
low tide, enclosed by a chain of offshore bars
or barrier islands, broken at intervals by inlets.

4. ESTUARIES PRODUCED BY TECTONIC

PROCESSES
are coastal indentures formed by geological
faulting or by local subsidence often with large
inflow of fresh water.
RIVER DELTA ESTUARIES

 Found at the mouths of large rivers such as

the Mississippi or the Nile.

 Semi-enclosed bays, channels, and brackish

marshes are formed by shifting silt
deposits.
 CIRCULATION AND STRATIFICATION

1. Highly stratified or “salt-edge” estuaries.

The river water is more dominant over tidal

actions. This will exhibit a salinity profile with a
“halocline” or zone of sharp change in salinity
from top to bottom.
 CIRCULATION AND STRATIFICATION

2. The partially mixed or moderately

stratified estuary.

Fresh water and tidal inflow are more nearly

equal. Turbulence is the dominant mixing
agent. This create a complex pattern of layers
and water masses.
 CIRCULATION AND STRATIFICATION

3. The completely mixed or vertically

homogenous estuary.

Tidal action is strongly dominant and

vigorous. The water tends to be well mixed
from top to bottom and the salinity relatively
high.
HYPERSALINE ESTUARY

 Flow of fresh water is small, the tidal

amplitude low, and the evaporation is very
high. Salinity may rise above that of the
ocean.
 ECOSYSTEM ENERGETICS

1. Physically stressed systems of wide

latitudinal range.

Subjected to high energy breaking waves,

strong tidal currents, severe temperature or
salinity rocks, low nighttime oxygen, or high rates
of sedimentation.
 ECOSYSTEM ENERGETICS

2. Natural arctic ecosystems with ice stress.

Exemplified by glacial fjords, winters ice

stressed intertidal zones and under—ice
communities on arctic coast.
 ECOSYSTEM ENERGETICS

3. Natural temperate coastal ecosystems with

seasonal programming.

The more subdued tides, waves and currents in

the semi-enclosed basins provide energy subsidies
rather than stresses.
 ECOSYSTEM ENERGETICS

4. Natural tropical coastal ecosystems of high

diversity.

Temperature, salinity, and other physical factor

stresses are low so that much energy of special
adaptation can go into diversity rather than into
“anti-thermal maintenance”
 ECOSYSTEM ENERGETICS

5. Emerging new systems associated with

man.

These are ecosystems developed for

adaptation for man-made wastes.
 II. BIOTA AND PRODUCTIVITY

 Biota of hypersaline estuaries is of marine

origin.

 Seafood population are observable in

estuaries.

 Estuaries are used as nursery grounds because

of protection and abundant of food.
Intertidal and adjacent shallow-water zones

--- most productive and most important part

of the estuaries.

 Estuaries are more productive than either

the sea on one-side or the freshwater
drainage on the other.