life at sea exam 1 focused notes

what is the average depth of the sea?

3.7 km (2.3 miles)

hydrogen bonds

imparts many unique properties to water

covalent bonds

holds molecules together

what are the properties of water that facilitate life?

1. adhesive and cohesive behavior

2. important universal solvent

3. high latent heat of vaporization and fusion

4. specific heat (1.0 calories /1g/*C)

5. fresh water is most dense at 4*C

what temperature is water most dense?

4*C

when is water less dense

when its frozen

how do lakes freeze in the winter?

lakes freeze on the surface and stay liquid underneath

thermocline

rapid change in temperature with depth. separates upper mixed water layer from deep water below

describe each thermocline trend

Polar: no thermocline

Temperate: seasonal thermocline

tropics: strong year-round thermocline

what are the 6 major ions

chloride, sodium, sulfate, magnesium, calcium, potassium

which two major ions are most abundant

chloride and sodium

what is the ph of fresh water

7

what is the ph of the ocean

8.2

anything more than 7 on the ph scale is

basic

what makes the ocean more acidic

carbon dioxide

what are the harmful effects of having carbon dioxide in the ocean

breaks down limestone (sea shells)

what causes carbon dioxide to enter the ocean

burning fossil fuels

25% of human generated CO2 is absorbed into the ocean

taxonomy

classification and naming of organisms

taxonomy is a branch of

systemics

steps of taxonomy

name, describe, collect, classify,

ranking system

kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, species

biological species concept

members of population must be fertile with each other

binomial nomenclature

naming system based on genus and species

neuston

float on water (epineuston)

live right under the surface (hyponeuston)

plankton

drifter

cannot swim against current

phytoplankton

plant plankton

zooplankton

animal plankton

MEROplankton

spend part of their life as plankton

HOLOplankton

some animals spend their whole life as plankton

nekton

active swimmers, move independent of currents

benthos

live on, in, or near seafloor (benthic zone)

trophic relationships

how organisms obtain their energy

autotrophs

make food using light

chemotrophs

make food using chemicals

heterotrophs

cannot make food (shark)

saprotrophs

feed off of decomposing matter

rhizophora mangle

red mangrove

closest to coastline

prop roots direct intake to oxygen

first line of defense

avicennia germanans

black mangrove

pneumatophores: access oxygen from air in anoxic soils

salty leaves

languncularia racemosa

white mangrove

nursery grounds for marine life

white mangrove leaf and seed

rounded

small grapelike seeds

black mangrove leaf and seeds

gray side with salty pores

nutlike seed

red mangrove leaf and seed

oval shaped with pointed tip

cigar shaped seed

mangrove services

climate regulation

fisheries

tourism

water filtration

coastal protection

mangrove threats

logging

climate change

pollution

coastal development

agriculture

how does the gulf steam help coral

the movement of warm water to other places

ekman transport

process by which gyres are maintained

loop current

current that runs though the Gulf of Mexico and through the striates of florida

upwelling

phenomenon where deep, cold, and nutrient-rich water rises to the surface, replacing the warmer, nutrient-depleted surface water.

causes of upwelling

caused by wind blowing along coastlines, which pushes the surface water away from the shore. As the surface water moves away, deeper water rises to fill the void.

downwelling

surface water moves downward into the deeper parts of the ocean. downwelling involves the sinking of warm, oxygen-rich surface water to greater depths.

downwelling causes

Downwelling often occurs when surface waters converge due to wind patterns or ocean currents. When water is pushed together and has no place to go, it is forced downward.

ekman transport

how gyres are maintained

northern hemisphere current motion

moves east when wind is moving north

moves west when wind if moving south

southern hemisphere current motion

moves west when wind is moving north

moves east when wind is moving south

el niño

a reversal of sea surface currents near the equator

warm water moving eastward

how does el niño sea surface temperature differ from normal conditions

Normal Conditions: The equatorial Pacific Ocean has a warm pool of water in the western Pacific near Indonesia and cooler waters in the eastern Pacific near South America.

El Niño Conditions: During El Niño, the sea surface temperatures in the central and eastern Pacific become significantly warmer than average (by about 0.5°C to 3°C or more). This warming spreads eastward due to weakened or reversed trade winds.

what causes chop waves

wind speed

wave interaction

ocean depth

topography

symbiosis

a close and often long term interaction between two or more different biological species

how do you escape a rip current?

swim parallel to shoreline

mutualism

both organisms involved gain advantages

commensalism

one species benefits, while the other is neither helped nor harmed

parasitism

where one organism, the parasite, benefits at the expense of the other, the host

example of mutualism

coral and fish

mangrove and crabs

examples of commensalism

jellyfish and juvenile fishies

example of parasitism

copepod and greenland shark

euphotic zone

most light and productivity

disphotic zone

enough light to see but no photosynthesis

aphotic zone

no light

intertidal zone

located at coast between high and low tide

intertidal zone characteristics

temperature changes

flooding

wave action

salinity changes

storms

human disturbance

what factors impact the photic zone

presence of organic matter

deep photic zone: low levels of dissolved organic material allow more sunlight to penetrate

shallow photic zone: opposite

compensation depth

oxygen produces by photosynthesis= amount of oxygen consumed by respiration