Aquatic Biomes

Freshwater biomes

Categorized as streams and rivers, lakes and ponds, or freshwater wetlands.

Littoral Zone

The shallow zone of soil and water in lakes and ponds near the shore where most algae and emergent plants such as cattails grow.

Phytoplankton

Floating algae.

Profundal Zone

A region of water where sunlight does not reach, below the limnetic zone in very deep lakes.

Benthic Zone

The muddy bottom of a lake, pond, or ocean beneath the limnetic and profundal zones.

Oligotrophic

Describes a lake with a low level of phytoplankton due to low amounts of nutrients in water.

Mesotrophic

Describes a lake with a moderate level of fertility.

Eutrophic

Describes a lake with a high level of fertility.

Freshwater Wetland

An aquatic biome that is submerged or saturated by water for at least part of each year, but shallow enough to support emergent vegetation.

Estuary

An area along the coast where freshwater of rivers mixes with salt water from the ocean.

Salt marsh

Found along the coast in temperate climates, a marsh containing nonwoody emergent vegetation.

Mangrove swamp

A swamp that occurs along tropical and subtropical coasts, and contains salt-tolerant trees with roots submerged in water.

Intertidal Zone

The narrow band of coastline that exists between the levels of high tide and low tide.

Coral Reef

Represents Earth’s most diverse marine biome, and are found in warm, shallow waters beyond the shoreline in tropical regions.

Coral Bleaching

A phenomenon in which algae inside corals die, causing the corals to turn white.

Open Ocean

Deep-ocean water, located away from the shoreline where sunlight can no longer reach the ocean bottom.

Photic Zone

The upper layer of ocean water in the ocean that receives enough sunlight for photosynthesis.

Aphotic Zone

The deeper layer of ocean water that lacks sufficient sunlight for photosynthesis.

Chemosynthesis

A process used by some bacteria to generate energy methane and hydrogen sulfide.