WA flashcards

red mangroves

* rhizophora mangle
* prop roots and Ariel roots drop from high branches
* fringe mangals
* shores of gulf of Mexico, California, Caribbean

fjords

* u-shaped valleys created by retreating glaciers that flooded when sea levels rose
* eastern Alaska, Norway, Greenland

3 challenges mangroves face due to their environment

1. salinity
2. water uptake
3. oxygen uptake

mangrove challenge and adaptation salinity

challenge: osmolarity

adaptation: salt exclusion, tolerance, secretion

salt exclusion

* ion pumps pump Na+ and H+ in opposite directions
* energetically expensive process
* Aviceennia can exclude 90-95% of salt

salt tolerance

* mangroves vary in salt tolerance
* Sonneratia alba has higher tolerance than Sonneratia lancelota

salt secretion

* salt glads located on leaves store Na+ and Cl-
* salt secreted at night or early morning

mangrove challenge and adaptation water uptake

* challenge: osmotic gradient does not favor uptake of water into roots, causes temp regulation issues
* adaptations: leaves slanted at 75 degrees to limit light, mangroves have large root biomass below and above ground

mangrove challenge and adaptation oxygen uptake

* challenge: anoxic mud common in mangrove habitat
* adaptation: lenticels- pores in roots and bark that obtain oxygen above anoxic mud

contributions of mangrove crabs

* burrowing activities impact sediment physiochemical properties
* eat living mangrove leaves and store in burrows
* increase C storage of sediment
* introduce productivity directly into food web

causes of coastline being modification

* commerce
* water recreation
* urbanization of coastlines

effects of coastline modification

* simplified shorelines
* habitat loss
* altered habitat quality

what is a living shoreline

* proved, stabilized coastal edge
* made of natural materials like rock, sand, plants

benefits of living shoreline

* trap/store carbon
* improve water quality by trapping sediments
* habitat for costal and commercial species

relationship between structural complexity of seagrass meadow and community assemblage

* direct relationship
* more complexity, niches, biodiversity
* more fish, invertebrate infauna/epifauna than surrounding sediment

selective pressure affecting community assemblage

predation

common ecosystem services of estuaries, mangroves, seagrasses, salt marshes

* nurseries
* breeding grounds
* feeding grounds

what ecosystem parameters give E, SM, SGB, and M common factors

* proximity to terrestrial habitats/shore
* shallow water
* soft sediments
* environmental challenges

common terrestrial inhabitants of mangals

* epiphytes
* insects
* some reptiles/amphibians
* birds

3 services of oysters w/in estuaries

* support community assemblages through attachment substrate
* increase clarity of water/transmission of light/primary productivity
* protect against erosion by absorbing wave energy/trapping sediment

2 ways rocky intertidal species have adapted to deal with wave shock

1. holding on (holdfasts on seaweed, byssal threads on mussels)
2. moving to find shelter (various infauna)

rock weeds important in middle intertidal why

create canopy for organisms not tolerant to emersion during low tides

upper limit of species set by

physical factors

lower limit of species set by

biological factors

organisms dominate upper intertidal

* barnacles
* lichens
* encrusting algae
* limpets/periwinkles

more tolerant to emersion

organisms of middle intertidal

* mussels
* gooseneck barnacles
* brown seaweed
* rock weeds
* sea stars/spiny lobsters

organisms of lower intertidal

* sea stars
* red, green, brown seaweed
* urchins
* sea anemones
* snails

costal plain estuaries

* most common
* result from flooding of low-land areas when sea levels rose @ last ice age
* Chesapeake bay
* mouth of Delaware river

bar built estuaries

* accumulation of sediment along coasts form barrier islands/sandbars
* Texas gulf coast
* NC coast

tectonic estuaries

* formed by tectonic activated when land subsides
* San Francisco Bay

3 key features of estuaries

* buffer zones
* filter sediment and pollutants
* feeding and nursery habitats

why lower amount of oxygen in mid-estuary region, especially during summer

* DO sags due to bacterial action with mud flats
* warmer temps increase microbial action

what two factors important for determining community structure in estuary

* temperature
* salinity

why do mudflats form in middle of estuaries

* created by sediments (silt/mud) brought in by ides and settle in middle of estuaries

why are birds important to mudflats

* good predators, feed on all trophic levels
* larger estuaries attract higher numbers of birds bc of prey availability

where in world do we find salt marshes

* within estuary, inland from mudflats
* subtropic, temperate, subarctic regions

importance of detritus for estuarine and salt marsh communities

* out welling of detritus to estuary
* detritus sinks to bottom, nutrients get trapped in deeper estuaries
* bacteria/decomposers breakdown detritus
* incorporates nutrients into food web
* originates from waste and decomposing or organisms/plant

sandy shores

* gentle sloping areas with lots of sediment
* passive margins of atlantic gulf coast

estuary

inlet of sea reaching into valley as far as upper limit of tidal rise

head of estuary

* dominated by river flow
* strong river currents
* coarse sediments and sand

mouth of estuary

* estuary meets ocean
* strong tidal currents
* clean sand/shell fragments

euryhaline vs stenohaline

* tolerate large range of salinities
* tolerate narrow range of salinities

osmosis

* passive movement of water
* region of high concentration to low concentration

hyper/hypo/iso osmotic

hyper: gain water

hypo: lose water

iso: no net flux

rocky shores

* steep coats minimal amounts of sediment
* west coast of NA where active margins have been uplifted

sea grasses

* shallow, salty, brackish waters
* gently sloping protected coastlines
* shallow depths

key attributes of sea grass

* leaves w sheaves adapted to high-energy environments
* hydrophilous w/ underwater pollination
* extensive lacunar systems transport oxygen to structures in anoxic sediment
* exhibit morphological plasticity

fringe mangrove forest

* tide dominated
* high salinity and wave action
* intermediate productivity

riverine mangrove forest

* river dominated
* moderate salinity
* highly productive

basin mangrove forests

* large areas behind riverine and fringe
* least productive
* rarely flooded by tides
* salinity highly variable

black mangroves

* Avicennia germinans
* prop/elbow roots
* fruits/seeds black used to make dye
* survive high salinity
* Atlantic/ pacific coasts of Western Hemisphere

white mangroves

* Laguncularia racemosa
* salt tolerant, grow on drylands behind basins
* salt sent out through leaves
* atlantic/pacific coasts of Western Hemisphere

seagrass reproduction

* sexual or asexual
* most dioecious
* flower seasonally in temperate, high spring tides in tropics

epiphytes of seagrasses

* grow on blades
* provide food for species that live btw blades

rhizomes

* large root like structures
* spread horizontally into uninhabited sediment
* send up new shoots (ramets)

hydrophilous pollination

* pollen disperse in water
* negatively(not far)/positively buoyant (further)