Oceanology Exam 3

What is taxonomy?

The science of naming + classifying organisms

Scientific names are in what language?

Latin

What are procaryotes?

Bacteria + bacteria-like organisms

What are eucaryotes?

True bacteria; includes photosynthesizing + forms

Kingdom Bacteria (when in doubt)

• critically important for marine ecology

• in shallowest to deepest water

Kingdom Protista (Protoctista)

• 1 celled eucaryotes (small)

• some are photosynthetic

• some are predators

Kingdom Fungi

• multicellular, non-photosynthesizing eucaryotes

• <500 known species for marine fungi

• common in the intertidal zone

Kingdom Plantae

• multicellular, photosynthesizing eucaryotes

• many marine algae + marine grasses

Kingdom Animalia

• multicellular, non-photosynthesizing eucaryotes capable of spontaneous movement

• marine sponges to fish

What is plankton?

floaters

What is nekton?

swimmers

What is benthos (benthic organisms)?

bottom dwellers

Phytoplankton

• "plant plankton” (single-celled, or loose aggregates of a few cells)

• photosynthetic, restricted to the photic zone

• actually all are kingdom Protista

Zooplankton

• “animal plankton” (they range in size + complexity)

• small protozoans to ~ large animals

• 1- celled non-photosynthesizing protists

• in + below photic zone

Bacterioplankton

• = floating bacterial

• recently discovered (cu = they are so small)

• mostly photosynthesizing bacteria

Virioplankton

• = floating viruses

• x. small; not well known

• difficult to study

Holoplankton

organism that spend their entire lives as plankton

Meroplankton

organism that began their lives as plankton but the adults are nekton on benthos ex. squid

Macroplankton

• “large plankton”

• large animals or larger floating algae

Microplankton

• “small plankton”

• small plankton that are caught in towecl plankton nets

Nannoplankton

plankton too small to get caught in plankton nets

Ultraplankton/ Picoplankton

• x. small plankton

• < 5 microns in size

• down to 0.2 microns in size

Examples of nekton?

• most adult fish

• marine mammals

• marine reptiles

• marine birds

• squid

What are anadromous fish? Example?

nekton that reproduces in freshwater but live in saltwater ex. salmon

What are catadromous fish? Example?

nekton that reproduces at sea but lives in freshwater ex. many eels

What is epifaunal?

lives above (on) the seafloor or attached to rocks

What is infaunal?

lives in sediments below the seafloor

What specific kinds of buoyancy mechanism to marine organisms used to maintain their position in the water column? (How do organisms stay above the seafloor?)

• Many organisms stove oils, or fats, or gases internally (to maintain their position in the water column)

• Some species have elaborate appendages (= increased frictional resistance to sinking)

What is eurythermal?

Organisms that tolerate a wide temperature range

Can organisms tolerate cold stress better or warm stress better?

cold stress

What is euryhaline?

Organisms can tolerate a wide range of salinities

What is stenohaline?

Organisms can only tolerate a narrow range of salinities

What are the euphotic zone?

Surface to depth where photosynthesis can still occur

What are the desphotic zone?

Very small amount of sunlight

What are the pathetic zone?

No sunlight ever

What is the hadal zone?

Deepest part of the trenches

Does biomass increase or decrease with depth in ocean?

decrease

What is angiosperms? What are some marine examples of angiosperms?

• flowing plants

• sea grasses (turtle grass, manatee grass, surf grass)

• mangroves

What are phaeophtes?

brown algae

What are chlorophytes?

green algae

What are rhodophytes? Are they a common or scarce group of marine macroalgae?

• red algae

• common

What are chrysophytes?

golden - brown algae

What are diatoms?

• 1-celled

• 2-part opal skeleton (frustule) - circular + petri-dish like, or elongated

• diaton ooze becomes diatomite rock

What are coccolithophorids?

• “calcareous nannoplankton”

• 1-celled covered with x. small CaCo3 plates (coccoliths)

• coccolith ooze become chalk

What are pyrrhophytes (dinoflagellates)?

fire algae (“whirling whips”)

What are the red tides?

• red-colored water caused by dinoflagellates blooms

• some are harmful

• some are not

• toxins can build up in red tides, killing fishes + invertebrates

Producers

• Make their own food (autotrophs) by photosynthesis or chemosynthesis

• algae, plants, archaea, some bacteria, some protists

• at the base of the food pyramid

Herbivores

• organisms that feed on plants or algae (heterotrophs)

• sea urchins, many snails are algae grazers

Carnivores

• organisms that eat animals (heterotrophs)

• predators (meat-eaters)

• many fish, sharks, cone snails, starfish

Omnivores

• organisms that feed on plants + other animals (heterotrophs)

• sea gulls, many crabs

Bacteriovores

• organisms that comes bacteria

• many foraminifera

Decomposers

• organisms that break down organic compounds (dead + decaying remains + waste products)

• many bacterias

Filter feeders

• filters small particles of plankton or non-living organic matter from the water, using filmentous structures

• Feather duster worms

• Crinoids (sea lilies)

Deposit feeders

• eat bulk sediments

• Digestive systems extract nutrients/ organic matter + mineral matter is excreted

• Some worms (infaunal)

• Some sea cucumbers

What is symbiosis?

Association of 2 or more organisms in which at least one benefits

What is commensalism? Example?

1 organism benefits + the other is not harmed or helped

Ex. remoras + sharks

What is mutualism? Example?

Both organisms benefits

Ex. Clown fish + sea anemones

What is parasitism?

1 organism benefits + the other is harmed

What are pelagic organisms? Where do they live?

• They live in the ocean’s water column, above the sea floor

• Many live in the surface waters

Rigid gas containers

• cephalopods have external or internal shells with gas filled chambers.

• They pump water into it out from the chambers (=efficient way of changing depth)

Swim bladders

slow-swimming fish add or remove fads from swim bladders to change their depth in water

Fat- / oil-filled organs

Many deep-sea fish have special organs filled with fat or oil for buoyancy

Ex. Sharks

Active swimming

v. active fish maintain their position in water column by exerting energy (muscle action + swimming)

ex. bluechromis

Soft/ gelatinous bodies

• many macrozooplankton have this

• Lack of hard parts reduces body density- they stay afloat

  ex. jellyfish

Small size + spinose bodies

• microphone are small (gravity is less significant

• Often have spikes/spines for staying afloat (frictional resistance to sinking)

How do squid swim?

Squirt water through a siphon (can be pointed in different directions)

What is the predatory behavior of lungers?

• Some fish wait patiently for prey; when prey is close; the fish lunges forward

• Have truncate tails (for speed + maneuverability)

• Usu. have white muscle tissue

• Ex. Grouper

What is the predatory behavior of cruisers?

• Some fish swim constantly through the water and search of prey

• Usu. have red muscle tissue

• Ex. Tuna

Are all fish cold blooded? Are some fish “warm blooded”?

No, yes

Do many deep-sea fish have bioluminescence? Why?

Yes

• attracting pray

• staking out territory

• communication finding a mate

• escape from predators (use like to blind predators or as a smoke screen)

• counter shading

Basic characteristics of deep-sea fish

• Some have eyes (large + sensitive)

• Some are blind (rely on smell or motion detection)

• Usu. large teeth

• Extendable bodies

• usu. huge mouths

• can have jaws that unhinged

What are the characteristics of mammals?

• endothermic (warm-blooded)

• Air-breathers

• Hair

• Almost all have live birth

• Mother’s milk

How do sea otters avoid losing body heat while in cold sea water?

• have a blubber layer of heat insulation

• x. dense fur

• eat shellfish + crustaceans

• Use rocks to break crustaceans

What are sirenians? Examples?

• occurs in tropical parts of all 3 oceans

• eat shallow-water plants

• large bodies

• pabble-like tail

• rounded front flippers

• few hairs

• Ex. Sea cows, the manatees + dugongs

What are cetaceans? Examples?

• stream lined, cigar-shaped bodies

• thick blubber layers

• front limbs = flippers

• hind limbs = non-functional

• elongated skull

• blowhole(s) on top of head

• almost no hair

• horizontal - oriented tail

• soft outer skin layer

Which group has larger bodies - toothed whales or baleen whales?

Baleen whales

What are the two largest whale species on earth? Are they toothed whales or baleen whales

Blue whale + finback whale

Baleen

What do baleen whales feed on?

• eat low on the food pyramid

• ex: krill- small nekton

• usu. feed near the surface

What is baleen? What’s it made of?

• parallel rows of plates hanging down from the upper jaw

• used to concentrate small prey + separate them from the water

• Made of keratin

• single baleen prates can be up to 14’ long

Are most marine organisms pelagic or benthic?

benthic

Are most organisms on rocky, hard infaunal or epifaunal

epifaunal

Limpets

• spray zone + high tide zone

• Prevent desiccation by clamping their shells down against rocks

• Vagrant herbivores with a cap-shaped shell (algae grazers)

Periwinkle snails

• spray zone + high tide zone

• Vagrant herbivores with a coiled shell (algae grazers)

• Prevent desiccation by using an operculum

Barnacles

• high to middle tide zones

• Encrusted + filter feeders

• Have to be in water at least occasionally

• Each animal in surrounding by calcareous shell, usu. with overlapping plates

Nertie snails

• high tide zone

• Vagrant herbivores With a coiled shell (algae grazers)

• Usu. on rocky shorelines (occ. on sandy benches)

Rock weeds

• high to middle tide zones

• Photosynthesis encruster

• Thick cell walls minimize water loss

Chitons

• high to middle tide zones

• Vagrant algae grazers (herbivores)

• 8 overlapping CaCo3 plates

• Muscular girdle with embedded spicules

• Grazers with magnetite teeth (Fe3O4)

Mussels

• middle tide zone

• 2 shells

• Encrusting filter-feeders

• Use byssal threads for attaching

• Usu. in dense bands along rocky shores

Starfish

• middle tide side

• Vagrant carnivores that feed on mussels

• Use tube feet to pry open a mussel shell

• Extrude stomach + digest the mussel in its own shell

• External digestion

Sea anemones

• middle to low tide zone

• Related to corals = bags with tentacles

• Sessile, benthic predators

• Tentacles have stringing cells (nematocysts) that inject toxin into prey

Hermit crabs

• middle tide zone

• Crabs in empty snail shells

• Vagrants

• Usu. scavengers

Sea urchins

• middle tide zone

• Starfish relatives

• Subspherical CaCo3 skeleton (test) covered with spines

• Mouth is at the bottom of the test

• Vagrant algae grazers

Shore crabs

• Supratial to subtidal

• Vagrant scavenger + algae-eaters

• Use claws to tear algae from rock substrates

• Exoskeleton prevents desiccation when out of water

Spray zone (supratidal zone)

• dry to damp to wet; never covered with water, expect during storms- storm surge)

• = rocky shore areas above all high tides

• Common to occasional spray from crashing waves + wind

• Marine organisms here are prone to desiccation (drying out)

• Terrestrial organisms here have to be tolerant of salty sea spray

High tide zone (upper intertidal zone)

• usually dry; only covered with water at spring high tide

• Organisms here usu. have a protective covering to prevent drying out

Middle tide zone

• alternating wet + dry; covered by all high tides; exposed during all low tifes

• Lots of ritual pools during low tide

• High diversity + biomass

• Lots of competiton

Low tidal zone (lower intertidal zone)

• usually water-covered; only completely exposed during spring low tides

• Abundant algae + seagrass

• diverse animal fauna

Are most sediment covered substrate organisms epifaunal or infaunal?

Infaunal

Why are most sandy beach organisms infaunal (burrowers)?

1) no stable surface

2) less temperature fluctuation

3) less salinity fluctuation

4 less chance of drying out

Are bivalves a good example of filter-feeding organisms that burrow in sandy beach environments?

Yes