Studied by 9 people
Phytoplankton
Microscopic, free-floating, autotrophic organisms that function as producers in aquatic ecosystems
Zooplankton
Microscopic animals that swim (weak = can't fight current) or drift near the surface of aquatic environments
Salinity
The amounts of various salts such as sodium chloride [NaCl] dissolved in a given volume of water
Nekton
Strongly swimming organisms found in aquatic systems
Benthos
Bottom-dwelling organisms in aquatic systems
Nanoplankton
Small, recently discovered, producers
Euphotic Zone
Upper layer of a deep body of water through which sunlight can penetrate and support photosynthesis (for both deep lakes and oceans)
Coastal Zone
Warm, nutrient rich, shallow part of the ocean that extends from the high-tide mark on land to the edge of a shelflike extension of continental land masses known as the continental shelf
Continental Shelf
The submerged part of the continents
Estuary
Partially enclosed coastal area at the mouth of a river where its fresh water, carrying fertile silt and runoff from the land, mixes with salty seawater
Coastal Wetlands
Land along a coastline, extending inland from an estuary that is covered with salt water all or part of the year. Examples are marshes, bays, lagoons, tidal flats, and mangrove swamps
Intertidal Zone
The area of shoreline between low and high tides
Barrier Islands
Long, thin, low offshore islands of sediment that generally run parallel to the shore along some coasts
Open Sea
The part of an ocean that is beyond the continental shelf
Bathyal Zone
Dimly lit layer; found only in open sea and do not contain photosynthesizing producers because of a lack of sunlight
Abyssal Zone
Dark layer; found only in open sea and do not contain photosynthesizing producers because of a lack of sunlight; very cold with little dissolved oxygen
Deposit Feeders
Take mud into their guts and extract nutrients from it; ex. worms
Filter Feeders
Pass water through or over their bodies and extract nutrients from it
Littoral Zone
The shallow area near the lake shore, to the depth at which rooted plants stop growing
Limnetic Zone
Open, sunlit water surface layer away from the lake shore that extends to the depth penetrated by sunlight
Profundal Zone
The deep, open water where it is too dark for photosynthesis in freshwater lakes
Benthic Zone
Bottom of a lake; inhabited mostly be decomposers, detritus-feeding clams, wormlike insect larvae, and catfish
Oligotrophic Lake
Lake with a low supply of plant nutrients, clear water, steep slopes, and deep bottom.
Eutrophic Lake
Lake with a large or excessive supply of plant nutrients, mostly nitrates and phosphates. Turbid water, shallow slopes, and shallow bottom.
Mesotrophic Lake
Lake with a moderate supply of plant nutrients. Intermediate slopes and depth.
Epiliminon
An upper layer of warm water with high levels of dissolved oxygen in temperate lakes
Hypoliminon
A lower layer of colder, denser water in temperate lakes, usually with a lower concentration of dissolved oxygen because it is not exposed to the atmosphere
Thermocline
Where the water temperature changes rapidly with increased depth
Fall Overturn
Mixing of the surface layer with lower layers; brings nutrients from bottom sediments to the surface and sends dissolved oxygen from the surface to the bottom; occurs in fall, when temperatures begin to drop
Runoff
Fresh water from precipitation and melting ice that flows on the earth's surface into nearby streams, lakes, wetlands, and reservoirs
Watershed/Drainage Basin
Land area that delivers water, sediment, and dissolved substances via small streams to a major stream or river
Inland Wetlands
Land away from the coast, such as a swamp, marsh, or bog, that is covered all or part of the time with fresh water
Clean Water Act
Federal Law setting a national goal of making all natural surface water fit for fishing and swimming by 1983, banned polluted discharge into surface water and required the metals be removed from waste. Also protects wetlands where any area of wetland developed must be mitigated (replaced) else where.
lentic
a slow-moving body of water where the water seems to stand still; lakes, ponds, and wetlands
lotic
flowing water: rivers, streams
spring overturn
in spring the air warms and the ice melts causing oxygen-rich water in surface moves downward while nutrient-rich water from the lake's depths moves up. top layer warms to 4 C at which water's density is the greatest and therefore sinks.
cultural eutrophication
Overnourishment of aquatic ecosystems with plant nutrients (mostly nitrates and phosphates) because of human activities such as agriculture, urbanization, and discharges from industrial plants and sewage treatment plants.
coral reef
formation produced by massive colonies containing billions of tiny coral animals, called polyps, that secrete a stony substance (calcium carbonate) around themselves for protection; when the coral dies, their empty outer skeletons form layers and cause the reef to grow; found in the coastal zones of warm tropical and subtropical oceans
commercial extinction
Depletion of a resource species to a point where it is no longer profitable to harvest the species.
CITES
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of 1975 it is a step toward worldwide protection of endangered flora and fauna.
integrated coastal management
A community-based effort to develop and use coastal resources more sustainably.
groin
A short, artificial projection of durable material placed at a right angle to shore in an attempt to slow longshore transport of sand from a beach; usually deployed in repeating units.
seawall
a barrier constructed to prevent waves from reaching the area behind the wall. Its purpose is to defend property from the force of breaking waves.
beach renourishment
Process by which sediment (usually sand) lost through longshore drift or erosion is replaced from sources outside of the eroding beach. Typically a repetitive process, since nourished beaches tend to erode faster than natural beaches unless nourishment is complemented with measures to reduce erosion rates.
beach saver module
made of concrete and microsilica additive that resists erosion. Placed offshore, they channel water upward to create a curtain that blocks sand loss.
maximum sustained yield
The level of harvest that produces a consistent yield without forcing a population into decline
optimum sustained yield
The level of harvest that produces a consistent yield without forcing a population into decline. However, this approach attempts to take into account interactions with other species and to provide more room for error.
Individual Transfer Quotas
The government gives each fishing vessel owner a specified percentage of the total allowable catch for a fishery in a given year. Owners are permitted to buy, sell, or lease them like private property.
exclusive economic zones
area in which resources found up to 370 km or 200 nautical miles offshore belong exclusively to the geographically bordering country. Foreign fishing vessels can take certain quotas within those zones but with a government's permission
bycatch
unwanted marine creatures that are caught in the nets while fishing for another species
National Wild and Scenic Rivers Act
protects rivers with due to aesthetic, recreational, wildlife, historical, or cultural reasons.
mitigation banking
current policy in which wetlands must have zero "net loss," which means some wetlands can be destroyed as long as equal amount is created or restored
Global Treaty on Migratory Species
Aimed to conserve terrestrial, marine and avian migratory species throughout their range. It is an intergovernmental treaty, concluded under the aegis of the United Nations Environment Programme, concerned with the conservation of wildlife and habitats on a global scale. Since the Convention's entry into force, its membership has grown steadily to include over 100 Parties from Africa, Central and South America, Asia, Europe and Oceania.
Marine Mammal Protection Act
enacted in 1972, prohibits the taking of marine mammals, and enacts a moratorium on the import, export, and sale of any marine mammal, along with any marine mammal part or product within the United States.
Intrinsic value
The ethical stance based on the view that each species as worth unrelated to its usefulness to humans.
Background/natural rate of extinction
Natural extinction at a small rate of a small amount of species
Mass extinction
Abrupt rise in extinction rates above the background level. Catastrophic, widespread, in which large groups of existing species are wiped out.
Adaptive radiations
When the diversity of life increases and spreads for 10 million years or more.
Local extinction
Occurs when a species is no longer found in an area it once inhabited but is still found elsewhere in the world
Ecological extinction
When there are so few members of a species left that it can no longer play its ecological roles in the biological communities where it is found
Biological extinction
When a species is no longer found anywhere on earth.
Endangered species
Has so few individual survivors that the species could soon become extinct over all or most of its natural range
Threatened species
still abundant in its natural range but is declining in numbers and is likely to become endangered
Endemic Species
species found no where else on Earth
Habitat islands
Areas of suitable habitat surrounded by larger areas of unsuitable habitat. Example a park in a urban area.
Ecosystem approach
aims to preserve balanced populations of species in their native habitat, establish legally protected wilderness areas and eliminate the populations of nonnative species
Species approach
protecting endangered species by identifying them, giving protection and preserving them in their crucial habitats
Wildlife Management Approach
manages game species for sustained yield by using laws to regulate, hunting, harvest quotas, developing population management plans, and international treaties.
Bioinformatics
the applied science of managing, analyzing, and communicating biological information; involves building computer databases, providing computer tools to find, visualize, and analyze the information, and providing means for communicating the information
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES)
treaty signed by 136 countries; lists almost 700 species that cannot be commercially traded as live specimens or wildlife products because they are endangered or threatened
Lacey Act of 1900
prohibits transporting live or dead wild animals or their parts across state borders without a federal permit
Endangered Species Act of 1973
makes it illegal for Americans to import or trade in any product made from an endangered or threatened species unless it is used for an approved scientific purpose or to enhance the survival of the species
Habitat Conservation Plans (HCP)
long-term endangered species management plans
Egg Pulling
involves collecting wild eggs laid by critically endangered bird species and then hatching them in zoos or research centers
Captive Breeding
some or all wild individuals of a critically endangered species captured for breeding in captivity, with the aim of reintroducing the offspring into the wild
Embryo Transfer
surgical implantation of eggs of one species into a surrogate mother of another species
Cross-Fostering
having the young of a rare species raised by parents of a similar species
Population Viability Analysis (PVA)
A method of predicting whether or not a population will persist for a certain number of generations. Based on current and projected habitat conditions and resource needs, genetic variability, interactions with other species, reproductive rates and population dynamics.
Minimum Viable Population (MVP)
The smallest population size at which a species is able to sustain its numbers and survive
Minimum Dynamic Area (MDA)
Minimum area of suitable habitat needed to maintain the minimum viable population.
Safe Harbor Agreements
Landowners voluntarily agree to take specified steps to restore, improve, or maintain habitat for threatened or endangered species located on their land. In return, land owners get technical help, assurances that the land or resources will not face future restrictions once agreement ends, and assurances that after the agreement expires land owners can return the property to its original condition without penalty.
Candidate Conservation Agreements
Agree to help conserve species population that is declining but not yet endangered or threatened in exchange for technical help and assurances that no additional resource use restrictions will be imposed on the land covered by the agreement if the species is listed as endangered or threatened in the future.
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