MARINE BIOME

Introduction
A. ESTUARY
Estuary, semienclosed coastal area, where seawater mixes with fresh water from rivers.
Estuaries and their surrounding wetlands are bodies of water usually found where rivers meet the sea

"An estuary is a partly enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it,
and with a free connection to the open sea."[[3]].Estuaries are transition zones between rivers and the
sea, which differ from both in abiotic and biotic factors [1]. They are also among the most highly
productive ecosystems on the earth. The estuarine environment is characterized by a constant mixing of
freshwater, saline seawater, and sediment, which is carried into the estuary from the sea and land. The
mixture and fluctuation of salt and freshwater impose challenges to , the animals and microbes. Along
the gradient of conditions from the open sea into the sheltered estuary the salinity ranges from full
strength seawater to freshwater. Associated change is sedimentary conditions from fine sediment to
coarse sediments. Other changes include nutrient input, pollutant and chemical concentration along with
estuarine flows.
The activities of microorganisms dominate the functions and material cycling of estuarine ecosystems.
Various nutrients flows dominated by microbial activities are processed in an estuary. Large numbers of
bacteria, fungi and protozoa have been found in estuaries and benthic sediments. Their distribution,
species abundances and activities interact with their physical and chemical environment.
The importance of estuary

The productivity and variety of estuarine habitats support a wonderful abundance and diversity of
species. Thousands of species of fish, shore birds, marine mammals, clams, shellfish and other wildlife
survive in and around estuarine habitats. Many fish and shellfish species, including most commercially
and recreationally important species, depend on the sheltered waters of estuaries as home to spawn and
for their offspring to grow and live. Due to the high productivity of living organisms, migratory birds
also take estuaries as ideal places for resting and reproducing. In addition to serving as important
habitats for wildlife, estuaries also provide valuable environmental services. The water flowing to the
ocean carries sediments, organic and inorganic nutrients, and pollutants. Much of the sediments and
pollutants are filtered out when they flow through wetlands, swamps and salt marshes. This filtration
process deposits harmful pollutants and then creates an environment for microbial biodegradation of
these sediments. Estuarine plants also can absorb tide and storm surges, providing peaceful and stable
habitats for widelife. This natural buffer helps to prevent erosion and stabilize the coast. The transition
character of estuaries provides important research value for scientists. A wide range of problems in
biology, geology, chemistry, physics, and sociology are studied in and around estuaries. Estuaries also
provide a great deal of aesthetic enjoyment for the people who live, work, or recreate in and around
them.

Many plant and animal species thrive in estuaries. The calm waters provide a safe area for small fish,
shellfish, migrating birds and shore animals. The waters are rich in nutrients such as plankton and
bacteria. Decomposing plant matter, called detritus, provides food for many species.

The estuarine crocodile, for example, is an apex predator of tropical Australian and Southeast Asian
estuaries. The estuarine crocodile is the largest reptile in the world. A specimen caught in the
Philippines in 2011 measured 6.4 meters (21 feet).

Like most apex predators, estuarine crocodiles eat almost anything. This means the estuary must
support a wide variety of food webs. Estuarine crocodiles do not usually consume producers—sea
grasses, seaweeds, mushrooms, and plankton in the estuary. However, they do prey on consumers in
the second trophic level, which rely on these plants and other photosynthetic organisms for food:
insects, mollusks, birds, and fruit bats. Estuarine crocodiles also prey on consumers at the third trophic
level, such as boars and snakes (and, rarely, people).
Estuarine crocodiles are ideally adapted to the brackish water of river estuaries. They can survive
equally well in freshwater and saltwater ecosystems. During the rainy season, estuarine crocodiles live
in freshwater rivers and streams. They feed on fish such as barramundi, and terrestrialspecies such as
kangaroos and monkeys. During the dry season, estuarine crocodiles swim to river mouths and even
out to sea. Fish remain the main component of their diet. Some estuarine crocodiles have even been
known to attack and consume sharks.

Estuarine crocodiles have also adapted to seasonally vanishing estuaries. The reptiles can go months
without eating. Estuarine crocodiles can simply not eat when the estuary shrinks and food becomes
scarce.

1. Physical Environment
Physical characteristics
Water movementis the dominant controlling factor in estuarine ecosystem. The changes of physical
factors occur quickly relative to biological and chemical transformations.
Circulation
Circulation is defined as the residual water movement, which is calculated based on different time
scales. Circulation stimulates fluxes of dissolved constituents and particulate materials such as
sediments, detritus, bacteria, and plankton. The energy driving estuarine circulation is from solar
heating, gravitational attraction between the moon and the sun, and wind. A given estuary usually is
dominated by one circulation type, but other modes of circulation can become predominant
temporarily.[2]
Mixing events
In Estuaries, salt water mixes with water derived from land drainage. Mixing is the process whereby
water is diluted or redistributed with other water body. Mixing events can be divided by long or
short time scale. The estuarine circulation movements are the primary mechanism of mixing. Mixing
changes the distribution in time and space of dissolved material in fresh and ocean water. The
estuarine salinity alone beach is the most important indicator of mixing, that is, salinity can be used
to track water source and mixing frequency

2. Chemical Environment
Salinity
Substantial river discharges and relatively shallow nearshore waters often result in large fluctuations
and strong spatial gradients in salinity. In most estuaries, reduced salinity is associated with finer
substrates, the finer substrate, the easier reduce salinity from estuaries.Salinity of estuaries usually
increases away from a freshwater source such as a river, although evaporation sometimes causes the
salinity at the head of the estuary to exceed seawater. The vertical salinity structure and the nature of
salinity variation along the estuary are the features of the salinity structure of coastal waterways.[5]
Oxidation
Much of the organic matter carried to an estuary by rivers, produced by phytoplankton, or derived
from marshes, is deposited on the sediment surface. Oxygen is the most important electron acceptor
in organic matter respiration, but at the water column of anerobic estuarine or saturated sediment
sulfate become more significant electron acceptors. The major product of sulfate reduction is
hydrogen sulfide, which gives salt marsh soils a pungent smell. In general, the environment is
oxidizing near the sediment–water interface and more reduced deeper in the sediment.
Autotrophic nutrients
Autotrophic nutrients are important for the functional estuarine ecosystems, because they are the raw
materials for the primary producers. The concentrations of these nutrients change in estuaries due to
the mixing of river and ocean water. Mcrobial heterotrophic activity and primary production play
very important roles in the formation and turnover of organic matter in eutrophic estuaries. Higher
microbial uptake and respiration rates happen when high organic nutrient input
3. Geological Features

4. Photosynthetic Organisms

5. Heterotrophs

6. Human Impact
Estuaries are excellent sites for community living. They provide freshwater for drinking and hygiene.
Access to both rivers and oceans helps the development of trade and communication.
In fact, the earliest civilizations in the world developed around estuaries. Ur, in what is now Iraq,
developed around 3800 BCE near the estuary of the Euphrates River where it met the Persian Gulf.

Ur was a sophisticated urban area, with a population of more than 60,000 at its height. Its estuary was
the most important port on the Persian Gulf. All ships carrying trade goods from places such as India
and the Arabian Peninsula had to pass through Ur. The estuary's wetlands and flood plains provided a
rich source of wild game and allowed for the development of irrigation and agriculture.

Today, Ur is an archaeological site well inland from the Persian Gulf coast. The landscape has changed,
and the estuary of the Euphrates is more than 300 kilometers (186 miles) away.

Many modern cities have grown around estuaries, including Jakarta, Indonesia, New York City, New
York; and Tokyo, Japan. These urban areas have undergone rapid change, and put their estuaries at
environmental risk through land reclamation, pollution, and overfishing.

Land Reclamation
Communities have filled in the edges of estuaries for housing and industry since the times of Ur. This
process is called land reclamation.

Jakarta's 10 million residents have one of the highest population densities in the world. To create more
space for homes and businesses, Indonesian officials have dredged the Ciliwung River and Java Bay.
The sand and silt dredged from the river bottom and seafloor fortify the city's beaches and create new
land.

Land reclamation comes at a price, however. Jakarta's fisheries are disrupted by the dredging. This
reduces the potential profits for restaurants and markets, as well as fishers.

Destroying the estuary also creates the conditions for flooding. Estuaries provide a natural barrier to
ocean waves, which can erode the shoreline and destroy coastal homes and businesses. Jakarta is
particularly at risk for tsunami damage, as the area experiences frequent earthquakes.

Pollution
Pollution accumulates in estuaries. The Hudson-Raritan Estuary, where the Hudson and Raritan rivers
meet the Atlantic Ocean, is one of the most-trafficked and most-polluted estuaries in the world.
Pollution from ships routinely spills into the Hudson-Raritan Estuary, just south of New York City.
Debris in the estuary, including fuel, garbage, sewage, and ballast, remained unregulated for decades.

Runoff from agriculture and industry in New York and New Jersey also contributed a toxic estuarine
environment. Industrial waste and pesticides travel downstream and settle in the water and sediment of
the estuary.
 Today, strict regulations and community activities are working to protect and restore the Hudson-Raritan
Estuary. The restoration of oyster beds is an important part of many projects.

Oysters are a keystone species in the estuary, filter feeders that naturally help regulate toxins in the
water. Millions of oyster beds greeted Henry Hudson when he entered the river in 1609. By the middle
of the 20th century, however, the few remaining oysters were too toxic for human consumption. Today,
several environmental groups are establishing oyster beds to repopulate the region's native species and
reduce pollution in the estuary.

Overfishing
Many estuaries have been overfished. Pacific bluefin tuna are not endangered, but their range has been
drastically reduced. Japan provides one of the largest markets for bluefin tuna, and the fish used to swim
in the estuary of Tokyo Bay.

Bluefin tuna are large, predatory fish. They require an expansive habitat and many kilograms of food
every day. As Tokyo's population grew and technology made it easier to catch more fish with less time
and money, Tokyo Bay's bluefin tuna population shrank.

Today, there is not a bluefin tuna population in Tokyo Bay. However, Japanese scientists have
established a successful tuna fish farming technique. Farm-raised tuna does not have a direct
environmental impact on the Tokyo Bay estuary.

Indonesian, American, and Japanese governments and environmental groups struggle to promote
sustainable development in estuaries. Sustainable development aims to preserve the environment while
satisfying people's economic standard of living.

Importance of Estuary
1. Estuary serves as habitat to a diversity of species due to its calm and nutrient-laden waters.
Thousands of species of fish, birds, marine mammals, clams, shellfish and other life forms survive
in and around estuary.
2. Many fishes and shellfish species depend on the waters of estuaries as a home to spawn and for
their offspring to grow and live. Several migratory birds also use estuaries as an ideal place for
resting and reproduction.
3. It also provides valuable environmental service. The water flowing to the ocean carries sediment,
organic and inorganic nutrients and pollutants such as PAH (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon)
along with it. Much of these residues are filtered out when they flow through wetlands, swamps and
salt marshes, depositing harmful pollutants in these transition zones. This creates an ideal
environment for microbial bioremediation.
4. Estuarine plants can also absorb tide and storm surges, providing stable and peaceful habitat for
wildlife. This natural buffer helps to prevent soil erosion.
5. They also provide aesthetic enjoyment for people who live, work or recreate in and around such
areas.
Salt wedge estuaries
A salt wedge estuary has minimal mixing, and the salt water forms a wedge, thickest at the seaward
end, tapering to a very thin layer at the landward limit. The penetration of this wedge changes with
the flow of the river. During flood conditions the wedge will retreat, and during low flows it will
extend farther upriver. The mouth of the Mississippi River in the United States is a classic example.
The mixing at the boundary between fresh and salt water causes the surface layer to entrain salt
water and become more saline as it moves toward the sea. To compensate for the entrained salt
water, there is a slow movement of the salt water up the estuary at depth. Because bottom waters
are rich in nutrients derived from decomposing plant and animal remains, this circulation has the
effect of pumping nutrients into the estuary and stimulating biological production.
Organic and inorganic particles carried by rivers tend to flocculate (aggregate into a mass) and
sediment out when they encounter salt water. They sink from the freshwater layer to the salt wedge
and are carried upstream. When the organic matter decomposes, it adds still more nutrients to the
estuary. The inorganic matter settles on the bottom and provides an enriched sediment for flowering
plants adapted to salt water. Between the tide marks, mangrove forests flourish in tropical conditions,
and salt marshes form in temperate and subarctic conditions. Below low tide, sea grasses form dense
beds on muddy substrates. In areas of an estuary where water movement is vigorous enough to
remove sediment, leaving a stony or rocky bottom, rooted plants are replaced by seaweeds. These
have a special structure known as a holdfast, which attaches itself to any hard
surface. Phytoplankton floating freely in the water benefit from the high level of nutrients, especially
near the head of the estuary, and grow rapidly, providing food for the microscopic animals in the
water column, the zooplankton. As this community is carried downstream in the surface waters, dead
organisms and the fecal pellets of the animals sink toward the bottom and enter the salt wedge to be
carried back to the head of the estuary. As they decompose, they add still more nutrients to the
water.

Partially mixed estuaries

BRITANNICA STORIES

In a partially mixed estuary, the vigorous rise and fall of the tide generates strong turbulence and
causes partial mixing between the fresh water above and the salt water below. Under these
conditions the river flow entrains 10 to 20 or more times its own volume of salt water, and the
compensatory landward flow of seawater near the bottom is correspondingly increased. The effect
of Earth’s rotation (Coriolis effect) is to cause the surface flow to be stronger on the right-hand side
facing seaward in the Northern Hemisphere and on the opposite side in the Southern Hemisphere.
The bottom flow is stronger on the opposite side of the estuary.

Vertically homogeneous estuaries

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Periodic Table of the Elements

In a vertically homogeneous estuary the river flow is weak, and the tidal flow is strong.
Consequently, no stratification occurs, and salt water may even move up the river channel. Salinity
levels are nearly the same from top to bottom at any given place in such estuaries; however, the
salinity is lowest where the river enters the estuary and highest near the sea.

Fjords
The fjord-type estuary was originally formed by a glacier and has a submerged ridge, or sill, near
its mouth, composed of glacial deposits. It may be regarded as a partially mixed estuary in which
the bottom has been replaced by a basin of undiluted seawater held in place by the sill. When
entrainment in river flow causes a strong landward flow at the bottom, water rises over the sill and
enters the estuary at intermediate depth, leaving the deep waters undisturbed. Only major intrusions
of seawater caused by storms can displace the deep water. Fjords, because of their glacial origin,
commonly have steep sides and very little shallow water. Hence, the development of salt marshes
or sea grass beds is minimal, but seaweeds colonize the rocky shores.