Aquatic Life Zones:

2 major categories
1. Marine (saltwater) Or
2. Freshwater

Types of organisms determined

by:
• Salinity
• Temperature
• Sunlight availability
• D.O. (dissolved oxygen)
• Nutrient availability
 Major types of Organisms
• Plankton: small free-floating
organisms

– Phytoplankton: plant-like
• Photosynthetic
• diatoms, protists, etc
- Zooplankton: animal-like
• Heterotrophic
• Protozoans
• Larvae
• Copopods, cnidarians, krill…etc.

- Ultraplankton: TINY (less than 2 micrometers)

• includes bacteria
• Benthos (benthic organisms): bottom
dwellers – anchor to one spot, burrow, or
walk along bottom
• Nekton: active swimmers – don’t follow
currents
 Baleen whales: filter feeders
Plates (baleen) hang from upper
jaw – filter plankton from water
includes: humpbacks and blue whales
Toothed whales: teeth used to bite
and chew food
includes:orca (killer whale) and sperm whale
Marine Environments
 Marine Environments
• Receive different amount of sunlight and
nutrients.
• Have different structures:
– Ocean bed can be muddy, sandy, or rocky
– shoreline - smooth, sandy beaches,
– depth- centimeter or kilometers deep
• From diffrent environments different types
of organisms resides in a specific area.
 Marine Lifezone:

Subcategories:
* Coastal
* Open Ocean (Sea)
euphotic zone
bathyal zone
abyssal zone
 Subcategory: Coastal
• High tide to Continental shelf
• Receives enough sunlight
• 90% of all marine species
1. Coral reefs: MOST biodiverse areas of all
aquatic life zones
– “The Aquatic Rainforest”
– Hundreds of thousands of coral polyps
excrete CaCO3 skeletons
– Grow slowly, disrupted easily:
• Biggest threat: sediment run-off

• Bleaching (even from 1 degree temp

increase)
• Removal (aquariums/jewelry)
• Pollution
• Damage (tourists, anchors, natural
disasters)
• Overfishing
• Cyanide/dynamite “fishing”
–1 m2 of reef killed for every fish caught
2. Intertidal zone: shoreline between low and
high tide
• Tides caused by gravitational pull of moon
• Organisms adapted to HARSH conditions
•
4. Coastal wetlands: inlets, bays, sounds,
Mangrove forest swamps
5. Estuary: where freshwater meets
saltwater (mouth of a river)
 Marine Lifezone:

Subcategories:
* Coastal
* Open Ocean (Sea)
euphotic zone
bathyal zone
abyssal zone
 Subcategory: Open Ocean
1. Euphotic zone: top
• Sunlight layer: phtyoplankton =
photosynthesis: HIGH D.O. (dissolved
oxygen) and low dissolved CO2, big fish and
mammals
2. Bathyal zone: middle
• Dimly lit – little/no producers, zooplankton,
smaller fish
3. Abyssal zone: bottom
• Dark, cold, little D.O., nutrients on floor
• Chemosynthetic bacteria at hydrothermal
vents