Chapter 7

Barrier islands

A long ridge of sand or narrow island that lies parallel to the shore and helps to protect the mainland and coastal wetlands from storms and ocean waves and often provide habitat for wildlife

Swamps

A type of freshwater wetland dominated by woody plants such as flood tolerant trees and shrubs. Occur on flat, poorly drained wooded land and often near streams

Marshes

A type of freshwater wetland which contains nonwoody plants such as cat tails. They tend to occur on low, flat lands and have few if any woody trees or plants.

Estuary

An area in which fresh water from a river mixes with salt water from the ocean. It is a nutrient rich area

Wetland

An area of land that is periodically underwater or whose soil contains a great deal of moisture

Limnetic Zone

An area of open water farther from the shore with no rooted plants

Eutrophication

An increase in the amount of nutrients such as nitrates in a marine or aquatic ecosystem

Freshwater wetlands

Areas of land with special souls and plants that are covered with fresh water for at least part of the year. There are two main types- marshes and swamps.

Coastal wetlands

Areas that are covered by salt water for all or part of the time.

Benthos

Bottom dwellers such as mussels, worms and barnacles. Most of them live attached to hard surfaces or burrow into softer sediments ( one of the three groups of aquatic organisms )

Phytoplankton

Drifting algae which are the food base for most aquatic ecosystems ( mostly microscopic )

Zooplankton

Drifting animals which may be microscopic or as large as a jellyfish

Bogs

Found in freshwater swamps filled with sphagnum trees or peat moss and found in colder climates. In warmer climates they are Cyprus swamps

Mangrove swamps

Found in tropical and subtropical zones. They are swampy areas containing dense growth of mangrove trees. They help to protect the coastline from erosion and reduce the damage from storms. They provide habitat for about 2,000 animal species

Nekton

Free-swimming organisms such as fish and whales ( one of the three groups of aquatic organisms )

Types of marshes

Freshwater and brackish(salty)

Fens

Ideal habitat for amphibians because of the moist environments

Salt marshes

In estuaries, where rivers deposit their load of mineral rich mud. They support communities of birds, fish and clams. It is a maritime habitat characterized by grasses, sedges and other plants that have adapted to continual, periodic flooding; found primarily throughout temperate and subarctic regions

Eutrophic lakes

Lakes with large amounts of algae and plant growth from excessive nutrients ( bacteria in these are often deprived of oxygen )

Coral reefs

Limestone ridges built by tiny coral animals called coral polyps and the algae that live inside them. Found in tropical regions and composed of coral fragments that are deposited around organic remains

Rhizoids

Mosses use these these rootlike things to anchor themselves to rocks

Littoral zone

Nutrient rich shallow zone in freshwater habitat where light reaches the bottom and nurtures plants. Near the shore where aquatic life is abundant and diverse.

Plankton

Organisms that cannot swim against the currents. They are drifters. ( one of the three groups of aquatic organisms )

Chemosynthetic

Organisms that derive nutrients from chemicals in the water or substrate. They often live in deep waters where light can not reach for photsynthesis

Runoff

Precipitation that can carry pollutants like fertilizers from land into bodies of water

Salinity

The amount of dissolved salts the water contains. Helps to determine the types of organisms in an aquatic ecosystem.

Benthic Zone

The bottom of a freshwater pond or lake, which is inhabited by decomposers, insect larvae and clams. Too deep for photosynthesis to occur. Fish here are adapted to colder water.

Photosynthesis

What plants use to make their own food

Coral bleaching

When coral reefs turn white due to the surrounding water being too hot or cold, or too muddy, polluted or high in nutrient water because the algae that live in the corals will leave or die