Chapter 7 E.S.
What causes most coastal pollution in the United States?
Industrial waste and sewage
Plankton form the (Base Pinnacle) of the marine food web. _
Base
Barnacles are a type of(nekton benthos), or bottom-dwelling, organisms. _
Benthos
Which of the following is not characteristic of salt marshes and mangrove swamps?
Both are dominated by marsh grasses
Which of the following statements is not correct?
Rivers generally move faster, and their oxygen levels decrease, as they near the ocean.
Excessive nutrient growth in an aquatic ecosystem can be accelerated by (runoff industrial pollutants). _
Runoff
Downstream, a river often widens and flows more (slowly swiftly). _
Slowly
Upstream, a river is usually cold and flows (slowly swiftly) through a shallow riverbed. _
Swiftly
Coral reefs are intricately shaped rocklike structures that are formed as a result of
The secretion of calcium carbonate by tiny marine animals.
The arrangement of organisms in the open ocean is determined by the
amount of nutrients and sunlight that are available
Estuaries
are ecosystems where both fresh water and salt water are present
In the _____ zone, life is diverse and abundant.
littoral
What are the two main types of freshwater wetlands?
marshes and swamps
The majority of marine organisms are found in
shallow coastal waters
The types of organisms found in a pond or lake depend on
the amount of sunlight available, the temperature of the water, the presence of nutrients
Fish are a type of (nekton benthos), or free-swimming, organisms. _
Nekton
Which of the following is a threat to coral reefs?
Oil spills, sewage, and pesticides.
What mainly distinguishes nekton from benthos?
One swims freely and the other often lives attached to a hard surface.
The least productive marine ecosystem is the (open ocean coastal water) . _
Open ocean
Why doesn't photosynthesis occur in deep ocean water?
There is no sunlight
Corals live only in shallow, (warm cool) water where there is enough light for photosynthesis. _
Warm
Which of the following is not characteristic of wetlands?
Wetlands are limited to inland freshwater environments.
As they flow down a mountain to flatter ground, rivers generally become
Wider, warmer, and slower
In the _____ zone, the water is cool and dark.
benthic
Swamps are commonly found on
flat, poorly drained land
Which of the following is not an environmental function of wetlands?
increasing runoff
Most pollutants that enter estuaries break down over time, yet they are still considered a problem because
it is the volume of the pollutants, more than the time factor, that harms estuaries
Two threats to ocean ecosystems are
nutrient runoff and industrial waste discharges, overfishing and entanglement of marine mammals in trawl nets, sewage and algal blooms
Which organism produces most of the food in an aquatic ecosystem?
phytoplankton
Estuaries are very productive ecosystems because they receive fresh nutrients from
rivers and oceans
Which ecosystem has the highest level of salinity?
salt marsh