Aquatic Ecosystems Key Terms

marshes

contain non-woody plants such as cattails

mangrove swamps

dense growth of mangrove trees in swampy areas

swamps

dominated by woody plants such as trees

zooplankton

drifting animals (microscopic or large like jellyfish)

Phytoplankton

drifting microscopic plants that account for most of the food for most aquatic ecosystems

bogs

filled with sphagnum or peat moss

fens

ideal habitat for amphibians because of the continuous moisture

coral reefs

limestone ridges built by tiny coral animals called coral polyps and the alga that lives inside them

dissolved oxygen

microscopic bubbles of gaseous oxygen that are mixed in water and avabilable to organisms for respiration

Plankton

microscopic organisms that float or drift freely in the water

benthos

organisms that live at the bottom of oceans or bodies of fresh water

chemosynthetic organisms

organisms that obtain carbon through chemosynthesis

runoff

precipitation that can carry pollutants from land into bodies of water

brackish water

slightly salty water

Salinity

the amount of dissolved salts the water contain

benthic zone

the bottom region of oceans and bodies of fresh water

coral polyps

tiny, soft bodied organisms related to sea anemones and jellyfish

salt marshes

wetland full of river deposits which support low-lying plant such as salt tolerant grasses

coral bleching

when a coral becomes stressed and expels most of its colorful algae, leaving an underlying ghostly white color

coastal wetlands

coastal land areas covered by salt water for all or part of the time

eutrophic lakes

a lake that has a large amount of algae and plant growth due to nutrients

barrier islands

a long ridge of sand or narrow island that lies parallel to the shore

littoral zone

a shallow zone in a freshwater habitat where light reaches the bottom and nurtures plants

rhizoids

a thin, rootlike structure that anchors a moss and absorbs water and nutrients for the plan

nekton

all organisms that swim actively in open water, independent of currents

Wetland

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

eutrophication

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

limnetic zone

area farther from shore and no rooted plants

estuary

area in which fresh water from a river mixes with salt water from the ocean

freshwater wetlands

areas of land with special soils and plants that are covered with fresh water for part of the year