Marine Organisms F. Hafer 2012

Marine Life NOTE: Page references cited are for the book OCEAN: The World's Last Wilderness Revealed, published by the American Museum of Natural History. This is an excellent reference volume, and it is available for less than $20 from many online sources. Approximately 25% of all known living plant and animal species live in the ocean.1 Most of them live in the photic zone of the ocean surface. 20% of all animal species live in the ocean; more than 90% of those are benthic. 4% of all plant species live in the ocean; nearly all are planktonic algae. Autotrophs: organisms that convert inorganic material into food by photosynthesis, or chemosynthesis. Heterotrophs: organisms that cannot convert inorganic material into food, and must consume autotrophs, other heterotrophs, or organic debris for food. Saprotrophs: organisms that consume decomposing organic matter, sometimes called "bottom feeders". Prokaryote: single-cell organism that lacks a nucleus or other membrane-bound organelles. Eukaryote: organism with cells that have a nucleus and other membrane-bound organelles.

Classification of Living Organisms Note: The classification of living organisms has been in a state of transition for the past 150 years. As our understanding of molecular and evolutionary biology increases, new classifications are devised. The acceptance of new classification schemes by all in the biological community is not automatic and may take years of research. The classification presented here is most common in current biology textbooks. Domains based on rRNA (Woese,1977); genomes; Bacteria (single-cell prokaryotes), Archaea (similar to bacteria, often found in extreme environments), and Eukaryotes. Kingdoms based mainly on differences in nutrition (autotrophs, heterotrophs, saprotrophs) 5-Kingdom System: Animalia; Plantae; Fungi (similar to plants, but saprotrophic); Protista (colonial single-celled eukaryotes, and multicellular autotrophs and heterotrophs) ; Bacteria (prokaryotic bacteria; subkingdoms of Archaea and Eubacteria) Phylums groupings of animals based on body plan, as well as developmental, internal organizations. Best known marine phyla include Mollusca, Porifera, Cnidaria, Arthropoda, Echinodermata, and Chordata. The plant kingdom uses Division instead of Phylum. Classes the next level of the taxonomy hierarchy is based on body forms and functions such as reproductive strategies common to a group of otherwise unrelated animals. Examples of common marine Classes are Mammalia; Chondrichthyes (cartilaginous fishes), and Osteichthyes (bony fishes). Orders groups of animals based on some common characteristic such as body shape, mode of movement, food source, etc. Marine examples include Carnivora (meat-eating), Cetacea (air-breathing whales and dolphins with horizontal flukes for propulsion). All tuna belong to Order Perciformes (perch-like fishes). You are of the Order Primates. Families Genera are grouped into families, which are major groups of generally similar organisms. A marine example is Delphinidae (dolphins) which is a family in the Order Cetacea. Your family is Hominidae, which includes humans and other great apes. Genera groups of species that are closely related, but not interbreeding. Your Genus Homo (includes ancestors going back 2.5 my); A common marine Genus is Tursiops (bottlenose dolphins). Species this is the fundamental unit of taxonomy. Members of a species have the potential of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. Your Genus species is Homo sapiens (which only goes back about 130,000 years). The Tursiops Genus of dolphins includes Tursiops truncatus (common bottlenose dolphin). "Keep pond clean or fish get sick" 1. Census of Marine Life

Marine Organisms F. Hafer 2012

Classification of Marine Organisms according to Habitat: PLANKTON: Floating organisms; usually no self-locomotion; wander with the currents; have high surface area to volume ratios; maintain vertical position in the water column. (Photosynthesizing plankton produce as much oxygen as all the earths forests.)

PHYTOPLANKTON: plants including diatoms, coccoliths, and sargassum ZOOPLANKTON: animals including foraminiferans, copepods, and jellyfish BACTERIOPLANKTON: free-floating bacteria Plankton according to SIZE: Macroplankton (large) or Picoplankton (microscopic) Plankton according to LIFESTYLE: Holoplankton (stay planktonic entire life)

Meroplankton (planktonic for part of life time, usually larval stage; includes all fishes; following the planktonic stage, organism becomes nektonic or benthic) NEKTON: Swimmers, mover under their own power horizontally and vertically; includes fish, squid, marine mammals and reptiles, and us when we swim in the ocean. Horizontal movement (habitat area) limited by salinity, temperature, and food source Vertical movement (habitat area) limited by salinity, temperature, food source, and pressure BENTHIC: Living at the bottom of the ocean, either neritic or oceanic. EPIFAUNA: Live on or near the ocean floor INFAUNA: Live in or burrow into the ocean floor Some species photosynthesize and must live only on shallow floors (

Marine Organisms F. Hafer 2012

Important Marine Phyla with references to the book OCEAN: The World's Last Wilderness Revealed Domain Bacteria: single-celled prokaryotes, no nucleus, single chromosome, high metabolic diversity Many phyla in the oceans. Domain Archaea: superficially like bacteria, chemosynthetic, often live in extreme environments (high heat and salt); many phyla in the oceans, especially near mid-ocean ridges, and high salinity regions. Domain Eukarya: single- and multi-celled organisms, cell has nucleus and other organelles Kingdom Protista: single-celled, colonial, and multicellular eukaryotes; pp.234-237 Phylum Chrysophyta: diatoms, coccolithophores, silicoflagellates Phylum Pyrrophyta: dinoflagellates, zooxanthellae Phylum Sarcodina: amoebas, foraminiferans, radiolarians Phylum Chlorophyta: single and multicellular green algae; pp.250 Phylum Phaeophyta: brown algae, kelp; pp.238-245 Phylum Rhodophyta: red algae, encrusting and coralline forms Kingdom Fungi: mushrooms, lichens, molds; not well represented in oceans; pp.256-257 Kingdom Plantae: photosynthetic autotrophs; pp.252-255 Kingdom Animalia: multicellular heterotrophs Phylum Porifera: sponges; pp.260-261 Phylum Cnidaria: jellyfish, etc.; pp.262-272 Class Hydrozoa: Portuguese Man-of-War; polyp-like with medusa life stage Class Scyphozoa: jellyfish with no polyp stage Class Cubozoa: sea wasps Class Anthozoa: sea anemones, sea pens, coral Phylum Ctenophora: comp jellies; p.319 Phylum Platyhelminthes: flatworms, tapeworms, many parasitic; pp.273-274 Phylum "emertea: ribbon worms; p.275 Phylum Gastroticha: microscopic , ciliated, lives between grains of sediment; p.318 Phylum Kinoryncha: small, spiny segmented, worm-like; p.318 Phylum Bryozoa: common, encrusting, colonial; p.307 Phylum Brachiopoda: lamp shells, bivalve animals, ancient clam-like; p.227 Phylum Mollusca: second largest animal phylum; pp.278-291 Class Gastropoda: snails, abalones (a sea otter food), sea slugs (nudibranchs) Class Cephalopoda: squid, octopuses, nautiluses Class Bivalvia: clams, oysters, scallops, mussels Phylum Arthropoda: exoskeleton, jointed legs, largest animal phylum; pp.292-306 Class Crustacea: copepods, barnacles, krill, shrimp, lobsters, crabs Class Chelicerata: horseshoe crabs (Of what medical use are these animals?) Phylum Annelida: segmented worms, polychaetes, feather dusters; pp.276-277 Phylum Vestimentifera: giant tube worms; p.317

Marine Organisms F. Hafer 2012

Kingdom Animalia, continued. Phylum Echinodermata: spiny-skinned, benthic, radial symmetry; pp.308-314 Class Asteroidea: sea stars Class Ophiuroidea: brittle stars Class Echinoidea: sea urchins (preferred food of sea otters); p.312 Class Holothuroidea: sea cucumbers; p.314 Class Crinoidea: crinoids, feather stars; p.313 Phylum Chordata: with central notochord Subphylum Urochordata: sea squirts, tunicates; p.320 Subphylum Vertebrata: with backbone Class Myxini: jawless fishes, lampreys, hagfish; p.322 Class Chondrichthyes: cartilage skeleton, sharks, rays ; p.324-337 Class Osteichthyes: bony fishes, includes most food fish; p.338-371 Order Silurifomes: catfish Order Salmoniformes: salmon, some anadromous (?) Order Clupeformes: herring, sardines Order Gadimormes: cod Order Perciformes: snapper, mahi-mahi, tuna, mackerel, sailfish Order Pleuroformes: turbot, flounder, sole Order Lophiformes: the weirdest fishes, p.352-353 Class Reptilia: sea snakes, alligators, crocodiles, turtles (adult turtles have no predators, except humans); p.372-381 Class Aves: birds; p.382-403 Order Sphenisciformes: penguins Order Procellariformes: albatrosses, petrels Order Charadriliformes: sea gulls Order Pelecaniformes: what type of birds are in this order? Class Mammalia: warm-blooded, mammary glands; p.404-423 Order Cetacea: whales, porpoises, dolphins; pp.412-422 Order Sirenia: dugongs, manatees; p.423 Order Carnivora: meat-eating Suborder Pinnipedia: seals, sea lions, walruses; p.408 Suborder Fissipedia: sea otters; p.406 Suborder Ursidae: polar bears Order Primates: monkeys, baboons, apes, orangutans, lemurs, humans Family Hominidae: great apes, humans Genus Homo: modern humans, and ancestors Species: sapiens (wise), modern humans