Marine Biology and Habitat

By: Jenna and Hannah!

What is a HABITAT?• A habitat is a place where communities of organisms

live.• The 3 main types of ocean habitats are:

the open water The sandy bottom

The shore• 70% of our planet is water. 96% of this water is marine

or salt water. The 3 habitats listed above may be the biggest, but within the waters there are many types of habitats.

Artificial Habitat An artificial habitat is human made. An example

would be a fish tank. The organisms inside of it depend on people for survival. They usually include plastic plants.

PLANKTON

Plankton is a drifting organism that lives in an aquatic Environment, including both fresh water and marine. They are the base of the food web in these environments.Nekton is very similar to plankton, except for the way they Move. Plankton free floats with the currant, but nekton Actively swims where they want to go.

Benthos• Benthos are the organisms that which live on

and or near the seabed, also known as the benthic zone. They live in tidal pools along the ocean floor. Some examples are starfish, oysters, clams, sea cucumbers, and brittle stars.

Adaption's of Marine Organisms• Adaption is a evolutionary process when organisms becomes

better suited to living in a particular habitat.• Marine organisms have adapted to the great diversity of habitats

and environmental conditions in the marine environment.• Adaption's are grouped into three main categories: structural,

physiological, behavioral.• Structural: physical adaption’s of the organism.• Physiological: relate to how the organism’s metabolism works

(eg: regulate bodily functions such as breathing & temp)• Behavioral: learned or inherited behaviors that help the

organism survive.

Feeding relationships

Symbiosis• Symbiosis means living together and when speaking of marine

biology it refers to a close relationship between two species. An example is a clown fish and an anemone.

• These symbiotic relationships can be divided into three categories:

• Mutualism- both species benefit.• Commensalism- One specie benefits and one is not affected.• Parasitism- One specie benefits and the other is harmed.

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TANKS FER WASHIN