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Lecture 2
Terminology
Question | Answer |
---|---|
What are organisms incapable of sustained, directed horizontal movement ("wandering" or "drifting")? | plankton |
What are active swimmers called? | nekton |
What are inhabitants of the benthic environment (bottom of a body of water) called? | benthos |
all organisms 0.2-2 micrometers (bacteria, viruses, archaea, +smallest of phytoplankton) | picoplankton |
2-20 micrometers; mainly phytoplankton | nanoplankton |
20-200 micrometers; mostly zooplankton, some phytoplankton | microplankton |
200-2000 micrometers; mostly zooplankton | mesoplankton |
2-20 centimeters; starts nekton | macroplankton |
20-200 centimeters; bigger nekton | megaplankton |
matter of organic origin, but incapable of reproduction (dead) | detritus |
passes through a fine filter | dissolved |
dissolved organic matter; organic material that passes through a fine filter | DOM |
material that does NOT pass through a fine filter, can be detritus OR inorganic material like sediment | particulate |
"open ocean", "blue water", water depth >200 m | oceanic |
beyond low tide out to the edge of the continental shelf (i.e., depth <about 200 m); includes "nearshore" and "estuarine" | coastal |
"in the water" | pelagic |
"on or associated with the ocean floor" | benthic |
two important questions in biological oceanography | how much is there? how fast is it happening? |