| Term | Definition |
|---|
| continental shelf | gently sloped, shallow section of the edge of a continent, extending from the shore to the point where the slope gets deep |
| shelf break | outer edge of the continental shelf |
| benthos | marine organisms that live on the sea bottom |
| nekton | marine organisms that swim strongly enough to move against the ocean current |
| plankton | marine organisms that cannot swim strongly enough to move against the ocean current |
| subtidal | area that stays underwater regardless of the tides |
| soft-bottom communities | continental shelf made up of soft sediments such as sand and mud; frequently flat |
| hard-bottom communities | continental shelf made up of hard sediments; prominent in some locations near Antarctica |
| infauna | organisms that live under the sediment of an ecosystem |
| epifauna | benthic animals that move about the surface of the sea bottom or are firmly attached to it |
| unvegetated soft-bottom environment | soft-bottom environment with little vegetation |
| vegetated soft-bottom environment | soft-bottom environment with plentiful vegetation |
| deposit feeder | organism that ingest detritus |
| meiofauna | microscopic organisms living in between marine sediment particles |
| suspension feeder | organisms that feed on suspended bits of detritus and plankton, usually through filtering the water |
| scavenger | organism that feeds on whatever dead organisms found lying on top of or just underneath the substrate |
| turtle grass | soft-bottom vegetation characterized by flat, strap-like blades; tropical |
| eelgrass | soft-bottom vegetation characterized by its ribbon-like shape; temperate |
| rocky-bottom community | hard-bottom community that is densely covered with a wide variety of seaweeds |
| kelp bed | hard-bottom community dominated by kelp that are not tall enough to form a surface canopy |
| kelp | large, brown seaweed that can grow to heights of up to 30 meters |
| kelp forest | hard-bottom community dominated by kelp that are tall enough to reach the surface and form a canopy |
| stipe | trunk-like support that extends upward from the holdfast of kelp |
| holdfast | root-like formation that attaches the kelp to the substrate |
| blade | leaf-like structure at the end of the stipe |
| pneumatocyst | hollow float located at the base of the blade |
| alternation of generations | life cycle that alternates between a sexual stage (gametophyte) and an asexual stage (sporophyte) |
| gametophyte generation | haploid generation of the alternation of generations life cycle |
| sporophyll | special blade on a kelp that produces haploid spores |
| understory | area of dark, dimly lit substrate resulting from the extra layer of shade created by seaweeds that grow to a mid-water depth |
| drift kelp | little piece of floating kelp |
Combine with other sets
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