apes vocab chaps. 7 and 15
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73 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 barrier islands | Long, thin, low offshore islands of sediment that generally run parallel to the shore along some coasts. |
| benthos | third group of organisms. Bottom-dwelling organisms. bottom zone, lots of nutrients here. ex: bacteria, fungi, seaweed, filamentous algae, invertebrates, and fish. |
| coastal wetland | Land along a coastline, extending inland from an estuary, that is covered with salt water all or part of the year. Examples are marshes, bays, lagoons, tidal flats, and mangrove swamps. constant stirring of bottom sediment to make nutrients available. |
| coastal zone | Warm, nutrient-rich, shallow part of the ocean that extends from the high-tide mark on land to the edge of a shelf-like extension of continental land masses known as the continental shelf. is much affected my human activity. have high net primary productivity. constitute 10% of the oceans and contain 90% of all marine species. extends from high-tide ark on land to edge of continental shelf. |
| coral reef | Formation produced by massive colonies containing billions of tiny coral animals, called polyps, that secrete a stony substance around themselves for protection. When the corals die, their empty outer skeletons form layers and cause the reef to grow. They are found in the coastal zones of warm tropical and subtropical oceans. support a diverse and complex ecosystem. grow slow and are vulnerable to damage. thrive in clear, war, fairly shallow water with high salinity. |
| cyanobacteria | Single-celled, prokaryotic, microscopic organisms. They used to be called blue-green algae. |
| estuary | areas where freshwater and saltwater meet. salinity can vary greatly. crucial feeding areas for many types of water fowl. make nutrients available due to constant stirring of bottom sediment. |
| euphotic zone | Upper layer of a body of water through which sunlight can penetrate and support photosynthesis. dissolved oxygen levels are higher near the surface due to photosynthesis in this area. CO2 levers are lower near the surface and higher deeper in the water. predatory fish live here. |
| eutrophic lake | Lake with a large or excessive supply of plant nutrients, mostly nitrates and phosphates. |
| floodplain | Flat valley floor next to a stream channel. For legal purposes, the term often applies to any low area that has the potential for flooding, including certain coastal areas. |
| freshwater life zones | Aquatic systems where water with a dissolved salt concentration of less than 1% by volume accumulates on or flows through the surfaces of terrestrial biomes. Examples are standing bodies of fresh water such as lakes, ponds and inland wetlands and flowing systems such as streams and rivers. |
| inland wetland | Land away from the coast, such as a swamp, marsh, or bog, that is covered all or part of the time with fresh water. |
| intertidal zone | The area of shoreline between low and high tides. provide good examples of distributional limitations. often destroyed by pollution and human activity. |
| invertebrates | Animals that have no backbones. |
| lake | Large natural body of standing fresh water formed when water from precipitation, land runoff, or groundwater flow fills a depression in the earth created by glaciation, earth movement, volcanic activity, or a giant meteorite. |
| mangrove swamps | Swamps found on the coastlines in warm tropical climates. They are dominated by mangrove trees, any of about 55 species of trees and shrubs that can live partly submerged in the salty environment of coastal swamps. |
| mesotrophic lake | Lake with a moderate supply of plant nutrients. |
| nekton | second group of organisms. Strongly swimming organisms found in aquatic systems. Ex. fish, turtles, and whales. |
| oligotrophic lake | deep, nutrient-poor and do not contain much life. |
| open sea | The part of an ocean that is beyond the continental shelf. |
| phytoplankton | (plant plankton) Small, drifting plants, mostly algae and bacteria, found in aquatic ecosystems. |
| plankton | Small plant organisms and animal organisms that float in aquatic ecosystems. one-celled. |
| runoff | Fresh water from precipitation and melting ice that flows on the earth's surface into nearby streams, lakes, wetlands, and reservoirs. |
| stream | Flowing body of surface water. Examples are creeks and rivers. |
| surface water | Precipitation that does not infiltrate the ground or return to the atmosphere by evaporation or transpiration. |
| thermocline | Zone of gradual temperature decrease between warm surface water and cold deep water in a lake, reservoir, or ocean. |
| transpiration | Process in which water is absorbed by the root systems of plants, moves up through the plants, passes through pores in their leaves or other parts, and evaporates into the atmosphere as water vapor. |
| ultraplankton | Photosynthetic bacteria no more than 2 micrometers wide. |
| vertebrates | Animals that have backbones. |
| watershed | Land area that delivers water, sediment, and dissolved substances via small streams to a major stream. |
| zooplankton | (Animal plankton) Small floating herbivores that feed on plant plankton (phytoplankton). |
| aquifer | Porous, water-saturated layers of sand, gravel, or bedrock that can yield an economically significant amount of water. |
| arid | Dry. A desert or other area with an arid climate has littler precipitation. |
| desalination | Purification of slat water or brackish (slightly salty) water by removal of dissolved salts. |
| drought | Condition in which an area does not get enough water because of lower-than-normal precipitation or higher-than-normal temperatures that increase evaporation. |
| evaporation | Conversion of liquid into a gas. |
| hydrologic cycle | Biogeochemical cycle that collects, purifies, and distributes the earth's fixed supply of water from the environment to living organisms and then back to the environment. |
| natural recharge | Natural replenishment of an aquifer by precipitation, which percolates downward through soil and rock. |
| recharge area | Any area of land allowing water to pass through it and into an aquifer. |
| reliable runoff | Surface runoff of water that generally can be counted on as a stable source of water from year to year. |
| saltwater intrusion | Movement of salt water into freshwater aquifers in coastal and inland areas as groundwater is withdrawn faster than it is recharged by precipitation. |
| subsidence | Slow or rapid sinking of part of the earth's crust that is not slopw-related. |
| surface runoff | Water flowing off the land into bodies of surface water. |
| zone of aeration | Zone in soil that is not saturated with water and that lies above the water table. |
| zone of saturation | Area where all available pores in soil and rock in the earth's crust are filled by water. |
| aquatic biomes | occupy largest part of the biosphere. no true physical boundaries so its harder to manage/count all of the aquatic populations of organisms. food webs are longer due to fluidity and variety of bottom habitats. less difficult to study due to size and visibility. |
| marine biomes | have salt concentration of 3% and cover 75% of earth's surface. |
| Freshwater biomes | have salt concentration of less than 1%. |
| decomposers | fourth group of organisms. They break down organic matter into simple nutrients for use by producers. |
| Different types of waters | open oceans have limited nutrients, shallow waters have well supplied nutrients for growth. deep dwelling species depend on dead animals/plants to sink for nutrients at the bottom . |
| pelagic zone/oceanic pelagic biome | the open water. variety of swimming fish and mammals. water is constantly mixed by ocean currents. |
| bathyal zone | dimly lit middle zone. no producers in this zone, mostly zooplankton and smaller fish. |
| abyssal zone | dark and very cold with little disolved oxygen. nutrients here support 98% of species in ocean. organisms here are deposit feeders or filter feeders. |
| hydrothermal vents | in areas where specialized bacteria feed on chemical nutrients and are food for other organisms. low average primary productivity. NPP occurs here. |
| lentic | standing bodies of water like lakes, ponds, wetlands, etc. |
| lotic | flowing bodies of water like streams or rivers. |
| lakes consist of 4 zones | littoral zone, limnetic zone, profundal zone, and benthic zone. |
| littoral zone | shallow, sunlit water near shore. |
| limnetic zone | open, sunlit surface water away from shore and most productive area for food and oxygen production. |
| profundal zone | deep, open water too dark for photosynthesis. oxygen levels are lower. |
| benthic zone | consists of decomposers and detritus feeders. |
| stratification of water | occurs in deep temperate lakes into temperature zones. no mixing occurs. during fall and spring, lakes have turnover water that brings up nutrients, reoxygenates bottom levels, and evens out water temperature. |
| turnover | during fall and spring, lakes have turnover water that brings up nutrients, reoxygenates bottom levels, and evens out water temperature. brings oxygenated water from the surface of lakes to the bottom and nutrients water tot the top. |
| freshwater life zones | standing water and flowing water |
| saltwater life zones | coastal zone, estuaries, coastal wetlands, mangroves, intertidal zones, and barrier islands. |
| stream systems | runoff, drainage basin, watershed, and floodplain. |
| types of wetlands | marshes, swamps, prairie potholes, floodplain, tundra, seasonal. |
| photic zone | light penetrates and photosynethesis can occur. |
| aphotic zone | very little light can penetrate. |
| benthic zone | bottom of any aquatic biome and contains detritus, dead organic matter. |
| headwaters | cold and clear and carry little sediment and relatively few mineral nutrients. |
| streams | as it travels down, it picks up oxygen and nutrients on the way. |
| wetlands | saturated or flooded with water. |
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