FRONT
SEA STAR
ZOOXANTHELLAE
Genus: Asterias
Genus: Zooxanthella
Species: forbesi
Size: 13 cm (5 in.) radius
Range: Gulf of Mexico to Texas
Species:
Size: Microscopic
Range: Tropical and temperate oceans
CALCAREOUS
GREEN ALGAE
PHYTOPLANKTON
Genus: Halimeda
Species:
Size: 7.5–12.5 cm (3–5 in.) tall
Range: Worldwide in tropical oceans
Genus: varies
Species:
Size: 2–200 µm (micrometer) in length or diameter
Range: Worldwide in oceans, lakes, and ponds
BACK
ZOOXANTHELLAE
ECOSCENARIO: FLORIDA KEYS NMS
Natural History: Zooxanthellae live inside another organism in
a symbiotic relationship. When exposed to sunlight,
zooxanthellae use photosynthesis to produce their own food,
some of which is transferred to the host organism.
Food: Produced through photosynthesis
Predator: Sea anemones, parrot fish, urchins, sea fans, and
corals
Shelter: Protected in the tissues of the host organism
Reproduction: Divides into two new cells. When the host
organism reproduces, zooxanthellae are present in the tissue of
the offspring.
Abiotic Impact: Needs light to survive. Productivity depends on
light, water, and temperature levels.
SEA STAR
ECOSCENARIO: FLORIDA KEYS NMS
Natural History: The distinctive arms, or rays, have many small
suckers, or tube feet, on the underside, with the mouth in the
very center. Sea stars feed by wrapping their rays around a
clam and forcing it open. Once a sea star gets a tiny opening, it
everts its stomach into the clam, where it begins digesting the
clam.
Food: Clams, mussels, snails, sea urchins, corals, sponges, and
worms
Predator: Unknown
Shelter: Sea stars are found in turtle-grass beds, on the sandy
bottom, under rocks, and in crevices around coral in water 1 m
(3.25 ft.) deep or deeper.
Reproduction: Sea stars release eggs and sperm into the
water. Larvae are planktonic for the first few months, and then
settle down to become young sea stars.
Photo: William Fitt, University of Georgia
© 2004 The Regents of the University of California
Photo: Kip F. Evans, Mountain and Sea Images
© 2004 The Regents of the University of California
PHYTOPLANKTON ECOSCENARIO: FLORIDA KEYS NMS
CALCAREOUS GREEN ALGAE
Natural History: Phytoplankton represent a huge array of
microorganisms, mostly single-celled protists. The ones shown
here are dinoflagellates. Plankton cannot move against the
current, so they drift with water movement.
Food: Produced through photosynthesis
Predator: Zooplankton, bryozoans, fish, corals, sea anemones,
worms, tunicates, sponges, sea fans, and brittle stars
Reproduction: Most reproduce asexually by splitting into two
new cells.
Abiotic Impact: Productivity depends on light, water, and
temperature levels.
Human Impact: Runoff from sewage can cause huge
population increases, called blooms, that can clog fish gills and
prevent gas exchange.
Photo: William C. Jorgensen, Visuals Unlimited
© 2004 The Regents of the University of California
ECOSCENARIO: FLORIDA KEYS NMS
Natural History: Halimeda at first may appear to be sea grass,
but it is an alga. It forms green mats on the lagoon floor. These
mats may cover several square meters.
Food: Produced through photosynthesis
Predator: Snails, limpets, amphipods, isopods, sea urchins,
hermit crabs, other crabs, damselfish, parrot fish, lobsters,
stingrays, and sergeant majors
Shelter: The algal beds provide shelter for many small
invertebrates, sea slugs, crustaceans, and worms.
Abiotic Impact: Productivity depends on light, water, and
temperature levels.
Photos: Homer Montgomery, University of Texas at Dallas
© 2004 The Regents of the University of California
FRONT
RED FINGER SPONGE
CHRISTMAS TREE WORM
Genus: Haliclona
Genus: Spirobranchus
Species: rubens
Size: Up to 30 cm (12 in.) long; branch walls 3 cm (1.25 in.)
thick
Range: South Florida, Bermuda, the West Indies, and the
Caribbean
Species: giganteus
Size: 12 cm (4.7 in.) long; branchiae whorls 4 cm (1.5 in.)
Range: South Florida, the West Indies, and the Caribbean
STAGHORN CORAL
SEA FAN
Genus: Acropora
Genus: Gorgonia
Species: cervicornis
Size: Up to 3 m (10 ft.) tall; 1.5 m (5 ft.) wide; individual
branches 2.5 cm (1 in.) diameter
Species: ventalina
Size: 75 cm (30 in.) tall; 75 cm (30 in.) wide
Range: South Florida, Bermuda, Bahamas, and the West Indies
Range: Florida Keys, Bahamas, the West Indies, and the
Caribbean
BACK
CHRISTMAS TREE WORM
ECOSCENARIO: FLORIDA KEYS NMS
Natural History: The Christmas tree worm extends its
branchiae when feeding. The branchiae function as gills to filter
food from the water and to exchange gases for respiration.
Food: Zooplankton, phytoplankton, zooxanthellae, and corals
Predator: Sea urchins, flounder, parrot fish, lobsters,
puddingwives, stingrays, schoolmasters, and sea stars
Shelter: The main body of the Christmas tree worm is housed in
a calcium-carbonate tube attached to rocks or coral. It expands
its branchiae into the current to trap plankton. It quickly
disappears into the tube if it senses any motion.
RED FINGER SPONGE
ECOSCENARIO: FLORIDA KEYS NMS
Natural History: Sponges are some of the most primitive of
multicelled animals. The individual cells work together as a
whole organism, but there is little specialization. The sponge
feeds by drawing water in through tiny pores and up and out
through the center opening. Plankton are trapped by the cells
and digested.
Food: Zooplankton and phytoplankton
Predator: Angelfish
Shelter: Red finger sponges live on coral reefs, in rocky areas,
and in turtle-grass beds.
Reproduction: Eggs and sperm are released in the water
simultaneously. The tiny polyps float as zooplankton until they
settle and begin a colony.
Human Impact: Some species of sponge are collected for sale.
Photo: Paige Gill, Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary
© 2004 The Regents of the University of California
Photo: Cynthia Ledbetter, University of Texas at Dallas
© 2004 The Regents of the University of California
SEA FAN
STAGHORN CORAL
ECOSCENARIO: FLORIDA KEYS NMS
Natural History: Sea fans are a form of soft coral. They do not
build a hard calcium-carbonate skeleton. They are flexible and
sway with the currents. The tiny polyps filter-feed on the
plankton that the current brings them.
Food: Zooplankton, phytoplankton, zooxanthellae, and bacteria.
Zooxanthellae that live within the tissue of a sea fan help nourish
it.
ECOSCENARIO: FLORIDA KEYS NMS
Natural History: Corals are colonial animals, with tens of
thousands forming a large coral head. The tiny coral polyp lives
only in the outermost section of the head. It builds outward, with
new polyps attaching themselves to an established coral head.
Food: Zooplankton, phytoplankton, zooxanthellae, and bacteria.
Zooxanthellae that live within the tissue of coral help nourish it.
Predator: Parrot fish, butterfly fish, triggerfish, puffers, sea
stars, sea urchins, snails, chitons, hermit crabs, clams, boring
sponges, and polychaete worms
Predator: Parrot fish, butterfly fish, triggerfish, puffers, sea stars,
sea urchins, snails, chitons, hermit crabs, clams, boring sponges,
and polychaete worms
Shelter: Rocks and reefs below the low-tide line
Shelter: Staghorn coral grows in protected areas of the reef,
usually on the windward side in waters deeper than 3 m (10 ft.).
Reproduction: Eggs and sperm are released in the water
simultaneously. The tiny polyps float as zooplankton until they
settle and begin a colony.
Human Impact: Sea fans take hundreds of years to form the
graceful, swaying fans. It takes only seconds for a collector to
break them loose. Dried sea fans are collected for decorative
uses. They are protected in marine sanctuaries.
Photo: Cynthia Ledbetter, University of Texas at Dallas
© 2004 The Regents of the University of California
Reproduction: Eggs and sperm are released in the water
simultaneously. The tiny polyps float as zooplankton until they
settle and begin forming their calcium-carbonate skeleton.
Abiotic Impact: The coral provides protection for many small
invertebrates and fish.
Human Impact: It takes hundreds of years for coral to grow and a
few seconds for a diver to snap off a branch. Coral has been
heavily collected and sold for decorative uses. Coral is protected in
marine sanctuaries.
Photo: Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary
© 2004 The Regents of the University of California
FRONT
FLAMINGO TONGUE SNAIL
Genus: Cyphoma
Species: gibbosum
Size: 2.5 cm (1 in.) long
Range: North Carolina to Brazil
PARROT FISH
Genus: Sparisoma
Species: viride
Size: 61 cm (24 in.) long
Range: Bermuda to northeastern Brazil, including south Florida
and the Caribbean
WEST INDIES SPINY
LOBSTER
Genus: Panulirus
Species: argas
Size: Up to 61 cm (24 in.) long; 15 cm (6 in.) tall
Range: In warm oceans from North Carolina to Brazil, including
the Gulf of Mexico, Bermuda, and the West Indies
LONG-SPINED BLACK
URCHIN
Genus: Diadema
Species: antillarum
Size: 30 cm (12 in.) diameter; spines 15 cm (6 in.) long
Range: Florida, Bermuda, and the Caribbean
BACK
WEST INDIES SPINY LOBSTER
FLAMINGO TONGUE SNAIL
ECOSCENARIO: FLORIDA KEYS NMS
Natural History: Lobsters are nocturnal hunters and emerge
from their rocky shelter only when hunting. During the day only
the antennae are visible.
ECOSCENARIO: FLORIDA KEYS NMS
Food: Detritus (decaying organic material), sea urchins, worms,
algae, tunicates, and turtle grass
Natural History: The bright black and orange spots on the
flamingo tongue snail are not on its shell. The pattern is part of
the mantle of the snail, which extends over the surface of the
shell. If threatened, it can quickly withdraw this mantle. It
regenerates patches that are torn or eaten away.
Predator: Octopuses and moray eels
Food: Sea fans, algae, turtle grass, and coral
Shelter: The West Indies spiny lobster hides among rocks,
sponges, and corals from the low-tide line to about 91 m
(300 ft.) deep.
Predator: Sea stars, stingrays, lobsters, and schoolmasters
Reproduction: Spawning occurs May through July. A male
deposits a sac of sperm on a female's abdomen. The female
inserts the eggs into the sperm sac for fertilization, and carries
the eggs in grapelike clusters on small legs called swimmerets.
The eggs hatch as larvae, which are planktonic for up to 8
months and then settle to the bottom to become young lobsters.
Shelter: The flamingo tongue snail is almost always found
grazing on sea fans, its preferred food. Its rate of grazing is
often matched by the rate at which the sea fan can regenerate
tissue.
Human Impact: The flamingo tongue snail should not be
collected for its striking appearance. Because the pattern is
made of living tissue, it dies with the snail.
Human Impact: The spiny lobster is heavily fished, and
numbers are decreasing except around the Florida Keys. There
are limits on the size that can be caught, so that the population
can continue to grow.
Photo: Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary
© 2004 The Regents of the University of California
Photo: Paige Gill, Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary
© 2004 The Regents of the University of California
LONG-SPINED BLACK URCHIN
PARROT FISH
ECOSCENARIO: FLORIDA KEYS NMS
Natural History: The long-spined black urchin is the most
abundant sea urchin in the Keys. Its spines make it invulnerable
to most predators. The spines contain a mild toxin that gives a
beelike sting.
Food: Algae, turtle grass, phytoplankton, zooplankton, coral,
zooxanthellae, sea fans, worms, sponges, and detritus (decaying
organic material)
Predator: Sea stars, porgies, triggerfish, and lobsters
Shelter: Long-spined black urchins hide among turtle grass,
coral, and rocks.
Photo: Nancy Sefton, Photo Researchers, Inc.
© 2004 The Regents of the University of California
ECOSCENARIO: FLORIDA KEYS NMS
Natural History: Parrot fish are native to warm waters. The
name comes from the beaklike mouth.
Food: Parrot fish graze on the surface of corals. They scrape off
the top layer, which houses the coral polyp. The calciumcarbonate skeleton of the coral passes unchanged through the
parrot fish as the polyps are digested. While grazing on corals,
they also eat worms, tunicates, algae, phytoplankton,
zooplankton, and zooxanthellae.
Predator: Barracudas, moray eels, and groupers
Shelter: Coral reefs and sea-grass beds
Photo: Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary
© 2004 The Regents of the University of California
FRONT
THREE-SPOT DAMSELFISH
KNOBBED PORGY
Genus: Eupomacentrus
Genus: Calamus
Species: planifrons
Size: 19 cm (7.5 in.) long
Range: Northern Florida to Venezuela, including the Gulf of
Mexico, West Indies, and Caribbean
Species: nodosus
Size: Up to 46 cm (18 in.) long
Range: Florida to the West Indies
FRENCH ANGELFISH
Genus: Pomacanthus
Species: paru
Size: Up to 36 cm (14 in.)
Range: Bermuda to northern South America, including north
Florida and the West Indies
MORAY EEL
Genus: Gymnothorax
Species: moringa
Size: 1.5 m (5 ft.) long
Range: From North Carolina south to Brazil, including the Gulf of
Mexico, Caribbean, and West Indies
BACK
KNOBBED PORGY
ECOSCENARIO: FLORIDA KEYS NMS
Natural History: The knobbed porgy is found in warm, shallow
waters near shore. They occasionally venture into brackish and
freshwater.
Food: Smaller fish, long-spined sea urchins, tunicates, and
other invertebrates
Predator: Barracudas, moray eels, and groupers
Reproduction: Porgies lay free-floating eggs and provide no
parental care.
Shelter: Reefs and ledges
Human Impact: Common sport fish in Florida
THREE-SPOT DAMSELFISH
ECOSCENARIO: FLORIDA KEYS NMS
Natural History: Juveniles are bright yellow with a prominent
blue-rimmed black spot. Adults are brown to black with three
white spots on the forehead and upper sides. Three-spot
damselfish are territorial and will defend the algal mats they
feed on from other fish.
Food: Phytoplankton, algae, zooplankton, and tunicates
Predator: Barracudas, moray eels, groupers, and porgies
Shelter: The three-spot damselfish lives near reefs in shallow,
warm water.
Human Impact: Juveniles are caught for saltwater aquariums.
Photo: Fred McConnaughey, Photo Researchers, Inc.
© 2004 The Regents of the University of California
Photos: Fred McConnaughey, Photo Researchers, Inc.; Mark Smith, Photo
Researchers, Inc. (inset)
© 2004 The Regents of the University of California
MORAY EEL
FRENCH ANGELFISH
ECOSCENARIO: FLORIDA KEYS NMS
Natural History: Morays have a row of sharp teeth and very
strong jaws. They hide among rocks, often with their mouths
open. If an unsuspecting fish swims in, it becomes dinner.
Food: Smaller fish and crustaceans
ECOSCENARIO: FLORIDA KEYS NMS
Natural History: Angelfish are active during the day and sleep
at night.
Predator: Barracudas and groupers
Food: Sponges. Angelfish specialize in a food source for which
they have very little competition.
Shelter: Crevices of rocks and reefs
Predator: Moray eels, barracudas, and larger fish
Human Impact: The meat of some moray eels is poisonous to
humans. When snorkeling or scuba diving around rocks and
reefs, never stick your hand into a crevice; a moray eel may be
waiting for you.
Shelter: Shallow reefs
Photo: Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary
© 2004 The Regents of the University of California
Photo: Paige Gill, Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary
© 2004 The Regents of the University of California
Human Impact: Juvenile angelfish are a popular addition to
home saltwater aquariums.
FRONT
ZOOPLANKTON
BARRACUDA
Genus: varies
Genus: Sphyraena
Species:
Size: 100 µm (micrometer) to a few millimeters long
Range: Worldwide in oceans
Species: barracuda
Size: Up to 1.8 m (6 ft.) long; 37.6 kg (83 lb.)
Range: Massachusetts to southern Brazil, the Gulf of Mexico,
the Caribbean, and Bermuda
MARINE BACTERIA
GULF FLOUNDER
Genus: varies
Genus: Paralichthys
Species:
Size: 1–3 µm (micrometer)
Range: Worldwide in oceans
Species: albigutta
Size: Up to 38 cm (15 in.) long
Range: Florida, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Caribbean
BACK
BARRACUDA
ECOSCENARIO: FLORIDA KEYS NMS
Natural History: Barracudas have large, spearlike teeth that
point backward and can cut large pieces of flesh. Even though
their primary food is fish, barracudas have been known to
attack swimmers.
ZOOPLANKTON
ECOSCENARIO: FLORIDA KEYS NMS
Food: Smaller fish, squid, and shrimp
Natural History: Zooplankton are microscopic adult animals
and larval forms of animals. They represent nearly every group
of animals found in the oceans. Like all planktonic organisms,
zooplankton cannot swim well enough to move against currents,
so they drift in the water.
Shelter: Barracudas live along the coast, in open water.
Food: Phytoplankton and marine bacteria
Human Impact: Barracudas are aggressive and may attack
swimmers and divers. The meat is often poisonous to humans
and should not be eaten.
Predator: Filter feeders, such as sea anemones, brittle stars,
bryozoans, baleen whales, tunicates, barnacles, and fish
Reproduction: Many zooplankton are larval forms of animals,
such as crabs, lobsters, snails, octopuses, sea urchins, sea stars,
barnacles, and fish. Others stay planktonic all their lives and
reproduce by releasing sperm and eggs into the water.
Photo: Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary
© 2004 The Regents of the University of California
Photo: D. P. Wilson, Photo Researchers, Inc.
© 2004 The Regents of the University of California
GULF FLOUNDER
MARINE BACTERIA
ECOSCENARIO: FLORIDA KEYS NMS
Natural History: The Gulf flounder is a left-eye flounder; both
eyes are on the left side of the fish's body.
ECOSCENARIO: FLORIDA KEYS NMS
Food: Smaller fish, shrimp, small crustaceans, worms, and
other invertebrates on the sandy ocean floor
Natural History: Marine bacteria float in the water and attach
to substrates of all kinds, including rocks, sand, algae, animals,
and any other organism they touch.
Predator: Barracudas, moray eels, and groupers
Food: Detritus (decaying organic material)
Shelter: The Gulf flounder lies partly buried in the sand on its
right side in water up to 128 m (420 ft.) deep.
Predator: Filter feeders, such as sea anemones, brittle stars,
bryozoans, baleen whales, tunicates, sponges, and barnacles
Human Impact: Gulf flounder is considered a good sport fish,
and many are caught at night with spears. Because it is small, it
is not considered good eating.
Reproduction: Bacteria reproduce quickly via cell division.
Photo: David S. Addison, Visuals Unlimited
© 2004 The Regents of the University of California
Photo: Paul W. Johnson, Biological Photo Service
© 2004 The Regents of the University of California