MICDS Marine Ecology 2011: Reading Review
Marine Habitats
1. What do all marine habitats have in common? What are other factors that determine the success of a
marine habitat?
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2. Fill in the table summarizing key features of different marine habitats
Type of habitat
Intertidal zones
Sandy shores
Rocky shores
Mangrove and
salt marshes
Sea grass meadows
Coral reefs
Features
Common organisms
Marine Habitats Critical Thinking
1. Create a diagram or write a paragraph illustrating the interconnectedness of the physical and
biological features of marine habitats.
Coral Reefs
Review
1. In your own words, explain Darwin’s theory about the structure and distribution of coral reefs.
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2. Complete the table below summarizing key features of the different types of reefs and reef variants.
Reef type
Description
Picture/drawing
Fringing Reef
Barrier Reef
Patch Reef
Spur and Groove
Reef
(not in article)
Cays
3. Draw a picture showing the three distinct zones of a coral reef.
4. What is the optimum temperature for most coral reefs?
5. In your own words, summarize (<6 sentences) the biology of the coral reefs.
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6. Describe the symbiotic relationship between corals and zooxanthellae.
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7. What happens to coral that loses its Zooxanthellae?
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Critical Thinking
1. What factors might account for the fact that the vast majority of atolls occur in the Indian and Pacific
oceans and that atolls are rare in the Atlantic?
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2. What factors may affect the overall health of coral reefs?
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** Note that we will discuss species diversity of marine vertebrates and invertebrates on the first day of class.