Stahl Marine Science Unit 5 1
Plankton, Plants, and Algae
The Seaside Naturalist
Plankton, Plants, and Algae
Plankton- Page 17
1. What are the three lifestyles that organisms in the ocean can be
broken down into?
2. Define each in question 1.
3. All plankton are at the mercy of ________________,
__________________, and _________________________.
4. True or false. Plankton is a vital food source for the ocean.
5. True or false. Plankton can be a plant o animal.
6. Plant Plankton is called ________________________.
7. Animal Plankton is called _____________________________.
8. What is the benefit of plankton having spikes?
9. What organisms produce oil to help them float?
10. What may help the Portuguese Man O War stay afloat?
Stahl Marine Science Unit 5 2
Plankton, Plants, and Algae
Phytoplankton- Page 18
1. What is phytoplankton?
2. It is usually ________________________.
3. Examples of phytoplankton are __________________ and
_____________________________.
4. What percentage of oxygen does phytoplankton produce for the
world?
5. Diatoms:
a. _____________________ celled
b. Color _________________________
c. Cell wall yes or no.
d. Cell wall is made up of _________________________, a
glass like substance.
e. What eats them?
6. Explain the shell of a diatom.
7. Dinoflagellates:
a. How do they propel themselves?
b. Can they swim? Yes or no.
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Plankton, Plants, and Algae
c. Responsible for __________________________________ to
which can lead to
_________________________________________________.
Zooplankton- Page 19
1. They are _____________________ plankton.
2. Zooplankton that float their entire lives are called
______________________________________.
3. Holoplankton lives in
______________________________________
4. Meroplankton are organisms that are ____________________ and
____________________________.
5. They are predominant in _________________________________.
6. What is the benefit of organisms to be plankton?
7. Explain each:
a. Nannoplankton-
b. Microplankton-
c. Macroplankton-
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Plankton, Plants, and Algae
d. Megaplankton-
Nekton- Page 21
1. Define nekton.
2. How does nekton move?
3. What are some examples of nekton?
4. What is the only invertebrate nekton?
5. What limits their range?
6. What would happen to a tarpon from the Arctic to the Caribbean?
Benthos- Page 22
Stahl Marine Science Unit 5 5
Plankton, Plants, and Algae
1. Define benthos.
2. What is the difference between epiflora and epifauna? Give
examples of each.
3. Where are epiflora found?
4. How do animals / benthos feed in the deep sea?
5. Define infauna and give examples.
Marine Plants- Page 25
1. What are the oceans flowering plants?
2. What organisms make up the great bulk of marine plant life?
3. Are flowering plants vascular or non-vascular?
4. Define vascular.
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Plankton, Plants, and Algae
5. Are algae vascular or non-vascular?
6. Define non-vascular.
7. Pelagic algae are _____________________________.
8. What are the four major groups of algae?
9. What are they names after?
10. Why are algae important?
Blue Green Algae- Page 26
1. How old is cyanobacteria?
2. Why are they so intriguing (bacteria and algae)?
3. Where is blue green alga present?
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Plankton, Plants, and Algae
4. What does the marine species look like?
5. Where is it found on temperate shores?
6. What protects them from drying out?
Green Algae- Page 27
1. True or false. Green algae is more prevalent in freshwater than
saltwater.
2. Only ____________ percent are marine.
3. What are six examples of green algae? Give their common name
and scientific name.
4. Describe each one briefly.
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Plankton, Plants, and Algae
Red Algae- Page 29
1. True or false. Red alga is the most abundant.
2. Why can reds grow under low light?
3. Where do they grow? Where do they dominate mostly?
4. Brown and green are usually found in
________________________
5. List five species of red algae. Make sure you give their scientific
name and common name.
6. Briefly describe each one.
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Plankton, Plants, and Algae
Calcareous Algae- Page 32
1. What is so unique about this alga?
2. What happens when it dies?
3. What color are most?
4. Which one talked about is found right here in Florida?
Brown Algae- Page 33
1. What are three of our most common large seaweeds?
2. Where do they grow?
Kelp- Page 34
1. What is Algin?
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Plankton, Plants, and Algae
2. How are they harvested?
Rockweeds- Page 35
1. Describe rockweed that grows along the Atlantic sea coast.
2. What is the benefit of air bladders?
3. How are they protected from desiccation?
4. What are rockweeds used for?
Sargassum- page 36
1. What is another name for Sargassum?
2. What does it look like?
3. They are the principal seaweed of the _______________________.
4. Where is the Sargasso Sea? Describe it.
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Plankton, Plants, and Algae
5. How much is there?
6. How does it reproduce?
7. What types of animals live in the sargassum and why?
Marine Grasses- page 37
1. How many species of grasses grow along the Atlantic Coast?
2. Why are marine grasses considered flowering plants?
3. What are the two predominate species?
4. They grow completely _____________________under water.
5. What anchors them in the sediment?
6. ___________________ and _________________occur
underwater.
7. Why are sea grasses important?
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Plankton, Plants, and Algae
8. On page 38 what are the three grasses that grow in our bay? List
the common and scientific name.
9. What are rhizomes?
10. Why is it dangerous to rip up any of these grasses? Think about the
rhizome structure.
Mangroves- Page 39
1. What are the three types of mangroves that grow in Florida?
2. Where do the red mangroves grow?
3. What holds the tree firmly in the sediment?
4. What is their benefit to the environment?
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Plankton, Plants, and Algae
5. Why are fallen mangrove leaves important?
6. Describe red mangrove leaves. Why are these adaptations
important?
7. What are red mangrove seeds called?
8. How do the seeds become a new mangrove tree?
9. Why are red mangroves called a pioneer community?
10. Black mangroves have breathing roots called
___________________
11. What is the function of question 10?
12. Where do black mangroves excrete salt from?
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Plankton, Plants, and Algae
13. White mangroves grow _________________.
14. They have ___________ salt pores on the leaf stem to excrete excess
salt.