Lesson 1: Marine Ecosystems
Lesson 6: Bathymetry and Ocean Zones
This unit is composed of three parts. Complete the following study guide as assigned by Ms. Pitt.
Please answer in FULL sentences with diagrams when necessary on a separate piece of paper. This will serve as a review and study guide for your upcoming test.
Lesson 1: Marine Ecosystems
1. What is the difference between a biotic and abiotic factor?
2. Complete the table below describing the 8 marine ecosystems found on Earth.
Name of Marine Ecosystem
Salt Marsh
Polar Seas
Coral Reefs
Deep Ocean
Kelp Forest
Rocky Shore
Open Ocean
Description
Nursery to young organisms, characterized by a
“rotten egg smell” created by methane and
Hydrogen sulfide.
Arctic and Antarctic, dominated by sea ice and extremely cold temps. Polar bears, beluga whales, narwhals, killer whales
Shallow water corals rely on mutualistic relationship with zooxanthellae for photosynthetic products. High biodiversity.
Extreme darkness, pressure, and low temperatures. Hydrothermal vent communities found here. Organisms adapt to withstand extreme environment.
Macroalgae that is characterized as a protest.
Dense forests that are held to the bottom by holdfasts. Hunting grounds for sharks, seals, etc.
Harsh coastline ecosystem that needs to withstand heavy wave action. Organisms adapt by having holdfasts and hard exteriors.
Pelagic region dominated by fast swimmers and lowest productivity/sq meter.
Mangrove Forest Mangrove trees that provide a stable barrier between land and ocean. Reduce erosion, filter pollutants from land to water.
3. What is a whale fall event?
When a whale dies and falls out of the water column to benthic environment. Organisms break down the body and release nutrients back into the ecosystem supporting a great deal of organisms. a. What type of organisms are the first to arrive at the whale fall event? Give 3 examples.
Background specialists – hagfish, blob sculpin, sleeper sharks b. What type of organisms are second to arrive at the whale fall event? Give 1 example.
Bone specialists – Osedax marine worms

c. What type of organisms are also involved in whale fall events?
Species with unclear connections
4. Be able to describe what this graph indicates. a. Why are the background specialists present essentially throughout the entire process?
They are first present to breakdown tissue and fat of whale. They continue to remain because once all the tissue is gone, bone specialists arrive, and they feed on the bone specialists. b. Why do bone specialists spike at 21 months? This is when all the tissue has been removed from the carcass by the background specialists.
5. What are the 4 types of mangrove species found in mangrove forests? a. Black mangrove b. Red mangrove c. Buttonwoods d. White mangrove
6. What 4 functions do mangroves provide for its ecosystem? a. stabilizing barrier b/t land & ocean b. filter pollutants from land c. protective area for small fish species d. reduce erosion during storms
7. What act was passed in 1996 to protect mangroves? Florida Trimming and Preservation Act
8. What is a MPA? A Marine Protected Area
9. How many (NMS) are there in the U.S.? 13 NMS and 1 National Marine Monument
10. What type of governance and protection do they provide to the areas that they cover? P rotects marine species from human interaction and provides safe passageway for migratory animals.
MPA are also known as National Marine Sanctuaries.

11. What is the term “succession” mean? The predictable change of an ecosystem over time. a. Apply it to a whale fall event – A whale fall contributes a dense amount of nutrients to the ecosystem that it lands in. Over time it changes the ecosystem by attracting new species and releasing a great deal of nutrients to support the food chain in that area.
b. Apply it to mangrove restoration – Mangroves are threatened because they are being drained and clear cut for coastal development. The new act enables restoration of these devastated mangroves and over time the ecosystem gets reestablished to its original state.
Lesson 6 Part 1: Bathymetry
12. What is the average salinity of the ocean? 35 ppt
13. List the oceans in order from smallest to largest: a. Pacific b. Atlantic c. Indian d. Southern e. Arctic
14. What is the average depth of the oceans? 3000m
15. What two atoms are responsible for the creation of the oceans? Hydrogen and oxygen
16. Why does the ocean appear blue? Blue wavelengths of light penetrate the deepest into the water column.
17. How much of the hydrosphere is freshwater? <3%
18. What type of technology do scientists use to study the seafloor? sonar
19. Define the following terms. Also, be able to label each structure on a seafloor diagram. a. continental shelf - gently sloping land area along edges of continents b. continental slope – steep slope leading from edge of continent to ocean basin c. continental rise - hill of sediment at bottom of continental slope d. abyssal plains – very flat area of the ocean seafloor covered by sediments e. mid-ocean ridge - enormous mountain ranges on bottom of seafloor g. trench – long, narrow canyon like structures h. fracture zones – regions of seafloor where sections slide past each other i. seamount – submarine volcano with a sharp peak j guyot – a submerged flat-top peak from a subsided volcano
20. A submerged volcanic peak is known as a a.
Abyssal plain

b.
Guyot c.
Seamount d.
Trench
21.
A submerged flat-topped volcanic peak is known as a a.
Abyssal plain b.
Guyot c.
Seamount d.
Trench
22. A crease in the ocean floor formed where one plate plunges beneath another is known as a(n) a.
Abyssal plain b.
Guyot c.
Seamount d.
Trench
23.
Flat ocean feature formed when suspended sediments settle from turbidity currents a.
Abyssal plain b.
Guyot c.
Seamount d.
Trench
24.
Which is true of the continental shelf?
a. it is a shallow submarine platform at the edge of continents.
b. it slopes very gently seaward.
c. it has variable width.
d. all of these.
25.
Abyssal plains are formed by:
a. deposition from turbidity currents over time.
b. slow accumulation of pelagic sediment.
c. deposition of sediment from rivers.
d. none of these.
26. Label the following diagram:
27. Who developed the theory of continental drift and published
The Origin of Continents and Oceans?
Alfred Wegener
28. What is the deepest place on Earth? Marianas Trench What is the tallest mountain on Earth?
Mauna Kea

29. What is seafloor spreading? At a divergent boundary, magma rises up where the plates diverge and cool to create new seafloor.
30. What type of energy conversion do organisms rely on that live close to hydrothermal vents?
31. What ocean zone refers to the entire water column? pelagic
32. What ocean zone refers to the seafloor? benthic
33. What part of the ocean refers to the water column closest to shore? neritic
34. What part of the ocean refers to the water column away from the shore? oceanic
35. Draw a line to match the depth to the name of the ocean zone. a. 0-200 m a. hadalpelagic b. 200-1000m b. mesopelagic c. epipelagic c. 1000-4000m d. 4000-6000m e. 6000-10,000m d. bathypelagic e. abyssalpelagic
36. Draw a diagram representing the supralittoral, littoral, and sublittoral zones.
Because I cannot draw here I will describe:
Supralittoral – above tidal zone (beach)
Littoral – tidal zone (where high and low tide fluctuates – think where you dip your toes in the ocean)
Sublittoral – directly off the coast where water is always covering it
37. What zone is considered euphotic? epipelagic
38. What zone is considered dysphotic? mesopelagic
39. What zones are considered aphotic? Bathypelagic, abyssalpelagic, hadalpelagic
40. Which wavelengths of light penetrate the ocean the most? blue
41. Which wavelengths of light penetrate the ocean the least? red
42. Why are deep sea animals commonly red? Because they appear black at depths
43. Differ between the 3 benthic aphotic zones. a. bathyal - bottom of seafloor at bathypelagic zone b. abyssal – bottom of seafloor at abyssalpelagic zone c. hadal – bottom of seafloor at trenches

44. Be able to label the following diagram:
45. List 2 animals you find in each of the following zones:
Ocean Zone
Epipelagic
Animal a. phytoplankton b. krill
Mesopelagic a. sperm whale b. sponges
Bathylpelagic
Abyssalpelagic
Hadalpelagic a. angler fish b. gulper eel a. deep sea corals b. ghost shark a. chemosynthetic bacteria b. tube worms