EXPLORING MARINE ECOSYSTEMS

All ecosystems contain biotic and abiotic factors

Biotic = living features

Abiotic = non-living physical features

Relationship between biotic and abiotic factors is important to ecosystem health

CORAL REEFS

Add Picture Many life forms

Stony formation built from floor up

Sunny

Shallow, warm waters

Colorful

Biotic – coral, butterfly fish, parrot fish, reef shark, seaweed, barracuda

Abiotic – sunlight, rocks, shells, shipwrecks

MANGROVE FORESTS

Add Picture Warm temperatures

Rich in organic material

Tree roots covered with water in high tide

Nursery to many growing organisms

Biotic – red mangroves, snails, crabs, barnacles, oysters, plankton, snapper

Abiotic – mud, shallow water, warm temps, many nutrients

DEEP SEA

Add Picture No light, no photosynthesis

Extreme pressure

Cold water

Biotic - angler fish, jellyfish, squid, octopus, giant clams, (no green plants)

Abiotic – darkness, cold, deep water, high pressure

OPEN OCEAN

Add picture Large schools of fish and mammals

Sunlight

No land nearby

Biotic – whales, sharks, schools of fish, phytoplankton

Abiotic – open space, sunlight, varying temperatures

KELP FOREST

Add Pictures Sunny

Looks like a dense forest

Kelp growing from the seafloor to the surface

Biotic – giant kelp, sea otters, sea urchins, mussels, crabs, snails

Abiotic – sunlight, clear water, cool temps

POLAR SEA

Add Pictures Cold water

Little sunlight parts of the year

Dominated by ice

Biotic – polar bears, beluga whales, orcas, krill, seals, penguin, phytoplankton

Abiotic – ice and snow, cold temps, summer sunlight

SALT MARSH

Add pictures Wet and dry

Long grass and thick mud

Decomposition and nutrient cycling

Biotic – tall grass, small fish, crabs, lobsters, shrimp

Abiotic – tides, shallow water, sunlight, mud and sediment

ROCKY SHORE

Add Pictures Harsh habitat between high and low tide

Organisms alternating wet and dry

Wave action

Biotic – crabs, barnacles, mussels, seaweed

Abiotic – rocks and sand, waves, sunlight, tides

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSThank you to Kimya Louis, marine biology teacher at Vero Beach High School, for creating this PowerPoint for Kilroy Academy. Special thanks to Indian River Impact 100 for funding Kilroy Academy.

Made possible with funding provided by and .