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| Ocean habitats |
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| aquatic ecosystem |
| continental shelf |
| neritic zone |
| littoral zone |
| intertidal |
| pelagic zone |
| demersal zone |
| benthic zone |
| benthic life |
| coral reefs |
| estuaries |
| seamounts |
| fishing banks |
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The benthic zone is the ecological region at the lowest level of a body of water such as an ocean or a lake, including the sediment surface and some sub-surface layers. A biome is a climatically and geographically defined area of ecologically similar climatic conditions such as communities of Plants Animals and An aquatic ecosystem is an Ecosystem located in water bodies. The continental shelf is the extended perimeter of each Continent and associated Coastal plain, which is covered during interglacial periods such The neritic zone, also called the sublittoral zone, is the part of the ocean extending from the low tide mark to the edge of the Continental shelf, with a relatively Littoral refers to the coast of an ocean or sea or to the banks of a river lake or estuary Intertidal ecology is the study of intertidal Ecosystems where organisms live between the low and high Tide lines Any water in the sea that is not close to the bottom is in the pelagic zone. The demersal zone is the part of the Sea or Ocean (or deep Lake) comprising the Water column that is near to (and is significantly affected Benthos are the organisms which live on in or near the Seabed, also known as the Benthic zone. Coral reefs are Aragonite structures produced by living organisms found in marine waters with little to no nutrients in the water An estuary is a semi-enclosed Coastal body of Water with one or more Rivers or Streams flowing into it and with a free connection to the open A seamount is a Mountain rising from the Ocean Seafloor that does not reach to the water's surface ( Sea level) and thus is not an Island A body of water is any significant accumulation of Water, usually covering the Earth or another planet An ocean (from Greek, ''Okeanos'' (Oceanus) is a major body of saline water, and a principal component of the Hydrosphere. A lake (from Latin lacus) is a Terrain feature (or Physical feature) a body of Liquid on the surface of a world that is localized to the Organisms living in this zone are called benthos. Benthos are the organisms which live on in or near the Seabed, also known as the Benthic zone. They generally live in close relationship with the substrate bottom; many such organisms are permanently attached to the bottom. Generally, these include life forms that tolerate cool temperatures and low oxygen levels, but this depends on the depth of the water. Temperature is a physical property of a system that underlies the common notions of hot and cold something that is hotter generally has the greater temperature Oxygen (from the Greek roots ὀξύς (oxys (acid literally "sharp" from the taste of acids and -γενής (-genēs (producer literally begetteris the For information on animals that live in the deepest areas of the oceans see aphotic zone. The superficial layer of the soil lining the given body of water is an integral part of the benthic zone, as it influences greatly the biological activity which takes place there. Examples of contact soil layers include sand bottoms, rock outcrops, coral, and bay mud. Sand is a naturally occurring Granular material composed of finely divided rock and Mineral particles Corals are Marine organisms from the class Anthozoa and exist as small Sea anemone –like Polyps typically in colonies of many Bay mud consists of thick deposits of soft unconsolidated Silty Clay, which is saturated with Water; these soil layers are situated at the bottom of
For comparison, the pelagic zone is the descriptive term for the ecological region above the benthos, including the water-column up to the surface. Any water in the sea that is not close to the bottom is in the pelagic zone. Depending on the water-body, the benthic zone may include areas which are only a few inches below water, such as a stream or shallow pond; at the other end of the spectrum, benthos of the deep ocean includes the bottom levels of the oceanic abyssal zone. The abyssal zone is the abyssopelagic layer of Pelagic zone that contains the very deep Benthic communities near the bottom of Oceans "Abyss"
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Organisms
Benthos are the organisms which live in the benthic zone, and are different from those elsewhere in the water column. Benthos are the organisms which live on in or near the Seabed, also known as the Benthic zone. Benthos are the organisms which live on in or near the Seabed, also known as the Benthic zone. Many are adapted to live on the substrate (bottom). In their habitats they can be considered as dominant creatures. Many organisms adapted to deep-water pressure cannot survive in the upper parts of the water column. A water column is a conceptual column of water from surface to bottom sediments The pressure difference can be very significant (approximately one atmosphere for each 10 meters of water depth). The Standard atmosphere is an international reference pressure defined as 101325 Pa and formerly used as unit of Pressure (symbol atm
Because light does not penetrate very deep ocean-water, the energy source for the benthic ecosystem is often organic matter from higher up in the water column which drifts down to the depths. This dead and decaying matter sustains the benthic food chain; most organisms in the benthic zone are scavengers or detritivores. In Biology, detritus is non-living particulate organic material (as opposed to dissolved organic material Food chains, also called food networks and/or trophic networks, describe the feeding relationships between species within an Ecosystem. Scavenging, or necrophagy, is a Carnivorous Feeding behaviour in which a predator consumes Corpses or Carrion that were killed Detritivores, also known as detritus feeders or saprophages, are Heterotrophs that obtain Nutrients by consuming Detritus (decomposing
Habitats
In oceanic environments, benthic habitats can be further subdivided based on depth. An ocean (from Greek, ''Okeanos'' (Oceanus) is a major body of saline water, and a principal component of the Hydrosphere. From the shallowest to the deepest are: the estuarine zone — less than 200 meters; then the bathyal zone — 200-2000 meters; the abyssal — 2000-6000 meters; and the deepest, the hadal zone — over 6000 meters. An estuary is a semi-enclosed Coastal body of Water with one or more Rivers or Streams flowing into it and with a free connection to the open The bathyal zone or bathypelagic – from Greek βαθύς (bathýs deep – is the Pelagic zone that extends from a depth of 1000 to 4000 The abyssal zone is the abyssopelagic layer of Pelagic zone that contains the very deep Benthic communities near the bottom of Oceans "Abyss" Hadal zone or (trench zone (Greek for "like Hades," in other words "unseen" or Hadopelagic zone is the delineation for the deepest
All these zones are in deep, pressured areas of the ocean. Because of the high pressure and seclusion neither tidal changes nor human interference has had much of an effect on these areas, and the habitats have not changed much over the years. Many benthic organisms have retained their historic evolutionary characteristics; some organisms have significantly changed size.
Humans are not able to map or observe these organisms and their habitats easily, and most observation has been done through remote controlled submarines. A submarine is a Watercraft that can operate independently below water as distinct from a Submersible that has only limited underwater capability
See also
- Armor (hydrology)
- Deep sea
- Littoral
- Profundal zone
- Limnetic zone
- Lake stratification
- Benthos
- Stream bed
- Water column
- Intertidal zone
- Aphotic zone
- Photic zone
- Neritic zone
- Pelagic zone
References
- Fathom
- Data Archive for Seabed Species and Habitats from the UK Marine Data Archive Centre
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