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This is an accepted version of this page This is the latest accepted revision, reviewed on 31 October 2024. Organisms living in water or air that are drifters on the current or wind This article is about the marine organisms. For other uses, see Plankton (disambiguation). Marine microplankton and mesoplankton Part of the contents of one dip of a hand net. The image contains diverse planktonic ...
t. e. Phytoplankton (/ ˌfaɪtoʊˈplæŋktən /) are the autotrophic (self-feeding) components of the plankton community and a key part of ocean and freshwater ecosystems. The name comes from the Greek words φυτόν (phyton), meaning ' plant ', and πλαγκτός (planktos), meaning 'wanderer' or 'drifter'. [1][2][3] Phytoplankton obtain ...
Some of the largest plankton are krill and feed the largest of animals, baleen whales. My first foray into the scientific world was a job sexing Jassa falcata (a tiny amphipod) under a microscope.
Zooplankton are the heterotrophic component of the planktonic community (the "zoo-" prefix comes from Ancient Greek: ζῷον, romanized: zôion, lit. 'animal'), having to consume other organisms to thrive. Plankton are aquatic organisms that are unable to swim effectively against currents.
A salp (plural salps, also known colloquially as “sea grape”) or salpa (plural salpae or salpas[2]) is a barrel-shaped, planktonic tunicate in the family Salpidae. It moves by contracting, thereby pumping water through its gelatinous body; it is one of the most efficient examples of jet propulsion in the animal kingdom. [3]
Category. v. t. e. Planktology is the study of plankton, various small drifting plants, animals and microorganisms that inhabit bodies of water. Planktology topics include primary production, energy flow and the carbon cycle. Plankton drive the "biological pump", a process by which the ocean ecosystem transports carbon from the surface euphotic ...
A marine food web is a food web of marine life. At the base of the ocean food web are single-celled algae and other plant-like organisms known as phytoplankton. The second trophic level (primary consumers) is occupied by zooplankton which feed off the phytoplankton. Higher order consumers complete the web.
Oceanic physical-biological process. Sea water is 827 times denser than air. Due to the higher density of sea water (1,030 kg m −3) than air (1.2 kg m −3), the force exerted by the same velocity on an organism is 827 times stronger in the ocean. When waves crash on the shore, the force exerted on littoral organisms can be equivalent to ...