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The benthic boundary layer (BBL) represents a few tens of meters of the water column directly above the sea floor [3] and constitutes an important zone of biological activity in the ocean. [4] It plays a vital role in the cycling of matter, and has been called the “endpoint” for sedimenting material, which fuels high metabolic rates for ...
The term benthos, coined by Haeckel in 1891, [3] comes from the Greek noun βένθος 'depth of the sea'. [1] [4] Benthos is used in freshwater biology to refer to organisms at the bottom of freshwater bodies of water, such as lakes, rivers, and streams. [5] There is also a redundant synonym, Benton. [6]
The name comes from the Ancient Greek word βένθος (bénthos), meaning "the depths". [1] Organisms living in this zone are called benthos and include microorganisms (e.g., bacteria and fungi) [2] [3] as well as larger invertebrates, such as crustaceans and polychaetes. [4]
The water environment allows the organism to be soft, watery and huge. To be watery and transparent is a successful way to avoid predation. [1] Sea water can prevent desiccation although it is much saltier than fresh water. For oceanic organism, not like terrestrial plants and animals, water is never a problem.
Filamentous cyanobacteria growing on an underwater surface. Phytobenthos (/. f aɪ t oʊ ˈ b ɛ n θ ɒ s /) (from Greek φυτόν (phyton, meaning "plants") and βένθος (benthos, meaning "depths") are autotrophic organisms found attached to bottom surfaces of aquatic environments, such as rocks, sediments, or even other organisms.
Macrobenthos consists of the organisms that live at the bottom of a water column [1] and are visible to the naked eye. [2] In some classification schemes, these organisms are larger than 1 mm; [1] in another, the smallest dimension must be at least 0.5 mm. [3] They include polychaete worms, pelecypods, anthozoans, echinoderms, sponges, ascidians, crustaceans.
Benthic-pelagic coupling are processes that connect the benthic zone and the pelagic zone through the exchange of energy, mass, or nutrients. These processes play a prominent role in both freshwater and marine ecosystems and are influenced by a number of chemical, biological, and physical forces that are crucial to functions from nutrient cycling to energy transfer in food webs.
The demersal zone is the part of the sea or ocean (or deep lake) consisting of the part of the water column near to (and significantly affected by) the seabed and the benthos. [1] The demersal zone is just above the benthic zone and forms a layer of the larger profundal zone. [citation needed]