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An aquatic ecosystem is an ecosystem found in and around a body of water, in contrast to land-based terrestrial ecosystems. Aquatic ecosystems contain communities of organisms—aquatic life—that are dependent on each other and on their environment. The two main types of aquatic ecosystems are marine ecosystems and freshwater ecosystems. [1]
Physical properties of aquatic ecosystems are determined by a combination of heat, currents, waves and other seasonal distributions of environmental conditions. [13] The morphometry of a body of water depends on the type of feature (such as a lake, river, stream, wetland, estuary etc.) and the structure of the earth surrounding the body of water.
There are three basic types of freshwater ecosystems: Lentic (slow moving water, including pools, ponds, and lakes), lotic (faster moving water, for example streams and rivers) and wetlands (areas where the soil is saturated or inundated for at least part of the time). Limnology (and its branch freshwater biology) is a study about freshwater ...
Aquacultural engineering is a multidisciplinary field of engineering and that aims to solve technical problems associated with farming aquatic vertebrates, invertebrates, and algae. [1] Common aquaculture systems requiring optimization and engineering include sea cages, ponds, and recirculating systems. [2]
Aquatic science is the study of the various bodies of water that make up our planet including oceanic and freshwater environments. [1] Aquatic scientists study the movement of water, the chemistry of water, aquatic organisms, aquatic ecosystems, the movement of materials in and out of aquatic ecosystems, and the use of water by humans, among other things.
These systems contrast with freshwater ecosystems, which have a lower salt content. Marine waters cover more than 70% of the surface of the Earth and account for more than 97% of Earth's water supply [1] [2] and 90% of habitable space on Earth. [3] Seawater has an average salinity of 35 parts per thousand of water.
Aquatic biomonitoring is an important tool for assessing aquatic life forms and their habitats. It can reveal the overall health and status of the ecosystem, detect environmental trends and the impacts of different stressors, and can be used to evaluate the effect that various human activities have on the overall health of aquatic environments.
Natural resources are vulnerable and limited. The environmental impacts of anthropogenic actions are becoming more apparent. Problems for all ecosystems include: environmental pollution, climate change and biodiversity loss. For terrestrial ecosystems further threats include air pollution, soil degradation, and deforestation.