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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 .
Demersal fish can be divided into two main types: strictly benthic fish which can rest on the sea floor, and benthopelagic fish which can float in the water column just above the sea floor. Benthopelagic fish have neutral buoyancy , so they can float at depth without much effort, while strictly benthic fish are denser, with negative buoyancy so ...
Altogether, the pelagic zone occupies 1,330 million km 3 (320 million mi 3) with a mean depth of 3.68 km (2.29 mi) and maximum depth of 11 km (6.8 mi). [2] [3] [4] Pelagic life decreases as depth increases. The pelagic zone contrasts with the benthic and demersal zones at the bottom of the sea. The benthic zone is the ecological region at the ...
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.
As with oceans, the benthic zone is the floor of the lake, composed of accumulated sunken organic matter. The littoral zone is the zone bordering the shore; light penetrates easily and aquatic plants thrive. The pelagic zone represents the broad mass of water, down as far as the depth to which no light penetrates. [9]
A school of large pelagic predator fish (bluefin trevally) sizing up a school of small pelagic prey fish (). Pelagic fish live in the pelagic zone of ocean or lake waters—being neither close to the bottom nor near the shore—in contrast with demersal fish that live on or near the bottom, and reef fish that are associated with coral reefs.
Demersal zone – the zone at or near the bottom of a sea or lake. Inhabitants of the demersal zone feed off the bottom or off other demersal fish. See also pelagic zone. Demersal fish – fish that live in the demersal zone. Examples are cod, flounder and snapper. Compared to pelagic fish, demersal fish contain little oil. See also bottom feeder.
Marine botany is the study of flowering vascular plant species and marine algae that live in shallow seawater of the open ocean and the littoral zone, along shorelines of the intertidal zone, coastal wetlands, and low-salinity brackish water of estuaries. It is a branch of marine biology and botany.