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Benthos are highly sensitive to contamination, so their close proximity to high pollutant concentrations make these organisms ideal for studying water contamination. [21] Benthos can be used as bioindicators of water pollution through ecological population assessments or through analyzing biomarkers. In ecological population assessments, a ...
Benthos are the organisms that live in the benthic zone, and are different from those elsewhere in the water column; even within the benthic zone variations in such factors as light penetration, temperature and salinity give rise to distinct differences, delineated vertically, in the groups of organisms supported. [10]
Intertidal habitats have been a model system for many classic ecological studies, including those introduced below, because the resident communities are particularly amenable to experimentation. One dogma of intertidal ecology—supported by such classic studies—is that species' lower tide height limits are set by species interactions whereas ...
Biofilm is composed of phytobenthos as well as other eukaryotes and prokaryotes.. Phytobenthos are subcategorized into microphytobenthos and macrophytobenthos. Microphytobenthos such as diatoms can be as small as 0.2 μm in diameter, and macrophytobenthos such as kelps can be tens
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 ...
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.
Marine larval ecology is the study of the factors influencing dispersing larvae, which many marine invertebrates and fishes have. Marine animals with a larva typically release many larvae into the water column, where the larvae develop before metamorphosing into adults.
Benthic fish are denser than water, so they can rest on the sea floor. They either lie-and-wait as ambush predators, at times covering themselves with sand or otherwise camouflaging themselves, or move actively over the bottom in search for food. [3] Benthic fish which can bury themselves include dragonets, flatfish and stingrays.