The Salt Water Biome Nora Houseknecht Emily Raviele Marissa Graham Anna Cameselle Rachel Rossello.

The Salt Water Biome 

Nora HouseknechtEmily Raviele 

Marissa GrahamAnna CameselleRachel Rossello

Ocean Water

• Earth's oceans- 324 mil cubic miles of seawater (71% of Earths surface) 

• 53 mil bil tons of salts/gases/other substances• Varies in- temp, pressure, oxygen & light• Fact: about 97%  of the earth's water is in interconnected

oceans

Sunlight• sunlight penetrates upper 200m 

o dissolved oxygen levels higher near surface

Why is sunlight important to the ocean? • provides necessary energy for currents

•  conversion of energy into heat helps form layer of warm water near surface

•  transmission of light is essential to salt water productivity

•  phytoplankton produces roughly half the oxygen in our air o  if water were not relatively transparent to light, ocean would be a

large dead zone

• decreasing ozone levels in atmosphere = higher levels of UV 

Nutrients-biologically important ions  -where rivers meet oceans (brackish water)      1. principle supply from rivers  -critical for cell growth = nitrogen & phosphorus- building shells and skeletons = silicon & calcium  -fertilizers, detergents and human/animal waste are pollutants    1. lead to hypoxia/ algae blooms  -bio-degradation & bacteria recycling  -tropics: nutrients are limited -secret to wetland productivity: a complimentary mix   

What is upwelling?• In open ocean nutrients often are in short supply and limit net

primary productivity (NPP). • NPP is much higher in parts of ocean where upwelling occurs

Human Impact

• 5 potential sources of marine pollution

•  land based activities account for about 90%

•  other 4 causes of pollution:ovesselsocontinental shelf drillingodeep-seabed miningoocean mining

Human Impact• Oil leaks and spills• Industrial and nuclear waste• Surface run off

VIDEO TIME

Circulation and Climate

• Constantly in motion

• Currents maintained by:o solar heating of atmosphereo prevailing windso Earth's rotationo temp and salinity of surface waters

Ocean Winds

• Patterns of winds• Coriolis effect

Prevailing Winds Produced by pressure differences

Trade winds- tropics and subtropics- air movements toward equator in Hadley cells- deflected westward

Currents

Meeting of Currents• Warm and cold currents• Triggers upward flow of nutrient-rich waters from sea

floor• Produces good feeding grounds for fish, sea birds and

mammals

Boundary Currents • Currents at edges of gyres• West- strong, narrow and warm - move heat away

from equator• Gulf Stream and Brazil Current• East- weak, broad and cold

Water Circulation

Underwater Circulation• Vertical from water surface 

o  upwelling and downwelling

Deep Water Circulation • Driven by major downwelling zones

o  north atlantico sinks- properties stay stable for long timeo specific mass of seawater- 1,000 yrs to complete

circuit

Tide Pools• Areas on rocks by the ocean that are filled with

sea water

• Vary in size

• Source of food and oxygen for organisms

Salinity 

• 96.5% water

• 3.5% dissolved substances

• Waters enters sea from rain, inflow from streams, groundwater 

• types of organisms found are determined by salinity

• Weathering

• Hydrothermal vents

• The Dead Sea

Tropical Reefs and their importance• Control erosion of shorelines 

• Provide food and habitat for fish and organisms

• Considered a "hotspot" for marine biodiversity

Tropical Reefs

How they are formed:• built up slowly by algae and corals which leave

behind calcified depositsDestruction of reefs caused by:• human and natural effects- Hurricanes, poor

fishing practices, polluted waters, warming waters that weaken and bleach corals

Hurricanes3 Conditions necessary for a hurricane to form:

1.Warm ocean water near surface• Moisture from water evaporation to mix with heat and

energy• Wind pattern near ocean surface

•  Another factor that adds to the    power of a hurricane are     thunderstorms.

Works CitedPicture of salt water intrusion: ofhttp://callisto.ggsrv.com/imgsrv/FastFetch/UBER1/00032096A003-T2 Salt water intrusion, 2010 Picture on title slide:NASA'S SOLO-TREC Draws Free Energy from the Oceanhttp://breakthematrix.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/normal_Ocean_Wave.jpg2005 Ocean winds, currents and pictures:Ocean- The World's Last Wilderness Revealed- 2006- American Museum of Natural History

Coral reefs:NOAA's Coral Reef Conservation Program- Value of Coral Reef ecosystems (10/18/11) http://coralreef.noaa.gov/aboutcorals/values/RIT libraries- Tropical Coral Reefs (10/18/11) http://library.rit.edu/about/our-reef-aquarium/tropical-coral-reefs/tropical-coral-reefs.html

Works Cited Cont. 

http://files.myopera.com/nielsol/blog/Benguela_upwelling.gif

http://lightonthepage.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/sunlight_deep_ocean_kan1.jpg

http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/exhibits/biomes/

http://www.defenders.org/resources/publications/policy_and_legislation/impacts_of_outer_continental_shelf_drilling.pdf

http://w3.shorecrest.org/~Lisa_Peck/MarineBio/syllabus/ch11_ecosystems/ecosystem_wp/Rockyshores_jake_ashleyh/3tidepool.jpghttp://www.utdallas.edu/~pujana/oceans/why.htmlhttp://gomyclass.com/geology10/files/lecture6/html/images/objects/obj18-2.jpghttp://allwellness.files.wordpress.com/2011/01/dead-sea.jpghttp://www.calstatela.edu/faculty/eviau/edit557/oceans/norma/otdpls.htm