MARINE ECOSYSTEM

 MARINE ECOSYSTEM

·       Marine ecosystems make up the largest aquatic system in the world covering more than 70 percent of the planet.

·       Marine ecosystems are considered to be the habitats that complete the large system from the shores to the dark sea floor.

·       Just like every other ecosystem in the world, the aquatic ecosystems rely on each other for maintaining a balanced Marine ecosystem.

·       The marine ecosystems are important to the world, because without them, the marine life would not have and protection from predators, which could eventually make the marine life go extinct.

·       Economically, marine systems support billions of dollars worth of capture fisheries, aquaculture, offshore oil and gas, and trade and shipping.

TYPES OF MARINE ECOSYSTEM

a)     Rocky shore ecosystem (contains small and large rocks)

b)    Sandy beach ecosystem (Sandy beach)

c)     Mangrove ecosystem (Mangrove trees are salt-tolerant plant species with roots that dangle into the water)

d)    Salt marsh ecosystem (composed of Salt tolerant plants and Animals)

e)     Coral reef ecosystem (Hardy stone or Pavazham)

f)      Kelp ecosystem (provides food and shelter for various marine organisms)

g)    Polar ecosystem (extremely cold region)

h)    Deep sea ecosystem (ocean that are over 1,000 meters or 3,281 feet)

IMPORTANCE OF MARINE ECOSYSTEM

·       Marine ecosystems are an important part of the world, because the marine ecosystems give marine life such as: tiny plankton, fish, crustaceans, invertebrates, reptiles, marine mammals, sharks, and rays a place to live and survive.

·       Marine ecosystems also gives those marine animals a place to hunt.

·       Many marine life have an important role in the world such as the tiny Plankton because without them the world would build up with carbon dioxide, the plankton absorbs the Carbon-di-oxide in the air and releases Oxygen back into the air.

·       The most important marine ecosystems for marine life are Estuaries and Coral reefs.

·       Estuaries are breeding territories for many marine animals, because it is easy for young-lings to survive there, since there are no known predators that live in that region.

·       Coral reefs are important for the marine life, because it provides a shelter for various amount of species. Coral reefs also are the most diverse ecosystem in the whole aquatic system.

MARINE ECOSYSTEM THREATS

1) Overfishing

·       Overfishing is a threat for marine ecosystems because a decrease in number of a species will affect the marine food web disrupting the whole ocean.

·       If overfishing causes a species to become extinct in the marine ecosystem then it will have one of the species in the ocean to become overpopulated. Once one specie becomes overpopulated then that organism dominates the ocean making other species to become endangered or extinct.

·       However, the Government stepped in and passed an amendment that decreases overfishing. This amendment helps the ocean to recover the decrease of marine animals. The amendment puts a set limit for the marine species we manage.

2) Marine Pollution

·       Pollution is impacting the marine ecosystems, because as more Carbon-di-oxide is released into the air more of the ice caps are melting. Therefore, the rising of ocean levels and the decrease in salinity levels.

·       If the salinity levels keep dropping the marine life that survive in salt water will not be able to survive in the fresh water rich waters.

·       Pollution is killing marine animals not only in the salinity drop, but also they eat or get trapped in harmful garbage, marine life in the ocean die from swallowing or getting caught on trash every day.

·       Over one million Sea birds are killed by pollution every year. Also three hundred Dolphin and porpoise are killed by pollution, by either swallowing trash or getting tangled in trash. One hundred thousand marine mammals are killed by ingesting plastics and other pollution substance every year.

3) Climate changes

·       Warming temperatures

·       Intensity of Storms

·       Acidification of Oceans

·       Increase in Sea level