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Phytoplankton (/ ˌ f aɪ t oʊ ˈ p l æ ŋ k t ə n /) are the autotrophic (self-feeding) components of the plankton community and a key part of ocean and freshwater ecosystems.The name comes from the Greek words φυτόν (phyton), meaning 'plant', and πλαγκτός (planktos), meaning 'wanderer' or 'drifter'.
This is an accepted version of this page This is the latest accepted revision, reviewed on 5 February 2025. Organisms living in water or air that are drifters on the current or wind This article is about the marine organisms. For other uses, see Plankton (disambiguation). Marine microplankton and mesoplankton Part of the contents of one dip of a hand net. The image contains diverse planktonic ...
A planktivore is an aquatic organism that feeds on planktonic food, including zooplankton and phytoplankton. [1] [2] Planktivorous organisms encompass a range of some of the planet's smallest to largest multicellular animals in both the present day and in the past billion years; basking sharks and copepods are just two examples of giant and microscopic organisms that feed upon plankton.
Plankton can be divided into producers and consumers. The producers are the phytoplankton (Greek phyton = plant) and the consumers, who eat the phytoplankton, are the zooplankton (Greek zoon = animal). Jellyfish are slow swimmers, and most species form part of the plankton. Traditionally, jellyfish have been viewed as trophic dead ends.
Sargassum is a genus of brown macroalgae in the order Fucales of the Phaeophyceae class. [1] Numerous species are distributed throughout the temperate and tropical oceans of the world, where they generally inhabit shallow water and coral reefs, and the genus is widely known for its planktonic (free-floating) species.
Sea grass is the only type of flowering plant that grows in British seas, but it nonetheless forms vast beds. Invertebrates in coastal Britain are very diverse and include brittle stars, hermit crabs, mussels, prawns, sponges, sea anemones and sea squirts. Efforts are made to conserve rare plants and animals in nature reserves.
Microalgae proteins are also investigated as thickening agents [15] or emulsion and foam stabilizers [16] in the food industry to replace animal based proteins. Some microalgae accumulate chromophores like chlorophyll , carotenoids , phycobiliproteins or polyphenols that may be extracted and used as coloring agents.
All of these habitats are able to sequester large quantities of carbon and support a biodiverse range of larger and smaller animal life. [76] Marine plants can be found in intertidal zones and shallow waters, such as seagrasses like eelgrass and turtle grass, Thalassia. These plants have adapted to the high salinity of the ocean environment.