Benthos
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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| Ocean habitats |
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| aquatic ecosystem |
| continental shelf |
| neritic zone |
| littoral zone |
| intertidal |
| pelagic zone |
| demersal zone |
| benthic zone |
| benthic life |
| coral reefs |
| estuaries |
| seamounts |
| fishing banks |
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Benthos are the organisms which live on, in, or near the seabed, also known as the benthic zone.[1] Benthic organisms, such as sea stars, oysters, clams, sea cucumbers, brittle stars and sea anemones, play an important role as a food source for fish and humans.
The term benthos comes from the Greek for "depths of the sea".[1] Benthos is also used in freshwater biology to refer to organisms at the bottom of freshwater bodies of water, such as lakes, rivers, and streams.[2]
The main food sources for benthos are plankton and organic runoff from land. The depth of water, temperature and salinity, and type of local substrate all affect what benthos is present. In coastal waters and other places where light reaches the bottom, benthic photosynthesizing diatoms can proliferate. Filter feeders, such as sponges and pelecypods, dominate hard, sandy bottoms. Deposit eaters, such as polychaetes, populate softer bottoms. Fish, starfish, snails, cephalopods, and crustaceans are important predators and scavengers.
Contents |
[edit] Categories
By type:
- zoobenthos: animals belonging to the benthos
- phytobenthos: plants belonging to the benthos
by location:
- epibenthos: live on top of the sediment
- hyperbenthos: live just above the sediment
By size:
| term | size | examples |
|---|---|---|
| macrobenthos | > 1 mm | polychaete worms, pelecypods, anthozoans, echinoderms, sponges, ascidians, crustaceans |
| meiobenthos | < 1 mm | polychaetes, pelecypods, copepods, ostracodes, cumaceans, nematodes, turbellarians, foraminiferans |
| microbenthos | < 32 µm | bacteria, diatoms, ciliates, amoeba, flagellates |
[edit] See also
[edit] Notes
- ^ a b Benthos from the Census of Antarctic Marine Life website
- ^ North American Benthological Society website
[edit] References
- Benthos
- Benthos. (2008) Encyclopædia Britannica. (Retrieved May 15, 2008, from Encyclopædia Britannica Online.)
