Estuaries Where the River Meets the Sea
Producers:
Mangrove Trees, Cordgrass, Seagrass, Jointed Rush, and Phytoplankton all found in estuaries
- Phytoplankton
Phytoplankton are microscopic organisms that are the basis of estuaries
- Cordgrass
Very commonly found on coastal salt marshes
- Mangrove Tree
Trees that have the ability to grow in Brackish (freshwater and salt mixture) waters
- Seagrass
Sea grass grows on the floor of estuaries and helps keep the water clear
- Jointed Rush
Commonly grows on the shore of estuaries
Consumers
Herbivores:
Some herbivores in Estuaries include zooplankton, mussels, and oysters.
- Mussels
Mussels are filter feeders and eat plankton
- Oysters
Much like mussels, oysters filter feed on plankton.
- Zooplankton
Zooplankton feed on algae in estuaries
Carnivores:
Salmon and Bull Sharks are both carnivores in Estuaries
- Salmon
Salmon eat insects, plankton, shrimp, and other small fish.
- Bullshark
Bull sharks eat mainly fish, but will also eat birds, crustaceans, stingrays, and other sharks. While they are less likely to appear in estuaries, they are a top predator.
Decomposers:
Sea Bacteria and Fungi do most of the decomposing in estuaries
Food Web
Food Web of an Estuary
Population Growth Chart in Buzzards Bay:
Population Growth of Phytoplankton and Mussels:
Limiting Abiotic Factor:
Salinity and Turbidity of the Water
Salinity is very sensitive in estuaries. If the salt gets too high or low, the estuary will soon die. Turbidity is the "cloudiness" of the water. If the water gets too cloudy, it makes it hard for the plants to photosynthesize, which destroys estuaries.
Limiting Biotic Factor:
Phytoplankton and migratory birds. Without plankton, the whole food web would collapse because phytoplankton is the base of estuaries. Without migratory birds, populations in estuaries would grow very high.
Physical and Climatic Barriers of Estuaries
Estuaries are found where freshwater mix with the ocean water. They are on the coasts of oceans where rivers meet the sea. Therefore, estuaries cannot be in the middle of a continent. Estuaries are pretty dependent on temperature, with higher temperatures, estuaries will thrive and with low temperatures, estuary life will die.
Predator/Prey Example:
Killifish feed on Grass Shrimp in Estuaries.
Scavenger Examples:
Blue Crab, Stone Crab, and Mud Snails are all scavengers in Estuaries.
Symbiosis Example:
Parasitism:
The Boring Sponge will bore into oysters, killing them.
Commensalism:
Barnacles attach to other living things to get food because they are filter feeders.
Mutualism:
Sea slugs clean other fish in estuaries. The slug is getting food, and the fish is getting cleaned.
Where Estuaries are Located
The green areas on the map show where estuaries are located on the earth.
Temperature and Precipitation Graph
Estuaries
Citations
- http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/estuaries/page-3
- http://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/phyto.html
- http://floridakeys.noaa.gov/plants/seagrass.html
- http://floridakeys.noaa.gov/plants/mangroves.html
- http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/resources/waterwatch/20100686EstuaryFactWorksheetsF04.pdf
- https://sanfranciscoestuarybiomeproject.wikispaces.com/Effecting+Factors
- http://www.serc.si.edu/labs/fish_invert_ecology/abstracts/fishshrimp_complex.aspx
- http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0272771401907851