Characteristics of various living environments. Unusual underwater inhabitants: who lives at the bottom of the ocean? Organisms living at the bottom

Everything that surrounds the body and directly or indirectly affects its condition and functioning is called environment . On our planet, four qualitatively different living environments can be distinguished: aquatic, ground-air, soil and living organism . The living environments themselves are also very diverse. For example, water as a living environment can be fresh, salty, stagnant, or flowing. In this case they talk about habitat : pond, river, lake are habitats of aquatic life. In habitats there are habitat : in the water column, at the bottom of the reservoir, at the surface of the water, etc.

Elements of the environment that affect a living organism are called environmental factors, among which are factors inanimate nature(abiotic), living nature (biotic). Let us consider the main factors of the inanimate nature of various living environments.

Aquatic living environment.

Oscillations temperature The waters in the World Ocean are relatively small: from -2°C to +36°C. In fresh inland water bodies of temperate latitudes, the temperature of the surface layers of water ranges from -0.9°C to +25°C. Favorable temperature regime excludes as too high temperatures, and too low. The exceptions are thermal springs, warm, hot and boiling, the water temperature in which can reach +100°C.

At different depths, animals experience different pressure . On average, in the water column, for every 10 m of depth, pressure increases by 1 atm. Deep-sea creatures have adapted to high pressure (up to 1000 atm).

TO transparency and light mode Photosynthetic plants are the most sensitive. In muddy reservoirs they live only in the surface layer, and where the water transparency is higher, they penetrate to significant depths. The turbidity of the water is created by a huge amount of particles of mineral substances (clay, silt) and small organisms suspended in it, which limits the penetration sun rays. The light regime is also due to the natural decrease in light with depth. Oxygen Fall into aquatic environment in two ways: firstly, it comes from the atmosphere, and secondly, it is formed as a result of photosynthesis of green plants. Roach, ruffe, and crucian carp are unpretentious in this regard, and the larvae of chironomid mosquitoes and tubifex worms live at great depths, where oxygen is practically absent.

The water column is inhabited by many organisms. They are divided into nekton, plankton and benthos.

Nekton(from Greek nekton - floating) is a collection of floating, freely moving organisms that do not have a direct connection with the bottom. These animals are able to overcome long distances and strong water currents. They are characterized by a streamlined body shape and well-developed organs of movement. Typical nektonic organisms are fish, squid, pinnipeds, and whales. In fresh waters, in addition to fish, nekton includes amphibians and actively moving insects.

Plankton(from Greek planktos - soaring) is a collection of floating organisms that move mainly with the help of currents. They do not have the ability for rapid active movements. These are mainly small animals - zooplankton and plants - phytoplankton.

Planktonic organisms are located either on the surface of the water, or at depth, or even in the bottom layer. Plaiston (from Greek. plain - sail on a ship) - organisms in which part of the body is in the water, part is above the water (duckweed, fesalia, siphonophores, etc.). Neuston(from Greek neusteon - capable of swimming) - organisms floating on the surface (bacteria, protozoa, water strider bugs, spinning beetles, algae).

Phytoplankton- a set of microscopic plants, mainly algae, living in the water column and moving under the influence of water currents (diatoms and green algae, plant flagellates, etc.).

Zooplankton and bacteria are found at all depths. Marine zooplankton is dominated by small crustaceans, protozoa, pteropods, jellyfish, swimming ctenophores, salps, and some worms. IN fresh water Poorly swimming, relatively large crustaceans, many rotifers and protozoa are common.

Benthos(from Greek benthos - depth) - the totality of organisms living at the bottom (on the ground and in the ground) of reservoirs. It is divided into phytobenthos, zoobenthos and bacteriobenthos.

The phytobenthos of the seas mainly includes bacteria and algae (diatoms, green, brown, red). Rocky and stony areas of the bottom are richest in phytobenthos. Freshwater phytobenthos is represented by bacteria, diatoms and green algae.

Zoobenthos is represented mainly by attached or slowly moving animals, as well as burrowing animals.

Ground-air environment of life.

Organisms living on the surface of the Earth are surrounded by a gaseous environment, which is distinguished by a set of features: light it works more intensely here temperature undergoes stronger fluctuations humidity varies significantly depending on geographic location, season and time of day; the impact of almost all of these factors is associated with movement air masses – winds.

By chemical composition air there is a lot of oxygen in it. Dry air at sea level consists (by volume) of 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, 0.03% carbon dioxide; at least 1% is inert gases. Oxygen is necessary for respiration of the vast majority of organisms; carbon dioxide is used by plants during photosynthesis.

Minor density and weak pressure drops. The low density of air makes it easier to move around in it. About two-thirds of land inhabitants have mastered active and passive flight. Most of them are insects and birds. Although many species can fly, and small insects, spiders, microorganisms, seeds and plant spores are carried by air currents, feeding and reproduction of organisms occurs on the surface of the ground or plants. Air - poor conductor of heat . This makes it easier to conserve heat generated inside organisms and maintain constant temperature in warm-blooded animals.

Soil environment life.

Soil is a thin layer of land surface, processed by the activity of living beings. This a complex system, including solid - mineral particles, liquid – soil moisture, gaseous phase. The relationship between these three components determines the main physical properties soils as habitats for organisms. Chemical properties in addition to mineral soil elements, they strongly depend on organic matter , which is also an integral integral part soil. The depth of the soil is determined by the depth of penetration of roots and the activity of burrowing animals (no more than 1.5 - 2 m.)

The ratio of different particles forms mechanical soil composition . Based on this feature, soils are distinguished sandy(contain more than 90% sand), sandy loam(90-80), light, medium and heavy loams(respectively 80-70, 70-55 and 55-40) and clay- light (40-30), medium (30-20) and heavy (less than 20% sand).

Mineral particles occupy 40-70% of the total soil volume. The remaining space, which is a system of pores, cavities and tubules, is occupied by air and water. The mechanical composition and structure of soils is a leading factor in the formation of their properties as a habitat for living organisms: soil aeration, their humidity and moisture capacity, heat capacity and thermal regime, as well as the conditions for movement of animals in the soil, distribution of roots of woody and herbaceous plants, etc. P.

Soil water occupies pores and cavities and is one of the main sources of moisture for plants.

Air in soil cavities always saturated with water vapor, its composition is enriched carbon dioxide and depleted of oxygen. In this way, the living conditions in the soil resemble the aquatic environment. On the other hand, the ratio of water and air in soils is constantly changing depending on weather conditions.

Well-moistened soil warms up easily and cools slowly. On its surface, sharper temperature fluctuations occur than in the depths. In this case, daily fluctuations affect layers down to a depth of 1 m. Temperature fluctuations are very sharp at the surface, but quickly smooth out with depth.

LIFE IN THE OCEAN

IN ocean water contains substances necessary for life. Living things are found in the ocean at any depth. They exist even at the bottom of the Mariana Trench - the very deep point The world's oceans - at a depth of 11,000 meters, even where hot magma comes from the depths of the Earth through faults, even where there are high temperatures and enormous pressure. We can safely say that life in the ocean is all-pervasive.

Life in the ocean is extremely diverse, since its conditions from the poles to the equator, from the surface of the water masses to the deep are very different. In terms of diversity of plant and animal species, the ocean is comparable to land. The ocean is still full of secrets even now. When researching depths of the sea find organisms unknown to science.

According to most scientists, the ocean is the cradle of life on Earth, since all life on our planet came from the ocean. The development of life in it led to changes in the properties of water masses (salinity, gas content, etc.). For example, the appearance of green plants in the ocean led to an increase in the oxygen content in the water. Oxygen was released from the water into the atmosphere, changing its composition. The appearance of oxygen in the atmosphere led to the possibility of the settlement of land by organisms native to the oceans.

All inhabitants of the World Ocean can be divided into 3 groups according to their living conditions:

1) organisms that live on the surface of the ocean and in the water column and do not have active means of transportation;

2) organisms actively moving in the water column;

3) organisms living at the bottom.

Analysis of living organisms and their habitats suggests that the ocean is unevenly populated by organisms. Coastal areas with depths of up to 200 meters, well illuminated and warmed by the sun's rays, are especially densely populated. On the mainland shallows you can see forests and meadows of seaweed - pastures for fish and other ocean inhabitants. Far from the coast, large algae are rare, since the sun's rays have difficulty penetrating the water column. Plankton reigns here (Greek planktos - wandering). These are plants and animals that are unable to withstand currents that carry them over long distances. Most of these organisms are very small, many of them visible only under a microscope. There are phytoplankton and zooplankton. Phytoplankton are various algae developed in the upper, illuminated layer of water. Zooplankton inhabits the entire water column: these are small crustaceans and numerous protozoa (single-celled animals of microscopic size). Plankton is the main food of most ocean inhabitants. Naturally, areas rich in it are also rich in fish. They can also live here baleen whales, in whose diet plankton occupies the main place.

Benthos lives at the bottom of the sea or ocean (Greek benthos - deep). This is a collection of plant and animal organisms that live on the ground or in the soil of the seabed. Benthos includes brown and red algae, mollusks, crustaceans and others. Important commercial value Among them are shrimp, oysters, scallops, lobsters, and crabs. Benthos is an excellent food source for walruses, sea otters and some species of fish.

The depths of the ocean are sparsely populated, but they are not lifeless. Of course, there are no plants there anymore, but in complete darkness, under great pressure, in cold water swim amazing fish: they have huge toothy mouths, glowing bodies, “lanterns” on their heads. Some of them are blind, others can see poorly in the dark. They feed on the remains of organisms falling from above, or eat each other. In the water column there are many bacteria that live in the deepest water masses. Thanks to their activity, dead organisms decompose and the elements necessary for the nutrition of living beings are released.

Actively moving organisms live everywhere in the ocean. These are a variety of fish marine mammals(dolphins, whales, seals, walruses), sea ​​snakes, squids, turtles and others.

Life in the ocean is distributed unevenly not only in depth, but also depending on geographical latitude. Polar waters due to low temperatures and long polar night poor in plankton. It develops most in waters temperate zone both hemispheres. There are currents here strong winds contribute to the mixing of water masses and the rise of deep waters, enriching them nutrients and oxygen. Due to the strong development of plankton, different kinds fish, therefore temperate latitudes- the most fishy areas of the ocean. IN tropical latitudes the number of living organisms decreases, since these waters are very heated, highly salty and poorly mixed with deep waters water masses. At equatorial latitudes, the number of organisms increases again.

The ocean has long been man's breadwinner. It is used for fishing for fish, invertebrates, and mammals, where algae are collected, mineral wealth is extracted, and substances that are raw materials for medicines. The ocean is so rich that it seemed inexhaustible to people. Entire flotillas of ships from different countries went fishing for fish and whales. The most large whales- blue. Their weight reaches 150 tons. As a result of the predatory hunting of this animal blue whales were under threat of extermination. In 1987 Soviet Union whaling ceased. The number of fish in the ocean has also decreased noticeably.

The problems of the World Ocean are not the concern of any one state, but of the whole world, and they cannot be solved within the framework of one state. Its future depends on how wisely humanity solves them.

Ocean water contains substances necessary for life. Living things are found in the ocean at any depth. They exist even at the bottom of the Mariana Trench - the deepest point of the World Ocean - at a depth of 11 thousand meters, even where hot magma comes from the depths of the Earth through faults, even where there are high temperatures and enormous pressure. We can safely say that life in the ocean is all-pervasive.

Life in the ocean is incredibly diverse - more than 200,000 species of organisms live there, due to the fact that its conditions are very different from the poles to the equator, from the surface of the water masses to the deep. In terms of diversity of plant and animal species, the ocean is comparable to land. The ocean is still full of secrets even now. When exploring the depths of the sea, organisms unknown to science are found.

Inhabitants of the World Ocean

All inhabitants of the World Ocean can be divided into 3 groups according to their living conditions:

1) Organisms that live on the surface of the ocean and in the water column and do not have active means of transportation (plankton).

2) Organisms that actively move in the water column (nekton).

3) Organisms that live on the bottom (benthos).

Plankton

Analysis of living organisms and their habitats suggests that the ocean is unevenly populated by organisms. Coastal areas with depths of up to 200 meters, well illuminated and warmed by the sun's rays, are especially densely populated. On the mainland shallows you can see forests and meadows of seaweed - pastures for fish and other ocean inhabitants.

Far from the coast, large algae are rare, since the sun's rays have difficulty penetrating the water column. Plankton reigns here (Greek planktos - wandering). These are plants and animals that are unable to withstand currents that carry them over long distances. Most of these organisms are very small, many of them visible only under a microscope. There are phytoplankton and zooplankton. Phytoplankton are various algae. Zooplankton inhabits the entire water column: these are small crustaceans and numerous protozoa.

Plankton is the main food of most ocean inhabitants. Naturally, areas rich in it are also rich in fish. Baleen whales can also live here, in whose diet plankton occupies the main place.

Actively moving organisms - nekton (Greek nektós - floating, swimming) live everywhere in the ocean. nekton includes most fish, pinnipeds (seals and walruses), cetaceans (whales, sperm whales), cephalopods(squid, octopus, etc.), sea snakes and turtles. All nektons usually have a well-streamlined body shape, which helps them move quickly in the water.

Benthos lives at the bottom of the sea or ocean (Greek benthos - deep). This is a collection of plant and animal organisms that live on the ground or in the soil of the seabed. Benthos includes brown and red algae, mollusks, crustaceans and others. Benthos serves as food for many fish and other aquatic animals.

The distribution of benthos is observed vertical zoning: mollusks and crustaceans predominate in the upper horizons, mollusks and echinoderms - in the middle ones, crustaceans and echinoderms - in the deeper ones.

Depths of the ocean

The depths of the ocean are sparsely populated, but they are not lifeless. Of course, there are no plants there anymore, but in complete darkness, under great pressure, in cold water, amazing fish swim: they have huge toothy mouths, luminous bodies, “lanterns” on their heads. Some of them are blind, others can see poorly in the dark. They feed on the remains of organisms falling from above, or eat each other

Life placement

Life in the ocean is distributed unevenly not only in depth, but also depending on geographic latitude. Polar waters, due to low temperatures and the long polar night, are poor in plankton. It develops most in the temperate waters of both hemispheres. Here, currents and strong winds contribute to the mixing of water masses and the rise of deep waters, enriching them with nutrients and oxygen. Due to the strong development of plankton, various types of fish also develop, so temperate latitudes are the most fishy areas of the ocean. In tropical latitudes, the number of living organisms decreases, since these waters are very heated, highly saline and poorly mixed with deep water masses. At equatorial latitudes, the number of organisms increases again. The ocean has long been man's breadwinner.

The work was prepared by 6th grade student Nikita Khrabrov

The ocean is a boundless expanse of trillions of liters of salt water. Thousands of species of living beings have found refuge here. Some of them are heat-loving and live at shallow depths so as not to miss the rays of the sun. Others are accustomed to the cold waters of the Arctic and try to avoid warm currents. There are even those who live at the bottom of the ocean, adapting to the conditions of the harsh world.

The latest representatives are biggest mystery for scientists. After all, just recently they could not even think that someone could survive in such extreme conditions. Moreover, evolution has awarded these living organisms with a number of unprecedented features.

Beneath the oceans

For a long time there was a theory that there is no life at the bottom of the ocean. The reason for this is low temperature water, as well as high pressure, capable of compressing a submarine like a soda can. And yet, some creatures were able to withstand these circumstances and confidently settled at the very edge of the bottomless abyss.

So who lives at the bottom of the ocean? First of all, these are bacteria, traces of which were found at a depth of more than 5 thousand meters. But if microscopic creatures are unlikely to surprise ordinary person, then giant clams and monster fish deserve due attention.

How did you find out about those who live at the bottom of the ocean?

With the development of submarines, diving to a depth of two kilometers became possible. This allowed scientists to look into a world hitherto unprecedented and amazing. Each dive provided an opportunity to discover yet another and see more and more new species.

A fast development digital technologies have made it possible to create ultra-durable cameras capable of filming underwater. Thanks to this, the world saw photographs depicting animals living at the bottom of the ocean.

And every year scientists go deeper and deeper in the hope of new discoveries. And they are happening - many amazing insights have been made over the past decade. In addition, hundreds, or even thousands of photographs depicting the inhabitants of the deep sea were posted online.

Creatures living at the bottom of the ocean

Well, it's time to go on a little journey into the mysterious depths. Having passed the threshold of 200 meters, it is difficult to distinguish even small silhouettes, and after 500 meters pitch darkness sets in. From this moment begins the possessions of those who are indifferent to light and warmth.

It is at this depth that you can find polychaete worm who drifts from place to place in search of profit. In the light of the lamps it shimmers with all the colors of the rainbow, the word is made of silver plates. There is a row of tentacles on its head, thanks to which it orients itself in space and senses the approach of prey.

But the worm itself is food for another inhabitant underwater world - angelfish. This amazing creature belongs to the class gastropods and is a predator. It gets its name from the two large fins that wrap around its sides like wings.

If you go even deeper, you can stumble upon the queen of jellyfish. Hairy Cyanea, or Lion's Mane- the largest representative of its species. Large individuals reach 2 meters in diameter, and their tentacles can stretch almost 20 meters.

Who else lives at the bottom of the ocean? This is a squat lobster. According to scientists, it can adapt to life even at a depth of 5 thousand meters. Thanks to its flattened body, it can easily withstand pressure, and its long legs allow it to move along the muddy ocean floor without any problems.

Deep-sea fish representatives

Over hundreds of thousands of years of evolution, fish living on the ocean floor have been able to adapt to an existence without sunlight. Moreover, some of them have even learned to produce their own light.

So, at around 1 thousand meters he lives angler. There is a process on its head that emits a slight glow that attracts other fish. Because of this, it is also called " european anglerfish"At the same time, it can change its color, thereby merging with the environment.

Another representative deep sea creatures is a blob fish. Her body resembles jelly, which allows her to withstand pressure at great depths. It feeds exclusively on plankton, which makes it harmless to its neighbors.

At the bottom of the oceans lives a stargazer fish, the second name is the celestial eye. The reason for this pun was that the eyes are always directed upward, as if looking out for the stars. Her body is covered with poisonous spines, and near her head there are tentacles that can paralyze the victim.