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Plankton plant. Interesting facts about plankton. The most diverse form of life and its economic value

Eggs and larvae of fish, larvae of various invertebrate animals (zooplankton). Plankton, directly or through intermediate links in the food chain, provides food for most other aquatic animals.

The term plankton was first coined by German oceanographer Victor Hensen in the late 1880s.

Classification

Depending on their lifestyle, plankton is divided into:

holoplankton - all life cycle conducts in the form of plankton;
meroplankton - existing as plankton only part of life, e.g. sea worms, fish.

Plankton consists of many bacteria, diatoms and some other algae (phytoplankton), protozoa, some coelenterates, mollusks, crustaceans, tunicates, eggs and larvae of fish, and the larvae of many invertebrate animals (zooplankton). Plankton directly or through intermediate links food chains serves as food for other animals living in water bodies (in addition to phytoplankton, benthic macrophytes and microalgae can also be the first link in food chains). Plankton is a mass of plants and animals, most of which are microscopic in size. Many of them are capable of independent active movement, but do not swim well enough to withstand currents, so planktonic organisms move along with water masses. Planktonic organisms are found at any depth, but the richest in them are near-surface, well-lit layers of water, where they form floating “feeding grounds” for larger animals. Plant photosynthetic planktonic organisms require sunlight and inhabit surface water, mainly to a depth of 50-100 m - the so-called euphotic layer. Bacteria and zooplankton inhabit the entire water column up to maximum depths. Marine phytoplankton consists mainly of diatoms, peridines and coccolithophores; V fresh waters- from diatoms, blue-greens and some groups of green algae. In freshwater zooplankton, the most abundant copepods and cladocerans and rotifers; in the marine environment, crustaceans (mainly copepods, as well as mysids, euphausia, shrimp, etc.) dominate, protozoa (radiolaria, foraminifera, ciliates tintinnidae), coelenterates (jellyfish, siphonophores, ctenophores), pteropods, tunicates (appendicularia, salps, etc.) are numerous. barrelworms, pyrosomes), fish eggs, larvae of various invertebrates, including many benthic ones. Plankton species diversity is greatest in tropical waters ocean.

There are several classifications of plankton depending on their size. The most generally accepted is the following:

megaplankton (0.2 - 2 m) - jellyfish
macroplankton (0.02 - 0.20 m) - many mysids, shrimp, jellyfish and other relatively large animals
mesoplankton (0.0002 - 0.02 m) - copepods and cladocerans and other animals less than 2 cm
microplankton (20 - 200 µm) - most algae, protozoa, rotifers, many larvae
nanoplankton (2 - 20 microns) - small unicellular algae, some large bacteria
picoplankton (0.2-2 microns) - bacteria, the smallest unicellular algae.
femtoplankton (<0,2 мкм) - океанические вирусы.

According to modern data, the greatest production in ocean waters is provided by picoplankton. Recently discovered eukaryotic algae in its composition (for example, prasinophyte genera Osteococcus) - the smallest of eukaryotes.

Zooplankton is the most numerous group of aquatic organisms of enormous ecological and economic importance. It consumes organic matter formed in reservoirs and brought from outside, is responsible for the self-purification of reservoirs and watercourses, forms the basis of nutrition for most fish species, and finally, plankton serves as an excellent indicator for assessing water quality.

Studies of zooplankton organisms help determine the pollution of water bodies and determine the ecological characteristics of a certain area. Any aquatic ecosystem, being in balance with environmental factors, has a complex system of mobile biological connections that are disrupted under the influence of anthropogenic factors. First of all, the influence of anthropogenic factors, and in particular, pollution, is reflected in the species composition of aquatic communities and the ratio of the numbers of their constituent species.

Classification

Depending on their lifestyle, plankton is divided into:

holoplankton - spends the entire life cycle in the form of plankton;
meroplankton - only part of life existing in the form of plankton, for example, sea worms, fish.

Plankton consists of many bacteria, diatoms and some other algae (phytoplankton), protozoa, some coelenterates, mollusks, crustaceans, tunicates, eggs and larvae of fish, and the larvae of many invertebrate animals (zooplankton). Plankton directly or through intermediate links in food chains serves as food for other animals living in water bodies (in addition to phytoplankton, benthic macrophytes and microalgae can also be the first link in food chains). Plankton is a mass of plants and animals, most of which are microscopic in size. Many of them are capable of independent active movement, but do not swim well enough to withstand currents, so planktonic organisms move along with the water masses. Planktonic organisms are found at any depth, but the richest in them are near-surface, well-lit layers of water, where they form floating “feeding grounds” for larger animals. Plant photosynthetic planktonic organisms require sunlight and inhabit surface waters, mainly to a depth of 50-100 m - the so-called euphotic layer. Bacteria and zooplankton inhabit the entire water column to maximum depths. Marine phytoplankton consists mainly of diatoms, peridines and coccolithophores; in fresh waters - from diatoms, blue-greens and some groups of green algae. In freshwater zooplankton, the most abundant copepods and cladocerans and rotifers; in the marine environment, crustaceans (mainly copepods, as well as mysids, euphausia, shrimp, etc.) dominate, protozoa (radiolaria, foraminifera, ciliates tintinnidae), coelenterates (jellyfish, siphonophores, ctenophores), pteropods, tunicates (appendicularia, salps, etc.) are numerous. barrelworms, pyrosomes), fish eggs, larvae of various invertebrates, including many benthic ones. The species diversity of plankton is greatest in tropical ocean waters.

There are several classifications of plankton depending on their size. The most generally accepted is the following:

megaplankton (0.2 - 2 m) - jellyfish
macroplankton (0.02 - 0.20 m) - many mysids, shrimp, jellyfish and other relatively large animals
mesoplankton (0.0002 - 0.02 m) - copepods and cladocerans and other animals less than 2 cm
microplankton (20 - 200 µm) - most algae, protozoa, rotifers, many larvae
nanoplankton (2 - 20 microns) - small unicellular algae, some large bacteria
picoplankton (0.2-2 microns) - bacteria, the smallest unicellular algae.
femtoplankton (<0,2 мкм) - океанические вирусы.

PLANKTON- (from the Greek planktos wandering), a set of organisms inhabiting the water column of continental and sea. bodies of water and unable to withstand transport by currents. P.'s composition includes phyto, bacterio, and zooplankton. In fresh waters, lacustrine P... Biological encyclopedic dictionary

PLANKTON- PLANKTON, plankton, husband. (from Greek plagktos wandering) (biol.). Plant and animal organisms that live in seas and rivers and move only by the force of water flow. Plant plankton. Animal plankton. The Papanins discovered plankton on... ... Ushakov's Explanatory Dictionary

PLANKTON- Pelagic animal and plant populations of any marine or freshwater. basin, considered together as a biologically integral phenomenon, opposed to the population of the bottom. Dictionary of foreign words included in the Russian language.... ... Dictionary of foreign words of the Russian language

PLANKTON- (from the Greek planktos wandering) a set of organisms that live in the water column and are unable to resist being carried by the current. Plankton consists of many bacteria, diatoms and some other algae (phytoplankton), protozoa, some... ... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

PLANKTON- PLANKTON, a collection of organisms that live in the water column and are unable to withstand transport by currents. Typically, these are very small or microscopic organisms. There are two main types: PHYTOPLANKTON, which includes drifting... ... Scientific and technical encyclopedic dictionary

PLANKTON- PLANKTON, huh, husband. (specialist.). A collection of animal and plant organisms living in the water column and carried by the force of the current. | adj. planktonic, oh, oh. Ozhegov's explanatory dictionary. S.I. Ozhegov, N.Yu. Shvedova. 1949 1992 … Ozhegov's Explanatory Dictionary

Some species of fish and marine animals feed on plankton. They filter water through special organs that are capable of filtering out the smallest marine organisms in it. This is plankton. In fact, it is a collection of tiny organisms that live in the upper, sun-warmed layers of water. They move freely, obeying the will of the sea current.

Plankton includes microscopic plants and animals. We call plants phytoplankton, and animals zooplankton. Plankton should not be confused with betnos, which is represented by the inhabitants of the seabed. Plankton is divided into sea, river (potamoplankton) and lake (limpoplankton).

Phytoplankton cannot exist without sunlight, as they are represented by organisms that feed on photosynthesis. That is why it is present at shallow depths, no more than 100 meters. These are mainly diatoms. Zooplankton is luckier in this regard. It can be found at different depths.

The composition of sea and river plankton is different. The river is represented by copepods and rotifers. Marine plankton is much richer. It contains: crustaceans, shrimp, mysids, ciliates, radiolarians, jellyfish, ctenophores, mollusks, fish larvae, invertebrates, etc.

These creatures are very small. Their size is calculated in microns. The largest ones can reach several millimeters. Plankton, consisting of bacteria and tiny algae, is called neoplankton. The one in which rotifers, larvae and larger algae are present is called microplankton. Mesoplankton includes copepods and other animals no larger than one centimeter in size. Mysids, shrimp and jellyfish form the basis of macroplankton. There is also megaplankton, which is represented by ctenophores, large jellyfish such as cyanea, and fireflies.

Phytoplankton is necessary for those organisms that are capable of producing organic substances from inorganic ones. In turn, it is precisely due to these organic substances that certain species of animals can exist. A certain part of organic matter can also be produced by bottom plants, called photobenthos. In any case, the content of phytoplankton in water depends on its chemical composition and the presence of various useful substances in it, such as silicon, nitrogen and phosphates. Where there is a lot of phytoplankton, which feeds larger plankton, there is always a lot of marine animals. And, of course, seasonality affects the development of phytoplankton. In winter, due to the cold and lack of sunlight, there is always less of it. There is also less of it in northern latitudes, while in the tropical zone there is always an excess of it. Well, along with the development of phytoplankton, zooplankton also begins to develop. In other words, there is a close connection between all types of plankton.

We can observe the process of abundant development of phytoplankton in the form of water blooms. This is not always useful, as it is accompanied by the release of toxic substances, which cause mass deaths of fish and marine animals. This result, for example, can be caused by too high an ambient temperature.

As for plankton biomass, it depends on the type of reservoir and the season of the year. If we talk about phytoplankton, then in the ocean its biomass is approximately the same, and is in the region of several grams per cubic meter of water. Zooplankton is slightly larger, up to tens of grams per cubic meter. The deeper you go, the less plankton there is. By the level of plankton present in a reservoir, one can judge the degree of its pollution.

Plankton, which means “wandering” in Greek, is a collection of marine organisms that float in the waters and are unable to resist currents. Most of the members of this collection are very tiny plants - diatoms and some other types of algae, bacteria, protozoa, crustaceans, coelenterates and mollusks, fish eggs and larvae, and invertebrate larvae. However, among the passively floating ones there are also quite large objects - huge seaweed, giant jellyfish and even some fish, for example, the sunfish, whose weight reaches two tons, but which at the same time prefers not to move, applying muscular effort, but to soar in thicker than water or on the surface. Previously, such large representatives of flora and fauna were classified into a separate category - macroplankton.

Plankton is of great importance for marine life, as it serves as food for most animal species, directly or through links in the food chain.

Classification

There are several classifications of organisms that make up plankton. Scientists divide its inhabitants depending on species. So, there are zooplankton and ichthyoplankton. Phytoplankton refers to that part of free-floating organisms that are capable of photosynthesis. These include diatoms, dinoflagellates and other unicellular algae, as well as cyanobacteria. It is the excessive reproduction of phytoplankton that causes the phenomenon of water blooms.

Zooplankton is a collection of animals unable to resist the current. This includes heterotrophic protists and small crustaceans. The main part of the diet of zooplankton is phytoplankton, as well as their smaller counterparts. There is a special type of zooplankton – ichthyoplankton. This includes fish eggs and larvae, as well as the fish themselves, which swim solely at the will of the current.

Depending on their lifestyle, plankton are divided into holoplankton and meroplankton. Representatives of the first class spend their entire lives floating in the water column. Meroplankton include those organisms for which such an image is only an intermediate stage. These are the larvae and eggs of fish and multicellular invertebrates, as well as representatives of some algae. As meroplankton grow, they either settle to the bottom and begin to lead a bottom-dwelling lifestyle, or begin active swimming.

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Plankton plant. Interesting facts about plankton. The most diverse form of life and its economic value

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Plankton plant. Interesting facts about plankton. The most diverse form of life and its economic value

Classification

see also

See what “Plankton” is in other dictionaries:

Classification

see also

See what “Plankton” is in other dictionaries:

Classification

What else to read

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