Deck 25: Coastal and Wetland Ecosystems

Question 1

The littoral, or ________, zone of a rocky shoreline is submerged daily and is exposed by tides.

Answer 1

intertidal

Question 2

The part of a rocky shore in which barnacles, oysters, mussels, limpets, and brown algae are most common is called the

A)littoral, or intertidal zone.
B)infralittoral, or subtidal zone.
C)supralittoral, or supratidal zone.
D)superlittoral, or supertidal zone.

Answer 2

A

Question 3

The epifauna of sand and muddy beaches refers to organisms

A)living on the surface of sediments.
B)attached to grains of sand and mud.
C)migrating seasonally between the subtidal and intertidal zones.
D)living between particles of sand and mud.

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Tiny organisms living between the particles of sand and mud on beaches are collectively referred to as ________.

Question 5

In comparison to rocky coasts, intertidal organisms living on sandy or muddy beaches

A)experience greater variability in salinity.
B)experience greater variability in temperature.
C)are more likely to be attached to the substrate.
D)are more likely to move back and forth with the tides.

Question 6

Explain the different phenotypes observed in Spartina alternifolia.

Question 7

Freshwater wetlands dominated by emergent herbaceous vegetation are called ________.

Question 8

Organisms living on the sediment surface of sandy and muddy beaches are collectively referred to as ________.

Question 9

All coastal shores have one feature in common: they are alternately exposed and submerged by the ________.

Question 10

________ forests typically grow in the intertidal zone of tropical coasts where wave action is absent, sediments accumulate, and the muds are anoxic.

Question 11

In tidal pools

A)oxygen concentrations are usually greater during the day than during the night.
B)carbon dioxide concentrations are usually greater during the day than during the night.
C)salinity is usually greater during the night than during the day.
D)temperature is usually greater during the night than during the day.

Question 12

The duration, frequency, depth, and season of flooding of a freshwater period are collectively referred to as the ________.

Question 13

The ________ fringe occurs above the ocean along a rocky shoreline and is contacted by salt water only once every two weeks during spring tides.

Question 14

The root extensions of mangroves are called ________.

Question 15

Mangrove forests function as a bioshield. What does this mean?

Question 16

________ plants are adapted to grow in water or on soil that is periodically anaerobic because of excess water.

Question 17

Wetlands in which considerable amounts of water are retained by an accumulation of partially decayed organic matter are referred to as mires, or ________.

Question 18

Salt marshes

A)occur mostly in temperate latitudes.
B)are inhabited by plants that often have root extensions rising above the water.
C)are always submerged, except during the lowest of low tides.
D)are important nurseries for fishes.

Question 19

A salt ________ refers to a herbaceous plant community thriving in the intertidal zone, typically along the fringe of estuaries or in the shelter of spits, offshore bars, and islands along the coast at temperate latitudes.

Question 20

Seasonally flooded, forested wetlands along river systems are referred to as bottomlands, or ________ woodlands.

Question 21

Shoreline communities exhibit strong zonation.

Question 22

The roots of mangrove trees often have extensions called pneumatophores that facilitate oxygen absorption by the roots.

Question 23

Freshwater wetlands dominated by woody vegetation are referred to as

A)swamps.
B)marshes.
C)mangrove forests, or mangals.
D)prairie potholes.

Question 24

Peatlands differ from other wetlands in that

A)the rate of organic production exceeds the rate of decomposition.
B)there is no outflow of water, resulting in increasing salinities.
C)they are seasonal, filling with water during the wet season and drying out during the dry season.
D)they have a two-way flow of water due to tidal action.

Question 25

In rocky shore communities of the ocean, the supralittoral or supratidal zone is covered and uncovered daily by the tides.

Question 26

Bird and mammal predators are more common in salt marshes during low tide than during high tide.

Question 27

Most organisms in the intertidal zone of sandy shores burrow into the sand.

Question 28

Bogs formed when a lake basin fills in from above rather than from below, creating a floating mat of peat over open water, are called

A)fens.
B)blanket mires.
C)moors.
D)quaking bogs.

Question 29

Salt marshes occur mostly below the intertidal zone and are exposed only during very low tides.

Question 30

In salt marshes, predatory fish move in when

A)the tide is high.
B)migratory fishes are spawning.
C)the sun goes down.
D)salinity is low.

Question 31

Reeds, sedges, grasses, and cattails typically grow in freshwater

A)marshes.
B)swamps.
C)riparian woodlands.
D)peatlands, or mires.

Question 32

In tidal pools, carbon dioxide concentrations are higher during the day than during the night.

Question 33

The hydroperiod of a wetland is longest for

A)riverine wetlands.
B)basin wetlands.
C)fringe wetlands.
D)coastal wetlands.

Question 34

Intertidal mud flats in tropical regions are typically comprised of

A)salt marshes.
B)peatlands.
C)mangrove forests, or mangals.
D)oysterbeds.

Question 35

The soils of mangrove forests are rich in oxygen due to bioturbation of organisms living within the soils.

Question 36

Salinity is more variable in the intertidal zone of rocky shores than in sandy and muddy shores.

Question 37

The initial factor which set about the decline of Coote's Paradise Marsh in Lake Ontario was ________.

A)wind action leading to high turbidity
B)the loss of emergents due to high water levels
C)algal blooms due to sewage discharge
D)predation by carp

Question 38

The diversity of organisms is greater in the intertidal zone of rocky shores than in sandy and muddy shores.

Question 39

The meiofauna of a sandy beach refers to organisms living on the surface of sediments.

Question 40

Mangrove swamps

A)are formed by a single species of tree adapted to variable salinities.
B)have relatively anoxic soils.
C)occur mostly in temperate latitudes.
D)typically occur along rocky coastlines subjected to heavy wave action.

Question 41

Name three ecological zones within a rocky shore and discuss the different forms of life that occur in each.

Question 42

Hydrophytic plants grow in water or on soil that is periodically anoxic due to excess water.

Question 43

Because bogs depend on precipitation for nutrient inputs, they are highly deficient in mineral salts and are low in pH.

Question 44

Wetlands dominated by emergent herbaceous vegetation are called swamps.

Question 45

In peatlands, the rate of decomposition exceeds the rate of organic production.

Question 46

Discuss the flow of water and nutrients in three topographic types of wetlands.

Question 47

Wetlands subjected to a long hydroperiod support more submerged and deep-water emergents than wetlands with a shorter hydroperiod.

Question 48

Riverine wetlands usually have a longer hydroperiod than basin wetlands.

Question 49

Answer: See the 17 interacting components in Figure 25.22. No, it will not recover on its own as it has reached an alternative stable state.
Type: ES
Topic: Section 25.8
For what reasons have humans drained wetlands in the past, and what valuable services are we losing when we drain a wetland?

Question 50

Riverine wetlands act as natural flood-control reservoirs.

Question 51

Describe the effects of tides on the composition of animal communities in salt marshes.

Question 52

Discuss the adaptations of mangrove trees to their environment.

Question 53

Compare the physical conditions to which intertidal organisms must be adapted to in sandy and rocky shores.

Question 54

Outline the interacting components that have led to the degradation of the Coote's Paradise Marsh in Lake Ontario. Can it recover?