Deep Sea
Sunlight cannot reach this ocean zone, where deep-sea ecosystems exist.
What is the aphotic zone?
These vents are found along mid-ocean ridges where tectonic plates are spreading.
Answer: What are hydrothermal vents?
What are hydrothermal vents?
This is the flat, deep-ocean floor region that covers much of the ocean’s surface.
What is the abyssal plain?
Organisms in the deep sea often use this process to produce light, which helps with communication or hunting.
What is bioluminescence?
Hydrothermal vent ecosystems rely on this process, performed by bacteria, instead of photosynthesis.
What is chemosynthesis?
Abyssal plains are covered with this type of sediment, made from the remains of tiny marine organisms and dust.
What is pelagic sediment or marine snow?
This giant deep-sea predator has large teeth and can swallow prey bigger than its head.
What is the anglerfish?
This mineral-rich substance is often expelled by hydrothermal vents and forms chimney-like structures.
What is sulfide (black smoker)?
he depth range where most abyssal plains are found, in meters.
What is 3,000–6,000 meters?
Deep-sea fish have adaptations such as slow metabolism and flabby bodies to survive in this extreme condition.
What is high pressure?
This type of animal, often found near vents, hosts bacteria in its body to convert chemicals into energy.
What are tubeworms?
These features, often rising from abyssal plains, are formed by volcanic activity or tectonic uplift.
What are seamounts?
Some deep-sea species migrate vertically each day to feed closer to the surface in a behavior called this.
What is diel vertical migration?
Hydrothermal vent communities can thrive despite extreme conditions like high temperature and this chemical property of vent fluids.
What is toxicity or high acidity?
Despite extreme conditions, abyssal plains host life forms, including this type of organism that can survive on limited food.
What are scavengers or deposit feeders?