Marine coastal ecosystem

A community of organisms in nearshore seawater interacting with one another and with conditions such as tides, waves, salinity, and sediment.

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Intertidal zone: The shore area alternately covered and exposed by tides. Tidal exposure creates a distinctive nearshore habitat with steep physical gradients.
Tides: Periodic changes in sea level caused mainly by the Moon's and Sun's gravity. Tides control inundation, exposure, and water exchange across many nearshore habitats.
Fisheries: The harvesting and management of wild or farmed aquatic organisms. Nearshore habitats sustain species harvested by commercial and subsistence fisheries.
Eutrophication: Excess nutrient enrichment that can increase algal growth and deplete dissolved oxygen. Runoff can trigger blooms and oxygen loss in enclosed coastal waters.
Coral reef: A marine structure built largely from calcium-carbonate skeletons of reef-forming corals. Reefs are exceptionally diverse coastal habitats vulnerable to heat and water-quality stress.
Estuary: A coastal water body where river freshwater mixes with seawater. Changing salinity and nutrient inputs make estuaries characteristic coastal ecosystems.
Wave action: The movement and energy transferred through water by waves. Waves disturb shorelines, move sediment, and set limits on organism attachment.
Coastal protection: The reduction of shoreline erosion and flooding through natural or engineered barriers. Reefs, marshes, and other habitats can attenuate waves and stabilize shorelines.
Ocean acidification: The decline in ocean pH caused mainly by absorption of atmospheric carbon dioxide. Acidification can impair organisms that build calcium-carbonate shells or skeletons.
Mangrove forest: A coastal forest of salt-tolerant trees and shrubs rooted in tidal waters. Mangroves link terrestrial and marine food webs while trapping sediment along tropical coasts.