Plankton

Plankton are organisms that drift in water and cannot swim against prevailing currents. They include photosynthetic producers, animals, and organisms that spend only part of their lives drifting.

Phytoplankton: Photosynthetic plankton that produce organic matter using light and dissolved carbon dioxide. These drifting producers supply much of the energy entering marine food webs.
Diel vertical migration: A daily pattern in which aquatic organisms move vertically through the water column. Many zooplankton rise at night to feed and descend by day to reduce predation.
Ocean color: The color of ocean water as measured from its reflected light, shaped partly by particles and dissolved substances. Satellite ocean-color measurements estimate surface phytoplankton abundance through chlorophyll signals.
Carbon cycle: The movement of carbon among organisms, the atmosphere, oceans, rocks, and soils. Photosynthesis and sinking planktonic material move carbon through the ocean and atmosphere.
Zooplankton: Planktonic animals and animal-like organisms that feed on other organisms or organic matter. These consumers connect phytoplankton and microbes to larger aquatic animals.
Biological pump: The transfer of carbon from surface waters to the ocean interior through sinking particles and other processes. Plankton incorporate carbon into particles that can sink below the sunlit surface.
Chlorophyll-a: A photosynthetic pigment found in plants, algae, and cyanobacteria. Its concentration is widely used as an indicator of phytoplankton biomass.
Ocean acidification: The decrease in ocean pH caused mainly by seawater absorbing atmospheric carbon dioxide. Changing carbonate chemistry can affect plankton that build shells or skeletons from calcium carbonate.
Bacterioplankton: Bacteria and archaea that live suspended in water, including planktonic decomposers and producers. These microbes recycle dissolved nutrients and can also capture energy from sunlight or chemicals.
Marine snow: Sinking aggregates of organic matter and other particles in the ocean. Planktonic remains and waste contribute to this food source for deep-ocean life.

Linked from 43 pages