User:Annsli.Hilton/Marine habitats

Deep Sea

A small crab found stuck in a ghost net on the seafloor of Puget Sound.

Many Anthropogenic factors negatively affect deep sea organisms including trash pollution and chemical pollution. Plastic pollution in particular, is one of the greatest forms of uncontrolled human activity that is visible in our oceans today. Researchers in the Northwestern south China Sea recorded large plastic-dominated litter piles in submarine canyons. These durable plastics can diffuse into smaller organisms and are then inadvertently consumed by humans in the food we eat and water we drink. Another threat to organisms lurking in the deep ocean is ghost fishing, and bycatch. Ghost fishing is the term that refers to any abandoned fishing gear in the ocean that continues to entangle and trap marine organisms. Gill nets for example, have been recorded tangled around deep sea corals and continue ghost fishing for extended periods of time.

Sea Floor

Microplastics found in sediments on the seafloor.

Although many parts of the seafloor have yet to be explored, researchers have found that parts of it have been greatly affected by humanity. Bottom trawling, microplastic pollution, and industrial metals have slowly changed and altered the composition of the sea floor. Bottom trawling refers to a commercial deep sea fishing technique in which the equipment drags across the sea floor. This has had an adverse effect on the seafloor as it changes the surface structure and composition. In addition, microplastic pollution has become an increasing problem to the seafloor as plastics and other debris are found in many of the sediments. Due to the build up of litter, the habitats and environments of organisms on the seafloor are being impacted and changed. This includes industrial facilities dumping new metals and minerals, such as cadmium, onto the seafloor that change the chemical composition of the water and poison the inhabitants.

Mudflats

Flamingos looking for shrimp in a mudflat.

Mudflats are typically important regions for wildlife, supporting a large population, although levels of biodiversity are not particularly high. They are of particular importance to migratory birds as well as crabs, shrimp, and shellfish. These areas along the coast act as a nursery for these animals by providing an area for reproduction and feeding. The plant species located in mudflats have shown to be able to adapt easily to their constantly changing tidal levels by having buoyant seeds as well as larger seed sizes that has a narrow germination window that is triggered by different factors. In the United Kingdom mudflats have been classified as a Biodiversity Action Plan priority habitat. European countries such as France have also found it beneficial to use the Marine Influence Index (MII) to be able to monitor the responses to pollution the local plant and animal species may have as well as monitor any type of deviation from the natural patterns displayed previously.