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Why are phytoplankton so important to the ocean?
Phytoplankton are some of Earth’s most critical organisms and so it is vital study and understand them. They generate about half the atmosphere’s oxygen, as much per year as all land plants. Phytoplankton also form the base of virtually every ocean food web. In short, they make most other ocean life possible.
Why are planktons important to humans?
Through their birth, growth, death and decay, plankton create global carbon. Half of the oxygen bubbling out of phytoplankton is floating in the seas. Plankton are devoured in vast numbers and are the vital first link in the oceanic food chain. …
What are the most important phytoplankton?
In terms of numbers, the most important groups of phytoplankton include the diatoms, cyanobacteria and dinoflagellates, although many other groups of algae are represented. One group, the coccolithophorids, is responsible (in part) for the release of significant amounts of dimethyl sulfide (DMS) into the atmosphere.
Why do phytoplankton need to live in the ocean?
Phytoplankton obtain energy through the process of photosynthesis and must therefore live in the well-lit surface layer (termed the euphotic zone) of an ocean, sea, lake, or other body of water. Phytoplankton account for about half of all photosynthetic activity on Earth.
How does phytoplankton help the environment?
Primary Producers in the Ecosystem. Phytoplankton is the primary produce in the ecosystem.
Why is phytoplankton crucial to the ocean food chain?
The importance of phytoplankton is due largely to their place at the base of the marine food chain . Small fish and some larger species of fish and whales consume phytoplankton as their main food source. These fish then become prey for larger fish and marine mammals on up the chain.
What is plankton and why is it so important?
Plankton are the principal producers of atmospheric oxygen. The sea world of fish, the floor of corrals, the mollusks, eels, water snakes and millions of marine animals from worms to crabs to giant sea creatures depend on plankton. Plankton are devoured in vast numbers and are the vital first link in the oceanic food chain.