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Some zooplankton are the larval
stages of other marine animals. For instance the
barnacle larvae lives amongst the plankton (pelagic
lifestyle), but its adult form is seen living
attached to rocks (benthic lifestyle). We call
this type of plankton ‘meroplankton’ because they
only spend a short period of their lives in the
plankton community. Look at the examples below:
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Look at this typical food chain diagram
opposite. You can see that phytoplankton form the
basis of the chain, which in turn are eaten by
zooplankton. At SAHFOS we study the distribution
and ecology of plankton communities. Plankton can
tell us a lot about what is happening in the
marine environment. Factors that contribute to
change in the plankton can have a knock on effect
on organisms that feed on them. Plankton can be
used as ‘biological indicators’ for the whole
marine environment. Animals that rely entirely on
plankton such as whale sharks and basking sharks
could be direct risk from factors affecting the
plankton communities.
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Plankton
Fact Sheet and try our Plankton
questions?
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Are the primary producers of the sea,
converting sunlight into energy/ food
just like plants on the land. They
are the start of almost all food chains
in the marine environment
Are the primary consumers of the sea, grazing
on the phytoplankton like sheep grazing
in a field. They are an important source
of food for many marine organisms.
