The aquatic biome is the largest of all the biomes, covering about 75 percent of Earth’s surface. This biome is usually divided into two categories: freshwater and marine. Typically, freshwater habitats are less than 1 percent salt. Marine life, however, has to be adapted to living in a habitat with a high concentration of salt. Freshwater habitats include ponds, lakes, rivers, and streams, while marine habitats include the ocean and salty seas. Show
Ponds and lakes are both stationary bodies of freshwater, with ponds being smaller than lakes. The types of life present vary within lakes and ponds. In the shallow, sunny waters there is an abundance of life, such as various species of fish. In the deep, dark waters, however, decomposers thrive. Rivers and streams are moving bodies of freshwater. The water in a river or stream is largely made up of runoff from sources such as melting glaciers or rainwater. Rivers and streams usually empty into a lake or the ocean. At the beginning of a fast-moving river or stream, the water is clear and oxygen is abundant. As the water flows, however, it may pick up debris, making the river or stream increasingly cloudy. Oxygen levels may subsequently be affected. The ocean is a large body of saltwater that spans most of Earth’s surface. Like ponds and lakes, life in the ocean is adapted to certain regions of the water. For example, the deepest parts of the ocean are too dark to support photosynthesis, but many creatures still manage to survive here. In these regions, the food chain is based on bacteria that perform chemical reactions to obtain energy, also called chemosynthesis. In shallow ocean waters, coral reefs can form. These structures look like shelves of rock, but they are actually made of living animals, called corals, with a calcium carbonate skeleton. Coral reefs are incredibly diverse, hosting over a thousand species of fish. Currently, coral reefs are in danger due to human-caused climate change, which has led to the ocean growing hotter and more acidic. Estuaries are regions where freshwater and ocean water mix. Life in estuaries must be adapted to this mixture of saltwater and freshwater. Estuaries are home to many species of fish and shellfish, as well as several species of migratory birds that depend on estuaries for a place to nest and raise their young. The key difference between terrestrial and aquatic biomes is that terrestrial biomes are based on land, while aquatic biomes include both ocean and freshwater biomes. Biomes are large ecological areas found on the Earth’s surface. In fact, they are specific geographical areas, but their boundaries are not sharply defined. Hence, there are transition zones between them. They may include many ecosystems comprising distinct biological communities and a variety of habitats. Biomes are crucial for the survival of living organisms. They can be classified based on the climate, plants, and animals. There are two major groups of biomes as terrestrial and aquatic biomes. However, there are nine different types of biomes: tropical rainforest, temperate forests, boreal forests, grassland, freshwater, marine, desert, taiga, and tundra. Desert, taiga, tundra, grassland, and forests are terrestrial biomes, while aquatic biomes include ocean and freshwater biomes. Aquatic biome is the largest biome in the world since it contains five major oceans. CONTENTS1. Overview and Key Difference What are Terrestrial Biomes?Terrestrial biomes are large geographic areas based on land. Specifically, the main types of terrestrial biomes present in the world are forests, taiga, tundra, grasslands, and deserts. Forests can be tropical rain forests, temperate forests or boreal forests. Grasslands can be savanna grasslands or temperate grasslands. Moreover, desert biomes can be hot and dry deserts, semi-arid deserts, coastal deserts, and cold deserts. The arctic tundra and the alpine tundra are the two main tundra biomes.  Figure 01: Terrestrial Biomes in the World Terrestrial biomes sustain living organisms by providing foods, enriching the air with oxygen and absorbing carbon dioxide and other harmful gasses from the air. Moreover, they help in the regulation of the climate. What are Aquatic Biomes?Aquatic biomes are the large water-based ecological areas. There are two main types of aquatic biomes. They are freshwater biomes and marine biomes. Freshwater biomes include lakes, ponds, rivers and streams, and freshwater wetlands, while marine biomes include oceans, coral reefs, kelp forests, and estuaries. Compared to terrestrial biomes, aquatic biomes are the largest since they include oceans. Millions of fish species live in aquatic biomes. Figure 02: Aquatic Biome – Kelp Forest Besides, aquatic biomes are vital for the occurrence of the water cycle. Furthermore, aquatic biomes play a crucial role in regulating and forming the climate. What are the Similarities Between Terrestrial and Aquatic Biomes?
Terrestrial biomes are the large geographic areas which are land-based. In contrast, aquatic biomes are the large geographical areas which are water-based. So, this is the key difference between terrestrial and aquatic biomes. Furthermore, forests, grasslands, deserts, taiga, and tundra are the main types of terrestrial biomes, while freshwater, marine water, freshwater wetlands, estuaries, coral reefs, and kelp forests are the main types of aquatic biomes. Terrestrial biomes provide food for living organisms, release oxygen, and absorb carbon dioxide from the air and regulate the climate. Meanwhile, aquatic biomes provide a home for millions of fish species and help in the regulation of water cycle and climate formation. Thus, this is another crucial difference between terrestrial and aquatic biomes. Also, compared to terrestrial biomes, aquatic biomes are larger. Below infographic tabulates the difference between terrestrial and aquatic biomes. Summary – Terrestrial vs Aquatic BiomesA biome is a specific geographical area defined by the type of flora and fauna that live in it. Within each biome, we can often find a similar climate, animals, and plants. There are land-based biomes known as terrestrial biomes as well as water-based aquatic biomes including oceanic and freshwater. Terrestrial biomes provide food and habitats for living organisms. Moreover, they release oxygen to the air and absorb carbon dioxide and other harmful gases from the atmosphere, making it suitable for living organisms. Aquatic biomes, on the other hand, provide homes for fish species and play a critical role in the formation of climate and regulation of the water cycle. So, this summarizes the difference between terrestrial and aquatic biomes. Reference:1. National Geographic Society. “Biome.” National Geographic Society, 9 Oct. 2012, Available here. Image Courtesy:1. “Vegetation” By Ville Koistinen (user Vzb83) – the blank world map in Commons and WSOY Iso karttakirja for the information (CC BY-SA 3.0) via
Commons Wikimedia What is the major difference between the two aquatic ecosystems?Science | Scholastic.com. There are two main types of aquatic ecosystems: freshwater and saltwater. The main difference between these two ecosystems is, you guessed it, saltiness. Oceans, rivers, swamps, bogs, and streams are all aquatic ecosystems.
What are the main differences in the aquatic biomes?The aquatic biome is divided into freshwater and marine regions. Freshwater regions, such as lakes and rivers, have a low salt concentration. Marine regions, such as estuaries and the ocean, have higher salt concentrations.
What are the two major aquatic biomes?The aquatic biome can be broken down into two basic areas, freshwater (i.e, ponds and rivers) and marine (i.e, oceans and estuaries).
What is the biggest difference between the aquatic biomes?The key difference between terrestrial and aquatic biomes is that terrestrial biomes are based on land, while aquatic biomes include both ocean and freshwater biomes.
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What is the major difference between the two aquatic biomes?
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