Lesson content to follow.

Topic 1: Marine ecology and biodiversity

  • Identify biotic components of marine ecosystems (ie tropic levels, food chains, food webs, interactions and population dynamics.

  • Classify biotic interactions based on the following terms

    • symbiosis (parasitism, mutualism, commensalism and amensalism)

    • competition (intraspecific and interspecific)

    • predation

  • Identify and describe marine species using filed guys and identification keys (fish ID)

  • Identify organisms in trophic levels (producers, primary consumers, secondary consumers, tertiary consumers, decomposers)

  • Describe how matter cycles through food webs and the process of bioaccumulation

  • Describe the concept of population dynamics using the terms population size, density, abundance, distribution, carrying capacity, niche, K-strategists and R-strategists, keystone species

Topic 2: Abiotic components of the marine ecosystem

  • Describe abiotic components of the marine ecosystem: light availability, depth, stratification, temperature, currents (water and wind) tides, sediment, and nutrient availability.

  • Explain how marine ecosystems are influenced and limited by abiotic factors differently than terrestrial ecosystems due to the different chemical and physical properties of water

  • Describe the role of adaptation in enhancing a organisms survival in a specific marine environment.

Science inquiry

  • Investigate a local ecosystem to determine factors of population dynamics (density or distribution) and assess abiotic components;

    • estimating populations eg survey count, quadrats, species density, percentage coverage, indirect/direct observation

    • using field guides to identify to a genus level

    • using a range of field equipment to measure biotic factors related to marine environements

    • identify physical structures of a specific marine organism

  • Assess the limitation of a chosen field technique eg quadrat, transect.