This is the glossary of important terms for marine biology.
Marine Biology- Marine Biology is the study of marine organisms, their behaviors and interactions within the environment. When discussing marine, the term usually refers only to the ocean and what it entails. For the use of this site, we will alter it slightly to include waterways such as rivers like the Mississippi and lakes like Lake Superior. Marine biology can also include the study of chemical, physical, and geological oceanography.
Oceanography- Oceanography is the study of biological features of the ocean, both plants and animals, through the use of multiple branches of science. This term is very similar to marine biology. The main difference is marine biology is the organism while oceanography is the study of the organism.
Invasive Species- An invasive species is a non-native organism to the area they inhabit. This can cause immense trouble, both environmentally and economically due to a lack of predators and competition.
Global warming- Global warming is an unusually fast increase in Earth’s average surface temperature. This effect has been heavily studied over the past few decades, with the conclusion that a significant portion of warming is due to a higher amount of greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere by humans. About 90% of the heat is currently being absorbed by the ocean. This is bad because the marine environment is easily damaged with small temperature changes in a few degrees.
pollution- Pollution is when harmful products are released into the environment including chemicals, trash, plastic, and anything that may be toxic/cause harm. Some examples include the parcific garbage patch, smog, oil, and pesticides that are swept into rivers as runoff. All of these dangers are very harmful to marine life and do have detrimental effects on population levels as well as birth defects in animals.
Ocean current- Ocean currents are the constant movement of ocean water like a river. There is depth to the currents, but the surface and sea floor currents are most important for us. These currents can move millions of pounds of trash, fish and watever else ends up in it. These currents are caused by the fact that hot water wants to expand and cold water wants to contract. Therefore, warm water expands toward the poles, causing the water level to slightly decrease and cause water from the poles to flow towards the equater. There is a lot more to understand about currents, but this is the basics.
Microplastic- Microplastics are the result of constant breakdown of larger plastic pieces. They can, of course, be produced, but this is the most common way. Microplastics have become a bigger issue as plastic production has increased and plastic waste in the ocean has increased. This increase in plastic has led to plastic being incorporated into the food chain, such as fish and lobster. This issue has even spread into food that people eat.
Pesticide- Pesticides are a mix of substances that are used to kill pests, mostly insects that feed on the vegetation. These are very helpful to increase the yield of crops and the value per square foot of land. Pesticides can be harmful, especially if they end up in rivers and water supplies, which they do too commonly. They can also be harmful to other animals that drink the water.