WA Ecology Plankton ENG HD

Plankton Research
Katja Philippart, scientist at NIOZ on Texel, takes us to the Balgzand in the western Wadden Sea, where the growth of algae is investigated. Algae are the base of the food web. From the numbered mussels on the research location is measured how much plankton they consume.By understanding more of this, the whole Wadden ecosystem is better understood.
Theme Ecology of the Wadden Academy www.waddenacade...
The Wadden Sea ecosystem is characterised by a system of tidal flats and barrier islands with extensive salt marshes. The Wadden Sea Area accounts for 60% of all the tidal areas in Europe and North Africa and provides a habitat for a very rich and varied flora and fauna. In 2009, the Dutch and German Wadden Sea Area were added to the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites.
As a coherent system, the Wadden Sea is more than an accumulation of separate populations. The Wadden system is based on biological, biogeochemical, climatological, hydraulic, geological and geomorphological components and processes. Not only trophic interactions (eating and being eaten in the food web) are important, but also interactions that occur via the environment (e.g. mud content being affected by organisms). These require a multidisciplinary approach within the natural sciences.
The Wadden Sea is an open system. Important exchanges of water, nutrients, mud and organic matter take place between the rivers and the coastal sea. The open structure requires a conceptual approach to the Wadden Sea as a link in the continuum from land to sea and not as a self-contained or isolated unit.