The Littoral Zone: The Intertidal Area
The Littoral Zone
The littoral zone, commonly referred to as the intertidal area, is where the land and water meet. It is rich in nutrients and oxygen and is home to a variety of organisms. The littoral zone provides some plants with the opportunity to complete their growth cycle, but the changing water level also brings about some environmental problems, such as soil erosion and biodiversity reduction (Chen).
The word littoral means shore. Therefore, the littoral zone of a pond is generally defined as the portion of the pond that is less than fifteen feet in from the shore and fairly shallow (Mahalo). In areas where the slope of the pond bottom is steep, the littoral zone may be narrow, extending several feet from the shoreline. …show more content…
Without the littoral zone, many plants and animals wouldn’t have a community to thrive in. Also, without these plants and animals living in this region, other plants and animals throughout the pond would not have the correct nutrients to survive off of.
Citations
"Aquatic Plant Guide." Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. Minnesota Department of Natural
Resources. Web. 02 Oct. 2011.
Chen, Zhongli, et al. "Design of the dike-pond system in the littoral zone of a tributary in the Three
Gorges Reservoir, China." Ecological Engineering 37.11 (2011): 1718+. Academic OneFile. Web. 2 Oct. 2011.
"Fisheries Lake Surveys." Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. Minnesota Department of
Natural Resources. Web. 02 Oct. 2011.
"Littoral Zone." Mahalo.com. Web. 02 Oct. 2011. http://www.mahalo.com/littoral-zone/.
"Marine Zones." MarineBio. MarineBio Conservation Society. Web. 02 Oct. 2011.
Miller, G. Tyler, and Scott Spoolman. Living in the Environment. AP Edition ed. Toronto: Nelson
Education, 2010. Print.
Simmons, Kent. "16biomes." Virtual Microscope Home Page. Web. 02 Oct.
The littoral zone, commonly referred to as the intertidal area, is where the land and water meet. It is rich in nutrients and oxygen and is home to a variety of organisms. The littoral zone provides some plants with the opportunity to complete their growth cycle, but the changing water level also brings about some environmental problems, such as soil erosion and biodiversity reduction (Chen).
The word littoral means shore. Therefore, the littoral zone of a pond is generally defined as the portion of the pond that is less than fifteen feet in from the shore and fairly shallow (Mahalo). In areas where the slope of the pond bottom is steep, the littoral zone may be narrow, extending several feet from the shoreline. …show more content…
Without the littoral zone, many plants and animals wouldn’t have a community to thrive in. Also, without these plants and animals living in this region, other plants and animals throughout the pond would not have the correct nutrients to survive off of.
Citations
"Aquatic Plant Guide." Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. Minnesota Department of Natural
Resources. Web. 02 Oct. 2011.
Chen, Zhongli, et al. "Design of the dike-pond system in the littoral zone of a tributary in the Three
Gorges Reservoir, China." Ecological Engineering 37.11 (2011): 1718+. Academic OneFile. Web. 2 Oct. 2011.
"Fisheries Lake Surveys." Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. Minnesota Department of
Natural Resources. Web. 02 Oct. 2011.
"Littoral Zone." Mahalo.com. Web. 02 Oct. 2011. http://www.mahalo.com/littoral-zone/.
"Marine Zones." MarineBio. MarineBio Conservation Society. Web. 02 Oct. 2011.
Miller, G. Tyler, and Scott Spoolman. Living in the Environment. AP Edition ed. Toronto: Nelson
Education, 2010. Print.
Simmons, Kent. "16biomes." Virtual Microscope Home Page. Web. 02 Oct.