Life in the ocean

Shelf seas

Shelf seas are the coastal waters surrounding every continent, and are typically shallow: in cartography, their boundaries are marked where the wat...

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280,000 square kilometers beneath the ocean

Coral reefs are among the most spectacular eco-systems on the planet. They span the globe in the tropical waters of every sea in the world covering...

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Rock on the shore

Nobody would suspect the special species diversity and population density to be found on coasts with soft, sandy or muddy soils, like the tidal flats.

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Mangroves – masters of survival on salty ground

Nowhere else do sea and land organisms share the same habitat to such a great extent as in the mangrove swamps of the tropical and subtropical coas...

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Kelp beds and sea grass meadows

As on land, primary production by photosynthesis is the driving force that sustains life in the sea. But unlike on land, where vegetation dominates...

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