An aquatic ecosystem is a community of organisms that live within a body of water such as freshwater system or a saltwater system. The application of understanding aquatic ecosystems is how species adapt and inhabit a specific body of water that they reside in and the role that different water systems play in the survival of these various species. It is also important to understand the biodiversity within aquatic ecosystems to recognize why and how a wide range of diverse species can maintain a healthy lifestyle in an aquatic system such as a freshwater lake or stream. How do different aquatic ecosystems function at different climates in various locations around the world? How do different species in aquatic ecosystems contribute to the overall
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Many aquatic ecosystems depend on energy flow from light or solar energy. Inputs and outputs of organic matter have been relatively minor in comparison to solar changes. The internalized view of aquatic ecosystems has endangered their overall metabolism of building up and breaking down of molecules (Fisher & Likens, 1973). Since energy flow to aquatic ecosystems is largely from solar energy, one question that is asked is, what role does UV-B radiation play in freshwater ecosystems? Increased UV-B radiation has been measured by temperature and polar latitudes and the high sensitivity of organisms living in freshwater ecosystems (Williamson, 1995). It is important to understand how these organisms can adapt and survive in these conditions. Favorable growth for organisms in freshwater lakes is only a few layers deep, with the increased radiation of the past decade, these conditions have not been beneficial to many of the organisms who live in close range to the surface of the lake. While solar energy is the main form for aquatic ecosystems, marine plankton allows the transfer of energy between different trophic levels in saltwater ecosystems (San Martin et al., 2006). Plankton plays a key role in oceanic changes as the primary biological sequestration of carbon out of the atmosphere into surface waters. Phytoplankton plays a huge role in the transfer of energy from solar energy to other organisms as the go up the trophic
Many aquatic ecosystems depend on energy flow from light or solar energy. Inputs and outputs of organic matter have been relatively minor in comparison to solar changes. The internalized view of aquatic ecosystems has endangered their overall metabolism of building up and breaking down of molecules (Fisher & Likens, 1973). Since energy flow to aquatic ecosystems is largely from solar energy, one question that is asked is, what role does UV-B radiation play in freshwater ecosystems? Increased UV-B radiation has been measured by temperature and polar latitudes and the high sensitivity of organisms living in freshwater ecosystems (Williamson, 1995). It is important to understand how these organisms can adapt and survive in these conditions. Favorable growth for organisms in freshwater lakes is only a few layers deep, with the increased radiation of the past decade, these conditions have not been beneficial to many of the organisms who live in close range to the surface of the lake. While solar energy is the main form for aquatic ecosystems, marine plankton allows the transfer of energy between different trophic levels in saltwater ecosystems (San Martin et al., 2006). Plankton plays a key role in oceanic changes as the primary biological sequestration of carbon out of the atmosphere into surface waters. Phytoplankton plays a huge role in the transfer of energy from solar energy to other organisms as the go up the trophic