Plankton Vocab

3. Microscopic organisms that drift or float in aquatic environments.
4. Small animals that feed on phytoplankton or other zooplankton.
5. Zooplankton that remain in the planktonic phase throughout their entire life cycle.
6. A rapid increase in the population of planktonic organisms, often causing discoloration of the
8. Free-swimming aquatic organisms, such as fish and squid, capable of active movement.
11. Planktonic organisms that spend only a part of their life cycle as plankton.
13. Extremely small-sized plankton, smaller than microplankton.
15. Level The position an organism occupies in a food chain, indicating its feeding relationship
17. Pertaining to the bottom of a body of water; organisms living on or in the substrate.
18. Depth The depth in the water column where the rate of photosynthesis equals the rate of
19. A close and long-term interaction between different biological species.

1. Larger-sized plankton, visible under a microscope.
2. Microscopic, photosynthetic organisms that form the base of the aquatic food chain.
5. Planktonic organisms that spend their entire life cycle in the planktonic phase.
7. Tide A bloom of harmful, often toxic, phytoplankton that can lead to the discoloration of water.
9. A type of phytoplankton with a silica-based cell wall, often shaped like a glass shell. Copepods: Small crustaceans that are a common type of zooplankton.
10. other organisms.
12. Organisms that produce their own food through processes like photosynthesis.
14. Organisms that obtain their energy by consuming other organisms.
16. Unicellular algae that can be both phytoplankton and sometimes bioluminescent.